The US space agency (Nasa) has launched its shuttle Endeavour on a mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

Three people are arrested as China's largest training website for hackers is shut down, state media reports.

After poor weather thwarted Sunday's lift-off, the space shuttle Endeavour is fuelled for another launch attempt.

Can 'well-behaved' robots make the battlefield safer?

Revenue staff tip off Radio 4's Money Box that there are more tax code problems than their bosses are admitting to.

The computer that laid the foundations of the internet

Astronauts to install the biggest window in space

An influential group of MPs and peers says the government's plans to illegal file-sharing could breach the rights of net users.

The European Environment Agency launches a web tool to encourage citizens to log air and water quality in their area.

Academics are to study computer games and comics alongside the classics of children's literature.

The US Department of Justice says that it is still not satisfied with a deal that would allow Google to build a digital library.

How the web has become a powerful tool of protest

Facebook accounts for nearly half of all the time people in the UK spend going online using their phones, according to figures.

Malaysian politics moves on to the web

A 17-year old vulnerability that dates from the days of DOS is being patched in Microsoft's February security update.

A selection of props and costumes from BBC One's Doctor Who are to go under the hammer in London later this month.

Lego is no longer just a pursuit for children

Scientists in Cambridge show that an "artificial pancreas" can be used to regulate blood sugar in children with Type 1 diabetes.

Pledges of support for an Australian banker in trouble after being seen viewing erotic images on live TV are growing across the internet.

An Australian judge has ruled that ISP iiNet is not responsible for the illegal downloads of its customers.

Libya must stop cracking down on opposition websites and other site like YouTube, Human Rights Watch says.

How can you stop inmates making online threats?

The making of the first recognisably modern computer

A US study finds younger internet users lose interest in blogging and switch to shorter and more mobile forms of communication.

The group behind the world's most popular smartphone operating system - Symbian - is giving away "billions of dollars" of code for free.

A controversial iphone application that allows users to download speeches by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini is withdrawn.

A tourist lost in the dark on a frozen sea in northern Germany is rescued after flashes from his camera are spotted on a beach webcam.

Online criminals have created fake carbon registries and managed to steal permits worth 3 million euros.

Mobile company Nokia says that one person per second is downloading its free navigation software.

Could rural broadband become an election issue?

More than 4,400 people cheated in last year's GCSEs and A-levels in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, says watchdog Ofqual.

Twitter says it has identified a scheme that uses compromised file-sharing sites to steal the log on information of users.

A US Senate member asks 30 net firms about how they are protecting human rights in China ahead of a hearing on the issue.

Innovation is the key for papers says Bill Thompson

The Office of Fair Trading says it fears the planned merger between T-Mobile and Orange will harm competition in the UK.

Schools are being sold detection equipment to catch mobile phones used secretly in exam rooms by students to cheat.

UK psychologists suggest there is a strong link between heavy internet use and depression, but others dispute their findings.

European nations commit to build the next Jason spacecraft, a key mission to monitor the behaviour of the world's oceans.

Openness must be defended, says Bill Thompson.

Should space travel be constrained by worldly budgets?

A petition calling for the UK government to drop Internet Explorer 6 is the latest move in a campaign to kill off the browser.

Pupils are more likely to use computers for their schoolwork at home every day than at school, according to a survey.

Are HDMI cables worth the money?

Fighting the Taliban from thousands of miles away

Commons Speaker's wife Sally Bercow complains about being featured on a website monitoring MPs' movements.

Revealed: the WW2 supercomputers developed by spies.

The full extent of scams in Britain is revealed as thousands are warned they could be on a sucker list.

Whistleblower website WikiLeaks says it is closing down temporarily because of financial problems.

Retailers selling more than 32kg of batteries a year must now provide recycling bins in a bid to cut the amount going to landfill.

President Obama is set to abandon the US space agency's "Moon rockets" according to reports.

