Apple iTunes 8.0: A closer look at 'Genius'

Download iTunes for Windows 8.0 from FileForum now.

While Apple is pushing a major update to its client software filled with several new features, easily the biggest new one appears to be its music recommendation engine, called Genius.

Google will provide TV ads to NBC Universal properties

The latest platform innovation from Google enables advertisers to place bids for on-air commercial time that Google has already purchased. Now that time will come at a higher premium, with the entry of NBCU into the mix.

Google launched TV Ads last year, a means for businesses to selectively purchase television ad inventory using similar tools to what Google AdWords provides its clients for text ads, complete with minimum bids and budget maximums. After airing, customers can measure the efficacy of their campaigns. Google even provides the an Ad Creation Marketplace to assist in the creation of the commercial.

HP may trump Dell with a 24-hour battery-powered EliteBook

Tired of watching your laptop batteries conk out after two hours, even though the brochure promised four? Next month, HP expects to ship an EliteBook 6930p notebook that promises a phenomenal 24 hours of battery life without recharging.

Only about a month after Dell's rollout of Latitude notebooks with 19 hours of battery life, Hewlett-Packard has announced plans to ship its own high-end business laptop -- the EliteBook 6390p -- complete with a high capacity battery option able to deliver a full day of battery operation, without recharging.

Sprint confirms it's adding two HTC Touches to its 3G arsenal

The HTC Touch Pro smartphone, coming next month in the US to Sprint.While Verizon Wireless has been busy with its ongoing campaign to convince you that "it's the network," Sprint -- whose network has not been its strong point in recent years -- is placing new bets today that it's really the phone.

Amazon opens its MP3 store to independent sellers

Today, Amazon announced its indie publishing service CreativeSpace is now tied with its MP3 shop, allowing independent artists and labels to release DRM-free materials in Amazon's MP3 store.

Artists can set up an account on CreateSpace and sell their materials with no upfront charges; however, accounts are arranged in such a way that money is not directly distributed to artists. Instead, royalty checks are given out with expenses subtracted.

Google takes more baby steps in online privacy game

Through a series of blog posts, topped off by two announcements this week about retaining user-related data, Google is inching along toward alleviating the concerns of many users and privacy groups, trumpeting each step along the way.

In one blog post on Monday, a Google legal and engineering team announced a "significant" shortening of Google's IP retention policies, involving plans to start anonymizing users' addresses on servers after nine months instead of the previous 18 months.

Virtualization: While Microsoft loses more time, VMware loses more execs

We've been told virtualization is the fastest evolving sector of the computing industry. But now, VMware is running on autopilot without its key scientists, and Microsoft hopes another delay won't hurt it too much.

In advance of a major virtualization trade show in Las Vegas next week, two of the industry's key players will most definitely not be firing on all cylinders. Smartly diffusing a potential powder keg by letting the news out yesterday at its own show, Microsoft demonstrated

Plastic Logic displays newest e-book reader

More than two years after debuting the concept, Plastic Logic will premiere its first demo model e-book reader at DEMOfall in San Diego.

Mozilla's Aza Raskin: The journey back to Ubiquity

In an in-depth interview with BetaNews, the user experience chief of Mozilla Labs discusses a unique journey of discovery, backtracking through the groundbreaking work of his own father to rediscover the power of the command line.

Esquire 'beta tests' an animated magazine cover

To celebrate its 75th anniversary, ever-urbane magazine Esquire will include "disposable" electronic paper display (EPD) panels in its October 2008 issue.

The same magazine that has featured John Wayne with angel wings, and Muhammad Ali as St. Sebastian, proclaims "The 21st Century Begins Now," with its E Ink cover insert. The display is provided by E Ink Corp., the company responsible for providing displays for every other commercially available "e-paper" device.

Evidence Samsung and SanDisk are in merger talks

The company that holds patent rights for a breakthrough flash memory technology is apparently discussing the possibility of being acquired by the world's biggest flash producer. It's come down to this.

Flash card manufacturer SanDisk issued a statement early this morning, essentially using a bull-horn with trumpet accompaniment to awaken the world to the news that it does not comment on rumor and speculation. That speculation, it said, concerns news emerging from the Korean business press this week, indicating that it and leading flash memory producer Samsung are in merger talks.

Report: OLPC buy one, give one deal returns

Internet retail giant Amazon will be running the One Laptop Per Child "Give one / Get one" (G1G1) program for this year's holiday season, confirming announcements made in May.

Matt Keller, director of Europe, the Middle East and Africa at OLPC, recently told IDG that Amazon will be handling the sales of the G1G1 program due to its size and ability to handle a large volume of customers. The program will be roughly the same as last year's, where customers buy an OLPC XO to donate to a developing country and get one of their own in return.

Evidence Samsung and SanDisk are in merger talks

The company that holds patent rights for a breakthrough flash memory technology is apparently discussing the possibility of being acquired by the world's biggest flash producer. It's come down to this.

Flash card manufacturer SanDisk issued a statement early this morning, essentially using a bull-horn with trumpet accompaniment to awaken the world to the news that it does not comment on rumor and speculation. That speculation, it said, concerns news emerging from the Korean business press this week, indicating that it and leading flash memory producer Samsung are in merger talks.

Analysts: Online news viewers rising as newspaper readership falls

Newspaper readership is down -- especially among younger adults -- and so is newspaper circulation. But online TV viewing is on the rise overall, with news the most popular content category.

Consumers seem to be getting more of their news online these days and less of it from newspapers and traditional broadcast TV, suggest the results of some industry surveys.

About 20% of US households now use the Internet for TV viewing, almost double the online viewership as two years ago, according to a study released this week by The Conference Board and TNS.

Red Hat buys virtualization specialist Qumranet

The Linux vendor will now add KVM to its existing hypervisor-based approach to virtualization, an advantage the company envisions as providing as complete a portfolio as VMware, Microsoft, and Xen.

In a move that gives Red Hat new ways of managing Windows and Linux desktops, the Linux vendor on Thursday acquired virtualization player Qumranet.

With the buyout, Red Hat obtains Qumranet's KVM (Kernel Virtual Machine) platform along with SolidICE, designed to enable a user's Windows or Linux desktop to operate in a virtual machine hosted on a central server, officials said during a press conference.

Comcast challenges FCC's authority in sanction appeal

In a filing Thursday with the US Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, the broadband service provider argued that the agency did not have the authority to impose sanctions in the first place.

The FCC's order did not fine Comcast, instead ordering the company to make changes to the way it handles traffic. Comcast had already agreed to make such changes on its own, including targeted throttling and a 250 GB cap on bandwidth per customer.

Adobe Flash to deliver NFL games in full

The National Football League, NBC Sports, and Adobe have announced their collaboration on Sunday Night Football Extra -- full-length live streams of NFL Sunday night football games.

An ad about nothing: First Seinfeld + Gates ad omitted Vista

Just minutes after viewing the first installment of Microsoft's new $300 million TV ad campaign featuring comedian Jerry Seinfeld and Chairman Bill Gates, BetaNews' Tim Conneally filed this video to record his first thoughts.

BetaNews' Tim Conneally shares his first thoughts on the premiere Microsoft + Seinfeld ad. (Do forgive Tim, he started out thinking this was next Tuesday.)

Exclusive beta invitation from GameTap and BetaNews

Broadband entertainment network GameTap is searching for people who love to play games to join its beta program. Sign up through this exclusive invitation before the spots fill up.

Whether you prefer action games such as Tomb Raider, strategy games such as Civilization IV, adventure games such as Sam & Max, fighting games such as Street Fighter Alpha 3 and King of Fighters 2003, or puzzle games like Bust-A-Move and Columns, GameTap has them all playable for free.

Google Analytics starts tracking Chrome, with intriguing results

Since Google Analytics started tracking Chrome on Thursday, the new browser is showing a browser share of 6% or higher on some Web sites -- including BetaNews. But that's much higher than the under 2% share reported by Net Applications.

A follow-up look at Net Applications' hourly statistics for estimated worldwide Web browser usage share, conducted at around 2:00 pm today -- showed that Chrome achieved its peak penetration of 1.73% of the world's HTTP requests on Sept. 5 at 4:00 am EDT.

No ruling yet in TiVo vs. EchoStar patent case

The judge presiding over the patent case between TiVo and EchoStar has delayed any ruling until possibly November, buying EchoStar some time and causing TiVo some short term duress.

TiVo's share value plunged 16.5 percent on Thursday as news of Judge David Folsom's plans broke, although it had rebounded nearly nine percent on Friday to nearly $8 in late afternoon trading.

Shareholders had been expecting a favorable ruling for the company, and Thursday's seemingly knee-jerk reaction could be interpreted as investors worrying that a delay in any ruling may be a positive development for EchoStar.

Is there a subsidized netbook in your future?

True to words spoken by Dell CEO Michael Dell last week, Dell's newly launched Inspiron Mini 9 will soon be bundled with Vodafone's mobile broadband services in parts of Europe. Could a certain US wireless carrier be next?

Retail availability through Vodafone "in key European markets" of Dell's Inspiron Mini 9 -- launched just yesterday -- is scheduled for late September, according to a statement from the two new partners. The Minis will be sold through Vodafone's online sales outlets and brick-and-mortar stores, and will be bundled with mobile broadband.

120 GB Zunes begin to appear in stores

Microsoft has confirmed that it has begun to ship the newer high-capacity Zunes at a price that makes it quite competitive against the market-leading iPod.

The 120 GB Zune will sell for $249, the same price as the 80 GB Apple iPod. Internet reports say the devices began shipping to retailers this week, and Microsoft says the rollout will continue to additional retailers over the next several weeks.

Rumors that the higher-capacity device was coming was first posted by Zune enthusiast site Zunerama last weekend. From there, the story took flight and reports seemed to indicate the 80 GB model was being phased out.

Google's Chrome is gaining users, especially in the wee hours

Download Google Chrome 0.2.149.27 Beta from FileForum now.

