wal-mart fights back at accusers two big us names have launched advertising campaigns to  set the record straight  about their products and corporate behaviour.  the world s biggest retailer wal-mart took out more than 100 full page adverts in national newspapers. the group is trying to see off criticism over it pay deals  benefits package and promotion strategy. meanwhile  drugs group eli lilly is planning a campaign against  false  claims about its product prozac. wal-mart kicked off the battle with adverts in newspapers like the wall street journal  using an open letter from company president lee scott saying it was time for the public to hear the  unfiltered truth .   there are lots of  urban legends  going around these days about wal-mart  but facts are facts. wal-mart is good for consumers  good for communities and good for the us economy   mr scott said in a separate statement.  its adverts - and a new website - outlined the group s plans to create more than 10 000 us jobs in 2005. wal-mart s average pay is almost twice the national minimum wage of $5.15 (£3.90) an hour  while employees are offered health and life insurance  company stock and a retirement plan  the adverts say. unions accuse wal-mart of paying staff less than its rivals do  with fewer benefits. in california  the company is fighting opposition to new stores amid allegations it forces local competitors out of business. lawmakers in the state are also examining allegations that the firm burdens the state with an unfair proportion of employee health care costs.  i think they are going to have a tough time suddenly overcoming the perceptions of some people   said larry bevington  chairman of save our community - a group fighting to prevent wal-mart opening a store in rosemead  california. wal-mart is also fighting two lawsuits - one accusing it of discriminating against women and another alleging it discriminates against black employees.  meanwhile eli lilly is launching a series of adverts in a dozen major newspapers  to present what is says are the true facts about its anti-depressant drug prozac.  the move is in response to a british medical journal article that claimed  missing  lilly documents linked prozac to suicide and violent behaviour. in the averts  entitled an open letter from chief executive sidney taurel  the company says the article continues to  needlessly spread fear among patients who take prozac .  it was simply wrong to suggest that information on prozac was missing  or that important research data on the benefits and possible side effects of the drug were not available to doctors and regulators   the letter added. eli lilly s chief medical officer alan breier said that the article was  false and misleading  as the documents it referred to were actually created by officials at the us food and drug administration (fda) and presented to an fda meeting in 1991. later  fda medical advisors agreed the claims were based on faulty data and there was no increased risk of suicide.


blogs take on the mainstream web logs or blogs are everywhere  with at least an estimated five million on the web and that number is set to grow.  these online diaries come in many shapes and styles  ranging from people willing to sharing their views  pictures and links  to companies interested in another way of reaching their customers. but this year the focus has been on blogs which cast a critical eye over news events  often writing about issues ignored by the big media or offering an eye-witness account of events. most blogs may have only a small readership  but communication experts say they have provided an avenue for people to have a say in the world of politics. the most well-known examples include iraqi salam pax s accounts of the us-led war  former iranian vice-president mohammad ali abtahi exclusive insight into the islamic republic s government  and the highs and lows of the recent us election campaign. there are already websites pulling together these first-hand reporting accounts heralded by blogs  like wikinews.com  launched last november.  the blogging movement has been building up for many years.  andrew nachison  director of the media center  a us-based think-tank that studies media  technology and society  highlights the us presidential race as a possible turning point for blogs.  you could look at that as a moment when audiences exercised a new form of power  to choose among many more sources of information than they have never had before   he says.  and blogs were a key part of that transformation.  among them were blogs carrying picture messages  saying  we are sorry  for george w bush s victory and the responses from his supporters. mr nachison argues blogs have become independent sources for images and ideas that circumvent traditional sources of news and information such as newspapers  tv and radio.  we have to acknowledge that in all of these cases  mainstream media actually plays a role in the discussion and the distribution of these ideas   he told the bbc news website.  but they followed the story  they didn t lead it.   some parts of the so-called traditional media have expressed concerns about this emerging competitor  raising questions about the journalistic value of blogs.  others  like the french newspaper le monde  have applied a different strategy  offering blogs as part of its content.  i don t think the mission and role of journalism is threatened. it is in transition  as society itself is in transition   says mr nachison. however  he agrees with other experts like the linguist and political analyst noam chomsky  that mainstream media has lost the traditional role of news gatekeeper.  the one-to-many road of traditional journalism  yes  it is threatened. and professional journalists need to acclimate themselves to an environment in which there are many more contributors to the discourse   says mr nachison.  the notion of a gatekeeper who filters and decides what s acceptable for public consumption and what isn t  that s gone forever.   with people now walking around with information devices in their pockets  like camera or video phones  we are going to see more instances of ordinary citizens breaking stories.   it seems unlikely that we will end up living in a planet where every human is a blogger.  but the current number of blogs is likely to keep on growing  in a web already overloaded with information. blog analysis firm technorati estimates the number of blogs in existence  the so-called blogosphere  has already exceeded five million  and is growing at exponential levels. tools such as google s blogger  movabletype and the recently launched beta version of msn spaces are making it easier to run a blog. us research think-tank pew internet & american life says a blog is created every 5.8 seconds  although less than 40% of the total are updated at least once every two months. but experts agree that the phenomenon  allowing individuals to publish  share ideas  exchange information  comment on current issues  post images or video on the web easily  is here to stay.  we are entering one era in which the technological infrastructure is creating a different context for how we tell our stories and how we communicate with each other   said mr nachison.  and there s going to be bad that comes with the good.


venezuela identifies  idle  farms venezuelan authorities have identified more than 500 farms  including 56 large estates  as idle as it continues with its controversial land reform policy.  under a 2001 land law  the government can tax or seize unused farm sites. a further 40 000 farms are yet to be inspected  the state s national land institute has told associated press. vice president jose vicente rangel has said farmers and ranchers with their titles in order and their lands productive have  nothing to fear.  critics of the land reform policy claim president hugo chavez is trying to enforce a communist-style economic programme that ignores property rights and will damage the country. land owners claim the national land institute has made mistakes in classifying lands as public or private.  but the government - venezuela s largest land owner - say they are proceeding cautiously to prevent conflicts. in a statement  mr rangel said the land reform is not against the constitution  which permits private property  while stressing the efforts are to  vindicate social and economically  years of inequality in the country.  one property in conflict with the government is the el charcote cattle ranch  run by agroflora  a subsidiary of the uk food group vestey. agriculture minister arnoldo marquez told reuters news agency the site s documents  do not guarantee that this is a private land . administrators of the ranch  however  have complained that pro-chavez squatters have taken over 80% of the property in the last four years  and the uk government has asked venezuelan authorities to resolve the conflict.  you should ask the company when they are going to put their papers in order and hand over the land that is not theirs   said mr marquez.


google to scan famous libraries the libraries of five of the world s most important academic institutions are to be digitised by google.  scanned pages from books in the public domain will then be made available for search and reading online. the full libraries of michigan and stanford universities  as well as archives at harvard  oxford and the new york public library are included. online pages from scanned books will not have adverts but will have links to online store amazon  google said.   the goal of the project is to unlock the wealth of information that is offline and bring it online   said susan wojcicki  director of product management at google.  there will also be links to public libraries so that the books can be borrowed. google will not be paid for providing for the links. it will take six years to digitise the full collection at michigan  which contains seven million volumes. users will only have access to extracts and bibliographies of copyrighted works. the new york library is allowing google to include a small portion of books no longer covered by copyright.  harvard is limiting its participation to 40 000 books  while oxford wants google to scan books originally published in the 19th century and held in the bodleian library. a spokeswoman for oxford university said the digitised books would include novels  poetry  political tracts and art books.  important works that are out of print or only available in a few libraries around the world will be made available to everyone   she said. about one million books will be scanned by google  less than 15% of the total collection held in the bodleian.  we hope that oxford s contribution to this project will be of scholarly use  as well as general interest  to people around the world   said reg carr  director of oxford university library services.   it s a significant opportunity to bring our material to the rest of the world   said paul leclerc  president of the new york public library.  it could solve an old problem: if people can t get to us  how can we get to them    this is the day the world changes   said john wilkin  a university of michigan librarian working with google.  it will be disruptive because some people will worry that this is the beginning of the end of libraries.  but this is something we have to do to revitalise the profession and make it more meaningful.


hi-tech posters guide commuters interactive posters are helping londoners get around the city during the festive season.  when interrogated with a mobile phone  the posters pass on a number that people can call to get information about the safest route home. sited at busy underground stations  the posters are fitted with an infra-red port that can beam information directly to a handset. the posters are part of transport for london s safe travel at night campaign.  the campaign is intended to help londoners  especially women  avoid trouble on the way home. in particular it aims to cut the number of sexual assaults by drivers of unlicensed minicabs. nigel marson  head of group marketing at transport for london (tfl)  said the posters were useful because they work outside the mobile phone networks.  they can work in previously inaccessible areas such as underground stations which is obviously a huge advantage in a campaign of this sort   he said.  the posters will automatically beam information to any phone equipped with an ir port that is held close to the glowing red icon on the poster.  we started with infra-red because there are a huge number ir phones out there   said rachel harker  spokeswoman for hypertag which makes the technology fitted to the posters.  it s a well established technology.  hypertag is also now making a poster that uses short-range bluetooth radio technology to swap data. although the hypertags in the posters only pass on a phone number  ms harker said they can pass on almost any form of data including images  ring tones and video clips. she said that there are no figures for how many people are using the posters but a previous campaign run for a cosmetics firm racked up 12 500 interactions.  before we ran a campaign there was a big question mark of:  if we build it will they come    she said.  now we know that  yes  they will.  the tfl campaign using the posters will run until boxing day.


