As online gaming becomes increasingly popular, real-world trading of virtual items used in these games has rocketed. Dan Simmons finds out what happens when fantasy gaming meets cold, hard cash. With the spread of broadband connections, multi-player fantasy gaming, in which thousands of gamers can play simultaneously, has taken off. Stunning virtual worlds promise adventure and glory, often for a monthly access fee of around $10 to $15 (£6 to £8). The most popular titles have attracted more than three million subscribers. The social interaction between players often leads gamers to develop tight-knit communities, forming in-game allegiances. It is a formula that has also led to some seriously dedicated playing. Around 20 hours a week is the average. "You've got a lot more human emotions coming in to play, you're getting friends, a social group and you may have a social standing within the group," says Rhianna Pratchett, a gamer and games writer. "It can be very addictive and the hoarding of weapons or getting the best weapon or getting to the next level up or getting the next spell is addictive." One gamer in China even killed a fellow player over a sword used in an online game. Paying to win But dedicating so much time and effort is not the only route to success. Over the past year the trade in virtual items and currencies used in these online games has been booming, despite it being outlawed by most of the game producers....BBC

Efforts to stop information spreading about flaws in the hardware that keeps the net running appear to be failing. Last week net giant Cisco and security firm ISS moved to stop researcher Michael Lynn talking about bugs in routers at a hacker conference. Legal action won a pledge from Mr Lynn never to talk about what he knew. However, copies of his talk have been made widely available online and hackers said to be working hard to exploit the bug that he exposed. Damage limitation Mr Lynn gave his talk about bugs in Cisco routers at the Blackhat Briefings conference held on 27 July in Las Vegas, though he had to resign from his job to do so. Commenting on the resignation, Mr Lynn said it was better that the information was in the public domain. As well as taking legal action, Cisco had copies of the talk removed from conference proceedings and replaced the original CDs with versions missing the slides Mr Lynn was due to use. Recordings of Mr Lynn's talk were also surrendered. However, popular weblogs now list more than 10 separate sites that have mirrored the presentation that Mr Lynn gave. At the same time, news agency Reuters reports that hackers are working hard to exploit the flaws that Mr Lynn detailed. They have apparently been stung into action by attempts to stop the information getting out. Security firm ISS is making further attempts to limit the spreading of information. In one case, security consultant and commentator Richard Forno replaced a copy of Mr Lynn's presentation with a cease-and-desist letter he received from lawyers representing ISS. Software patches Cisco is the world's largest maker of equipment used to connect computers and power the internet. The bug that Mr Lynn talked about was patched in April but Cisco has this week released another patch for the IOS software that controls its routers. This reportedly credits Mr Lynn with discovering the loophole it is closing. Supporters have also set up a fund to gather money via Paypal to put towards Mr Lynn's legal costs. Any unused cash will be donated to the Electronic Frontier Foundation....BBC

The UK's largest charity for deaf people and a design magazine are launching an exhibition of futuristic hearing aids to make them more popular. The show, called Hearwear, opens at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London this week. A variety of designs will be on display, ranging from stylish devices to enhance hearing to products that can be used by anyone to control sound. The idea is to persuade people that hearwear can be as appealing as specs. The show is a collaboration between the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), design magazine, Blueprint, and creative agency Wolff Olins. The ideas on display include a remote control to block out irritating sounds, a device to enable people to have a clear conversation in a noisy bar, and hearing aids designed as fashionable jewellery or must-have gadgets. Another concept, known as the Goldfish, instantly replays the previous 10 seconds of sound to the wearer in case they have failed to catch someone's name. It is based on the idea that goldfish only have 10 seconds of memory....BBC

Digital video-recording company TiVo Inc., famous for helping customers skip commercials on their favorite television programs, is taking steps to encourage viewers to watch them. TiVo, based in Alviso, California, has announced plans to insert symbols that identify advertisers during commercial breaks, making them more visible even when a customer is fast forwarding through them. The ID tags are designed to alert TiVo customers to certain products. If customers are interested in learning more, they can pause the show they are watching to receive a "long-format" commercial or obtain information about the product. The new campaign will be launched with General Motors and The WB Network commercials. "TiVo's proprietary advertising technology presents a real opportunity for advertisers to enhance the effectiveness of traditional television advertising," said TiVo chief financial officer David Courtney. But encouraging TiVo customers to download ads could be a tough sell, analysts have predicted. People subscribe to TiVo's service, which allows customers to make video recordings of their favorite TV shows, precisely to avoid commercials. The new commercial strategy is the latest attempt by TiVo to generate ad revenue for the company, which has yet to turn a profit since its founding in 1997. Despite the company's loyal following of 3.3 million subscribers, TiVo has labored to increase its subscriber base. In its first-quarter report in May, TiVo reported a loss of $857,000. The company has said it would reach profitability in the fourth quarter....CNN

Luminaries from the worlds of technology, entertainment and design are gathering in Oxford to share their thinking about our future. The big thinkers include leading authors, musicians, playwrights, and pioneers in technology and science. Sir Bob Geldof, top political author Charles Leadbeater, and biologist Richard Dawkins will be among the distinguished delegates at TED Global. TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) is already a top US event. TED Global will be the first time the US conference is held in Europe. The aim of the event is to explore the three main arenas that shape and influence people's future. But it also considers how politics, the environment, and other social issues impact daily life in the 21st Century....BBC