Korea Times: Sony home video at the tail end of a Korean exodus

Korea Times reports that Sony's DVD distribution arm in Korea has decided to stop selling discs in that country, making it the last of the major studios to do so.

A request for confirmation by BetaNews with Sony went unanswered as of press time. If the news is accurate, Sony would actually be the last of the major Hollywood studios to pull out of the South Korean market over the last two years, following Paramount, Disney (Buena Vista), Universal, and 20th Century Fox. It seems as if Korean consumers just aren't interested in DVDs any more.

Sony recalls hazardous Vaio notebooks

Sony this morning announced the recall of certain Vaio TZ series notebooks after a number of consumers reported overheating, with one even resulting in minor burns.

The notebooks, according to Sony, contain "irregularly positioned wires near the computer's hinge and/or a dislodged screw inside the hinge [that] can cause a short circuit and overheating."

Included in the recall are the Vaio VGN-TZ100, VGN-TZ200, VGN-TZ300 and VGN-TZ2000 series with 11.1" screens.

The Google Chrome EULA debacle: Whose content is it, anyway?

Download Google Chrome 0.2.149.27 Beta from FileForum now.

Samsung UK exec: Blu-ray's got five years to live

An official with one of the format's principal supporting companies gives it a rather short life span, saying another technology would replace it.

If Samsung UK consumer electronics chief Andy Griffiths is correct, the format would have spent only seven years as a commercially viable format. Compare this to DVD, which has been available to consumers for well over a decade.

The comments also seem to be a delayed echo of the sentiment Netflix CEO Reed Hastings expressed nine months ago, when he said his company would begin to transition its primarily physical media-based business to that of one that focuses on downloadable content.

East coast iPhone 3G users report data service outages

11:04 am EST September 4, 2008 - After iPhone 3G customers were informed yesterday by AT&T at about 10:30 am yesterday that a problem affecting their 3G data use had been resolved, an AT&T spokesperson informed Reuters that it had resolved the issue at about noon yesterday.

Samsung backs out of Symbian, Nokia buys its stake

Samsung has agreed to sell its stake in Symbian to Nokia for a reported $410 million this week, pushing Nokia ever closer to total ownership.

In early 2003, Symbian announced that Samsung had joined the likes of Ericsson, Matsushita, Motorola, Nokia, Psion, and Siemens as a 5% shareholder in the company and its eponymous mobile operating system. At the time of Samsung's entry as a shareholder and on Symbian's supervisory board, Nokia held a 19% stake in the company, equal to Ericsson and Motorola.

Xperia emulator featured in new Sony Ericsson SDK

In what could conceivably become a serious alternative to alternatives swayed by the allure of Apple's iPhone, Sony Ericsson released today its SDK for developers of applications for its Xperia X1, which is still due for availability this month.

Intel buys mobile Linux startup

Intel has acquired Linux development startup Opened Hand as a part of the chipmaker's Moblin mobile Linux project.

Moblin is an open source software stack specifically designed for integration with Intel's Atom processors in Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs), netbooks, and embedded systems. The project started last year, prior to Asus' release of its Celeron M-based Eee PC -- which is credited for ushering in the netbook craze.

Intel expects the first devices to be released with Moblin will be MIDs by such companies as Asus, Samsung, Founder and TabletKiosk.

Google Chrome takes more than just inspiration from Mozilla

A few of the names appearing in Google's promotional "graphic novel" for the first beta of its own Web browser, may ring bells for anyone who was a beta tester of Firefox 3. So just what kind of browser war does Google plan to wage?

A check of the names appearing in Google's unique introductory comic book for its new Google Chrome browser, whose beta is expected for wide release today, reveals that the new open source browser, which promises fundamental architectural changes to the nature of browsing itself, has more in common with Mozilla's Firefox 3 than just inspiration. Software engineers Ben Goodger, Darin Fisher, and Pam Greene are all prominently featured as presenters in the graphic promo; and all three were credited as principal contributors to Firefox's latest version.

Open source group sues Quebec, Microsoft for no-bid software contracting

A major problem for the development of free software is, ironically, the fact that it isn't worth anything. Not monetarily, that is, but now an open source group says its government must be forced to consider its value anyway.

Is any Quebec government agency that already has Microsoft, Novell, and IBM software installed on its networks compelled by law to consider alternative brands from Quebec-based suppliers? An association of free software publishers based in Quebec is citing a law that forbids provincial officials from entering into no-bid contracts with suppliers outside the province, in a lawsuit filed last July 15 -- but announced just yesterday -- against both Quebec and Microsoft, its key supplier.

Open source group sues Quebec, Microsoft for no-bid software contracting

A major problem for the development of free software is, ironically, the fact that it isn't worth anything. Not monetarily, that is, but now an open source group says its government must be forced to consider its value anyway.

Is any Quebec government agency that already has Microsoft, Novell, and IBM software installed on its networks compelled by law to consider alternative brands from Quebec-based suppliers? An association of free software publishers based in Quebec is citing a law that forbids provincial officials from entering into no-bid contracts with suppliers outside the province, in a lawsuit filed last July 15 -- but announced just yesterday -- against both Quebec and Microsoft, its key supplier.

Where does Barack Obama stand on technology issues?

In the second of our four-part series examining the positions of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on technology policy, BetaNews' Ed Oswald takes a look at the Illinois Democrat.

With respect to the growing middle ground between technology and politics, it could be viably argued that no one has embraced technology as part of his or her campaign -- at least as an ideal -- more than Sen. Barack Obama.

The use of online means to recruit campaign volunteers and to incite action on behalf of candidates, dates back to the 1984 campaign of Sen. Gary Hart. Web pages became a key component of campaigning in 1996, in Pres. Bill Clinton's bid for re-election against Sen. Bob Dole.

Google's Chrome is gaining users, especially in the wee hours

Download Google Chrome 0.2.149.27 Beta from FileForum now.

Korea Times: Sony home video at the tail end of a Korean exodus

Korea Times reports that Sony's DVD distribution arm in Korea has decided to stop selling discs in that country, making it the last of the major studios to do so.

A request for confirmation by BetaNews with Sony went unanswered as of press time. If the news is accurate, Sony would actually be the last of the major Hollywood studios to pull out of the South Korean market over the last two years, following Paramount, Disney (Buena Vista), Universal, and 20th Century Fox. It seems as if Korean consumers just aren't interested in DVDs any more.

Sony recalls hazardous Vaio notebooks

Sony this morning announced the recall of certain Vaio TZ series notebooks after a number of consumers reported overheating, with one even resulting in minor burns.

The notebooks, according to Sony, contain "irregularly positioned wires near the computer's hinge and/or a dislodged screw inside the hinge [that] can cause a short circuit and overheating."

Included in the recall are the Vaio VGN-TZ100, VGN-TZ200, VGN-TZ300 and VGN-TZ2000 series with 11.1" screens.

The Google Chrome EULA debacle: Whose content is it, anyway?

Download Google Chrome 0.2.149.27 Beta from FileForum now.

Samsung UK exec: Blu-ray's got five years to live

An official with one of the format's principal supporting companies gives it a rather short life span, saying another technology would replace it.

If Samsung UK consumer electronics chief Andy Griffiths is correct, the format would have spent only seven years as a commercially viable format. Compare this to DVD, which has been available to consumers for well over a decade.

The comments also seem to be a delayed echo of the sentiment Netflix CEO Reed Hastings expressed nine months ago, when he said his company would begin to transition its primarily physical media-based business to that of one that focuses on downloadable content.

East coast iPhone 3G users report data service outages

11:04 am EST September 4, 2008 - After iPhone 3G customers were informed yesterday by AT&T at about 10:30 am yesterday that a problem affecting their 3G data use had been resolved, an AT&T spokesperson informed Reuters that it had resolved the issue at about noon yesterday.

Samsung backs out of Symbian, Nokia buys its stake

Samsung has agreed to sell its stake in Symbian to Nokia for a reported $410 million this week, pushing Nokia ever closer to total ownership.

In early 2003, Symbian announced that Samsung had joined the likes of Ericsson, Matsushita, Motorola, Nokia, Psion, and Siemens as a 5% shareholder in the company and its eponymous mobile operating system. At the time of Samsung's entry as a shareholder and on Symbian's supervisory board, Nokia held a 19% stake in the company, equal to Ericsson and Motorola.

Xperia emulator featured in new Sony Ericsson SDK

In what could conceivably become a serious alternative to alternatives swayed by the allure of Apple's iPhone, Sony Ericsson released today its SDK for developers of applications for its Xperia X1, which is still due for availability this month.

Intel buys mobile Linux startup

Intel has acquired Linux development startup Opened Hand as a part of the chipmaker's Moblin mobile Linux project.

Moblin is an open source software stack specifically designed for integration with Intel's Atom processors in Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs), netbooks, and embedded systems. The project started last year, prior to Asus' release of its Celeron M-based Eee PC -- which is credited for ushering in the netbook craze.

Intel expects the first devices to be released with Moblin will be MIDs by such companies as Asus, Samsung, Founder and TabletKiosk.

Google Chrome takes more than just inspiration from Mozilla

A few of the names appearing in Google's promotional "graphic novel" for the first beta of its own Web browser, may ring bells for anyone who was a beta tester of Firefox 3. So just what kind of browser war does Google plan to wage?

A check of the names appearing in Google's unique introductory comic book for its new Google Chrome browser, whose beta is expected for wide release today, reveals that the new open source browser, which promises fundamental architectural changes to the nature of browsing itself, has more in common with Mozilla's Firefox 3 than just inspiration. Software engineers Ben Goodger, Darin Fisher, and Pam Greene are all prominently featured as presenters in the graphic promo; and all three were credited as principal contributors to Firefox's latest version.

Open source group sues Quebec, Microsoft for no-bid software contracting

A major problem for the development of free software is, ironically, the fact that it isn't worth anything. Not monetarily, that is, but now an open source group says its government must be forced to consider its value anyway.