metlife buys up citigroup insurer us banking giant citigroup has sold its travelers life & annuity insurance arm to metlife for $11.5bn (£6.1bn).  the sale is a further move by citigroup away from its 1990s strategy of offering every financial service - insurance  broking and banking. profit growth in the insurance market has not matched expansion at citigroup s other businesses. for metlife  the us s leading insurance company  the purchase gives it access to a much larger distribution network.  robert benmosche  metlife s chairman and chief executive  said that it was a  great opportunity for the brand of metlife to be distributed through citigroup . under the agreement  metlife will be able to sell its products through citigroup over the next 10 years. the deal includes smith barney retail brokerages and citibank branches. the company will pay between $1bn and $3bn in metlife stock with the rest being made up of cash. travelers had sales of $5.2bn in 2004 and made a profit of $901m. it has total net assets of $96bn.  this deal employs some of metlife s excess capital in a potentially higher-return business and gives it more distribution   said stuart quint  an analyst at gartmore.


campbell to be lions consultant former government communications chief alastair campbell will act as a media consultant to sir clive woodward s 2005 lions on their tour to new zealand.  campbell  who left downing street earlier this year  will advise on media strategy before and during the tour.  i hope i can contribute to the planning and preparation  and to ensuring the media and public get the most out of the tour itself   he said.  i am also looking forward to going out for the later stages of the tour.  woodward s decision to call in prime minister tony blair s former spin doctor springs from the deterioration in media relations on the last lions tour of australia in 2001  when new zealander graham henry was the head coach. the furore surrounding the newspaper diaries of matt dawson and austin healey was compounded by other disillusioned players venting their frustration through the media.  the lions is a massive media event   said woodward  who will be the head coach.  there will be a huge level of interest from the travelling media  the fans that will go out in their thousands and the new zealand public.  we need to have the strategy and processes in place to deal with the pressures that will bring.  [alastair] will act as an advisor both in the build up to and on the tour itself. his role is to work closely with not only myself but (tour manager) bill beaumont  (media manager) louisa cheetham and (team manager) louise ramsay.  campbell is due to resume working for the government in the new year in the build-up to an anticipated may general election. the lions leave for new zealand on 24 may  with the first test match against the all blacks in christchurch on 25 june.


safin relieved at aussie recovery marat safin admitted he thought he was suffering another australian open final nightmare when he lost the opening set to lleyton hewitt.  the russian  who lost the 2002 and 2004 finals  fought back brilliantly to win 1-6 6-3 6-4 6-4.  i was nervous and i couldn t play tennis   said safin.  he started really well. he wasn t as nervous as i was because i was thinking of the two finals that i played and wasn t successful.  he added:  you really have to deal with the pressure because normally it never happens but when you come to the final you are so tight because you want to win.  i tried to play some tennis but i couldn t. he has huge experience  he s won two grand slam titles  he s won 24 titles  he s a great player and he deals with pressure.   from 4-1 down in the third set  safin played some of his best tennis to reel off seven games and take control of the match.  in the third set  just all of a sudden  it all turn around completely in a way i couldn t expect   said safin.  because he made a couple of mistakes  i was a little bit lucky at some point  then the confidence came back and i was back in the game.  and the russian revealed that the victory  and his semi-final win over world number one roger federer  had given him a massive boost for the future.  you get huge confidence because roger is a great player   said safin.  once i beat him  and then lleyton  it s like you get so much confidence in yourself that you really can play great.  you can win big titles and you can beat huge players in the finals and semi-finals.


chelsea denied by james heroics a brave defensive display  led by keeper david james  helped manchester city hold the leaders chelsea.  after a quiet opening  james denied damien duff  jiri jarosik and mateja kezman  while paul bosvelt cleared william gallas  header off the line. robbie fowler should have scored for the visitors but sent his header wide. chelsea had most of the possession in the second half but james kept out frank lampard s free-kick and superbly tipped the same player s volley wide. city went into the game with the proud record of being the only domestic team to beat chelsea this season. and there was little to alarm them in the first 30 minutes as chelsea - deprived of arjen robben and didier drogba through injury - struggled to pose much of a threat. indeed  it was the visitors who looked likelier to enliven a drab opening played at a lethargic pace. shaun wright-phillips - watched by england boss sven-goran eriksson - showed his customary trickery to burst into the right of the area and deliver a dangerous ball  which was blocked by john terry. but chelsea suddenly stepped up a gear and created a flurry of chances. first  duff got round ben thatcher and blasted in a shot that james parried to kezman  who turned the ball wide.  soon afterwards  jarosik found space in the area to powerfully head lampard s corner goalwards but james tipped the ball over. chelsea were now looking more like premiership leaders and james kept out kezman s fierce drive before bosvelt and james combined to clear gallas  header from duff s corner. city broke swiftly up the field and the last chance of a frenetic spell should have resulted in fowler celebrating his 150th premiership goal. wright-phillips raced down the left and crossed to fowler but city s lone man up front  left free by terry s slip  contrived to head wide when it seemed a breakthrough was certain. the second half started as quietly as the first  although james was forced to divert a cross from the lively duff away from eidur gudjohnsen s path. there was a nasty moment for petr cech  looking for a ninth straight clean sheet in the league  when a series of ricochets saw fowler chase a loose ball in the area and collide accidently with the czech republic stopper. another quiet spell followed  which duff interrupted with a surging run that was halted illegally on the edge of the penalty area by bosvelt. lampard stepped up to blast a shot through the wall and james somehow blocked it with his legs. another timely challenge  this time from richard dunne in time added on  prevented gudjohnsen from getting in a shot. there was still time for james to produce a sensational save to tip lampard s volley round the post.  cech  paulo ferreira  gallas  terry  bridge  jarosik (tiago 56)  lampard  makelele  duff  gudjohnsen  kezman (cole 63).  subs not used: johnson  smertin  cudicini.  makelele  gudjohnsen.  james  mills  distin  dunne  thatcher  shaun wright-phillips  bosvelt  barton  sibierski (mcmanaman 85)  musampa  fowler.  subs not used: macken  weaver  onuoha  jordan.  bosvelt.  42 093  h webb (s yorkshire).


