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TOP STORIES FOR MONDAY, AUGUST 15, 2005 Berkeley Project Aims to Create Better Search Technologies E-Mail Marketer Convicted of Stealing 1.6 Billion Names IBM Donates Accessibility Code to Firefox BERKELEY PROJECT AIMS TO CREATE BETTER SEARCH TECHNOLOGIES Researchers at a new center being developed at the University of California at Berkeley will study search technologies in an effort "to solve the problems that have been engendered by the success of search," according to Robert Wilensky, the director of the center. Among the topics of study will be privacy, fraud, multimedia search, and personalization. Plans for the new center have not been finalized, but organizers said it will be an interdisciplinary effort, including 20 or so faculty from various departments. Wilensky said that having an environment with so many researchers from differing fields of study results in "something bigger than its parts." The new research center will encourage commercial search companies to participate. Higher education has played a prominent role in the development of search technologies. Both Google and Yahoo were started at Stanford University, while Lycos was born at Carnegie Mellon University. Other institutions around the country are also working on projects to further develop search technologies. CNET, 15 August 2005 http://news.com.com/2100-1038_3-5831050.html E-MAIL MARKETER CONVICTED OF STEALING 1.6 BILLION NAMES A jury in Arkansas has convicted Scott Levine of stealing 1.6 billion computer records from Little Rock-based data vendor Acxiom Corp. The records included names, addresses, phone numbers, and other personal information that Levine's company, Snipermail.com, sought to use in direct e-mail marketing campaigns. In the case, the government presented evidence that Levine had used illegally obtained passwords of about 300 legitimate Acxiom customers to fraudulently access the records. Levine was convicted of 120 counts of unauthorized access to a computer, two counts of fraud for cracking passwords, and one count of obstruction of justice for trying to destroy evidence stored on Snipermail computers. Levine will be sentenced in January. Acxiom said that since the intrusion, it has improved security procedures for protecting data, including strengthening encryption systems and the company's ability to detect when unauthorized access takes place. Wall Street Journal, 15 August 2005 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112406416615412935,00.html IBM DONATES ACCESSIBILITY CODE TO FIREFOX This week, IBM said it will donate code to the Firefox browser that will make the application more usable for people with visual or other types of disabilities. According to the World Health Organization, as many as one billion people worldwide have a speech, vision, hearing, mobility, or cognitive disability, and legislation in at least some countries sets requirments for accessibility of information for individuals with disabilities. Expected in the 1.5 release of Firefox, the code from IBM will allow Firefox users to manipulate and navigate Web pages without a mouse or with reduced numbers of keystrokes. The code also facilitates "rich Internet applications," which are designed for individuals with specific disabilities. Previously, IBM has helped the Mozilla Foundation, the maker of Firefox, make the browser compatible with Microsoft Active Accessibility, a widely used standard for accessibility tools such as screen readers. ZDNet, 15 August 2005 http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-5833354.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. To access resources including articles, books, conference sessions, contracts, effective practices, plans, policies, position descriptions, and blog content, go to http://www.educause.edu/resources ***************************************************** CONFERENCES For information on all EDUCAUSE learning and networking opportunities, see http://www.educause.edu/31 ***************************************************** COPYRIGHT Edupage copyright (c) 2005, EDUCAUSE
