HP plans to slow Net worms

Hewlett-Packard is working on software that it says could slow the spread of Internet-borne worms and viruses, AP reports.

Researchers at the company say the new "virus-throttling" software would not destroy major worm threats, but would rather blunt the effect of viruses by identifying and alerting technicians to suspicious behaviour.

If the software suspects that a computer is infected with a self-propagating worm, it severely limits some of the computer`s functions, says HP CTO Tony Redmond. "Any worm or virus that depends on its ability to spread itself will be hurt by this technology."

No one outside HP has tested the software yet.

A new Netscape Web browser that is based on the open source Firefox Web browser will also support Microsoft`s Internet Explorer (IE).

According to Computerworld, most Web sites are designed to work specifically with the Microsoft browser - which controls around 90% of the market - and may not work correctly in browsers using other engines, including the Gecko engine in Firefox.

On America Online`s Netscape browser, the user can display the page using the IE engine if a Web site doesn`t display well in the standard Firefox-based configuration in two clicks. The browser then stores engine preferences for each Web site.

The Netscape browser doesn`t include the Internet Explorer engine but uses the engine that is part of Windows. As such, the browser works only on Windows computers.

America Online released a preview of the Netscape browser yesterday.

Japanese mobile operators are now offering stereo-quality songs for users not yet satisfied with the existing glut of ringtone choices.

According to Reuters, users will also be able to download surround-sound systems that trick users into hearing a bell ringing behind them or a ball whizzing by.

Mobile phone carriers and handset makers around the world are scrambling to add music player ability with phones, but Japanese operators are also focusing on improving the quality of the sound itself, says NTT DoCoMo multimedia services department manager Yoshiaki Maeda.

"There`s no question that music is one of the most popular contents. It gets the largest share of revenues. We`re very particular about the quality of the sound."