nadal puts spain 2-0 up result: nadal 6-7 (6/8) 6-2 7-6 (8/6) 6-2 roddick  spain s rafael nadal beats andy roddick of the usa in the second singles match rubber of the 2004 davis cup final in seville. spain lead 1-0 after carlos moya beat mardy fish in straight sets in the opening match of the tie.  nadal holds his nerve and the crowd goes wild as spain go 2-0 up in the tie.  roddick holds serve to force nadal to serve for the match but the american surely cannot turn things around now.  nadal works roddick around the court on two consecutive points to earn two break points. one is enough  the spaniard secures the double-break and roddick is now teetering on the edge.  roddick is trying to gee himself up but the clay surface is taking its toll on his game and he is looking tired. nadal wins the game to love.  nadal steps up the pressure to break and spain have the early initiative in the fourth set.  nadal also holds convincingly as both players feel their way into the fourth set.  roddick shrugs off the disappointment of losing the third-set tiebreak and breezes through his first service game of the fourth set.  nadal earns the first mini-break in the tiebreak as the match enters its fourth hour. a couple of stunning points follow  one where nadal chases down a roddick shot and turns into a passing winner. then roddick produces some amazing defence at the net to take the score to 4-4. roddick has two serves for the set but double-faults to take the score to 5-5. nadal saves a roddick set point then earns his own with a drive volley - and a crosscourt passing winner sends the crowd wild.  nadal tries to up his aggression and he passes roddick down the line to go 15-40 and two set points up. roddick saves the first with a desperate lunge volley and smacks a volley winner across the court to take the score back to deuce before securing the game. the set will go to another tiebreak.  nadal enjoys another straightforward hold and roddick must once again serve to stay in the set.  roddick again holds on  despite some brilliant shot-making from his opponent.  nadal races through his service game to put the pressure straight back onto roddick.  roddick hangs in on his serve to level matters but nadal is making him fight for every point.  nadal could be suffering a disappointment hangover from the previous game as he goes 0-30 down and then has to save a break point after a tremendous rally in which he is forced into some brilliant defence. but it pays off and the spaniard edges ahead in the set.  roddick s serve is not firing as ferociously as usual and has to rely on his sheer competitive determination to stay in the set. three times  nadal forces a break point and three times the world number two hangs in. and roddick s grit pays off as he manages to hold.  roddick still looks a bit sluggish but he attacks the net and is rewarded with a break point  which nadal saves with a good first serve and the spaniard goes on to hold.  there is a disruption in play as roddick is upset about something in the crowd. the spanish captain gets involved as does the match referee but it is unclear what the problem is. one thing for certain is that the crowd are roused into support of nadal and they go wild when roddick loses the next point and goes break point down. roddick saves the break point and then bangs down his ninth ace before clinching the game with a service winner.  the game passes the two-hour mark as nadal holds serve to edge ahead in the third set.  now roddick has to defend a break point and he produces a characteristic ace to save it. it is immediately followed by another and he holds with a little dinked half-volley winner.  roddick is looking a little leaden-footed but does carve out a break point for himself. but he plays it poorly and nadal avoids the danger.  roddick has gone off the boil and again struggles. he fails to get down properly for a low forehand volley and gives nadal three break points. the american blasts an ace to save one but follows up with a double fault and the rubber is level.  nadal edges towards taking the second set with a comfortable hold.  two good serves put roddick 30-0 up but he then makes a couple of errors to find himself 30-40 down. he saves the break point with an ace and then manages to hold.  roddick s level has dropped while nadal is on a hot streak. the spaniard includes a superb crosscourt winner off the back foot as he races through his service game without dropping a point.  roddick double-faults twice and nadal takes full advantage of the break point offered  powering a passing winner past roddick.  nadal wins another tight game. neither player has dipped from the high standard of play in the first set.  nadal puts the american under pressure and roddick saves a break point with a superb stop volley before going on to hold.  nadal puts the disappointment of losing the first-set tiebreak to claim the opening game in the second.  roddick double-faults to concede the first mini-break and then nadal loops a crosscourt winner to seize advantage in the tiebreak. he lets one slip but wins his next serve to earn three set points. but roddick saves them and then earns one himself. nadal comes up with a down-the-line winner but then nets tamely on roddick s next set point.  nadal s nerve is tested as he tries to force a tiebreak. both players come up with some scintillating tennis and the spaniard has several chances to clinch the game before finally doing so when roddick drives wide.  a pulsating game sees nadal racing round the court retrieving and refusing to give roddick any easy points. the point of the match so far involves roddick s slam-dunk smash being returned by nadal before roddick finally manages to end the rally. on the very next point  nadal blasts a forehand service return from right of court that passes roddick and even the american is forced to applaud. but roddick comes up with two big serves to polish off the game.  nadal outplays roddick to reach 40-0 but the american fights back to 40-30 before nadal s powerful crosscourt forehand winner secures the game.  the crowd are getting very involved  cheering between roddick s first and second serves. but the american comes through to hold and edge ahead in the set.  nadal manages to hold again despite roddick piling the pressure on his serve. the spaniard wins the game courtesy of another lucky net cord.  roddick double faults buts manages to keep his composure. a well-placed serve is unreturnable and roddick holds.  a powerful ace down the middle gives nadal a simple love service game - the first time he has held serve so far in the match. if roddick didn t know before  he knows now that he is in a real contest.  another superb game as nadal breaks to once again lift the roof. he produces some fine groundstrokes to leave roddick chasing shadows. four of the first five games have seen a break of serve.  despite the disappointment of losing his serve  roddick is not phased and storms into a 40-15 lead when the umpire leaves his seat to confirm a close line-call. nadal takes the next point but roddick breaks again with a sharp volley at the net.  roddick s advantage is short lived as nadal breaks back immediately. a fortunate net cord helps the spaniard on his way and when roddick fires a forehand cross court shot wide to lose his serve  nadal pumps his fist in celebration.  the american is pumped up for this clash and takes on nadal s serve from the start. nadal s drop shot is agonisingly called out and roddick claims the vital first break.  after moya s win in the opening rubber  a raucous seville crowd is buoyed by nadal s impressive start which sees him race into a 30-0 lead. however roddick fights back to hold his serve.


robben plays down european return injured chelsea winger arjen robben has insisted that he only has a 10% chance of making a return against barcelona in the champions league.  the 21-year-old has been sidelined since breaking a foot against blackburn last month. chelsea face barcelona at home on 8 march having lost 2-1 in the first leg. and robben told the daily star:  it is not impossible that i will play against barcelona but it is just a very  very small chance - about 10%.   robben has been an inspirational player for chelsea this season following a switch from psv einhoven last summer. he added:  my recovery is going better than we expected a few weeks ago but i think the barcelona game will come too soon.  i won t take any risks and come back too soon.


strong demand triggers oil rally crude oil prices surged back above the $47 a barrel mark on thursday after an energy market watchdog raised its forecasts for global demand.  the international energy agency (iea) warned demand for opec s crude in the first quarter would outstrip supply. the iea raised its estimate of 2005 oil demand growth by 80 000 barrels a day to 84 million barrels a day. us light crude rose $1.64 to $47.10  while brent crude in london gained $1.32 to $44.45.  the paris-based iea watchdog  which advises industrialized nations on energy policy  said the upward revision was due to stronger demand from china and other asian countries. the fresh rally in crude prices followed gains on wednesday which were triggered by large falls in us crude supplies following a cold spell in north america in january. the us department of energy reported that crude stockpiles had fallen 1m barrels to 294.3m. on top of that  ongoing problems for beleaguered russian oil giant yukos have also prompted the iea to revise its output estimates from russia - a major non-opec supplier.  i think that prices are now beginning to set a new range and it looks like the $40 to $50 level   said energy analyst orin middleton of barclays capital.


tomlinson stays focused on europe long jumper chris tomlinson has cut his schedule to ensure he is fully fit for the european indoor championships.  the 23-year-old has a minor injury and has pulled out of international meets in madrid and lievin this week as well as warm-weather training in lanzarote.  it s nothing serious   said his coach peter stanley.  he strained a muscle in his abdomen at the birmingham meeting but is back in full training.  sprinter mark lewis-francis will also not compete in madrid on thursday. the birmingham athlete  who clocked a season s best of 6.61 seconds over 60m in birmingham last week  also prefers to focus his attentions on next month s european indoor championships.  lewis-francis  who was runner-up to british team-mate jason gardener at the europeans three years ago  will continue his training at home. meanwhile  tomlinson is still searching for this first major medal and this season he has shown he could be in the sort of form to grab a spot on the podium in madrid. the middlesbrough athlete jumped a season s best of 7.95m at the birmingham grand prix - good enough to push world indoor champion savante stringfellow into second.


ultra fast wi-fi nears completion ultra high speed wi-fi connections moved closer to reality on thursday when intel said it would list standards for the technology later this year.  intel is developing ultra-wideband technology (uwb) which would allow fast data transfer but with low power needs. uwb is tipped to be used for wireless transfer of video in the home or office and for use in wireless usb devices which need low power consumption. a rival uwb standard is being developed by motorola and chip firm freescale. at the mobile phone conference 3gsm in cannes last month samsung demonstrated a phone using uwb technology from freescale.  at a press conference on thursday intel announced that two uwb groups  wimedia alliance and multi-band ofdm alliance had merged to support the technology. uwb makes it possible to stream huge amounts of data through the air over short distances. one of the more likely uses of uwb is to make it possible to send dvd quality video images wirelessly to tv screens or to let people beam music to media players around their home.  the technology has the potential to transmit hundreds of megabits of data per second.  consumer electronics companies want uwb to replace cables and simplify set-up   jeff ravencraft  technology strategist at intel and chairman of the wireless usb promoter group  told technology site zdnet.  thirty percent of consumer electronics returns are because the consumer couldn t set up the equipment.  the first products using uwb technology from intel are due to hit the market later this year. initially they will be products using wireless usb 2.0 connections. uwb could also be used to create so-called personal area networks that let a person s gadgets quickly and easily swap data amongst themselves. the technology works over a range up to 10 metres and uses billions of short radio pulses every second to carry data. intel says the benefit of uwb is that it does not interfere with other wi-fi technologies already in use such as wi-fi  wimax and mobile phone networks.


blind student  hears in colour  a blind student has developed software that turns colours into musical notes so that he can read weather maps.  victor wong  a graduate student from hong kong studying at cornell university in new york state  had to read coloured maps of the upper atmosphere as part of his research. to study  space weather  mr wong needed to explore minute fluctuations in order to create mathematical models. a number of solutions were tried  including having a colleague describe the maps and attempting to print them in braille. mr wong eventually hit upon the idea of translating individual colours into music  and enlisted the help of a computer graphics specialist and another student to do the programming work.   the images have three dimensions and i had to find a way of reading them myself   mr wong told the bbc news website.  for the sake of my own study - and for the sake of blind scientists generally - i felt it would be good to develop software that could help us to read colour images.  he tried a prototype version of the software to explore a photograph of a parrot. in order to have an exact reference to the screen  a pen and tablet device is used. the software then assigns one of 88 piano notes to individually coloured pixels - ranging from blue at the lower end of this scale to red at the upper end. mr wong says the application is still very much in its infancy and is only useful for reading images that have been created digitally.  if i took a random picture and scanned it and then used my software to recognise it  it wouldn t work that well.   mr wong has been blind from the age of seven and he thinks that having a  colour memory  makes the software more useful than it would be to a scientist who had never had any vision.  as the notes increase in pitch i know the colour s getting redder and redder  and in my mind s eye a patch of red appears.  the colour to music software has not yet been made available commercially  and mr wong believes that several people would have to work together to make it viable. but he hopes that one day it can be developed to give blind people access to photographs and other images.


