Alan Turing papers saved for UK

A last minute donation from the National Heritage Memorial Fund has saved the papers of the computing genius Alan Turing for the nation.

The collection of scientific papers and material relating to Turing's work on wartime codebreaking was in danger of going abroad.

He was one of the founding fathers of modern computing and a key figure in breaking the German Enigma code.

The National Heritage Memorial Fund's �200,000 donation filled the gap.

The papers were put up for auction last year and an internet campaign swung into action.

The aim was to save the papers for the museum at Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire, where Turing worked breaking codes during the war.

IT journalist Gareth Halfacree managed to raise �23,000 from public donations.

Internet search firm Google also pledged cash but the money raised was �200,000 short of the seller's reserve price.

The Fund says the papers will stand as a permanent memorial to a man who played a crucial role in the war.

Turing is famous for his code-breaking work at Bletchley Park during World War II, helping to create the Bombe machine which cracked messages enciphered using the German Enigma code.

He committed suicide in 1954 at the age of 41, two years after being prosecuted for having a sexual relationship with a man.

In 2009 thousands of people signed a Downing Street petition calling for a posthumous government apology to Turing.

The then prime minister Gordon Brown responded by saying he was sorry for the "appalling" way Turing was treated for being gay.

Mr Halfacree told the BBC: "These papers are extremely significant."

During Turing's short life he only published 18 papers and offprints of 15 of them, which were given by Turing to his friend Professor Max Newman, are included in the collection.

Mr Halfacree said: "There are handwritten notes by Turing on them and one of them has the signature of his mother on it."

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Intel launches high speed cable

24 February 2011 Last updated at 13:25 ET

Chip manufacturer Intel has announced it is to roll out a new technology for connecting computers and peripherals.

The system, know as Thunderbolt, promises transfer speeds twice as fast as USB 3.0.

However it won't reach its theoretical maximum because Intel has opted to use copper wires rather than fibre optic cables.

The company said it would gradually move to higher speeds over time.

Apple will become the first manufacturer to use Thunderbolt, on its Macbook Pro computers.

The Cupertino firm is said to have been a major driver of its development, although it remains to be seen how may other manufacturers will adopt the new standard.

Light Peak

Intel has been working on the technology for several years.

It was first announced, under the codename Light Peak in 2009.

At launch, its top speed will be limited to 10 Gigabits per second - twice as fast as USB 3.0, but still well below the theoretical maximum using optical cables.

Intel claims that future versions will be able to reach 100 Gb/sec.

The faster data transfer rates are likely to be welcomed by those consumers who use high-definition video, said Sarah Rottman Epps, an analyst with Forrester Research.

"This isn't an innovation that consumers have been asking for, but it's one they'll appreciate," she said.

"Especially when transferring video, as that's when [USB] starts to feel slow."

The system also promises to reduce the number of cables a user has connecting their computer setup.

It is able to carry multiple signal types at the same time, enabling power, display and peripherals to use a single cable.

However, in the short term, users may need to invest in special adaptors to connect their older devices onto Thunderbolt sockets.

Its arrival on the consumer market also raises questions about the future of other connector standards, such as USB and Firewire.

Thunderbolt's most high profile supporter, Apple, is expected to gradually transition to a single connector, according to Karen Haslam, editor of Macworld UK.

"In the long run there will be no need for Apple to support these multiple formats with individual ports - existing products can run through an adaptor," she said.

Not everyone is convinced that Thunderbolt will become the lone standard.

Ian Chiu, editor of the website Everythingusb.com told BBC News that the cost of components could put off some manufacturers.

"I don't really know how Intel will make Thunderbolt appealing to all the other first-tier PC manufacturers," he said.

"HP, Sony, Dell, Acer, Asus make most of their money from the low-end and medium-end notebooks.

"On the other hand, Apple's Macbook Pro line-up is targeted at the prosumers, professionals and other people who aren't so price conscious," said Mr Chiu.

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Microsoft update failed 1 in 10

24 February 2011 Last updated at 07:18 ET

Microsoft has revealed that 1 in 10 users who tried to install a software update on their Windows mobile experienced problems.

The company had previously said that only a "small number" of handsets were affected.

Owners have reported a range of issues following the download, from phones crashing, to becoming completely unusable.

Microsoft pulled the update soon after the problem came to light.

On Microsoft's website, company blogger Michael Stroh wrote: "Has the update process gone perfectly? No�but few large-scale software updates ever do, and the engineering team here was prepared.

"Of course, when it's your phone that's having a problem�or you're the one waiting�it's still aggravating."

The problem appears to have affected only Samsung handsets, in particular the Omnia 7 model.

Bad connection

Microsoft said that most of those affected had either a bad internet connection or too little storage on the computer that the update was being installed from.

The company's blog posting directs users to an online troubleshooting guide, as well as suggesting they visit its Windows Phone forum.

Many of the postings on that site detailed users' attempts to restore their phones.

Lphilly79 wrote: "I disconnected the phone, removed the battery, and the phone booted up again into the original ROM (v7004).

"No obvious changes were made and everything is seems ok, exactly the way is was before the upgrade attempt."

One member, called Eliuzhi, appeared to have had less luck: "Now my phone is bricked I can not do anything!"

Microsoft has said that it will issue a new update as soon as it has identified how to fix the problem.

The company is currently trying to grow its share of the lucrative smartphone market, having lost ground to Apple, Google and Blackberry.

It recently announced a tie-up with Nokia that would see the handset manufacturer running Windows Phone on its smartphone devices.

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