Is any Quebec government agency that already has Microsoft, Novell, and IBM software installed on its networks compelled by law to consider alternative brands from Quebec-based suppliers? An association of free software publishers based in Quebec is citing a law that forbids provincial officials from entering into no-bid contracts with suppliers outside the province, in a lawsuit filed last July 15 -- but announced just yesterday -- against both Quebec and Microsoft, its key supplier.

Open source group sues Quebec, Microsoft for no-bid software contracting

A major problem for the development of free software is, ironically, the fact that it isn't worth anything. Not monetarily, that is, but now an open source group says its government must be forced to consider its value anyway.

Is any Quebec government agency that already has Microsoft, Novell, and IBM software installed on its networks compelled by law to consider alternative brands from Quebec-based suppliers? An association of free software publishers based in Quebec is citing a law that forbids provincial officials from entering into no-bid contracts with suppliers outside the province, in a lawsuit filed last July 15 -- but announced just yesterday -- against both Quebec and Microsoft, its key supplier.

Where does Barack Obama stand on technology issues?

In the second of our four-part series examining the positions of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on technology policy, BetaNews' Ed Oswald takes a look at the Illinois Democrat.

With respect to the growing middle ground between technology and politics, it could be viably argued that no one has embraced technology as part of his or her campaign -- at least as an ideal -- more than Sen. Barack Obama.

The use of online means to recruit campaign volunteers and to incite action on behalf of candidates, dates back to the 1984 campaign of Sen. Gary Hart. Web pages became a key component of campaigning in 1996, in Pres. Bill Clinton's bid for re-election against Sen. Bob Dole.

802.11r now a published IEEE standard

The newest Wi-Fi protocol, 802.11r, which has become the de facto "Wireless VoIP standard", is now a published standard of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standards board.

802.11r has been in the works since 2004, with the express purpose of developing a Wi-Fi connection that can quickly pass between access points. A go-ahead for publishing the final draft of the standard was given by the 802.11r task group last January.

Rogers adjusts data plans for iPhone, BlackBerry Bold

With the BlackBerry Bold now available, Rogers, Canada's leading carrier has decided to extend its iPhone 3G promotional data plan until next month, while adjusting other plans.

Rogers Wireless' data plans came under almost immediate criticism after the iPhone 3G's launch on July 11, for what many saw as overpriced data rates. The company later adjusted those plans to appease its detractors.

As part of those adjustments, the company also announced a promotional plan for $30 per month that allowed for the transfer of 6 GB of data. It was set to expire on August 31, but the company has now decided to extend it until the end of September.

Creators of rejected App Store comic book appeal for rating system

After its 'Murderdrome' comic book was rejected by Apple's iPhone App Store, Infurious Comics this week appealed to Web site visitors support its request to Apple for a rating system similar to one already used on iTunes.

The App Store turned down the comic book earlier this week, claiming that it violated a section of an SDK agreement which states: "Applications must not contain any obscene, pornographic, offensive or defamatory content or materials of any kind (text, graphics, images, photographs, etc.) or other content or materials that in Apple's reasonable judgment may be found objectionable by iPhone or iPod touch users."

Analyst: Over 100 new handsets, including 3G, on tap for Q4

The economy might be rocky, but one analyst says mobile device makers will still be releasing a total of over 100 new cell phone models in the second half of 2008 alone -- and about three-quarters of those will be 3G network-capable.

Vendors such as Nokia, HTC, RIM, Samsung, Motorola, LG, and Palm have been prepping the phones for the back-to-school and December holiday seasons, said Matt Thornton, an analyst at Avian Securities, in an interview with BetaNews this afternoon.

Microsoft buys a shopping service for $486M, but will only keep part

Microsoft today took another step in its strategy to beef up Live Search versus Google and Yahoo, unveiling a complicated deal to buy Greenfield Online and its subsidiary Caio, a European-based online price comparison and shopping site.

Under the agreement, Microsoft is offering $486 million for Greenfield. But in a related move, Microsoft today claimed to have secured a buyer for Greenfield Online's Internet survey solutions, the business that forms the heart of Greenfield Online.

WB network returns as Web site

Deceased television network The WB has been resurrected, at least on line, emerging from beta as an ad-supported streaming TV show repository.

Launched in beta last May, The WB.com features full episodes of programs such as Babylon 5, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville, Everwood, Friends, and The O.C.

Episodes of classic Warner Bros. shows will be updated every Monday, and a good deal of content has been made immediately available. Twenty-one episodes of the

Paid Google ad appears to state McCain picked Lieberman

A Google AdWords ad first spotted by BetaNews contributor Sharon Fisher, along with ads for the McCain campaign that have appeared today on BetaNews and elsewhere through Google, appear on first glance to have spoiled McCain's VP pick.

Groups of politically-minded bloggers, including the DaniWeb IT community, have been noting today a peculiar jump today in the number of online ads, appearing in BetaNews and elsewhere, showing presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain alongside former Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Lieberman.

IE8 Beta 2 adds standards mode, suggestions, 'Web slices'

Download Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 for Windows Vista from FileForum now.

Validating all indicators since Monday that a revamped beta was ready for public eyes, Microsoft lifted the lid on Beta 2 of Internet Explorer 8 this afternoon, offering the first glance at some very competitive new features.

With every intention of evening up the score with Firefox 3, Microsoft opened up its public beta process for the first edition of IE8 to contain a full list of new features. Beta 1 (which was launched back in March) concentrated on making the engine work and rendering pages properly; now it's Beta 2's turn to dazzle the public.

More indications of Apple iPod refresh September 9

The buzz from analysts who have begun to speak out about what they expect to see during an Apple event that for now has only been rumored, lends new credence to the theory that iPods could be revamped as soon as 9/9.

JupiterResearch analyst Mark Mulligan says he would like to see Apple start to offer pre-loaded content, and like many analysts, continued to beat the drum for an iTunes subscription offering.

"Don't just play the Rhapsody/Napster game and offer portable rentals for ten dollars a month," Mulligan argued. Instead, the service should be inexpensive and allow for permanent downloads within the offering.

Time may be running out for a 64-bit Vista-based ZoneAlarm

Download ZoneAlarm Pro Beta 8.0.020.000 for Windows XP and 32-bit Vista from FileForum now.

The difficulty for third-party developers to produce security software for the most feature-rich Vista kernel continues to this day, and a lack of news from ZoneAlarm suggests it could persist well into next year.

At one time, ZoneAlarm was among the single most downloaded pieces of software, of any category whatsoever, in the entire world. But for well over a year after Microsoft's release of the 64-bit version of Windows Vista, whose kernel includes significant upgrades for security purposes, there still is no 64-bit edition of the ZoneAlarm firewall that works on Vista.

ITunes access returns to China following block

After having lost complete access to iTunes for nearly a week, for reasons that may have had to do with the music store featuring an album supporting Tibetan freedom, users in China report they can download music once again.

The first reports of connectivity issues surfaced on Monday, in timing that seemed to coincide with iTunes' release of a pro-Tibet album. While access to that particular album still appears to be restricted, the rest of the store returned this week.

Could Obama's VP pick have triggered millions in SMS traffic?

If you do the math, using the best estimates available to you about text messaging (SMS) usage in the US, the results could be staggering: A single news announcement may mean a small windfall for telcos.

If Sprint's early estimates are accurate and if they're reflective of other carriers' traffic on the day Sen. Barack Obama announced his running mate, the resulting flow of text message traffic on the nation's networks could theoretically have generated more than $118 million in extra revenue for the nation's cell phone carriers.

Intel works on wireless laptop battery recharging

The groundwork may have been laid by Nikola Tesla for wireless transmission of electricity, but Intel is putting it to good use through a new effort to charge a laptop in much the same manner.

At the Intel Developer's Forum in San Francisco this week, a demonstration was shown where researchers were able to power a 60 watt light bulb from an energy source that was three feet away. About 75% of the power from the source was retained.

More HTC Dream details revealed through FCC

The latest FCC filings indicate the HTC Dream will be roughly the same length as the iPhone 3G, although slightly thinner.

An iPhone 3G measures in at 115.2 millimeters by 61.2 millimeters: the Dream will be 115 mm by 55 mm, according to documents that were available for a time through the FCC's Web site. No doubt HTC's Dream, widely believed to soon become the first "Googlephone," will likely be thicker than the iPhone since it will include a slide out QWERTY keyboard.

Nintendo sued for controllers again

A Maryland company has sued Nintendo, alleging that the Wii's controller infringes upon four of the company's patents.

Earlier this year a small Texas company called Anascape sued Nintendo for the designs of its Wii classic and GameCube controllers, two peripherals especially popular at that time because of the game Super Smash Brothers: Brawl. That company walked away with $21 million after Nintendo lost the patent appeal.

Now, another US company has sued the Japanese video game maker for controller designs, but this time for the Wii's iconic Wiimote. Rockville, Maryland's Hillcrest Laboratories has sued Nintendo for patent infringement and filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission over the Wiimote's design.

Is CDMA cell phone technology already dead? Analysts disagree

In separate reports issued this week, one prominent analyst firm proclaimed the impending death of CDMA cellular technology, while another touted its resurgence. So which is it?

Analyst firm Dell'Oro Group has declared CDMA -- for many years a widely used mobile communications standard, especially in North America -- already "dead."

Scott Siegler, a mobile infrastructure analyst at Dell'Oro, bases these claims on a slowdown in spending on CDMA by Sprint Nextel and Verizon Wireless, as these wireless operators pour more investments into higher capacity GSM technologies.

Is BlackBerry Bold really having iPhone 3G-like issues?

Research In Motion launched its newest BlackBerry, the Bold, in Canada yesterday. Reviewers who have hastily compared it to Apple's iPhone have been asked by RIM to remove a side-by-side review comparing browsing speed between the two devices.