Thousands of fraudulent e-mails have been sent out ahead of Sunday's tax return deadline, Revenue & Customs says.

The Conservatives have unveiled plans to deliver a "nationwide super-fast broadband" to the majority of UK homes by 2017.

Google has begun phasing out support for Internet Explorer 6, identified as the weak link in a cyber attack on the firm.

Egg credit card customers with Visa Debit cards from Natwest are unable to make payments via the Egg website.

Cyber conmen are launching attacks that trade on surging interest in Apple's iPad tablet computer.

Whether the web has missed its greatest chance

The way a UK law firm is pursuing alleged net pirates has been criticised with calls for the Information Commissioner to investigate.

Nintendo reports a near 10% fall in profits between April and December last year as games console sales slowed.

Experiments at the National Ignition Centre in the US show a potential obstacle to producing energy by laser fusion has been swept aside.

Peter Andre and Peaches take on Apple's iThingy

Authors and firms file objections with a New York court to reject a deal that would allow Google to build a vast digital library.

A website offering people cash prizes for monitoring CCTV footage online has had its launch delayed by an official review.

Facebook will be investigated by Canada's information commissioner over changes made to its privacy policies.

Analysts say that the launch of Apple's long-awaited iPad device could reverse the fortunes of the tablet PC industry.

Malaysian politics moves on to the web

Tablets were shown off at the CES tech show but some are questioning their actual purpose.

A search engine called "Goojje" has come online in China, in an apparent plea to Google not to end operations in the country.

Sky is to launch its 3D channel with a live Premiership match this weekend in nine pubs around the UK.

The launch of Apple's iPad tablet device

Apple chief Steve Jobs takes the wraps off its long-awaited touchscreen device, which the firm has called the iPad.

Will services like Spotify ever be profitable?

Microsoft has released a patch for a hole in Internet Explorer that is thought to have been exploited by Chinese hackers.

Fevered speculation over a new Apple product will end on Wednesday when the company unveils its latest creation.

More than 150 people have come forward claiming to be wrongly accused of illegal file-sharing, a consumer group reveals.

The Daily Mirror joins a growing number of newspapers to block news aggregator NewsNow from trawling their websites.

The US space agency concedes defeat in its battle to free the Spirit rover from its Martian sand trap.

The majority of broadband users pay for download limits that they come nowhere near reaching, a survey finds.

SeeSaw, a new online TV service offering both catch-up and archive programmes, is launching a trial in the UK.

The European Commission agrees to monitor Virgin Media's trial of anti-piracy software after a complaint from privacy activists.

Free software aims to challenge e-book devices

High-profile US technology blog TechCrunch is back online after seemingly falling victim to hackers.

Why have police been called in to a blog war?

Apple reports a 50% increase in profits after seeing its most profitable quarter ever over the Christmas period.

More than 100 MPs are using the social networking site Twitter to communicate with voters, a survey suggests.

Can Spotify make money for artists and succeed in US?

A hacker who gained notoriety for unlocking the iPhone as a teenager says that he has now hacked Sony's PlayStation 3.

Incorrect tax codes may have been sent by HM Revenue & Customs because of a new computer system.

Swedish telecoms equipment group Ericsson is cutting an extra 1,500 jobs, as it reports a 92% fall in quarterly profits.

A music file format, which can include lyrics, videos and artwork, is unveiled by some of the people behind MP3s.

A US woman told to pay a "monstrous" fine for pirating pop songs has had the damages claim slashed to $54,000.

China denies any state involvement in alleged cyber attacks on Google and accuses the US of double standards.

Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are selling 10 million of their shares, raising $5.5bn (£3.4bn) at current prices.

Motorola has asked US regulators to stop Blackberry owners, Research in Motion, from sales in the US.

President Obama wants answers on alleged cyber-attacks originating in China on the search giant Google, officials say.

A insurance scheme using satellite technology is launched in Kenya to offer herdsmen livestock protection during drought.

