Wireless Network Rolled Out in Iraq

BALAD, Iraq -- U.S. military personnel at Joint Base Balad here have started using wireless Internet connections on a subscription basis via a satellite uplink and a ruggedized wireless LAN.

Lucas Catranis, president and chief technology officer at Babylon Telecommunications Inc., the integrator on the project, said that about 1,000 soldiers and airmen are paying $60 (U.S.) per month to send e-mail and browse the Web.

The network is still under construction. When it's finished in November, Catranis expects that 20,000 enlisted personnel will have access to it.

Babylon has so far equipped the base with about 250 ruggedized Wi-Fi access points from Aruba Networks Inc. The network is privately funded, generating revenue from subscriptions.

-- Matt Hamblen , Computerworld

Samsung Unveils First Netbook

SEOUL, South Korea -- Samsung Electronics Co. last month unveiled its first netbook computer, a lightweight minilaptop with a 10.2-in. screen.

Based on Intel's Atom microprocessor, the NC10 runs Microsoft Windows XP. Samsung said it has no plans to develop a Linux-based model.

The company will offer 80GB and 160GB versions of the netbook. Each will include a 1.3-megapixel digital motion camera and offer Bluetooth 2.0 wireless connections to other devices.

The NC10 will be available in much of Asia and Europe in October, and in the U.S. in November.

-- Dan Nystedt, IDG News Service

Briefly Noted

IBM last week announced the opening of four offshore cloud-computing centers where big companies, universities and government agencies will be able to test Web-based services and applications. The centers are located in Bangalore, India; Hanoi, Vietnam; São Paulo, Brazil; and Seoul.

--John Ribeiro, IDG News Service