The Bold, or BlackBerry 9000, runs on an Intel XScale 624 MHz processor, has an HVGA 480x320 display and offers UMTS (2100, 900, 850MHz), GSM (1900,1800,900,850MHz), GPRS, EDGE and HDSPA , as well as Wi-Fi connectivity and GPS. There is also 1 GB of on-board memory for storage of files, and 128 MB of flash memory for applications.

'Contractor error' suspected in $12,000 FEMA phone hack

FEMA is now investigating a hack attack against its voice mail system that racked up $12,000 in international calls, with preliminary evidence indicating that "contractor error" was probably involved.

Debbie Wing, a spokesperson with the US Federal Emergency Management Agency, told BetaNews today that the government agency -- which is part of the US Dept. of Homeland Security -- first noticed "inappropriate" calling patterns on Saturday, August 16.

Apple's iPhone 3G gets ho-hum response in Poland and India

Mobile service provider Orange Poland this week hired actors to help "warm up" reception to Apple's latest phone. Meanwhile, in India, a new iPhone 3G costs the US equivalent of $712 -- another indicator of barriers in some emerging markets.

Although earlier launches of Apple's iPhone 3G created big stirs in the US, northern Europe, and Japan, in a later wave of rollouts this week, the reaction has been more ho-hum in countries like India and like Poland -- a place where actors actually got paid to stand in line.

Pro-Tibet album may be behind China iTunes block

Users of Apple's music store in China have been reporting problems downloading music since the beginning of the week.

Chinese authorities have not directly confirmed blocking iTunes. Requests for comment have gone unanswered, or reporters have been told officials had no information on the block. However, the timing of this latest blockage seems to coincide with the release of a pro-Tibet album by the Art of Peace Foundation, which was released on Sunday.

UK law firm looks to begin prosecuting file sharers

Davenport Lyons has been working with the music industry in the UK to sniff out P2P users. Now it will ask the UK courts to force ISPs to release information to identify them.

The firm is looking to identify about 7,000 individuals in total. Representatives said they will seek an order from the High Court Wednesday, and will use the information to launch civil suits against those individuals.

Swiss company Logistep assisted in the identification of the individuals by IP address, which will be provided to the court as part of the request for an order.

Analysts: Consumers, businesses want phones with more 'features'

Customers are now buying more costly cell phones with features such as GPS, Bluetooth, and music enablement, not just in the US but worldwide, according to recent research by two industry analyst firms.

According to a new study from analyst firm NPD, mobile handsets sold in the US during the second quarter of this year were, "by and large, more feature-rich than those sold the year prior." Meanwhile, demand is increasing throughout the world for handsets with features such as GPS, touchscreen, and multimedia, concurs a study by IDC released at the end of July.

Apple gives MobileMe subscribers more free time

Subscribers who have remained with MobileMe through its continued growing pains will be rewarded with another 60 days free, bringing the total free time to 90 days.

To be eligible for the new extension, customers must be enrolled members by midnight Tuesday. Those who have already enrolled will see their free trial periods extended another 60 days.

Apple will begin issuing the extensions Tuesday, which will be applied to all accounts within the next few days.

Pandora: Last gasp for Internet radio can't be further prolonged

Since March 2007, when the Copyright Royalty Board exacted a per-performance, per listener fee on streaming online services, pundits have declared a deathwatch on Internet radio. Recently, Pandora's founder expressed the same dire outlook.

This weekend, Pandora founder Tim Westergren told the Washington Post that his service is nearing the point where shutting down is the only feasible option. Despite the fact that Pandora is among the top 200 most popular United States Web sites (and climbing), and that the Pandora iPhone application is among the App Store's 10 most downloaded, Westergren said his company is still losing money.

Skyfire Beta 0.6 heats up pocket screens

TSA-approved laptop bags: $220+

The US Transportation Safety Administration's recent relaxation of rules on removing laptops from luggage at airport checkpoints, carried an announcement of soon-to-be available TSA pre-approved bags. This fall, we should see the first.

"The Checkpoint Flyer" by Tom Bihn adheres to TSA guidelines as presented in the group's five-month design challenge. To achieve this, it integrates a protective laptop sleeve into a messenger-style bag that allows the two to be separated for scanning in "less than three seconds" (re-attachment times were not included).

Android phone may have Google ads, but no Exchange support

With Google still touting the first Android phone for late 2008, reports state the forthcoming HTC "Dream" phone might lack support for Microsoft Exchange, and further, that it will come with Google's advertising software pre-installed.

After showing a primitive prototype of the initial Android phone at CES in January, Google gave demos of features in May that included a new interface and menu structure, a built-in compass, a port of the Pac-Man game, and access to Google Maps. One blogger who viewed the phone in May, Vincent Nguyen, exclaimed at that time, "The HTC Android Dream phone is a worthy competitor to the [iPhone] 2.0."

GraphOn adds Google to lengthening list of lawsuit targets

In the latest of a barrage of lawsuits against various and sundry operators of "automated and network-automated databases," Web development company GraphOn is now hauling Google into court on allegations of patent infringement.

In a complaint filed in US District Court in Texas, GraphOn is charging that Google's Base, YouTube, Blogger, Sites, and AdWords services violate a total of four patents the company now owns.

Also cited in a still unresolved suit by GraphOn against Yahoo, CareerBuilder, eHarmony, Match.com, and IAC/Interactive Corp., the four patents include US Patents No. 6,324,538 (also known as "the '538 patent"), 7,028,034 ("the '034 patent"), 7.269,591 ("the '591 patent"), and 6,850,940 ("the '940 patent").

Former Apple counsel settles options backdating charges

Apple's former general counsel will pay the US Securities and Exchange Commission some $2.2 million in fines to settle charges related to the Cupertino company's stock options scandal.

SEC officials said Nancy Heinen's fine was comprised of $1.6 million in what it called "ill-gotten" gains, plus interest, and a $200,000 penalty. The former executive is one of two from the company to agree to pay fines. Like former Apple CFO Fred Anderson -- who was fined $3.5 million -- Heinen is neither admitting nor denying guilt.

Netflix admits it's experiencing shipping delays

11:00 am EDT August 15, 2008 - In what many are calling Netflix's biggest service disruption yet, the movie rental-by-mail company's shipping system has still not returned to full functionality, with at least 2.5 million subscribers affected.

Google India could be ordered to break one blogger's anonymity

A construction equipment company in Mumbai, India, has asked that country's high court to order Google India to disclose the identity of "Toxic Writer," a blogger who made defamatory remarks about its mining project in Mozambique.

According to the original complaint filed by Gremach Infrastructure Equipments and Projects Ltd., the ninth paragraph of a blog entry entitled "toxic fumes" contained defamatory material that amounted to a smear campaign against it. However, because the blog post was taken down on an interim order from the Bombay High Court, the actual text is unavailable and even some cached copies cannot be retrieved.

Yahoo names Chapple, Biondi to board, but what happens next?

New Yahoo board member Frank Biondi has a knack for being at the center of a firestorm. So the fact that Carl Icahn successfully got Biondi on board this morning, probably means a new storm is on the horizon.

There are now three of Icahn Partners' ranks serving as members of the Board of Directors of Yahoo. Carl Icahn himself will assume the seat vacated by outgoing member Robert Kotick, and former Viacom and Universal chief Frank Biondi and former Nextel founder John Chapple will add to the board's membership. Yahoo made the news official this morning.

Reports: Apple set to fix iPhone 3G connectivity in update

Apple may attempt to alleviate what iPhone 3G users have perceived to be connectivity problems by way of a software update instead of a recall, which would take a significant chunk from its profits.

Earlier in the week, Swedish engineering magazine Ny Teknik reported on tests from unnamed iPhone 3G users showing its signal sensitivity was well below levels specified in 3G standards. That report indicated that there may be a hardware issue somewhere between the antenna and the amplifier. If either or both parts aren't operating properly, it could lead to poor connectivity and slower speeds.

Lower income Tennessee residents to get free cell phones

The maker of a popular pre-paid cell phone today announced a program that will give low income Tennessee residents free cell phones and mobile service on a year-to-year basis.

Called SafeLink Wireless, the project is being led by the Tennessee Department of Safety, TracFone Wireless, and local nonprofit organizations. Eligible households will receive a free cellular handset with 60 or more minutes of airtime a month plus unlimited access to emergency services (911). Handsets will support standard cellular features such as voice mail, SMS, call waiting, as well as international calling.

Twitter cuts off tweets by SMS in the UK over costs

It appears as if Twitter was unable to reach agreements with UK carriers to keep costs of its SMS tweets down. While users will still be able to send updates to a phone number, they will no longer be able to receive them on phones.

With Twitter's text option, a user's blog update could turn into dozens of text messages depending on who is following that particular user, which the Twitterer was not paying any additional fee for.

"That's because we've been footing the bill," co-founder Biz Stone wrote yesterday in a post to the company blog. "When we launched our free SMS service to the world, we set the clock ticking. As the service grew in popularity, so too would the price."

Attacks continue on Russian and Georgian Web sites, but who's to blame?

Armed conflict between Russia and Georgia has been paralleled by what many in the media have classed a "cyberwar," where Georgian Web sites have been crippled by DDoS attacks and defacements.

As Georgian government sites were rendered inaccessible this week, Poland, Estonia, and the United States hosted mirrors to provide supplementary outlets for information. Polish president Lech Kaczynski's official site says, "Along with military aggression, the Russian Federation is blocking Georgian Internet portals."

In-car wireless Internet to become a reality with Chrysler

An EV-DO-enabled hotspot will be installed as an option in 2009 models of Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge vehicles, as well as some earlier models, the auto maker announced yesterday.

Chrysler itself will not install the Mopar-produced devices direct from the factory, instead it would be made available at the dealership. The new router will be mounted in the trunk much like CD changers and satellite radio receivers already are, and hardwired into the car's electrical system. Users will be able to use Wi-Fi at distances from the car comparable to current home-based wireless routers.

