Sun's Schwartz hints at GPLv3 for Solaris

The first draft of version 3 of the General Public License caused controversy last week when criticisms emerged on the Linux kernel mailing list from none other than Linus Torvalds. But it appears version 3 has found some new friends, even if its old mates are now looking askance at it. Sun Microsystem's president Jonathan Schwartz wrote in his blog that he would consider 'the possibility of releasing Solaris (and potentially the entire Solaris Enterprise System), under dual open source licenses' - one of which would be GPLv3. ...more

Beijing officials not amused by online Olympic pranks

After a rash of spoof images and videos appear on the Internet, Beijing organizers have threatened legal action against those who poke fun at official Olympic symbols. An image of the 2008 Olympic emblem 'Dancing Beijing' circulated on Chinese Websites and chat-rooms this week - the original symbol of a human figure in motion morphed into 'male' and 'female' symbols commonly seen on public toilet doors. The 2008 Olympic mascots - cartoon representations of four animals and the Olympic flame - were also targeted, their heads replaced by Japanese cartoon heroes, Chinese pop idol finalists and celebrity footballers, including David Beckham. ...more

Google lands contract to build wireless San Francisco

Search engine Google along with partner ISP EarthLink has landed the contract to provide a wireless network to cover the whole of the City of San Francisco. The 'Goolink WiFi' network will provide a 300Kbps free service, which will be subsidised by advertising. Alternatively, the network will offer a 1Mbps ad-free subscription service costing $20 a month. ...more

BT and Broadreach agree WiFi hotspot roaming agreement

Two of the UK's leading WiFi hotspot suppliers have signed a roaming agreement that will allow their subscribers to use each others' networks. Users will have equal access to BT Openzone's 1,500 hotspots and Broadreach Networks' 350 access points across the UK, in locations as diverse as BAA Airports, Hilton Hotels, Travelodge, Ramada Jarvis Hotels, railway stations, Virgin Megastores, McDonald's flagship and drive-thru restaurants, PC World stores, Little Chefs and Moto and RoadChef service stations. As a result of this and other similar agreements, Openzone subscribers now have use of some 7,800 hotspots nationwide. ...more

Imation intros water-resistant printing on Blu-ray discs

Imation has introduced what it claims to be the world's first inkjet printable and water-resistant Blu-ray disc. The single, layer, 25GB BD-R media features Imation's nanoparticle AquaGuard technology that enables the printing of water- and smear-resistant graphics and text onto the disc's 'brilliant white' surface. 'We've designed each side of the disc for professional use,' said James Milligan, general manager, Commercial/OEM Division, Imation. ...more