quake s economic costs emerging asian governments and international agencies are reeling at the potential economic devastation left by the asian tsunami and floods.  world bank president james wolfensohn has said his agency is  only beginning to grasp the magnitude of the disaster  and its economic impact. the tragedy has left at least 25 000 people dead  with sri lanka  thailand  india and indonesia worst hit. some early estimates of reconstruction costs are starting to emerge. millions have been left homeless  while businesses and infrastructure have been washed away.  economists believe several of the 10 countries hit by the giant waves could see a slowdown in growth.  in sri lanka  some observers have said that as much as 1% of annual growth may be lost. for thailand  that figure is much lower at 0.1%. governments are expected to take steps  such as cutting taxes and increasing spending  to facilitate a recovery.   with the enormous displacement of people...there will be a serious relaxation of fiscal policy   glenn maguire  chief economist for the region at societe generale  told agence france presse.  the economic impact of it will certainly be large  but it should not be enough to derail the momentum of the region in 2005   he said.  first and foremost this is a human tragedy.  india s economy  however  is less likely to slow because the areas hit are some of the least developed. the regional giant has enjoyed strong growth in 2004. but india now faces other problems  with aid workers under pressure to ensure a clean supply of water and sanitation to prevent an outbreak of disease.  thailand s prime minister thaksin shinawatra has estimated the destruction at 20bn baht ($510m). analysts said that figure is likely to rise and the country s tourist industry is likely to be hardest hit. thailand s fishing and real estate sectors also will be affected by sunday s 9.0 magnitude earthquake  which sent huge waves from malaysia to africa. malaysia said as many as 1 000 fishermen will be affected and that damage to the industry will be  significant   agence france presse reported. rapid rebuilding will be key to limiting the impact of the tragedy.  in three months  we should rebuild 70% of the damage in the three worst hit provinces   said juthamas siriwan  governor of the tourism authority of thailand. the outlook for sri lanka is less optimistic  with analysts predicting that the country s tourist industry will struggle to recovery quickly. tourism is a vital to many developing countries  providing jobs for 19 million people in the south east asian region  according to the world travel and tourism council (wttc).


wales silent on grand slam talk rhys williams says wales are still not thinking of winning the grand slam despite a third six nations win.   that s the last thing on our minds at the moment   said williams  a second- half replacement in saturday s 24-18 win over france in paris.  we all realise how difficult a task it is to go up to scotland and beat them.  we ve come unstuck there a couple of times recently so our focus is on that game and we ll worry about ireland hopefully after we ve beaten scotland.  with captain gareth thomas ruled out of the rest of the campaign with a broken thumb  williams is vying for his first start in the championship so far.  kevin morgan is probably favourite to replace thomas at full-back  leaving williams and hal luscombe to battle for the right wing berth. a hamstring injury denied luscombe the opportunity to make a third successive start  but the dragons winger is expected to be fit for the trip to murrayfield on 13 march. hooker robin mcbryde is doubtful after picking up a knee injury in paris  but centre sonny parker and flanker colin charvis are set to recover from injury to be in contention for selection. said wales assistant coach scott johnson:  they ve worked through the weekend and the reports are a bit more positive.  so we re getting a couple back and that adds to the depth of the squad.  scotland secured their first win of the campaign on saturday by grinding out an 18-10 win over italy.  matt williams  side has shown little in attack  but johnson insisted the scots will be difficult opposition to break down.  italy are really brave opposition and sometimes it s very hard to win   he said.  so an ugly win can be just as effective as a 30 or 40 point victory.  scotland are a hard side and very underrated so we re not taking anything for granted.  we re not basking in the glory of winning our first three games. we ve got to be diligent in our preparation.  that s my job and we ve got to make sure we re focused.


india power shares jump on debut shares in india s largest power producer  national thermal power corp (ntpc) have risen 13% on their stock market debut.  the government s partial sell-off of ntpc is part of a controversial programme to privatise state-run firms. the 865 million share offer  a mix of new shares and sales by the government  raised 54bn rupees($1.2bn). it was india s second $1bn stock debut in three months  coming after the flotation by software firm tata. the share offer was eleven times oversubscribed.  it is a good investment bet   said suhas naik  an investment analyst from ing mutual fund.  power needs in india are set to rise and ntpc will benefit from that.  analysts say the success of the ntpc flotation would encourage the government to reduce stakes in more power companies. ntpc has said it will use the money from the share sale to feed the growing needs of the country s energy-starved economy. the firm is the largest utility company in india  and the sixth largest power producer in the world.


learning to love broadband we are reaching the point where broadband is a central part of daily life  at least for some  argues technology analyst bill thompson.  one of the nice things about being a writer is that i rarely have to go to an office to work. i can sit in a café or a library  with or without a wi-fi connection  and research and write articles. if i am passing through kings cross station on my way to a meeting then i can log on from the platform. and i can spend the day working with my girlfriend anne  a children s writer  at her house in cambridge  sharing her wireless network. but just over a week ago i arrived at her house to find that there was no network connection.  we checked the cable modem and noticed that it had no power  and when she changed the power lead it sparked at her in a way which made it abundantly clear that it was never going to talk to the internet again. she called her service provider  and they told her it would be five days before an engineer would show up with a new cable modem. this did not seem too bad  but in fact she really suffered until her connection was restored on wednesday. with no modem installed in her computer  she had to borrow internet access from friends or use the dial-up connection on her daughter s laptop  so she had to choose between copying her files onto her usb memory card or accepting a slower and flakier net connection. as a result she did not submit the pictures she wanted to use for a book on earthquakes because they were too big to send over dial-up.  she could not research other material because she is used to having easy access to a fast link that lets her search quickly and effectively. but the impact spread into her personal life too. she did not take her children to the cinema during half-term because she could not find out which films were showing at the local cinemas. she planned a trip to norfolk but did not check the weather because the only place she knows to look for weather information is the bbc website. and she did not know where to go fossil-hunting on the trip because she could not type  fossils norfolk  into google. of course  she readily admits  she could have answered these questions if she had looked in the local paper  listened to the radio or found a book on fossils. but she did not  because having fast  always on  and easy access to the net has become part of the routine of her daily life  and when it was taken away it was too much effort to go back to the old ways of doing things. she may be unusual  but i do not think anne is alone.  according to ofcom there were almost four million broadband users in the uk in april 2004  and numbers are climbing fast. there will certainly be five million by the end of the year. dial-up users are switching to broadband. my dad finally made the change earlier this month and new net users are selecting broadband from the start. more and more of these broadband users are beginning to mould their daily lives around the availability of broadband internet connections  and they too will find it difficult to cope if they cannot get online for any reason.  it is part of the process of adaptation  and it is a vital step in the growth of broadband in the uk and elsewhere. people who have integrated net access into their daily lives tell their friends about it  and show off the cool stuff they can do. they encourage other people to get broadband so that they can share digital photos and do all of the other things that need fast and reliable connectivity. of course  broadband in the uk is laughably slow compared to other parts of the world. in south korea  japan and hong kong normal connection speeds are measured in megabits  or millions of bits  a second rather than the thousands that we are supposed to be happy with. but speed is only a small part of the attraction of broadband  and when it comes to checking websites for film times  looking at weather forecasts  or all of the other small things that make a real difference to the routines and habits of our daily lives  even uk speeds are sufficient. it may not be the brave new world of streaming full-screen video and superfast file downloads  but it will do for now. and it is certainly better than slow access or no access. just ask anne.  bill thompson is a regular commentator on the bbc world service programme go digital.


games enter the classroom video games could soon be transplanted from their natural habitat to the more academic atmosphere of the classroom.  with violent titles continuing to top the charts  gaming and learning have not always sat well together but the tide could be beginning to turn. recent research by the london institute of education concluded that games have a valid place in the classroom.  games teach life skills such as decision making  problem solving   said martin owen  at futurelab. mr owen said games could also help children make quick assessments of situations and learning by trial and error.  futurelab is a non-profit organisation looking at ways of using technology for innovative learning. most game firms are too busy turning a profit in the lucrative commercial market to consider developing games for use in schools but liverpool-based games firm lateral visions saw a gap in the market.  learning games were somewhat old-fashioned and we didn t see anyone else doing what we wanted to do   said dr carl gavin  managing director of lateral visions. the company set out to write something that had all the look and feel of a commercial game but with an educational and learning element. the result is racing academy  a massively multiplayer car racing game  which requires not only a thirst for speed but a working knowledge of physics and engineering as well.  it is being used by futurelab to test the viability of using gaming in the classroom.  we are keen to find out whether alongside learning a game  we can also learn something that the rest of the world can understand as being educational   said mr owen. players will have to understand how a car works in order to win races and the knowledge of physics and engineering that they gather along the way will be done in a way that no text book can teach. the game requires users to build and maintain their vehicles and to monitor and analyse performance using data from a variety of outputs  before and after racing. teamwork is essential and a chat area allows students to exchange information and data  work collaboratively and review their own performances. this fusion of chatrooms and gaming is of special interest to futurelab as it is through talking to others that much of the learning can be achieved  thinks mr owen.  the game has been trialled in two secondary schools in bristol and feedback from students has been positive.  pupils used the statistics to work out the best way to build their cars and the online message board to share ideas and support each other   said ben williamson  a researcher at futurelab charged with testing the game in real schools. dr gavin thinks the game satisfies both teachers  need for learning outcomes and the children s desire to rise to a challenge.  games in the classroom need to support the teacher. it is not about giving children free rein to play game but recognising that games attract attention and offer a challenge   he said. professor angela macfarlane  based at bristol university  has spent several years researching how games can be incorporated into classrooms.  use of games in schools has been patchy she found  with sim city proving the most popular. traditionally schools have eschewed mainstream games in favour of used so-called edu-tainment software in a belief that such packages help to make learning fun  she found in her research.  it is perhaps in a compromise between edutainment and mainstream games that the greatest potential for classroom useable games lies   she wrote in a paper entitled games and learning.  lite  versions of existing games could be the way forward and would overcome one of the biggest hurdles - persuading developers to write for the educational market. this would appeal to developers because of the low costs involved in adapting them as well as offering a new opportunity for marketing. already there are games on the market  such as civilisation and age of empire  that have educational elements said mr owen.  even in grand theft auto it is not just the violence that engages people   he said. it could be some time until that particular game makes it into the classroom though.