New iPhone app makes it a wireless storage device

With a multitude of applications now available from the App Store, few stand out. Vieosoft's

Microsoft to stop boxed sales of Money

Although it has been offering its financial suite in a downloadable version for quite some time, beginning with the 2009 version of Money Plus, it will no longer be sold through retail channels.

Microsoft pointed to the fact that last year's sales of its Money personal finance software outpaced in-store sales for the first time in the products history, and more than 50 percent of sales of Money now come from online downloads.

Product manager Chris Jolley said that the "time feels right" for such a shift, and that new efficiencies would be realized across all fronts. Shifting to an all-download model is better for the environment, he added. He also noted the changing attitudes of consumers.

Commercial antivirus software rendered useless in hours

At the Race To Zero contest at DEFCON 16 in Las Vegas last weekend, seven sample viruses and three sample exploits were reverse engineered to the point where they could bypass anti-virus software. The task took one team just over two hours.

Race to Zero is a contest where a series of malicious code samples are given that must be modified to be able to circumvent five anti-virus engines, each sample more difficult than the last.

The contest began with the 20-year-old DOS virus Stoned, then followed with Netsky, Bagel, Sasser, Zlob, Welchia, and Virut.

Apple claims $30 million in iPhone software sales

CEO Steve Jobs said that nearly 60 million applications have been downloaded, generating about $1 million in sales per day for the company.

Obviously with an average selling price of 50 cents -- and the minimum charge for an application being 99 cents -- a large portion of iPhone applications downloaded through the Apps Store have been free. Even so, the number is quite impressive.

Sales of third-party applications could reach $360 million in the first year alone, Jobs told

IAC spinoffs begin early trading tomorrow

Common stock in five companies formerly under the IAC (InterActive Corp.) banner, owners of Ask.com and Match.com, will begin "when-issued" trading on the open market tomorrow under five new stock symbols.

This is the realization of an announcement by the holding company made in November 2007, when it made public its intent to spin off its properties Home Shopping Network (HSN). Ticketmaster, Interval Leisure Group (a real estate and timeshare company), and Lending Tree.

Yahoo tweaks advertising policies in response to Congress

Last week, Congress sent letters to Internet platform providers expressing concern over targeted advertising. Now those letters have resulted in action from at least one company, which will now enable users to opt-out.

As part of its new privacy policy announced this afternoon, Yahoo will give its users a choice as to choose whether to opt-out of the company's targeted advertising across its properties. It is already offering its users an option to opt-out of similar ads served by third-party networks.

Ubuntu attracts the lion's share of LinuxWorld's smaller crowds

Download Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) Alpha 3 from FileForum now.

Even though attendance was a bit sparse during this year's LinuxWorld Conference & Expo when compared to previous years, the Canonical booth -- where the latest Ubuntu Linux software was being shown off -- still managed to draw a crowd.

Each Ubuntu presentation and training session throughout the three days of LinuxWorld was heavily attended, especially compared to similar sessions elsewhere where relatively few attended. Ubuntu and Linux in general have, Canonical representatives claimed, have finally matured as a technology, rendering the need for an extravagant technology show no longer necessary.

Apple pulls $1,000 App Store 'gem' after eight downloads

Armin Heinrich, the developer of the 'I Am Rich' application that sold for $999.99 and does essentially nothing, isn't sure why his submission was pulled from the App Store as it was done without warning.

Eight people are said to have downloaded the program, including six in the US, one in Germany and another in France during the day it was live. Using the App Store's revenue split, Heinrich would have made nearly $5,600 in revenues from an program that essentially does nothing.

IBM VP urges open source devs to make Linux less like Windows

If Linux is going to make bigger inroads on the desktop, developers need to stop cloning Microsoft Windows and instead produce more unique user interface designs, according to Bob Sutor, IBM's VP of open source and standards.

Sutor made these remarks today at the Black Hat Conference in Las Vegas, a day after IBM issued the latest in an eight-year series of Linux announcements, joining at LinuxWorld with Linux distributors Red Hat, Novell, and Canonical in an initiative to build "Microsoft-free PCs for business."

Could cuts in telcos' 'terminating rates' be passed on to consumers?

Users who want to lower their cell phone bills could be in for a treat -- or maybe not -- if the FCC responds favorably to a petition filed jointly by the nation's top three wireless providers, backed by powerful industry groups.

In their petition to the US Federal Communications Commission, AT&T, Sprint Nextel, and Verizon Wireless -- along with the CTIA, the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), the VON Coalition, and other parties -- are mutually seeking uniformity around, and reductions in, the carrier "terminating rates" which service providers charge each other for helping to carry one another's traffic over networks.

Openmoko to publish 'open' phone recipes, after dealing with NDAs

Openmoko has finally decided to release the full schematics for its open source, "build-your-own" phones, apparently after the removal of stumbling blocks surrounding non-disclosure agreements for GSM chips.

About a month after shipping its own Neo FreeRunner phone, Openmoko today rolled out plans to post the compete inner workings of that phone and its predecessor, the Neo 1973, on its Web sites at Openmoko.com and Openmoko.org, for use under a Creative Commons (CC) license.

Toshiba doubles its embedded flash capacity to catch up with Samsung

Thumb drives and portable music players may continue their rapid capacity increase, thanks to #2 flash supplier Toshiba introducing 32 gigabit chips this fall. It's a big gamble, though, for a catch-up player in a declining market.

Just 16 months after the company said it was ready to begin sampling 16 gigabit (Gb) NAND flash memory for embedded devices, using its 56-nanometer lithography process, Toshiba announced late this morning that it would begin sampling 32 Gb embedded flash devices using its 43-nm process in October.

LinuxWorld shows off the latest data center-in-a-truck

Talk about your portable servers. Rackable Systems brought its ICE Cube Modular Data Center to LinuxWorld, demonstrating how companies can literally ship their data centers from city to city, even overseas, in cool comfort.

SAN FRANCISCO (BetaNews) - Self-contained, fully portable, modular servers are becoming more popular because they help reduce data center costs, and these all-in-one data centers can be moved from location to location with ease. Over the past few years, at least two companies have created their modular centers in shipping containers that can be transported by road, rail or air.

Three new IBM / Linux partnerships aimed at a 'Microsoft-free' world

At the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo in San Francisco this week, IBM strengthened its ties with the open source community by announcing partnerships with Canonical, Red Hat and Novell.

SAN FRANCISCO (BetaNews) - IBM hopes adding its software to distributions of Ubuntu, Red Hat, and Suse Linux will help consumers transition to become "Microsoft-free."

Specifically, IBM is working to ensure its Open Collaboration Client Solution, including Lotus Symphony, Lotus Notes, and Lotus Sametime, operate with the three Linux distributions.

Oracle boosts its own Linux with 'templates' to aid virtualization

In a realm where a "server" is no longer one box with one processor, it isn't always practical to keep reinstalling the same applications for multiple servers. Today, Oracle is proposing a unique solution, involving "templates."

Oracle's server virtualization software, known as Oracle VM, is targeted at supporting server consolidation and systems integration by enabling Oracle and non-Oracle applications, designed to run on different operating systems, to share the same underlying operating environment.

Bertlesmann bows out of Sony BMG for $1.2 billion

The German publisher has sold its 50 percent stake in the joint music publishing venture, although it plans to retain the catalog rights to certain acts within Europe.

Under Sony management, the Sony BMG publishing group will change its name to Sony Music Entertainment Inc. (SMEI), and would become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony. The Japan-based company will continue to use Bertlesmann-owned Arvato Digital Services for up to six years for its distribution needs, it said this morning.

FastBack backup service to move beyond Windows, says IBM

IBM will also offer its FastBack enterprise-class backup service not for just Windows but for other operating environments over time, according to a company product manager in an interview with BetaNews.

John Conner, an IBM product manager for both TSM and TSM FastBack, wasn't able to specify which platforms yet when talking with us. "But we're looking at Linux, Solaris, and AIX, for instance," noted Conner, who is product manager for both TSM and TSM FastBack.

Apple's fix for major DNS security hole finally arrives

Nearly three weeks after Microsoft patched its Windows operating system to protect against attacks exploiting a flaw within the DNS system, Apple has delivered its own fix.

The DNS flaw, discovered by security researcher Dan Kaminsky, allows attackers to divert traffic to Web sites of their choice through an issue with BIND, software that powers DNS servers.

While a random transaction ID is produced to initiate the communication, certain setups cause the number of possibilities to decrease, thus making guessing the correct ID easier. Kaminsky even said there was a way to guess correctly in only a couple tries.

Congress' probe of target advertising expands to 33 companies

Microsoft and Google are among those who have received letters from four members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee expressing concerns over their online advertising methodologies.

The letter asks the companies to respond by Friday to eleven questions revolving around the subject of targeting ads to specific users, based on behavior or other disseminated factors. The congressmen are looking for answers as to how the companies engage in the practice and to what extent, as well as with regard to address privacy and legal concerns.

Next-generation FireWire finalized, but USB 3.0 will be faster

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) recently approved IEEE 1394-2008, a faster version of the standard known to most simply as FireWire and used for connecting PCs with digital video devices or external hard drives.

"The new standard includes all of the amendments, enhancements and more than 100 errata which have been added to the base standard over the last 12 years," IEEE chair of the working group Les Baxter said in a statement. "This update provides developers with a single document they can rely upon for all of their application needs."

Apple's latest headache: some iPhones developing cracks

Posters to Apple's support forums are complaining of what appears to be a defect in the iPhone 3Gs casing, which is causing hairline cracks.

It appears from a search of the initial thread in question that the cracks are most commonly appearing around the headphone jack, ringer switch, and volume controls.

That could suggest the manufacturing process may be causing some type of weakness near these areas, and put under regular use, the defects appear in the form of small cracks.

FCC finds Comcast in violation of net neutrality rules for BitTorrent blocking

The Federal Communications Commission has concluded its vote on Comcast, finding the cable operator in violation of net neutrality rules by a margin of 3-2, but it will not issue fines.