Telecoms firm BT has revealed how much its highest speed broadband services will cost UK consumers.

The way fungus-like slime moulds grow could help engineers design computer and communication networks, say researchers.

On the 50th anniversary of the dive to the bottom of the deepest part of the ocean, scientists say there has been a resurgence in deep sea research.

China rejects US criticisms of its internet controls, saying it could harm relations between the two countries.

If you find video games a struggle, it could be to do with the size of certain parts of your brain, a study suggests.

A method of creating energy storage devices using a carbon nanotube "ink" has been shown to work on ordinary fabrics.

Hillary Clinton urges Beijing to investigate cyber attacks on Google which prompted it to threaten to leave China.

The European Union approves Oracle's $7.4bn takeover of fellow US firm group Sun Microsystems.

Why we either love or loathe sharing life online.

The US is calling for tough action against perpetrators of cyber attacks, after Google is allegedly hacked in China.

Music industry body the IFPI claims that music piracy has destroyed opportunities for artists in countries such as Spain.

Young people are most at risk from online fraud with many relying on their bank to tell them when funds are stolen.

How Google Street View captured the National Trust.

China's says its dispute with Google over online censorship should not be linked to Beijing's relations with Washington.

Nokia launches a free map service for its handsets that analysts believe could challenge stand-alone sat-nav devices.

Getting the best out of hi-tech teaching aids

Profits surge at online auction giant eBay, thanks to the sale of a majority stake in its internet phone company Skype.

Video-sharing site YouTube is set to unveil a movie rental service as it looks for ways to boost its revenues.

Web founder Tim Berners-Lee unveils a UK government website that aims to make public sector data freely available.

The New York Times is to charge for full access to its website from 2011, the latest newspaper to move in that direction.

Manchester United football club says that none of its players have personal profiles on social network sites.

A engineer from the University of Surrey has spent a year perfecting the design for an autonomous unicycle.

How teams of web volunteers are helping in Haiti

Web search giant Google says it will stream all Indian Premier League cricket matches live on its YouTube video-sharing site.

A man who ran a file-sharing website from his Teesside home is found not guilty of conspiracy to defraud.

Sony delays the release of its highly anticipated motion controller for its PlayStation 3 console until the autumn of 2010.

Microsoft says it will issue a patch for a hole in Internet Explorer that could have been exploited by Chinese hackers.

Former Microsoft boss Bill Gates launches an official Twitter feed and is rapidly becoming one of the sites most popular members.

Children who use the abbreviated language of text messages are actually improving their ability to spell, researchers say.

Europe's biggest space company, EADS Astrium, is seeking partners to fly a demonstration solar power mission in orbit.

Analysts predict that "tens of millions" of tablets PCs will be sold in 2010 but "green" technology may struggle.

The original version of the story of Sir Isaac Newton and the falling apple will be available online from Monday.

Tech tools take centre stage in Haiti relief

Google says it has postponed the Chinese launch of two mobile phones following a dispute with the government over censorship.

The BBC's iPlayer and Beth Ditto are amongst the nominees for the third Brit Insurance Design Awards on 4 March.

Nokia says it will "vigorously" defend itself after Apple launches the latest salvo in a legal debate between the firms.

A research firm says online revenue generated in China surged by more than 30% to 74.3bn yuan ($10.9bn) in 2009.

Video game scores are to be recognised at the Ivor Novello awards, which honour excellence in music writing.

a research jointly conducted by chinese and asian scientists has discovered that highly pathogenic avian influenza (h5n1) outbreak was closely related to bird migration.

china successfully launched an orbiter into space from the xichang satellite launch center in southwestern sichuan province at about 0:12 a.m. beijing time sunday. it was the third orbiter that china has launched for its independent satellite navigation and positioning network, also known as beidou, or compass system.

plant scientists at the university of york in the united kingdom have published the first genetic map of the medicinal herb artemisia annua. the map is being used to accelerate plant breeding of artemisia and rapidly develop the species into a high-yielding crop.

an annular eclipse of the sun is expected to cross china friday afternoon, cheng zhuo, a researcher with the purple mountain observatory under the chinese academy of sciences, said wednesday.the astronomical phenomenon, predicted to be the longest annularity of the next 1,000 years, will be visible in some areas of yunnan, sichuan, guizhou, shaanxi, hunan, hubei, henan, anhui, jiangsu and shand...

