» obama, palin top google year-end zeitgeist list
the fastest rising searches on google.com in the u.s. during the year were: 1) obama; 2) facebook; 3) at&t; 4) iphone; 5) youtube; 6) fox news; 7) palin 8) beijing 2008; 9) david cook; and 10) surf the channel. "fastest rising" is determined by taking the most popular searches from january 2008 through november 2008 and ranking them based on the change in their frequency between this year and the same period in 2007.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/reporting/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212400223

» at&t testing femtocells
at&t is testing femtocell technology, and the wireless carrier plans to begin deploying units in trial markets next year.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/mobility/business/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212400197

» intel details transition plans for 32-nm processors
intel is planning to offer some of the first details about how its engineers will switch the company’s processor manufacturing from the current 45-nanometer model to a newer, smaller 32-nm design in 2009.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/IT-Infrastructure/Intel-Details-Transition-Plans-for-32NM-Processors/

» judge buries bogus malware-protection gang
products including winfixer, winantivirus, drivecleaner and errorsafe
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/10/scareware_group_shuttered/

» in-the-wild attacks find hole in (fully-patched) ie 7
internet users located in china report infections that result when using ie 7 to browse booby-trapped websites. researchers from mcafee investigated the matter and found the exploits successfully target the microsoft browser on both windows xp service pack 3 and vista sp 1. the attacks target a flaw in the way ie handles certain types of data that use the extensible markup language, or xml, format. the bug references already freed memory in the mshtml.dll file. according to idg news, exploits work about one in three times, and only after a victim has visited a website that serves a malicious piece of javascript.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/09/zero_day_ie_flaw_exploited/

» white house opposes fcc's free internet plan
the bush administration opposes a federal communications commission plan for free, nationwide wireless internet access, according to a report wednesday by the wall street journal. the fcc has been considering auctioning 25 megahertz of spectrum in the 2155mhz to 2180mhz band. as part of the rules for using the spectrum, the fcc plans to require license holders to offer some free wireless broadband service.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10120842-94.html

» u.s. losing cyberspace security battle
america, in other words, has been hacked.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/security/government/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212300200

» quantum encryption broken with time travel?
the field of quantum mechanics allows security codes to be sent completely free of being detected and read. however, u.s. scientists say they could break these quantum encryption codes with time travel, specifically, wormholes. that is, if wormholes exist.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/22169/1066/

» apple branching out in 2009?
trip chowdhry of global equities research put out a research note monday morning spotted by d: all things digital saying that apple plans to release something from "a completely new device category" next year. he fails to explain exactly what such a product might encompass, but speculates that it will be based around a processor designed by the former p.a. semi engineering team.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10118470-37.html

» don't hold your breath for drm-free itunes news
rumors coming out of europe that claim apple will begin offering unprotected music files from the three largest recording companies on tuesday are bogus, according to my music-industry sources. yes, apple is in negotiations with the three biggest music labels, universal music group, sony music, and warner music group about acquiring licenses to sell music free of digital rights management software.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10118706-93.html

» microsoft wants to get under your skin
microsoft's healthvault, the medical records database, is to be integrated with verimed's human-embedded rfid tags, allowing doctors to access the medical records of unconscious patients with a quick scan of the arm. verimed consists of an rfid tag that is embedded in the arm of a hopefully willing participant, and responds with a 16-digital identity code when queried at 134khz. this code can then be used to identify the person through verichip's website, and will soon be able to link to their medical records as stored on microsoft's healthvault system.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/04/ms_verimed/

» microsoft to embed rsa data cop in windows
microsoft is adopting technology from emc's rsa security division for windows to police data and prevent loss and theft of information. the companies announced thursday microsoft will license rsa's data loss prevention (dlp) engine for future versions of exchange server, sharepoint server, and "similar" products.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/04/microsoft_rsa_rights_management/

» groups push for net neutrality in obama administration
advocates of net neutrality rules in the u.s. have called on president-elect barack obama to act quickly to prevent broadband providers from blocking or impairing access to internet content of customers' choice. the open internet coalition on wednesday called on obama to follow through with his promises during the presidential campaign to establish net neutrality rules. members of the coalition also called on obama to appoint a new chairman of the u.s. federal communications commission who would enforce net neutrality rules and champion broadband competition.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/12/04/Groups_push_for_net_neutrality_in_Obama_administration_1.h...