Soon after Amazon.com Inc. debuted 10 years ago, Jeff Bezos and his handful of employees spent late summer nights packing books in a tiny warehouse, scrambling to ship a growing gush of orders. Today, the man who has grown accustomed to being hailed the king of Internet commerce runs a global powerhouse that did nearly $7 billion in sales last year, dealing in everything from banjo cases to wild boar baby back ribs. As more businesses beef up their online operations, is the company that helped get it all started in danger of seeing its dominance eroded by the competitors it helped spawn? Time will tell, but industry experts say Amazon is well positioned to maintain a firm grip on its title as the undisputed e-commerce leader. "I think Amazon's biggest challenge is itself. They've really raised the bar for the entire industry," said Kurt Peters, editor of Internet Retailer, a monthly magazine covers the business. In the beginning, Bezos said he had no plans to sell anything but books online. But after it went live on July 16, 1995, the business took off more quickly than anyone had predicted, and before long customers started clamoring for more. "We actually started to get e-mails from customers saying, 'Would you consider selling music, because I'd really like to buy music this way, and DVDs, and electronics?' " Bezos said in a recent interview. Amazon has nearly 49 million active customers. They bought more electronics during last year's holiday blitz than books, a first for the company. With $6.92 billion in sales in 2004, Amazon ranked at the top of Internet Retailer's annual top 400 list, well ahead of computer maker Dell Inc., which posted $3.25 billion in online business-to-consumer sales. Office Depot Inc., which has a partnership with Amazon, wasn't far behind with $3.1 billion. EBay users sold $34.2 billion in merchandise through the online auction house in 2004 but the magazine doesn't include it on the list because it's essentially an online shopping bazaar, not a retailer...CNN

The 12 teenagers and young adults, some in ripped jeans and baggy T-shirts, sit in a circle, chewing gum and fidgeting as they shyly introduce themselves. "I'm 12 years old," one boy announces with a smile. "I love playing computer games. That's it." "It's been good to sleep" says another, a 17-year-old with spiky hair, now that he's no longer on the computer all day. The youths are patients at China's first officially licensed clinic for Internet addiction, a downside of the online frenzy that has accompanied the nation's breathtaking economic boom. "All the children here have left school because they are playing games or in chat rooms everyday," says the clinic's director, Dr. Tao Ran. "They are suffering from depression, nervousness, fear and unwillingness to interact with others, panic and agitation. They also have sleep disorders, the shakes and numbness in their hands." According to government figures, China has the world's second-largest online population -- 94 million -- after the United States. While China promotes Internet use for business and education, government officials also say Internet cafes are eroding public morality. Authorities regularly shut down Internet cafes -- many illegally operated -- in crackdowns that also include huge fines for their operators. State media has also highlighted cases of obsessed Internet gamers, some of whom have flunked out of school, committed suicide or murder. Nonetheless, Internet cafes continue to thrive, with outlets found in even the smallest and poorest of villages. Most are usually packed late into the night. Dr. Kimberly Young, a Bradford, Pennsylvania, clinical psychologist whose 1998 book on Internet addiction has been translated into Chinese, says she's not surprised the Chinese would face problems with Internet overuse. "They are catching up with a lot of our technology, and certainly at that juncture, are now able to run into some of the same difficulties," Young said. While treatment programs were virtually nonexistent in the United States a decade ago, she said, dozens of clinics and countless individual therapists such as herself offer counseling and treatment in her country. Various fixations Programs are growing elsewhere, too. Just a few years ago, Young says, she attended a conference in Switzerland where she was the only American out of some 200 academics and clinicians who gathered to address Internet addiction. Tao's government-owned clinic, which began taking patients in March, occupies the top floor of a two-story building on a quiet, tree-lined street on the sprawling campus of the Beijing Military Region Central Hospital in the heart of the Chinese capital. A dozen nurses and 11 doctors care for the patients, mostly youths aged 14 to 24 who have lost sleep, weight and friends after countless hours in front of the computer, often playing video games with others online. Some come voluntarily, while others are checked in by their parents. Many say their online obsessions helped them escape day-to-day stress, especially pressure from parents to excel in school. Some can't stop playing games, while the older ones tend to be addicted to online chats with the opposite sex, Tao says. Others are fixated on designing violent games. Tao, a psychiatrist for 20 years who specializes in treating addiction, estimates that up to 2.5 million Chinese suffer from Internet addiction, though others are skeptical. "As the number of the Netizens grows, the number of the addicted people will grow as well, but we should not worry about the issue too much," says Kuang Wenbo, a professor of mass media at Beijing's Renmin University. "The young men at the age of growing up have their own problems. Even if there was no Internet they will get addicted to other things." A reporter was allowed to talk to patients at the clinic on condition they not be identified by name. "I wasn't normal," said a 20-year-old man from Beijing who used to spend at least 10 hours a day in front of the screen playing hack-and-slash games like Diablo....CNN