mobile games come of age the bbc news website takes a look at how games on mobile phones are maturing. a brief round-up follows but you can skip straight to the reviews by clicking on the links below. part two will follow on monday.  reviews of call of duty  splinter cell - pandora tomorrow  lord of the rings and pocket kingdom will follow on monday if you think of snake when some mentions  mobile games  then you could be in for a bit of a surprise. this is because mobile games have come a long way in a very short time. even before nokia s n-gage game phone launched in late 2003  many mobile operators were realising that there was an audience looking for something to play on their handset.  and given that many more people own handsets than own portable game playing gadgets such as the gameboy it could be a very lucrative market. that audience includes commuters wanting something to fill their time on the way home  game fans looking for a bit of variety and hard core gamers who like to play every moment they can. life for all these types of player has got immeasurably better in the last year as the numbers of titles you can download to your phone has snowballed. now sites such as wireless gaming review list more than 200 different titles for some uk networks and the ranges suit every possible taste. there are ports of pc and arcade classics such as space invaders  lunar lander and bejewelled. there are also versions of titles  such as colin mcrae rally  that you typically find on pcs and consoles.  there are shoot-em-ups  adventure games  strategy titles and many novel games only found on handsets. rarely now does an action movie launch without a mobile game tie-in. increasingly such launches are all part of the promotional campaign for a film  understandable when you realise that a good game can rack up millions of downloads. the returns can be pretty good when you consider that some games cost £5. what has also helped games on mobiles thrive is the fact that it is easier than ever to get hold of them thanks to technology known as wap push. by sending a text message to a game maker you can have the title downloaded to your handset. far better than having to navigate through the menus of most mobile operator portals. the number of handsets that can play games has grown hugely too. almost half of all phones now have java onboard meaning that they can play the increasingly sophisticated games that are available - even the ones that use 3d graphics.  the minimum technology specifications that phones should adhere to are getting more sophisticated which means that games are too. now double key presses are possible making familiar tactics such as moving and strafing a real option. the processing power on handsets means that physics on mobile games is getting more convincing and the graphics are improving too. some game makers are also starting to take advantage of the extra capabilities in a mobile. many titles  particularly racing games  let you upload your best time to see how you compare to others. usually you can get hold of their best time and race against a  ghost  or  shadow  to see if you can beat them. a few games also let you take on people in real time via the network or  if you are sitting close to them  via bluetooth short-range radio technology. with so much going on it is hard to do justice to the sheer diversity of what is happening. but these two features should help point you in the direction of the game makers and give you an idea of where to look and how to get playing.  too fast too furious (digital bridges)  as soon as i start playing this i remember why i never play driving games - because i m rubbish at them. no matter if i drive the car via joystick or keypad i just cannot get the hang of braking for corners or timing a rush to pass other drivers. the game rewards replay because to advance you have to complete every section within a time limit. winning gives you cash for upgrades. graphically the rolling road is a convincing enough evocation of speed as the palm trees and cactus whip by and the city scrolls past in the background. the cars handle pretty well despite my uselessness but it was not clear if the different models of cars were appreciably different on the track. the only niggle was that the interface was a bit confusing especially when using a joystick rather than the keypad to play.  fatal force (macrospace)  a futuristic shooter that lets you either play various deathmatch modes against your phone or run through a series of scenarios that involves killing aliens invading earth. graphics are a bit cartoon-like but only helps to make clear what is going on and levels are well laid out and encourage you to leap about exploring. both background music and sounds effects work well. the scenarios are well scripted and you regularly get hints from the fatal force commanders. weapons include flamethrowers  rocket launchers  grenades and at a couple of points you even get chance to use a mech for a short while. with the right power-up you can go into a matrix-style bullet time to cope with the onslaught of aliens. the game lets you play via bluetooth if others are in range. online the game has quite a following with clans  player rankings and even new downloadable maps.


mutu to hold talks with juventus disgraced former chelsea striker adrian mutu is to begin talks with juventus as he looks for a new club.   mutu will be in our club s main stand to watch the match between juventus and fiorentina   said a juventus official  who declined to be named.  then he will meet some important people of the club   he added. mutu  25  sacked by chelsea and banned for seven months for taking cocaine  is now represented by alessandro moggi  son of juve manager luciano moggi. mutu  banned by the english fa  can resume playing next may. he is to undergo a drug education and rehabilitation programme. mutu wants to train with romanian side dinamo bucharest whilst serving his ban  say the bucharest side.


iaaf to rule on greek sprint pair greek sprinters kostas kenteris and katerina thanou are expected to find out on wednesday if they will be banned for missing drugs tests this summer.  the international association of athletics federations (iaaf) council held a conference call on tuesday and are set to announce their decision. kenteris and thanou could be suspended for up to two years. the duo withdrew from the olympics after missing a test but claimed they had suffered a motorcycle crash. the greek authorities have also brought criminal charges against the sprinters for avoiding a drugs test and faking an accident. their former coach christos tzekos is also facing charges and all three are awaiting a trial date.  however  the iaaf will determine the sprinters  future on the track after carefully considering all the evidence. the sport s ruling body is expected to direct the greek federation in what action it should take against the sprinters. kenteris and thanou can appeal against any decision at the court of arbitration for sport. the sprinters both sent written explanations to the iaaf  which have been taken into account. the iaaf sent an official warning to the sprinters and coach tzekos after they were discovered training in qatar rather than in crete  where they had said they would be. but kenteris and thanou then went on to skip tests in tel aviv and chicago  when they decided to fly back to greece early. just before the olympics  the pair dramatically missed another test in athens before withdrawing from the games. kenteris  31  won gold in the 200m at the sydney olympics in 2000  where thanou  29  won silver in the 100m.


