An ongoing review of the National Curriculum is considering whether ICT should be a discrete subject in schools. “As part of that process the review will consider the teaching of computer science within ICT,” the Government said. “The Government recognises that, in the event of ICT not remaining part of the National Curriculum, attention would still need to be given to ensure children could acquire computer science skills.”

Spotify are now working on an update that will allow users to buy tracks, whilst still being in the Spotify music application. The new deal will initially be available for single songs and albums, but the company hopes to add entire playlists for download in the future.

The new feature will be available in the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy to start off with, but Sweden, Finland and Norway will follow a few weeks later. No prices for each of the 320kbps MP3 files have been given yet.

The Spotify application, which is similar to those offered by Last FM and Imeem, lets users build and make their own playlists, which are then steamed to their computers via the internet. The service can be used free of charge, but will be interrupted by advertisements in between songs or can be listened to ad-free by paying a subscription of £9.99 a month.

Over the past couple of years Microsoft’s dominance in the internet browser market has slowly been chipped away, as competitors like Firefox and Google Chrome entice users away. Recent figures suggest that Microsoft’s market share had dropped below 70% at 68%, whereas Mozilla, who make Firefox, saw its share rise to 21%.

Internet Explorer 8 will contain performance upgrades that will provide faster loading pages; there are also a whole host of navigation features as well as new security enhancements to protect users.

A spokesperson for Microsoft said: “We have made IE 8 the best browser for the way people really do use the web,”

And added that: “The role of the browser has become more and more important. Our focus is on delivering the best experience possible and one that is faster, easier and more secure.”

The Real-time Games system takes in real-time GPS data from live racing events and sends it to compatible games consoles and PC’s. The idea behind the system is that you can race against the top drivers, as the race happens, all from the comfort of your own home.

Using a complex system of DGPS, information from the European EGNOS network and measuring units fitted to the cars, the exact position of the car can be accurate to within 30 centimetres. This information is sent via the internet to a server farm, where it is saved and relayed to the gamers.

The software is able to collect the data and send it to the gamers in less than five seconds, which is similar to the delay on TV broadcasts. As the data is saved, the gamers can race in real-time or can replay the races at a later date.

The company will not develop its own games; rather it will provide a platform for game developers to build on. It will also provide an artificial intelligence system to blend the real and virtual worlds together seamlessly.

The Real-time Game system has already been tested with F1 cars and the first games are expected as early as September this year. If this concept takes off it could change the way we play racing games forever.

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