That IBM Sex Addict

Surprisingly (or not, as you wish) there's not a lot of sympathy for the IBM sex addict.

A man fired by IBM for visiting an adult chat room during work hours has sued Big Blue for $5 million, claiming he's an Internet addict who deserves treatment and understanding rather than a pink slip.

But bloggers are expressing little sympathy for 58-year-old James Pacenza, who says he visits chat rooms to distract himself from the lingering stress of seeing his best friend killed during a 1969 Army patrol in Vietnam. Pacenza, according to the Associated Press, said the trauma caused him to become "a sex addict, and with the development of the Internet, an Internet addict." He is claiming protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

If this man is claiming that seeing a friend killed turned him into a sex addict well, shouldn't he be seeing a psychiatrist? I mean, I know you can find most things out on the net but necrophilia? 

Nine Billion Spams

Someone was arrested after sending nine billion spam emails:

A Dutch spammer who used compromised PCs to spamvertise web sites has been fined €75,000 ($97,000) by Opta, the Netherlands telecoms regulator

The man - named only as Mr X - used 600-700 compromised PCs to send about nine billion spam messages promoting penis pills, pornographic websites and other assorted tat. X's 14-month junk mail campaign reportedly earned him an estimated € 40,000 before he was collared in November 2005.

However, he didn't stop because he got caught, no, markets took care of him before the law:

Opta said Microsoft has assisted in its investigation. In mitigation, X argued that he had stopped spamming by the time he was arrested - not because he realised his activities were wrong, but because he "simply wasn't earning enough money".

 

Technorati tags: spam, microsoft, spammer

SCO Group

The Unix company everyone loves to hate is promising to stick around for another year:

The SCO Group has promised to stick around for at least another year.

The Unix software maker this week dished out a year-end filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission detailing its financial state. Things continue to look grim for SCO as it burns through cash and suffers from dwindling software sales. Still, SCO thinks it can maintain a fine financial line, despite claims from rival Novell that bankruptcy is near.

I'd expect them to stay in business as long as they possibly can: they're suing half the universe for breach of their copyrights and patents and must be hoping for a possible big payoff down the line.

 

Technorati tags: SCO, Unix, Novell, Linux

Cardspace

What is it with this company? Half of what they produce doesn't work and the other half we don't want or is worse than we already have?

 

Microsoft has a new security product, Cardspace. The aim is to do for online credit card transactions what chip and pin have done for cardholder present frauds.

A major card issuer is preparing to announce its support for Microsoft's new identity security system, Cardspace, in the new year, along with "a major consumer retail site", Microsoft said this week.

The company is also at the early stages of working out how the technology could be used to secure the UK's Government Gateway for tax and VAT filings.

Cardspace, the brainchild of Microsoft's Kim Cameron and others, is the latest proposal from Redmond for how to solve the problem of securing identity online. (It is bundled in Vista, and XP users can get hold of it through the automatic updates.)

Microsoft says the system will do for online credit card fraud what chip and PIN has done for cardholder present fraud. In a country where an estimated five per cent of all online transactions are fraudulent, that could have a significant impact.

As the major effect of chip and pin has been to put the onus of paying for a fraud onto the card holder rather than the bank, this Cardspace system might not be an unalloyed blessing.

 

Technorati tags: Microsoft, Cardspace, Credit Card

Nokia 8265

The Nokia 8265 is a mobile phone for the US market.

Details and specs are as follows:

Mobile Messaging
	E-mail, text and picture messages 1
	Predictive text input
	9 picture messages

Organization
	Phonebook has up to 250 names and numbers
	Calendar with up to 50 entries
	Alarm clock with snooze
	Calculator

Personalization & Fun
	User-changeable front and back color covers and keypads
	Download up to 10 ring tones 1
	Caller groups for easy caller identification
	Three games: Snake II, Space Impact and Pairs II

Specifications
	Weight: 3.8 ounces
	Internal antenna
	Internal vibrating alert
	4.21 inches long x .87 inch thick x 1.88 inches wide
	Hearing aid support with the LPS-3 Loopset

Service
	TDMA 800/1900 MHz, AMPS 800 mHz

8265 Battery Life
	Extended Li-Ion Battery 900mAh
		-- Digital Talk Time up to 3.5 hours*
		-- Digital Standby Time up to 6.5 days*
		-- Analog Talk Time up to 1.5 hours*
		-- Analog Standby Time up to 45 hours*

For further information please go to the Nokia 8265 web page.