losing yourself in online gaming online role playing games are time-consuming  but enthralling flights from reality. but are some people taking their fantasy lives too seriously   when video game world of warcraft hit the shops in europe last week fans wrote in to the bbc website to express their delight - and to offer a warning.  an addiction to a game like this is far more costly in time than any substance could impair - keep track of time   wrote travis anderson  in texas. some of the comments were humorous:  this game is so good i m not going to get it  there s no way i could limit the hours i d spend playing it   wrote charles macintyre  from england.  but some struck a more worrying tone about the massively multiplayer online role playing game (mmorpg):   you need to get out more  could be the motto of any mmorpg. shame they are getting more popular  as you know this problem is just going to mushroom   wrote stuart stanton-davies  in huddersfield. scare-mongering articles about  addictive video games  have existed since the days the first game of pong stopped everyone from working at the atari offices.  gaming is like any other pastime - it can quickly become an unhealthy obsession  whether it is spending too much time in the gym  in front of the television  or reading poetry.  unfortunately  gaming and addiction is a far too easy association to make. however  stories about gamers spending 10 to 15 hours a day in front of some video games are becoming more frequent. and the impact that is having on their families is quite distressing for some.  massively multiplayer online role playing games - mmorpgs - allow thousands of gamers to share a common experience of sharing fantasy or science fiction worlds. the scope of these games - like warcraft  everquest  ultima among others - is epic  and exploration and adventure is almost infinite. part of the  problem  is grinding - by which gamers have to perform long-winded  mindless tasks  to bring up their levels and gain access to more adventure. such open-endedness brings with it a desire to keep playing; not for no reason is everquest (eq) nicknamed evercrack. e hayot  writing in the culture blogzine print culture  said recently:  i used to play the online role-playing game everquest a lot.  by  a lot   i mean probably 15 to 20 hours a week on average  and on weeks where i didn t have to work  as many as 30 or 40 hours.   he says that in the world of online gaming such behaviour  wasn t that unusual; lots of people i knew in the game played eq that much .  you lie; you don t go into work because you  had stuff to do at home ; you cancel or refuse invitations to dinner  you spend much less time watching tv (a good thing  presumably)   he wrote  explaining how everquest took over his time. he quit the game  he says  because he realised life was more fun than everquest.  let us be clear - such obsession is rare. but the huge growth in online gaming means a growth in the numbers of people who take their passion for a hobby too far. almost 400 000 people bought a copy of world of warcraft in the first two days on sale earlier this month. only a fraction will descend into obsessives. the thoughts of families and friends of gamers who have been affected by everquest can be found on one blog everquest daily grind. jane  who runs the website  compiles a chronicle of heart-rending stories.  i am actually convinced at this point that there are more than  some  people who spend more times in mmoprgs than in reality   she said. one unnamed correspondent - all are anonymous - wrote:  on the rare nights when my husband does come to bed at the same time as i do  i find that i am so used to sleeping by myself that it is difficult to get to sleep with another body laying next to me.   i can t talk to him while he is playing. there is absolutely no point as he doesn t hear me or is so distracted that i get a  ummm... ya  a few minutes after i ask him a question.    gaming widows  has become a comedic term for women who have been shut out by male gamers. but for some it is not in the least funny. another correspondent wrote:  i believe that he is addicted to the online gaming  and that is the cause of his depression and restlessness.  and some of them are even sadder:  today our son was five days old.  the sad truth is my husband spent 11 hours today playing his warcraft game. he did not interact with our sweet tiny baby because there were important quests waiting online.  video game fans often complain that their hobby is misunderstood or marginalised. but as gaming becomes ever more mainstream  and games ever more immersive  there will be no hiding place for social problems.    i wish 30-40 hours a week was unusual but i think it probably isn t. an 11 hour stretch isn t that surprising - i ve known people to play 15+ hours at a stretch. i know of people who are spending their week s holiday from work playing warcraft. i know of people who would play ever[crack] in shifts...waking at 3am to take over from their friends and resume waiting for an item they  needed  to appear. i understand that the key sign of an addiction is if you alter your life around it rather than fit it into your life. by all standards many of us are addicts. so is the solution to force ourselves to stop playing..or do we just need to make real life a bit more interesting   sadly with all the talk of people becoming obsessed with gaming  i find myself longing to have the time to join them. i have been in a long term relationship for over 4 years - since that began  games have become more and more complex. and more and more so i find i have less and less time to play them  with and marriage and work being the main drag on my time.  i think the line between playing a game a lot and a gaming addiction is really quite distinct. i play games a lot  definately over 20 hours a week  but i don t go missing work or other commitments in order to play games.  i have  about a year ago  deleted every game on my computer. rpgs are the worst - the real world fades and all your worries sorround a new magic staff or mighty sword. unlike books  or perhaps even tv  you gain absolutely nothing. when you stop playing you re at the same point as when you started; all the achievements of your 10 hour session are irretrievably locked in the game and  since you ve gained nothing in the real world  you may as well pile on more achievement in the fake one.  despite having little monetary value  the  rewards  and encouragement offered by these mmorpgs is enough to hook games for hours daily. if only business could learn to leverage that very simply human need for easily measurable progress and recognition. perhaps the unhealthily obsessed simply need more recognition for their achievements in reality   my advice to gaming widows is  if you can t beat  em  join  em . that is  try playing it yourself. if he wants to play as well  well at least you ll be together somewhere...  i was an addict and it cost me my relationship. i still play now  but without the guilt   hehe  how long have i played in one sitting  from morning till the early hours of the next day  the birds were singing out side and i had to hobble to the bath room cos my bladder was so full i was in pain  i would hardly eat  perhaps some toast  smoke endlessly and drink. now  thankfully the fascination has worn off and i have a girlfriend but still no job. for the most part online gaming give me an adiction to illusory achievement  and as there is no end in sight you keep going for the mirage of the ultimate.  obsessive behaviour is  of course  always cause for concern  but it always bothers me when articles about gaming talk in terms of  reality . obviously  somebody who spends thirty hours a week playing everquest has a problem. this problem  however  has nothing to do with a dysfunctional sense of reality. an obsessive eq player does not consider the game to be  real  any more than - for example - an obsessive automotive tinkerer considers their car to be human. if mmorpgs have a unique danger  in terms of encouraging obsessive behaviour  it is not that they create an absorbing virtual world  but rather that they can be easily accessed 24/7. the problem here does not lie with the nature of gaming  but with the nature of modern 24 hour culture.  the problem with these so called mmorpgs is that you can never really complete them  there s always another quest to do. a few of my friends have only had about 10 hours sleep since it was released friday...  championship manager consumed my life for years. one particular session started at about 2pm on a sunday  paused for a brief sleep at 5am on the monday and after visit to university for classes restarted at about midday for another 10 hour session. the people who tend to hark on about about the problems of  hardcore gaming  seem to be those who have rarely allowed themselves to become immersed in a game. i would expect their perspective to change if they were to do that.  i used to be an everquest addict while i was in college. it came to the point where the gaming world felt more real than the real one. i failed alot of my courses and was able to barely graduate. i was lucky that i came to my senses when i did  others were less fortunate and dropped out of college. now that i am holding a job  i avoid online rpgs like the plague.  when i was made redundant i told my partner i had a new job for three months whilst every day i played everquest from 7:30am till 5:pm. when she came home i pretended i had just got in as well  hence justifying playing it all evening. i have since quit playing mmorpg and have a good job.  when i got to the point where i was eating my dinner in front of the pc i realised things were getting silly so i m trying not to spend so much time on there. it s not easy. i feel as if i ve got a real addiction going on here.  for me the problem is that i love to complete a goal. once it is completed that is it  i am finished  time to move on. i become obsessed to complete the goal  so from that standpoint it is an addiction. in a game where you will never complete an  ultimate  goal  well it would be like falling into a black pit. it is easier to escape into a controlled fantasy world than face reality at times - in other words the goal offered in the pc game are  easier  and more fun than the real world. pretty scary implications if you think about it.  i can t buy world of warcraft as it would destroy my marrage  i just know it!!  i played star wars galaxies for about a year and can attest to the addictiveness of these games. they are all engineered in such a way that early on in the game you progress quickly  but this progress becomes exponentially slower  requiring more and more time to reach the next level. i m sad to say that at the peak of my addiction i was spending entire weekends in front of my monitor  slowly building up my character  stopping only for food and toilet breaks. thankfully i made a clean break  and actually managed to sell my jedi account for £800 - which is my only sanity check in an otherwise completely unproductive time vacuum.  seven years ago  i began playing ultima online. this game dominated 2 years of my life. they were 2 wonderful years and i still have vivid memories of the experiences and friends i had. online gaming can be a world of escapism where you can be yourself without fear of the thoughts of others. something that cannot always be achieved in the day to day running of a normal life. whilst i would warn against people giving to much of there life to these games  i believe they are a better way to spend your time than say watching tv.  gaming is addictive and should be made a recognised addiction. when i was single i used to play upto eight hours a night after work every night for about a year  building up my stats  completing evermore quests and battling ogres. but somehow i found time to get out  even met someone and got married! has my life changed  hell no! i still cast spells and battle till the early hours of the morning. on with the fun!  online gaming should be enjoyed just as much as you would enjoy watching television  or going to the cinema or the pub with your mates.  many people use recreational drugs on an occasional basis and are able to lead succesfull lives with families  relationships and good careers. a minority allow drugs to take over and destroy their lives and become addicted. according to this article the same is true of mmorpgs. the message to the government is clear  either legalise drugs  or outlaw online gaming!!  sounds like there are some sad stories here - and i can believe them all. i play alot of warcraft myself  and know full well how addictive it is. i am resolute that it will not take over my life. it certainly gets in the way though. i think that some people simply do not know how to draw this line  or lack the willpower to stop themselves stepping over it.  i think i m obsessed with gaming in general  i spend far too much time playing games like everquest 2 and football manager rather than going out and interacting with real people and when i do try to  i m always thinking in the back if my mind that i d rather be in front of the computer winning the league with cambridge united.  i am obsessed with online role playing games. it s not so much quests but it has the adrenaline of a real life situation - goals to achieve etc. i spend about five hours per day online playing it and i rarely get more than four to five hours sleep before getting up for work the next morning...  as many of the players spend their time in mmorpgs rather than in front of the tv i fail to see how it will affect players social lives negatively. furthermore these types of games contain a huge social aspect  whereas other games and some other pursuits (such as being a couch potato) the players could be indulging in are solitary by nature.  these games are like most things -- too much of anything is a bad thing  but as long as you can walk away from the computer to do other things too  they can be great fun.  living in korea at the moment  they have lots pc bangs (internet cafes). nearly most of south koreans are addicted to online games  and one korean died because of the lack of food and water he had through playing online games.  i play xbox live every day. i find my self lying and rescheduling everything around my gaming fix. the longest i played was a 24 hour straight session. i know i play for to long but it s an obsession that i can t control. can you reccomend a counsellor - this is not a wind up... but something i m increasingly concerned with...  me and my mate play online for an hour or two a day  we re both aware of how much time can disappear by sitting in front of a tv  trying to  frag  some individual. it s getting the balance between getting home and relasing the stress of a day by an hour or so gaming  and enjoying  real  life...  i bought the us version of world of warcraft when it came out. the longest period i played was 23 hrs straight. i gave up the game after a month because it was so addictive  but have subsequently just bought the european version (couldn t help myself). in future  i m going to regulate my time far more strictly. great game!  having played mmorpg games for some years i agree that these type of games can be life sucking. but my concern is for the younger generation of gamers that play for hours on end in an adult enviroment. most mmorpg games you need a credit card to play but i dont think parents know just what they are letting there children into.  unless there is undeniable medical proof that staring at a computer screens for hours at a time can damage a person¿s health  you can expect this not to decline but to get worse.  these people are pathetic. they need to get off their machines and notice that our world is being swiftly overcome by issues and troubles that make the trifling worries of and  online universe  absolutely meaningless.  24hours  when i was a kid at school and i was on half term  ultima online was the game  ahhhh them was the days ! lol