US chip maker Intel reports healthy figures, in a positive sign for the US technology market.

Why we either love or loathe sharing life online.

Esa boss Jean-Jacques Dordain wants a decision in 2010 on an extension of the life of the International Space Station.

Technology luminaries or footballers and spies?

Sophisticated cyber attacks on companies and individuals in China happen every day, security experts tell the BBC.

Technology found in computer games and the film industry is to be used in the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes.

A High Court judge will rule whether Home Secretary Alan Johnson was wrong to allow the extradition of computer hacker Gary McKinnon.

An education professional warns that "switched off devices equal switched off children" at the BETT education fair.

A new broadband network for Manchester will give local businesses and residents speeds of 100Mbps.

China says foreign internet firms are welcome to do business "according to the law", in its first reaction to the Google row.

The UK government is looking for advice on how to spend the cash it is raising for next generation broadband.

Microsoft announces that Project Natal, its hands-free games controller, will go on sale in November 2010.

russian modules on iss will realize uninterrupted communications with ground by 2013, insider said wednesday.

official wednesday said chinese internet authorities were seeking more information on google's statement that it could quit China.

hewlett-packard (hp) and microsoft on wednesday announced a three-year agreement to jointly invest 250 million u.s. dollars to advance cloud computing and simplify technology environments for businesses of all sizes.

The online commons should be preserved for all, says regular commentator Bill Thompson.

The US says it is "troubled" by attacks on e-mail accounts of Chinese human rights activists as Google warns it may pull out.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 becomes one of a small number of entertainment franchises to take more than $1bn in sales.

A man who ran a file-sharing website from his Teesside home had £20,000 in 10 bank accounts, a court hears.

Google's decision raises wider issues, says Bill Thompson

Ministers back down over what critics claimed were "draconian" new powers to crack down on online copyright infringement.

some smartphone owners running windows software said they got messages from the future, according to cnn report wednesday.

Contracts worth one billion euros are awarded to build an operational satellite-navigation system for Europe.

astronauts' urine is clogging water recycling system on the International Space Station, according to British media reports Wednesday.The 250 million- U.S. dollar-system was set for processing urine into clean water for drinking.

avic tuesday started building a r&d center to develop engines for domestic-made jumbo jets in shanghai.

u.s. researchers have found supplemental protein may help restore impaired mobility of people who suffer from a stroke.

after a sharp decline in 2009, global information technology (it) spending is expected to rebound this year and keep growing in the years ahead, market research firm forrester said on tuesday.

A US software company lawsuit accuses China of stealing its code for a program used to block certain internet sites.

Internet giant Google says it may end operations in China over alleged breaches of human rights activists' e-mail accounts.

New rule could result in significant fines for those found to be breaching the Data Protection Act.

Researchers have used a property of salad dressing to get electronics to self-assemble on a range of surfaces.

A leading porn star courts controversy by claiming violent video games are more of a danger to children than online porn.

china's largest search engine, Baidu.com, confirmed that its website was paralyzed Tuesday morning after coming under a cyber-attack. The search engine has now resumed operation. The company said it was still investigating the problem, and declined to give further information.

s korea's first-ever icebreaking vessel set sale for Antarctic voyage Tuesday to test its icebreaking operations.

the global communications industry will turn green and sustainable within five years, said alcatel-lucent's Bell Labs here Monday, when it announced the establishment of a global "Green Touch" consortium.