Democrats Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, as well as Republican chairman Kevin Martin were reported earlier this week to have voted in favor of taking action against Comcast for secretly degrading or blocking peer-to-peer traffic -- specifically that used by BitTorrent.

Toyota developing a Segway-like transportation device

Better known for its automobiles, Toyota is now planning to move into the personal transport business with the "Winglet," scheduled to become available in the early part of the next decade.

The devices seem to share a lot in common with the Segway, which pioneered the category with its Human Transporter. In fact, the design of Toyota's "L" Winglet model looks quite similar.

In addition to the "L," Toyota is developing two other models, the "S" and the "M" (ostensibly corresponding to small, medium, large), which are shorter and appear to have different intended uses. The "M" model is shorter and looks designed for younger rides, while the "S" appears to be a "hands-free" device -- like a Segway without a handle.

Bill to ban in-flight mobile phone calls goes to House

A bill that calls for a ban on all in-flight cellular voice calls will be put up for vote before the full House of Representatives after being approved by the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee.

Chairman of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit Peter DeFazio (D-OR.) introduced HR 5788, or the HANG UP (Halting Airplane Noise to Give Us Peace) Act in April of this year, and it was approved in the Transportation and Infrastructure committee on Thursday.

Yahoo tries to make Delicious bookmarking site more mainstream

Yahoo's social bookmarking site Delicious (formerly del.icio.us) has received its long-awaited user interface overhaul, which the company hopes will attract more mainstream users and make the site less niche.

Since acquiring del.icio.us in late 2005, Yahoo has gradually moved the service into a more accessible realm. It has also been moved from its clever, but easy to mis-type .us domain to the much simpler Delicious.com.

The site's layout has been changed to improve uptake in new users, while maintaining essential elements for existing users. Yahoo has also announced increased overall speed through a "new infrastructure that makes ever page faster," and the search engine has also been refined to quicken searches.

Microsoft's Live Search homepage adds background image with clickable spots

While it doesn't add much to the overall function of the search engine itself, Microsoft's latest update to the Windows Live Search homepage adds a background image with "hotspots" that can be clicked.

For example, the first background appearing on Live Search shows a picture of the Okavango Delta in Botswana, with four clickable areas are included on the map. One over the trees in the distance asks "What will you see on your safari in Botswana?" with links to search results on animals on the country. Another link, over the boater's head takes users to an overhead view of the region using Live Search Maps.

Dish first to deliver 1080p HD television programming

Satellite television service Dish will be the first to offer live programming "full HD" 1080p resolution, while the return of an all-HD package hearkens back to the days of Voom.

Dish purchased the assets of Cablevision's Voom in 2005, and much of its content was folded into the satellite provider's offerings. None of the Voom HD channels exist on Dish any longer, as they disappeared in May. Now, however, it seems like the company is ready to try the Voom approach once again: a package of only HD channels.

Garmin nuvifone delayed due to 'carrier-specific requirements'

In Garmin's second quarter earnings announcement today, the GPS company said its nuvifone that was anticipated for release this year will be delayed.

The company's iPhone-like hybrid 3G handset and GPS device was originally expected to launch in the third quarter of this year in American markets. It was then gently pushed to a fourth quarter release, which Garmin has now rescheduled for the first half of 2009.

A statement from the company says: "While we had hoped to have carrier launches in the fourth quarter, we have found that meeting some of the carrier-specific requirements will take longer than anticipated."

Real partially patches 'highly critical' RealPlayer flaws

Security firm Secunia said Tuesday that RealNetworks had fixed most of the security flaws within its RealPlayer software that were first highlighted on Friday.

Four separate issues were discovered within most versions of RealPlayer 10, 10.5, and 11 across the Linux, Mac, and Windows platforms. While the company released the patch on Monday, which Secunia noted in its advisory, the firm said the fix was not complete.

The issue still not fully patched is related to an error in the rmoc3260 ActiveX control "when handling the 'Controls,' 'Console,' or 'WindowName' properties with a specific timing."

Yahoo says DRM issue overblown by media, but will offer refunds

Yahoo told BetaNews that the media was hyping the expiration of the company's DRM certificates and didn't expect a user backlash, but said it has decided to offer refunds to those affected anyway.

Last Week, Yahoo announced in an e-mail to customers that it would remove its DRM keys for authorizing song playback on October 1. This means that although purchased music would continue playing, it cannot be reauthorized, essentially locking it to the current computer. If a user buys a new PC or reinstalls the operating system, the purchased music would no longer be playable.

eBay and software group butt heads over stopping piracy

The SIIA wants eBay to squelch short-term software auctions. Since the start of its anti-counterfeiting initiative, eBay seems to be practicing some other curbs on software banditry, to various degrees. If the two sides can't see eye to eye, will the battle actually land in court?

Although a lawsuit against eBay isn't "pending or on the immediate horizon," the Software Information Industry Association (SIIA) has sued other Web sites before, and Keith Kupferschmidt, senior VP of the Software Information Industry Association (SIIA), is very unhappy over what he views as eBay's failure to take real action against software piracy.

Verizon launches 100 HD channels on FiOS in New York City

"Make no mistake about it. This isn't cable," said Virginia Ruesterholz, president of Verizon Telecom, in announcing today the immediate start of FiOS services with 100 high-definition channels in parts of New York City, plus the availability of 150 HD channels by the end of this year in sections of New York City and some other areas of the US.

Because nearly 60 percent of New York City residences and businesses are located in multiple dwelling units (MDUs), Verizon is putting an early focus on apartment buildings. More than 100 MDUs will go live with 100 HD-channel TV today, according to Maura Breen, Verizon's general manager for New York.

Sirius+XM is official as FCC approves merger

On a 3-2 party-line vote, the Federal Communications Commission approved the merger of Sirius and XM, although the satellite radio companies had to make some key concessions.

The final commissioner to vote on the deal was Deborah Taylor Tate, who held her vote pending XM and Sirius agreeing to certain limitations. The two sides did so late last week, and Tate gave her blessing late Friday.

The Department of Justice had given the merger a green light in March of this year following its own review, already 13 months after XM and Sirius first announced their plans to merge in February 2007.

Nearly 7 years after original, a new Windows XP goes gold

On August 24, 2001, Microsoft released to manufacturing the final version of Windows XP. 6 years and 11 months later, a new version of XP has gone gold, this time for the OLPC XO computer, also known as the "$100 laptop."

Originally designed to run Linux, the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) XO laptop is targeted at developing nations and those too poor to afford proper computers for education. The device, which went on sale publicly in November for $200, features wireless connectivity, a built-in camera and a keyboard designed to change languages.

Video service RedLasso folds under legal pressure from networks

RedLasso, a digital video re-syndication service, has closed its controversial site after threats of copyright lawsuits from NBC Universal and Fox.

The service digitized live audio and video content, which users could edit and re-arrange into embeddable clips.

In May, Fox, CBS, and NBC delivered a cease-and-desist order to the service which threatened a lawsuit if it didn't conform to copyright law. The networks propounded that the content RedLasso broadcasted was not its to distribute, and said the company had never received permission to do so.

Beta release of Office Outlook Connector adds calendar syncing

A beta release of Office Outlook Connector 12.1 adds syncing between Windows Live Calendar and Microsoft Outlook.

As with previous versions, the connector will sync a user's Hotmail account and contacts with Microsoft's Office productivity suite. The addition of calendar support rounds out the service, and offers functionality akin to Apple's MobileMe (although its more meant for desktops in this case, not mobile phones).

Microsoft Office users could get calendar sync in previous versions, but this required a subscription above and beyond the free Outlook Connector download.

After pirate lands in prison, software group hints at eBay lawsuit

After convicted software pirate Jeremiah Mondello pulled a 48-month federal prison stretch on Wednesday, an industry anti-piracy group announced six more lawsuits against individual piracy suspects -- also reportedly hinting that eBay could be the next one to get hauled into court.

"Mondello is a whiz-kid who used his smarts and savvy to rip off software makers and consumers. We are fortunate that he has been stopped, but there are hundreds more like him running illegal operations on eBay and other sites," according to Keith Kupferschmid, SVP of intellectal property policy and enforcement for the Software Industry Information Association (SIAA).

Verizon to announce FiOS rollout in New York City

Verizon has scheduled a webcast for Monday, where it will officially announce rollout plans and pricing for FiOS in New York City, which has over 8.2 million residents, providing a huge boost for the service that counts only 1.8 million customers.

Thus far, Verizon's FiOS television and Internet service has been largely relegated to the suburbs, where the company could more easily dig down to install fiber optic lines. Major metropolitan areas have seen only spotty FiOS coverage, making the New York City launch an important milestone for Verizon. The company was granted approval from the city last week to offer its television service. Verizon also plans to host an event at Grand Central Terminal.

China now counts more Internet users than the US

Even though the government places heavy restrictions on the Internet with censorship and routine crackdowns on cyber dissidents, China has finally surpassed the United States for the most online users in the world.

The China Internet Network Information Center compiled the numbers that indicate China now has 253 million total Web surfers, with the United States coming in at an estimated 223 million users. China has a total population of more than 1.3 billion people, compared to the United States' 301 million.

Creative adds to music player lineup with Zen Mozaic

Creative expanded its music player lineup Thursday, releasing new models designed to be fashionable with a mosaic design where the buttons are located.

The Creative Zen Mozaic comes in four sizes -- 2GB, 4GB, 8GB and 16GB -- with a stronger emphasis on the music player's looks than functionality.

All models are able to play music and video files, along with display photos and CD cover art. The Mozaic has a 1.8-inch screen, built-in speaker, FM radio, microphone, and supports MP3, WMA, WMA-DRM 10, and JPEG file formats. The device measures 79.5mm x 40mm x 12.8mm.