concerns over windows atms cash machine networks could soon be more susceptible to computer viruses  a security firm has warned.  the warning is being issued because many banks are starting to use the windows operating system in machines. already there have been four incidents in which windows viruses have disrupted networks of cash machines running the microsoft operating system. but banking experts say the danger is being overplayed and that the risks of infection and disruption are small.  for many years the venerable ibm operating system  known as os/2  has been the staple software used to power many of the 1.4m cash machines in operation around the world. but ibm will end support for os/2 in 2006 which is forcing banks to look for alternatives. there are also other pressures making banks turn to windows said dominic hirsch  managing director of financial analysis firm retail banking research.  he said many cash machines will also have to be upgraded to make full use of the new europay  mastercard and visa credit cards that use computer chips instead of magnetic stripes to store data. us laws that demand disabled people get equal access to information will also force banks to make their cash machines more versatile and able to present information in different ways. todd thiemann  spokesman for anti-virus firm trend micro  said the move to windows in cash machines was not without risks. mr thiemann said research by the towergroup showed that 70% of new cash machines being installed were windows based.  already  he said  there have been four incidents in which cash machines have been unavailable for hours due to viruses affecting the network of the bank that owns them.  in january 2003 the slammer worm knocked out 13 000 cash machines of the bank of america and many of those operated by the canadian imperial bank of commerce. in august of the same year  cash machines of two un-named banks were put out of action for hours following an infection by the welchia worm. incidents like this happen  said mr thiemann  because when banks start using windows cash machines they also change the networking technology used to link the devices to their back office computers. this often means that all the cash machines and computers in a bank share the same data network.  this could mean that cash machines get caught up in the viruses that are going around because they have a common transmission system   he said.  banks need to consider protection as part of the investment to maintain the security of that network   mr thiemann told bbc news online.  but mr hirsch from retail banking research said the number of cash machines actually at risk was low because so few were upgraded every year.  currently  he said  a cash machine has a lifetime of up to 10 years which means that only about 10% of all atms get swapped for a newer model every year.  windows cash machines have been around for several years   he said.  most banks simply upgrade as part of their usual replacement cycle.   in theory there is a bigger threat with windows than os/2   he said   but i do not think that the banks are hugely concerned at the moment.   it s pretty unusual to hear about virus problems with atms   he said. the many different security systems built-in to cash machines meant there was no chance that a virus could cause them to start spitting out cash spontaneously  he said. banks were more likely to be worried about internal networks being overwhelmed by worms and viruses and customers not being able to get cash out at all  he added. a spokesman for the association of payment and clearing services (apacs) which represents the uk s payments industry said the risk from viruses was minimal.  there s no concern that there s going to be any type of virus hitting the uk networks   he said. risks of infection were small because the data networks that connect uk cash machines together and the operators of the atms themselves were a much smaller and tightly-knit community than in the us where viruses have struck.


what now for kelly holmes  last april  kelly holmes spoke to the bbc sport website about her loneliness  her fight to stay fit and her decision not to contest both the 800m and 1500m at the olympics.  it just goes to show even the most meticulous and measured athletes cannot predict what fate has in store for them. four months later  holmes stormed to double olympic gold and has since been made a dame  won the bbc sport personality of the year and written a book whilst still finding time to coach aspiring athletes. with so much time spent in the spotlight  holmes has increasingly dropped hints that her ambition on the track has begun to wilt. and when asked about her plans for both the indoor and outdoor seasons ahead  the 34-year-old has repeatedly chosen to tick the  don t know  box. holmes has now pulled out of this weekend s european indoor championships  where she was selected for both the 800m and 1500m  because of a hamstring injury. but should we be surprised if the olympic champion over both those distances decides she just does not feel like racing anymore   well  it s a lot easier being the double olympic champion  being feted by everybody  than training to be at the top in middle distance running   points out former olympian and bbc pundit steve cram.  you have to have a real strong desire to carry on doing it even if you re very talented.   holmes  drive and determination have always been unquestionable - that is the reason she has battled back from a string of injuries that threatened to see her finish her career empty-handed. but alarm bells start ringing when the kent athlete begins questioning herself.  will i have as much commitment  desire and energy to go through a major championship   holmes asked in the new year.  that is what i don t know.  at 34  holmes will also be aware that time is running out. us 400m and 200m legend michael johnson  a five-time olympic gold medallist  retired shortly after his 34th birthday as did britain s double olympic champion decathlete daley thompson. the physical demands of the day-to-day grind will only get harder for holmes  who has already admitted she  doesn t like the training anymore.  whilst out on the circuit the allure of defeating a double olympic champion will spur her opponents on. holmes will not want to needlessly suffer the indignity of being beaten. unless she is certain she has a strong chance of winning any race  she will not step onto the track. but if the kent athlete finds the form that fuelled her ambitions last summer  there are more prizes up for grabs. the day after completing her double in athens  the 34-year-old revealed she would still like to win her first indoors title.  holmes  wish could easily be met in madrid before she goes on to prepare for the outdoor season where there are still scores to be settled  such as a first gold at the world championships in helsinki. there is just one small truth which could gnaw away at holmes  motivation - the realisation that no matter how hard she trains  nothing she wins now can surpass her achievements in athens. on the other hand  if those achievements cannot be matched shouldn t they be at least shared and celebrated   you don t get the chance very often in your career to step onto the track as the double olympic champion   agreed cram.  you want to be able to take your bow in front of the fans because it s a fantastic feeling.  i think deep down kelly wants to run. i think she will compete and run races on the circuits but whether or not she runs in the major championships is much less certain.   athletics fans had every reason to believe they would see the new-look kelly holmes tearing up the track again. after her olympic glory she emphatically denied she planned to retire. so  why is holmes dragging her heels about making a decision on where  when or whether to even bother competing again   that s just kelly   explains cram.  she s always been like that.  she enjoys people trying to guess what she is going to do next. she knows every time she makes a pronouncement now it s headline news.  kelly has to figure out for herself what it is she wants and that will be based on athletics decisions  whether she can be competitive  if she is fit enough to put her neck on the line.  and if she decides not to run again  no-one is going to turn round and say  you re making the wrong decision.


england claim dubai sevens glory england beat fiji 26-21 in a dramatic final in dubai to win the first irb sevens event of the season.  having beaten australia and south africa to reach the final  england fell behind to an early try against fiji. they then took charge with scores from pat sanderson  kai horstman  mathew tait and rob thirlby  but fiji rallied to force a tense finale. scotland were beaten 33-15 by samoa in the plate semi-final and ireland lost 17-5 to tunisia in the shield final. mike friday s england side matched their opponents for pace  power and skill in the final and led 19-7 at half-time. but neumi nanuku and marika vakacegu touched down for fiji  only for a needless trip by tuidriva bainivalu on geoff appleford to allow england to run down the clock.  to be honest  england have wanted to win in dubai for a very long time now  and the people here have wanted us to win for just as long   said friday.   we didn t want to put pressure on ourselves but we are thankful we have achieved that and brought through some young talent at the same time that can hopefully play for the england  15s  in a few years.  portugal confirmed their impressive progress in sevens rugby by recording a sudden-death win over france in the bowl final. samoa won the plate title by edging out argentina 21-19.


local net tv takes off in austria an austrian village is testing technology that could represent the future of television.  the people of engerwitzdorf are filming  editing and producing their own regional news channel. the channel covers local politics  sports  events and anything that residents want to film and are prepared to upload for others to watch on pcs. the pilot has been so successful that telekom austria is now considering setting up other projects elsewhere.   it s growing unbelievably fast   said rudolf fischer  head of telekom austria s fixed line division. the trial of buntes fernsehen (multi-coloured tv) was started in late 2004 and creates a net-based tv station run by the 8 000 residents of engerwitzdorf. the hardware and software to turn video footage into edited programmes has been provided by telekom austria but this equipment  following training  has been turned over to the villagers. any video programme created by the villagers is uploaded to a buntes fernsehen portal that lets people browse and download what they want to watch. most people watch the tv on their home pc and a broadband connection is needed to get broadcast quality programmes. in the first four months of the project villagers have created 60 films and put together regular reports on local news items.  they have adopted it very quickly   said mr fischer.  they like the possibility to create their own content and see what s going on in the area.   it s kind of the democratisation of local tv   he said   because none of the bigger broadcasters would ever do anything like this for that region.  the buntes fernsehen project has been such a success that telekom austria is now considering setting up other schemes in similarly rural areas. mr fischer said it was taking the roll-out to other areas slowly because of the work involved in setting up the scheme  getting backers from local government and educating people how to make programmes. the engerwitzdorf scheme is an outgrowth of telekom austria s online tv channel aon which lets people watch programmes on their pc. aon streams a couple of live channels  plus sports  news and music programmes on to the net and has a pay-for-download section that lets people watch what they want when they want to watch it. in october a larger tv-on-demand project is due to launch in vienna that will let people download many programmes from the net.


