Old tech connects Egyptian protestors

Fax machines, ham radio and dial-up modems are helping to avoid the Internet block imposed on Egypt, reports the BBC.

On 27 January, Egypt fell off the Internet as virtually all international connections were cut following an order from the government.

But older technologies proved their worth as Internet activists and protesters used them to get round the block. Protesters are also circulating information about how to avoid communication controls inside Egypt.

UK mobile phone operator O2 has opted to modernise its radio network and improve capacity, coverage and performance using Nokia Siemens Networks' technology, writes Computing.co.uk.

The three-year deal means Nokia Siemens Networks will provide around two-thirds of O2's 3G access network in the UK, covering the south of England.

Under the contract, Nokia Siemens Networks will supply its Flexi Multiradio Base Station, Radio Network Controller and its NetAct network management system.

Google has open-sourced its internal software for deploying Mac OS X packages across a network, notes The Register.

Known as Simian, the platform was built after Google's Mac Operations and Security teams evaluated several Mac package deployment tools and failed to find one that suited their needs.

After alleged Chinese hackers broke into Google's internal systems in December 2009, reports indicated the company had decided to abandon Windows machines entirely and move its entire staff to Mac and Linux machines.

Oracle has agreed to pay $46 million to settle a lawsuit over alleged kickbacks to win government work, says the Associated Press.

The US Department of Justice charged that Sun Microsystems, which Oracle bought last year, and other technology companies paid kickbacks to Accenture PLC for Accenture to recommend that federal agencies buy Sun products.

The department said last year that the lawsuit covered software contracts that ran from 1998 to 2006, and were worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Six other companies, including Hewlett-Packard, have settled similar charges.