Microsoft reorganizes and rethinks, chief architect of Yahoo bid exits

With Microsoft's stock prices down 20 percent since February, CEO Steve Ballmer is reorganizing and rethinking the company, and the chief architect of Microsoft's abandoned attempt to acquire Yahoo, Kevin Johnson, is leaving to head up communications equipment maker Juniper Networks.

In a concerted effort to catch up to Google in the online space, Microsoft is now carving up its Platform and Systems Division (PSD), formerly headed by Johnson, into two divisions: "Windows/Windows Live" and "Online."

Thirteen record labels ask judge for ruling against LimeWire

Thirteen record labels have filed for a summary judgement to their two-year old case against peer-to-peer file swapping service LimeWire, seeking to bring a swift end to the drawn-out conflict.

In 2006, the Recording Industry Association of America sued LimeWire seeking $150,000 per occurrence of illicit music sharing, claiming the service participated in "inducement of copyright infringement, contributatory copyright infringement, and with respect to pre-1972 recordings, common law copyright infringement and state law unfair competition."

Microsoft makes Games for Windows Live free, will sell game downloads

Microsoft announced late Tuesday that it would no longer charge Windows gamers to connect to one another for multiplayer gaming, and this fall will launch an online store for downloading PC games.

All users will be able to access the Games for Windows Live, which is similar to Microsoft's Xbox Live -- service at no cost. Microsoft said that the decision to remove the pay tier came after discussions with developers and fans led it to believe that multiplayer gaming should be free.

Microsoft prepares to auto-deliver Windows Search 4.0 to Vista users

If you notice your hard drive crunching later this month while performing a menial task, fear not: it's just the new Windows Search software creating an index of your files. Microsoft plans to automatically deliver version 4.0 of the software, formerly Windows Desktop Search, to Vista users.

Windows Search 4.0 was released in June and Microsoft says it has "seen a good number of downloads, and a number of positive responses from customers." The advantage over Vista's built-in search function is one of performance, the company claims. The structure of the search index was completely redesigned to speed up locating items on the hard drive and networked PCs.

Details on DNS flaw inadvertently leaked; researcher says patch now

The cat is out of the bag before Black Hat. That isn't a passage from a Dr. Seuss children's book, but a description of what happened on Monday when a Web site accidentally posted details about a DNS flaw uncovered by security researcher Dan Kaminsky earlier this month.

Kaminsky, who plans to discuss the flaw at the forthcoming Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas next month, had wanted to keep the details private until then, in hopes of preventing the flaw from being used for malicously redirecting Internet traffic to phony Web sites for large-scale phishing exploits.

Mobile phone video streaming service Qik opens public beta

Mobile phone video broadcast site Qik, which launched in private testing this spring, has opened today as a public beta.

Qik is a live video streaming site that turns the user's mobile phone camera into something of a remote webcam. Users are encouraged to stream events and other happenings, which can be viewed live and later as video clips, to the Qik Web site.

Thanks to a committed stable of users providing unique content to the service and support from notable bloggers, Qik has rapidly gained widespread attention. It's not clear whether the company has paid or otherwise rewarded these individuals -- such as Robert Scoble, Michael Arrington and XM Radio's Robert Eklund -- for using Qik, but the service has quickly outpaced rival Flixwagon as a result.

Facebook sues over copied design, launches redesigned interface

Social network giant Facebook entered litigation with German site Studivz on Friday for closely copying its design, just in time for Facebook to launch its totally redesigned interface on Monday.

German site StudiVZ took more than a few design cues from Facebook. According to reports, early versions of the site even featured filenames such as fbook.css and poke.php, as the two companies were reportedly "in talks."

StudiVZ's founder Ehssan Dariani has frequently been quoted in his acknowledgment of the two sites' similarity: "We may have oriented ourselves along the lines of the Facebook layout, but it was also clear that we would strongly distinguish ourselves by other things, that we wanted to be original."

Has Google's relentless growth finally stopped?

The fuel that brought Google from a laboratory experiment to one of the world's industrial giants, may at last be burning itself out. That leaves Google one player among many, in a questionable economic environment. What now?

When a cartel of oil-producing nations wants to tweak demand for its product upwards, along with its per-barrel prices, one tool it has at its disposal is tightening its pipelines and reducing supply. In the online advertising space, in terms of reach and supply, you don't actually need a cartel to approach the power of Google.

Japanese, Korean researchers may extend the lifespan of NAND flash

Scientists from the University of Tokyo and Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) claim they have successfully created a new flash NAND memory that can operate for hundreds of years.

In an e-mail correspondence with BetaNews, AIST confirmed it had created the new NAND memory, and said it hopes to have it out the door soon.

The NAND flash memory used today in such products as smartphones (including the Apple iPhone), UMPCs and other small notebooks, video game consoles, digital cameras, and solid-state drives (SSDs) are able to function for about ten years on average. However, that lifespan can be dramatically reduced when it's responsible for virtual memory or other similarly demanding tasks.

Slowing PC market, another online reinvestment ahead for Microsoft

With half of 2008 having already gone by, Microsoft's online services situation today is pretty much the same: Without a Yahoo partnership, the division is still bleeding. It's a good thing Microsoft's also a software company.

If the recent economic downturn can be characterized as a "storm" for those industries in which America has a major stake, the PC industry is certainly weathering this storm very well. Analysts had expected shipment growth to rise to only 12% annually; but from Microsoft's perspective, the number is more like 15%.

Major Yahoo shareholder backs Yang in anti-Icahn campaign

12:03 pm EDT July 18, 2008 - Apparently after having read and assessed the text of Yahoo's new anti-Icahn Web site, as well as its latest filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (detailed below), Yahoo's third largest shareholder, capital management firm Legg Mason, announced this morning that it would be backing Yahoo's current management in its efforts to retain its existing board structure and management.

Vista users greeted with an unexpected surprise: MobileMe

While they may have no intention of ever signing up for the service, Windows users are finding an unexpected addition to their Control Panels.

A link for "MobileMe Preferences" has begun appearing at the bottom of the Control Panel screens of those who have installed the latest Apple iTunes software -- according to one user, without any notification at all.

The MobileMe preference panel has also been reported to be showing up in Windows XP as well.

Sony to offer 'Graphic Splash' for select Vaio FW notebooks

Sony's upcoming Graphic Splash notebooks will be based on the Vaio FW multimedia PC introduced this week, and they'll be available for sale online for a limited time this fall, BetaNews has learned.

In announcing a "new line-up" of Graphic Splash notebooks on Wednesday -- plus a related contest -- Sony didn't specify whether the decoratively cased PCs will use any of the four Vaio models unveiled on Wednesday as its underpinnings, or whether they'll constitute a separate model. Photos accompanying the announcement appeared to show the new designs on the company's existing FZ series notebooks.

Latest Winamp adds access to CBS Radio stations

Who still uses Winamp? There's at least one guy at BetaNews whose desktop clutter contains the venerable music player, and today there's actually a new reason for it to stay right where it is.

Download Winamp Full 5.54 from FileForum now.

Though it's been BetaNews itself that sounded the death knell for Winamp as much as four years ago, the product itself lives on, albeit without the innovative spirit that characterized its Nullsoft developers at the turn of the decade. Today's release of version 5.54 might not merit mention were it not for the addition of at least one compelling new feature: the new and rebuilt AOL Radio, which now provides direct access to CBS owned and affiliated radio stations throughout the US.

Sony plans $500 'Blu-ray player for audiophiles' for fall

At a press event in New York this week, Sony presented a prototype of a new "Blu-ray player for audiophiles" -- the BDP-S550 -- slated for release next fall.

Australia tweaks its code of conduct for Internet and mobile

Today, the Australian Communications and Media Authority approved the Content Services Code, a set of guidelines for ISPs and mobile carriers, which include directives for ISPs to hire so-called "trained content assessors."

The Content Services Code is a code of practices developed by the Internet Industry Association for online and mobile content providers. Within it are guidelines for "self-regulation of content" from commercial ISPs and mobile operators, which include the mandatory hiring of in-house censors, called "trained content assessors."

Details emerge on Psystar suit, Apple wants recall

Apple is not only suing Psystar to stop them from selling Mac clones, but is asking the courts to order that the Florida-based company recall all of the systems sold to customers.

The 16-page complaint argues that Psystar's actions were meant to damage Apple, as well as confuse the public. In addition, the continued sales of Open Computers would financially hurt the company.

Altogether, Apple is accusing Psystar of ten counts: copyright infringement, contributory and induced copyright infringement, breach of contract, inducing breach of contract, two claims of trademark infringement, "trade dress" infringement, trademark dilution, unfair competition under California law, and unfair competition under common law.

Sony, HP get behind an open format for digital audio

Hewlett-Packard and Sony announced they will work together to develop a new generation of Digital Audio Tapes, called DAT 320, which will be built on an open standard so that other companies are able to contribute.

Although the two companies are collaborating to create the Digital Data Storage (DDS) standard, they both have plans to offer DAT 320 tape drives and cartridges that will eventually compete against one another. The Sony and HP products will have the same speed and capacity, though it's likely their firmware will be different, even though the drives will be interchangeable.

YouTube agrees to share viewer data, without IDs and IPs

Litigants trying to get data on what the video site's users were watching have backed off somewhat, although YouTube will still have to share some data with Viacom.

Plaintiffs Viacom and a class-action group led by the Football Association of England agreed to accept a watered-down version of YouTube's viewer logs. That version will not include the IP addresses nor the YouTube usernames of the viewers.

Earlier this month, a judge ordered Google to turn over this information to Viacom. The media conglomerate had specifically requested information that would have also tied the viewer data to a specific YouTube user.

First Look: MobileMe promising, but limps out of the gate

In my three plus years of covering Apple, its MobileMe product is probably the most exciting concept, in my opinion.

New Creative sound systems promise to compensate for poor MP3 quality

Creative introduced two new consumer-grade media players that claim to be capable of identifying different parts of an MP3 track that have lower sound quality, and remastering them to restore sound quality as much as possible.