costin aims for comeback in 2006 jamie costin should be paralysed.  he says so himself in a matter-of-fact way as he recalls the car accident which occurred nine days before he was scheduled to step out into the olympic stadium in athens for the 50k walk. there is an ironic chuckle as he talks of his immediate thoughts after a lorry  driving on the wrong side of the road  had ploughed into his rental car.  i was in a lot of pain and i guessed that one of my toes was broken   says the waterford man.  but i was thinking maybe with a cortisone injection you never know.  in my back  it felt as though all the muscles had been ripped off my pelvis but i was thinking maybe we could do something with laser therapy and ultra sound and hopefully i d be able to race.  it took over 10 hours before jamie knew with certainty that he would not be competing in his second olympics.  my back had been broken in two places and with one of my vertebrae  the bottom part had exploded so i m fierce lucky not be paralysed.  i d fractured my big toe as well which was on the brake.  jamie didn t finally arrive at hospital in athens until some nine and a half hours after the accident.   for the first nine hours  i had no pain killers which was ridiculous in 35 degrees heat.  but once i got the scans and saw them it was a case of moving on and thinking: ok  i ve got a different set of circumstances now .  within three days he was arriving back in ireland by air ambulance. doctors in athens had wanted to operate on jamie s back immediately but he insisted on delaying any surgery until he arrived back home - something he is now very relieved about.  the greek doctors were going to put three or four inch titanium rods either side of my spinal cord up through my vertebrae.  that would have fused all my lower back and i would never have been able to race again. they were really putting a lot of pressure on me to agree to the surgery.  but when i got to the mater in dublin they said it was possible for it to heal totally naturally which is giving me the chance to get back into competition which is very important to me. the people at the mater have been absolutely fantastic.  jamie had to wear a body cast for three and a half months after the accident and spent most of that time flat on his back.  he then progressed to crutches for six weeks until he was finally able to walk unaided on 10 january.  walking without the crutches seemed like something finally really measurable in terms of my recovery.  physio sessions with johnston mcevoy in limerick have been a vital part of his recovery.  johnston uses an advanced type of acupuncture and it s very effective.  needles get put right close up to my spine. a two and a half inch needle went in yesterday and i m fairly incapacitated today as a result.  jamie has also travelled to receive treatment at the polish training centre in spala where he has trained with triple olympic champion robert korzeniowski over the past five years.  i was there for over a fortnight earlier this month and underwent a fair extreme treatment called cryotherapy.  basically  there s a small room which is cooled by liquid nitrogen to minus 160 degrees centigrade and it promotes deep healing.   jamie heads to poland again on sunday where he will be having daily cryotherapy in addition to twice-daily physio sessions and pool-work. all these sessions are small steps on the way to what jamie hopes will be a return to racing in 2006.  it s all about trying to get mobility in my back. lying down for three and a half months didn t really help with the strength.  there s a lot of work involved in my recovery. i m doing about six hours a day between physio and pool work.  i m also going to the gym to lift very light weights to try and build up my muscles. i m fairly full on with everything i do.  i d hope to be training regularly by march. but training is just part of the process of getting back.  at the moment  every time i go and do a big bit of movement  my whole pelvic area all down my lower back just tightens up.  it s a case of waiting and seeing how it reacts. hopefully  after four or five months my back won t tighten up as much.


fiat mulls ferrari market listing ferrari could be listed on the stock market as part of an overhaul of fiat s carmaking operations  the financial times has reported.  it said fiat was set to restructure its business after reaching a $2bn (1.53bn euros; £1.05bn) settlement with gm about fiat s ownership. steps being considered include listing ferrari and bringing maserati and alfa romeo closer together  it said. despite strong sales of alfa romeo  fiat s car business is making a loss.  under the proposals - which the paper said could be announced within days - the iconic sportscar maker could be listed separately on the market. fiat owns a 56% stake in ferrari -best known for its dominant formula one motor racing team - having first bought into the business in 1969. it considered floating ferrari in 2002 but opted to sell a minority stake to italian bank mediobanca for 775m euros ($1bn). that sale valued ferrari - which owns the maserati brand - at 2.3bn euros. the price tag would change if maserati was stripped out. the financial times said fiat may transfer maserati within its wholly- owned alfa romeo division in an effort to exploit commercial synergies. such a move would help alfa romeo and maserati to share marketing  distribution and research & development costs. maserati and ferrari sell about 10 000 cars between them and both companies broke even in 2003.  fiat  italy s largest private sector employer  did not comment on the reported changes. fiat recently negotiated an end to its alliance with general motors. the us firm agreed to pay $2bn to exit an agreement under which it could have been liable to buy fiat outright. analysts said the reported restructuring was evidence of the greater flexibility which fiat now had to develop the business.


greek sprinters  won t run again  the careers of sprinters kostas kenteris and katerina thanou are over  says the boss of the organisation that cleared them of missing a drugs test.  greek athletics federation boss vassilli sevastis told the country s parliament:  i believe kenteris and thanou won t race again.  the damage to their commercial interests has been done   he added. athletics bosses are considering its reponse to the ruling  while the athletes face a trial in a greek court. greek prosecutors have brought spearate charges of missing the drugs test and faking a motorcycle accident. speaking to the greek parliament on tuesday  sevastis said that the evidence sent by the international olympic committee and athletics governing body the iaaf was not strong enough for the greek association to find the sprinters guilty.   we were given the task of getting the snake out if its hole but we were not given any evidence to do it with   he said.  so how can you as a greek with your hand on your heart try the athletes   he added. the athletes are technically free to compete while the iaaf reviews its response to the decision to clear kenteris and thanou. but sevastis said:  it does not matter if they are found guilty at the court of arbitration for sport and the current decision is reversed.


ferguson urges henry punishment sir alex ferguson has called on the football association to punish arsenal s thierry henry for an incident involving gabriel heinze.  ferguson believes henry deliberately caught heinze on the head with his knee during united s controversial win. the united boss said it was worse than ruud van nistelrooy s foul on ashley cole for which he got a three-game ban.  we shall present it to the fa and see what they do. the tackle on heinze was terrible   he said. clubs are permitted to ask the fa to examine specific incidents but information is expected to be provided within 48 hours of the game. the clash occurred moments before half-time when a freddie ljungberg challenge left heinze on the ground on the left touchline. henry  following the ball  attempted to hurdle the argentine but his knee collided with the back of heinze s head.  the striker protested his innocence - and referee mike riley deemed the collision accidental. ferguson was also upset by arsenal s overall discipline during the heated encounter between the two arch-rivals and praised his own side s behaviour.  edu produced a terrible tackle on scholes that was a potential leg-breaker   he said.  there were 24 fouls in the game by arsenal  seven on heinze  five on ronaldo  six by vieira - and it was only his sixth foul that got him booked. phil neville got booked for his first challenge.  i am proud of my players for the way they handled that pressure.  we have always been good at being gracious in defeat. what happened on sunday overshadowed our achievement  but then they do it all the time  don t they


yukos loses us bankruptcy battle a judge has dismissed an attempt by russian oil giant yukos to gain bankruptcy protection in the us.  yukos filed for chapter 11 protection in houston in an unsuccessful attempt to halt the auction of its yugansk division by the russian authorities. the court ruling is a blow to efforts to get damages for the sale of yugansk  which yukos claims was illegally sold. separately  former yukos boss mikhail khodorkovsky began testimony on friday in his trial for fraud and tax evasion.  mr khodorkovsky - who has been in jail for more than a year - pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him and denied involvement in any criminal activities.  i pride myself on heading for 15 years a number of successful companies and helping other enterprises rise from their knees   he told a russian court.  yugansk was auctioned to help pay off $27.5bn (£14.5bn) in unpaid taxes. it was bought for $9.4bn by a previously-unknown group  which was in turn bought up almost immediately by state-controlled oil company rosneft.  texas judge letitia clark said yukos did not have enough of a us presence to establish us jurisdiction.  the vast majority of the business and financial activities of yukos continue to occur in russia   judge clark said in her ruling.  such activities require the continued participation of the russian government.  yukos had argued that a us court was entitled to declare it bankrupt before its yugansk unit was sold  since it has local bank accounts and its chief finance officer bruce misamore lives in houston. yukos claimed it sought help in the us because other forums - russian courts and the european court of human rights - were either unfriendly or offered less protection. russia had indicated it would in any case not abide by the rulings of the us courts.  in her ruling  the judge acknowledged that  it appears likely that agencies of the russian government have acted in a manner that would be considered confiscatory under united states law . but she said her role was simply to decide on jurisdiction. the us court s jurisdiction had been challenged by deutsche bank and gazpromneft  a former unit of russian gas monopoly gazprom which is due to merge with rosneft. analysts said the ability of gazprom and rosneft to trade freely overseas had been stifled while the ownership of yugansk remained unclear.  yukos said it would consider its options in light of the ruling. however  it claimed that the court had backed its argument in four out of five key issues.  we believe the merits of our case are strong and simple   said chief executive steven theede.  our assets were illegally seized. we want them back or damages paid.