An EU project to engineer "chemical computers" that mimic the actions of neurons in the brain has begun.

Many of the first users of Google's Nexus One are filing complaints about how it works as they look for help with the phone.

A ban on Microsoft selling certain versions of its flagship products Word and Office begins, following a patent dispute.

A scheme to give free laptops to pupils from poor backgrounds is being rolled out to 270,000 families in England.

Top technology and gadgets on show at CES 2010

chinese president hu jintao (c), poses ...

the fast flip, which embedded in google news' bottom page, features the screenshot news webpages of all the major online medias.

many tv giants are displaying a new generation of tvs -- the 3d tvs, in one of the biggest electronic shows in the world, the consumer electronics show in las vegas, to boost the market, according to news reports on monday.

How scammers are targeting job seekers

a marine biologist has discovered a startling new crab species that resembles a large strawberry. the unusual crustacean was found off the coast of southern taiwan. it has a dramatic bright red shell covered with small white bumps.

Montenegro's money-making domain

the astronautical exhibition would open to the public in hangzhou, capital city of east china's Zhejiang Province until Jan. 19, 2010, demonstrating almost all the latest space activities of China in recent years.

A look at some of the best stuff in the hi-tech show

A report, commissioned by the French government, has proposed taxing online firms such as Google on their ad revenue.

A simple method of dicing up and analysing images of artworks reveals an accurate way to spot fakes, researchers say.

France ponders putting a time limit to online life

Online exhibitionists who share intimate photos and life stories affect the privacy of everyone, claims an academic.

To spur innovation in the digital economy, the US government is told to stop getting in the way.

TV manufacturers hammered by the recession pin their hopes on 3D TV as a way to boost sales

TV viewers are throwing away their sets in the belief that they could stop working when the analogue signal is turned off.

the 2010 international consumer electronics show (ces) kicked off here on thursday with some 2,700 exhibitors unveiling their latest technology innovations. the world's largest technology trade show, organized by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), runs through Sunday. More than 20,000 new products will be on display at the show.

Information about London house prices, road accidents and crime rates are to be made public via an official datastore.

Microsoft announces that Project Natal, its hands-free games controller, will go on sale in November 2010.

Microsoft and HP team up to introduce a slate computer ahead of the launch of a much rumoured device from Apple.

chinese technology giant lenovo wednesday revealed the industry's first hybrid PC for consumers, the IdeaPad U1 hybrid notebook, featuring a groundbreaking detachable screen.

Album sales in the UK fell by 3.5% in 2009 to 128.9 million despite a growth in digital downloads, figures show.

Why Google launched the Nexus One phone

Bill Thompson keeps an eye on the future

the chinese government, two chinese software makers and seven major computer manufacturers faces a 2.2 billion u.s. dollars lawsuit filed by a us based software producer for their distribution of the internet filtering software "Green Dam Youth Escort" - which the company claims is pirated from a similar product it makes, the china daily reported thursday.

at&t announced it would sell seven new smart phones in the first half of 2010, including two palm and five android phones.

presidents and ceos of it companies begin to speak at press conferences before the opening of international consumer electronics show in las vegas, nevada. as the world's largest consumer technology tradeshow, Int'l ces will stage from jan. 7 to jan. 10 this year.

A US software company lawsuit accuses China of stealing its code for a program used to block certain internet sites.

The mathematical constant pi is calculated to a record 2.7 trillion digits using a desktop computer, a researcher claims.