The Creative Zen X-Fi and Zen X-Fi with Wi-Fi both offer a 2.5-in. TFT display, built-in FM radio, built-in microphone, a video converter, and SD card expansion slot for additional storage. All of the devices measure 83mm x 55mm x 12.8mm and weigh in at 69 grams.

Activision adds Line6 amp modeling to Guitar Hero: World Tour

The next in Activision's popular line of rhythm-based music simulation games is scheduled for release in Fall 2008, and is single-handedly changing the style of the game with the addition of many new features.

World Tour will follow in the footsteps of Rock Band, offering a drum kit and vocal microphone in addition to the expected guitar controllers, which have reportedly also been upgraded. An eight-player "Battle of the Bands" mode, extended character customization, and online career mode, as well as "the largest on-disc set list in a music-rhythm game to date," have been added. A complete set list, however, has not yet been released.

Phoenix BIOS with hypervisor to premiere Monday in NEC laptops

BetaNews has learned that, on Monday, NEC will roll out plans to include remotely manageable anti-virus technology in PC notebooks, running outside of the Windows OS in Linux-based HyperSpace firmware from Phoenix Technologies.

NEW YORK CITY (BetaNews) - Shauli Chaudhuri, vice president of marketing at Phoenix Technologies, told BetaNews this week that NEC will be among the first PC manufacturers to use its HyperSpace technology.

Use of the Phoenix firmware will allow security applications to operate before, during, and after Vista boots up and shuts down, securing the NEC notebooks before malware can get downloaded by Windows applications, according to Chaudhuri.

West Coast lines grow longer as iPhone 3G buyers are told to wait

Just a few blocks away from the Moscone Center, where Steve Jobs and company host Macworld and WWDC every year, the enthusiasm for Apple's latest product launch was apparent.

New York Attorney General's child porn crusade expands

After an investigation of newsgroups that uncovered large amounts of underage pornography, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo began a large-scale expulsion of the material at the ISP level. Now there's an official Web site for the effort.

Last month, a statement from the Attorney General's office announced that agreements with Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and Sprint had been made to "purge their servers" of sites and Usenet groups that were found to contain child pornography.

Eager iPhone 3G buyers begin all-night wait outside stores

The second-generation iPhone won't go on sale for another 9 hours, but some intrepid souls are already lining up outside AT&T and Apple stores to be among the first to use the device. We spoke with two as they began their night-long wait.

At an AT&T store in downtown Baltimore, which saw early morning lines form before last year's nighttime iPhone launch, was preparing for big crowds. Shortly after the close of the store at 8pm, plastic posts and chains were being setup to guide the expected line.

Now you can find your cell phone...when it screams, 'I'm lost!'

The next time you lose your cell phone, you might hear it scream something like "I'm stolen!" or "I'm lost - take me home," through new location-based technology now under development by a company called Yougetitback.com.

NEW YORK CITY (BetaNews) - From its Web site, the start-up already offers software dubbed Cellphone Superhero, aimed at letting users lock misplaced cell phones remotely, in addition to storing photos, e-mails, and contact information of friends and co-workers securely in a private online vault.

VMware CEO ousted for former Microsoft exec

Diane Greene, CEO of industry leading virtualization firm VMware, has lost her job to Paul Martiz, a former Microsoft executive who arrived at EMC -- VMware's owner since 2004 -- with its buyout of Pi Corp. last year.

In issuing an announcement that stunned the software industry, EMC Chairman Joe Tucci applauded Greene -- who co-founded the $1.3 billion virtualization software company 10 years ago -- for guiding "the creation and development of a company that is changing the way that people think about computing."

OpenSUSE improves its deployment system for various distributions

In an effort to improve the open source contribution and distribution processes, the openSUSE project released Build Service 1.0, a new code repository service with several key improvements.

Although many Linux distributions have code repositories and libraries open to the community, they can sometimes be difficult to navigate, especially when trying to view older code samples. Matters become even more complicated when multiple teams are working on the same project, sometimes updating the same package, resulting in multiple simultaneous versions within a given repository.

PayPal, Google team in anti-phishing initiative

With phishing attacks and fraudulent e-mails still slipping through Google Gmail's security walls, the Mountain View-based company plans to work with eBay and its PayPal unit in an effort to protect e-mail users.

In an agreement announced today, Google and eBay will use DomainKeys and DomainKeys Identified Mail e-mail authentication technology to help stop fraudulent e-mails enter the Gmail inboxes. The DomainKey helps an ISP to determine whether or not a specific e-mail is authentic, and if it should be delivered. Developed by Yahoo, any e-mail sent with a DKIM will have a type of cryptographic signature that must be accepted by an e-mail server -- this case Gmail.com -- before being accepted.

Standards board execs recommend ISO 29500 appeals be rejected

It's looking more likely now that Open XML will overcome perhaps its last hurdle on the road to publication as an international standard, as the leaders of both ISO and IEC have systematically disassembled four member countries' appeals.

The secretaries general of the International Organization for Standardization and the International Engineering Consortium, in a report to the technical and standards management boards of both organizations, recommends that those boards reject the appeals of representatives of Brazil, India, South Africa, and Venezuela against the publication of the Open XML document format suite created by Microsoft, as ISO/IEC 29500.

Sony re-releases its problematic PS3 firmware update

Last week, Sony pulled its PlayStation 3 firmware upgrade (v2.40) after users began to report that it "bricked" their consoles. An updated update has been made available.

First promising that a fix was coming some time "midweek," in Playstation.blog, the new firmware upgrade is reportedly available worldwide already.

Though Sony has issued no official statement addressing problems caused by the upgrade, or even what percentage of downloaders were affected by it, the company said earlier that incidents were low in number. Of course, the numbers must have been substantial enough to warrant such a delay. Complaints on official PlayStation message boards were not in overwhelming quantity, but were nonetheless common.

Microsoft to host 'Deskless Worker' entry-level Web services

When Microsoft announced in March it would be marketing its own hosting services for Exchange and SharePoint, some wondered how the company could successfully compete with itself? Today, it provided the answer.

One under-appreciated facet of Microsoft's business is the amount of software that it sells to registered partners, who then resell that software to their clients. We're not talking about the Office suite or Visual Studio, but rather Windows installations, along with the services installed on Windows-based servers that can be licensed per user. Businesses that keep their employees connected through SharePoint sites and Exchange services often get their software through these partners.

Report: Third-generation Toyota Prius to sport solar panels

When Toyota's popular hybrid gets a makeover in 2010, the car will now harness the power of the sun to operate its own air conditioning.

The first Priuses shipped in 1997 in Japan, and worldwide in 2000. Toyota last redesigned the car in 2003 to make it quicker and more efficient, and automotive analysts have widely expected another revision to come soon with additional enhancements.

Reports from Reuters and Japanese business news service Nikkei indicate that one of these new features would be solar panels from Kyocera. As solar panels small enough to fit on a car's roof cannot produce a great deal of energy, only the air conditioning would be partially powered by the technology.

Google adds privacy link, avoids trouble

On Google's main page, one of the few places on the Internet where a dearth of content is beneficial, it's easy to notice when a single word changes, especially when it's one as hot as "privacy."

Where it once said "©2008 Google" at the bottom of the page, it now says "©2008 - Privacy." The change was announced on Thursday before the Independence day holiday as a word-for-word identical passage in blogs by Marissa Mayer Search Products and User Experience Vice President and Pablo Chavez, Senior Policy Council.

'Metal Gear Solid 4' gives PS3 a sales boost in Japan

It's good to be on top of the heap, Sony discovered for perhaps a brief moment, and today gaming analysts are giving the PS3 a ray of hope for Japan. But that depends on just how carefully you slice the pie, as the market leader remains Nintendo.

Widely circulated reports attributed to Reuters, though not attributed to the Nikkei service, state that the relative ratio of sales of Sony's PlayStation 3 to Nintendo's Wii console, tightened to 1.7 : 1, during a five-week period that ended last week. In that period, the highly anticipated Konami game title

Do-it-yourself phone manufacturer declares its independence tomorrow

While many of us will be enjoying fireworks and barbeques tomorrow to help celebrate the Fourth of July, a Taiwan-based device manufacturer, Openmoko, plans to launch a new open source Linux handset that begs to be customized.

While there's no evidence yet that Openmoko's Neo Freerunner will be available through any major US carrier on a subsidized plan, the phone can be used on AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and other mobile phone services in the United States, with customers apparently able to select which network they wish to use.

New Google Talk gives iPhone users a free messaging alternative

Google has pushed out a new version of its Google Talk service for Apple iPhone and iPod Touch owners designed the service to work solely through Safari, so there are no software downloads that need to be installed.

According to a blog post late yesterday from Google mobile team software engineer Adam Connors, interested iPhone users simply head to www.google.com/talk, sign in, start chatting with friends.

"We've tried to keep the design as faithful to the desktop experience as possible, so it should be familiar to you," Connors wrote. "You can select from a quicklist of the people you contact most, search your contacts, and manage multiple conversations."

Nokia and InterDigital start to disassemble their running feud

You dream of seeing outcomes like this: One side asks the other, "What were we fighting about again?" The other side responds, "I don't remember." And the two shake hands and start picking up their mess. This may actually be happening.

It is perhaps the most bizarre patent licensing foray in the history of telecommunications -- so unusual that a third layer of lawsuits, filed beginning in July 2005 and extending into 2006, was literally convened to settle in court the question of what it was that the second layer of lawsuits was supposed to be about.

Next Patch Tuesday has few security updates, big Vista reliability fix

In its monthly advance notice the weekend before the second Tuesday of the month, Microsoft said it will only be addressing four security issues this time around, two dealing with Windows. But a surprisingly big Vista bug fix is under way.

If you think about it, the relative security of Windows Vista hasn't been the subject of much debate recently. If there's any problem consumers have with it, whether it's born out of market perception or real-world experience, it's a feeling that it's not all that reliable.