IT Week Insider: Volume 10, Number 31

This week the Insider was put together by a focus group of individuals who were hand-picked for their inability to get along, or agree on anything, with anyone. You should have been in the lift on the way up to the office. "I said fifth floor", "but the meeting is on the second", etc etc. Great fun!

In case you were wondering, deciding what content to use in this email did take a very long time, and was only resolved once every participant bar one had left the offices. When that happened, we pulled the monkeys out of a sack, and… well, let's just say that the monkeys have ways of making people see their point of view. Horrible and ugly, but very effective ways.

So, this is what the focus group selected once they were taken out of the equation, and we once again surrendered control to the belligerent primates. Will we never learn?

News
VMware to run Windows on Macs
Virtualisation pioneer VMware will on Monday release the Fusion product that lets Macs run Windows applications, without losing that precious Apple look and feel. How the passionate users in both camps will relate to this new innovation remains to be seen. Could a Mac user still profess to hating Windows apps when they look like Mac ones? Or is that sentence just too confusing to bother with at all?

More news
Mobile WiMax will face a tough test
In an attempt to prove fourth-generation (4G) technology, demonstrate demand for WiMax services and attract venture capital funding, service provider Urban Wimax has launched a “cross-market” collaboration with hardware supplier Nortel to pre-test suitable mobile WiMax infrastructure solutions. A wholly benevolent act, and no mistake.

This is news also
Thus offers new call recording service
Business telecoms provider Thus has launched a new online call recording product designed to give large firms call centre functionality without the associated overheads. We don’t know whether it can keep you on hold for hours at a time and then repeatedly ask you your mother's maiden name. But if it is going to properly ape the call centre experience then these should have been high in the development priorities.

Comment
Kewney: How I invented Java
Our bearded wonder Guy Kewney continues his romp through the IT industry that he has watched for longer than most of us have watched Neighbours. This week, Guy reveals how he managed to kind of invent Java. By accident. Next week; the wheel!
Analysis
Crossing the language barrier
Martin Veitch has taken a look at some of the issues involved in globalising your web site, and translating content and copy for an international audience. To give you an idea of what some of those issues are, here is a free online translation of that first sentence – from English to French, and then back again: “Martin Veitch threw a glance with some of the exits implied by generalising your web site, and by translating the contents and the copy for an international assistance.” Erm…

IT Week Podcast
This week, James Murray and Phil Muncaster discuss the challenges that the new minister in charge of ID cards will face. We imagine that said challenges will be a bit tougher than, "Mum…… have you seen my ID card…?"

IT Week Labs blog
IT Week Executive Editor Martin Veitch tries out a USB 3G modem for laptops. This is a relief, we were wondering where he had been. At least we now know that he had an excuse to be out of the office.

Lem Bingley blog
Lem Bingley gives us all advice on investing in new technologies. Not us, you. We don’t invest in anything. Well, other than the occasional lunch.

Green Business News
For the first time ever the Green Business Blog introduces its word of the week. This week that privilege falls to Negawatt. Which is sure to catch on, once the kids get hold of it. 

IT Sneak blog
This week Elton John and P Diddy come wandering into Sneak's sights. What a dinner party that would be. To avoid.