Google looks to defend its online ad empire with a new mobile phone that will compete with the iPhone.

northrop grumman, an aerospace firm, was moving its headquarters from los angeles to washington, d.c. by summer of 2011 to be closer to its key customer, the u.s. government, a newspaper report said on tuesday.

chairman and chief executive of arianespace jean-yves le gall outlined tuesday the new year agenda for its three launchers: ariance 5, soyuz and vega, saying there will be seven missions for the heavy-lift ariane 5 in 2010.

skype said its service will be embedded in high-definition tvs with internet capabilities, according to news reports on wednesday.

apple on tuesday said more than 3 billion applications have been downloaded from its app store, a service for iphone and ipod touch.

google on tuesday officially unveiled its own smart phone nexus one, which represents the internet search giant's strongest challenge against Apple's popular iphone. google executives unveiled it at a press conference held at the company's headquarters in Mountain View, California.

Handset maker Nokia has launched a second court case in its legal battle with Apple over patents.

A US student fined £675,000 for illegally downloading music has asked for the damages awarded against him to be reduced.

How much would you be prepared to pay for 3D glasses?

while few can hope to better apple's iPhone, content providers here are giving the competition a different complexion by focusing on its applications. A growing number of Chinese iPhone application developers have been vying for a slice of the Apple Store since the smart phone was officially released in the mainland last October.

We need atoms as well as bits, says Bill Thompson

apple is set to unveil its tablet device in january, but doesn't plan on shipping the product until March, U.S. media reported Monday.

google's mobile phone Nexus One, which includes a highly-developed touch screen and other enhancements from its previously launched G-phone T-mobile series, is due to be unveiled at Google's headquarters in california and is to be on sale at google's website on Tuesday.

scientists at the jet propulsion laboratory (jpl) said on sunday that they have removed the lens cap from nasa's Wide-Infared Survey Explorer (WISE), the first basic step to see the first images from WISE. "The cover floated away as we planned," said William Irace, the mission's project manager.

the full moon rises over clouds in the horizon over athens thursday. for only the second time in nearly two decades, earth is illuminated by a "Blue Moon," the name given to the second full moon appearing in a single month.

The first effects of France's controversial new law against internet piracy will begin to be felt as the new year starts.

Four veterans of the UK's computer game industry have been given New Year Honours.

A virtual 3D 'super-needle' devised by Bangor University could soon help train doctors in pin-hole surgery.

Bill Thompson keeps an eye on the future

The group behind the $100 laptop reveals a tablet version of its PC aimed at connecting children in the developing world.

Podcasters pick 2009's best web moments

Plans to create "start-up" visas in the US for foreign entrepreneurs with hi-tech business ideas will be debated in 2010.

Apple wins a court case against claimants who say the iPod is defective and could cause hearing loss.

Revelers ushering in the New Year of 2010 in many parts of the world will be treated with a so-called "blue moon" -- the second full moon in a month if the skies are clear. New Year's Eve blue moons are rarer, occurring every 19 years.

A small Canadian company behind a search engine called Groovle.com wins a case filed against it by search giant Google.

A US appeals court upholds a $290m (£182m) verdict against Microsoft in a patent dispute with Canadian company i4i.

Apple shares rise by more than 1% in early trading on Wednesday amid further speculation over new products.

Voice-to-text company Spinvox has been bought by speech recognition firm Nuance.

2009's stories that made waves in the Twitterverse

The sale of virtual goods is turning into a billion dollar industry and one of the hottest trends in technology say experts.

Experts predict that 2010 will be the year when 3D technology leaves the cinema and moves on to TVs, PCs and consoles.

How mobiles and reality will merge more in 2010

moscow, dec. 29 (xinhua) -- russia launched a proton-m ...

cell phone users in india will break through 500 million by the end of 2009 and india will become the second largest cell phone users country in the world.

a groundbreaking project is planning in china that would see the launch of a satellite to investigate mysterious dark matter in space.

Nokia ramps up its legal fight against Apple, claiming that almost all of its products infringe its patents.

BT's super-fast broadband network will be completed in time for the 2012 Olympic Games, the firm says.

A computer scientist publishes details of the secret code used to encrypt the majority of mobile phone conversations.

Vodafone customers can pre-order the iPhone ahead of its release on the network in the UK on 14 January 2010.