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SCMP Reporter

BIG BLUE RECALLS FAULTY THINKPAD ADAPTERS

IBM China/Hong Kong  is recalling power adapters  shipped with its ThinkPad i Series laptops and 390 Series and 240 Series notebooks between January 1999 and August 2000.

The affected 56-watt alternate current (AC) adapters were made for IBM by power supply maker Belta Electronics.

They can be identified by the IBM part number 02K6549 and by the three hollow metal pins in the connector on the adapter brick.

Adapters with solid pins are not affected and no other adapters sold under the IBM name or manufactured by Delta are affected.

IBM has taken action based on six reports of adapters overheating. None of the reported failures were in Hong Kong and none had resulted in cases of personal injury, IBM said.

About 20,000 units of the ThinkPad I Series, 390 Series and 240 Series  sold in Hong Kong over the 20-month period are likely to have been shipped with the Delta adapters.

They posed no immediate danger but should not be left unattended while plugged into any AC power outlet, IBM said.

The IBM recall hotline is 28258789 and is open for calls during regular office hours from Monday to Friday.

alliance ups ante in fight against pirated title USE

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) has stepped up its campaign against users of pirated software by offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the successful prosecution of copyright offenders.

That amount represents a dramatic increase over the $30,000 bounty offered by the group last year under its Leads Reward Campaign.

The BSA hotline is 2861 3366.

Belinda Lui,  who co-chairs BSA Hong Kong, said: 'We hope to encourage greater public participation in this renewed campaign.'

She said the initiative was warranted because of the high use of pirated software by companies in Hong Kong.

Citing recent data from research firm International Data Corp, Ms Lui said about 52 per cent of software installed on computers in Hong Kong was pirated.

But Ms Lui also noted that 'enforcement, assisted by tip-offs,  is only the last resort' in the fight against piracy.

The BSA, which counts many of the world's largest software companies as members, is also involved in various public education and awareness initiatives in Hong Kong on software piracy.



Technology Digest