» at&t to cut 12,000 jobs
at&t said thursday it would eliminate about 4 percent of its workforce, as it joins a raft of corporations trying to slash costs in the face of the economic downturn.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/management/trends/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212201864

» adobe cuts jobs, lowers revenue outlook
the company said it will eliminate 600 jobs, or around 8% of its workforce, because of the weak economy.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/web2.0/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=2122

» next up for layoffs: real
real networks said today that it informed 130 employees, or 7.5 percent of its worldwide workforce, that their positions would be eliminated at the end of year. in a post on the company’s official blog, the company said the layoffs were part of a larger cost cutting plan that “is intended to bring expenses in line with current and prospective economic realities.”
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=11101

» no escaping britney spears: 2008's top searches
maybe all our refined, enlightened interests are lost in the long tail, because britney spears once again was the most popular search subject in 2008 on yahoo.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10110841-2.html

» ibm offers a 'microsoft-free' desktop
the tech pioneer is launching a linux-based collection of virtual-desktop applications that run on a server without the need for desktop hardware--or microsoft software, according to a report on wednesday evening by the wall street journal. the linux-based software package, which is available now, runs on a back-office server and is accessible to customers on thin clients, the paper reported.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10113197-92.html

» $99 iphone coming this month
the latest rumour, originating at the boy genius report, suggests that the low-price retailer may get a version with 4g of storage for just $us99 on a two-year contract.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/22109/1168/

» idc: economic crisis will kill off some pc makers
the dire economic conditions will likely squeeze smaller pc makers out of business, and giants like hp, acer, and dell will opt against acquiring them. with credit in a tight squeeze and the economy in free fall, the next few years should see the collapse of some small pc makers and a restructuring of the rest of the industry, according to an industry research firm.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/12/04/IDC_says_the_economic_crisis_will_kill_off_some_PC_makers_...

» seagate’s “random freeze” problem: worse than reported?
reports that seagate is having “random freeze” problems on its new 1.5 tb drives may be more serious than the company has admitted: 1 tb seagate drives may be affected as well.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/storage/?p=369

» python update makes break with past
python developers on wednesday released the final version of python 3.0, a major reworking of the programming language that is incompatible with the python 2 series. python is widely used for web applications such as youtube.
http://news.zdnet.com/2424-9595_22-253863.html

» it survivor: 7 tips for career growth in tight times
here are seven tips for outlegging the competition and surviving the downturn with your job intact. what you find here may come off as common sense, but when it comes to keeping ahead of the guy in the cubicle down the hall, common sense just might be all you need to gain an edge. after all, how often do you see your coworkers demonstrating common sense these days?
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/12/01/49FE-it-job-survival_1.html

» facebook wins $873 million judgment against spammer
facebook on friday won $873 million in damages from a spammer, the largest award to date under the 2003 can-spam act.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212200205

» silicon valley starts to feel the sting of layoffs
the economic slowdown has finally begun to hit home in silicon valley, with tech companies large and small shedding jobs in advance of what is widely expected to be a difficult year. the scene may remind some of 2001 and 2002, when the internet bubble exploded and dumped hundreds of thousands of engineers in the area onto the unemployment rolls.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/management/trends/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212200779

» nasa tests deep space internet
nasa has transmitted dozens of space images about 20 million miles in its first successful use of deep space communications modeled on the internet. "this is the first step in creating a totally new space communications capability, an interplanetary internet," adrian hooke, team lead and manager of space-networking architecture, technology, and standards at nasa headquarters in washington, said in a statement monday.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212100822

» adobe, zend to link php apps to web users
the partnership will allow for exchanging messages between php business logic and the end-user-oriented web applications built with adobe's flash player and flex components.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/webdev/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=QFJJONTTQZNSKQSNDLP...

» wireless-data led lamps to replace lightbulbs - us profs
'the era of hyperconnectivity is upon us'
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/07/nsf_smart_lighting_push/

» analysts: amd's foundry spin-off may save company
advanced micro devices' decision to spin off its chip-manufacturing business into a separate company just may save the floundering firm, analysts said.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/151991/.html?tk=rss_news

» clickjacking attack lets web sites see, hear you
on tuesday, flash developer guy aharonovsky published a proof-of-concept exploit to show how clickjacking can be used to spy on people. "i've written a quick and dirty javascript game [to] exploit just that, and demonstrate how an attacker can get a hold of the user's camera and microphone," he said in a blog post. "this can be used, for example, with platforms [like ustream.tv or justin.tv] or to stream to a private server to create a malicious surveillance platform."
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=210800544

» fake youtube pages used to spread viruses
savvy internet users know that downloading unsolicited computer programs is one of the most dangerous things you can do online. it puts you at great risk for a virus or another time bomb from a hacker. but even some sophisticated surfers could get taken in by a sneaky new attack in which criminals create fake youtube pages — dead-on replicas of the real site — to push their malicious software and make it look like it's safe stuff coming from a trusted source.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/tec_techbit_youtube_spoofing

» is microsoft buying citrix? novell!?
like sands through the hourglass, so are the stories of microsoft mergers. once more, rumors are swirling that microsoft might buy citrix. by my count, this is the fifth time this particular rumor has emerged. in addition, though, this time around i'm hearing that some people think microsoft might buy novell.
http://blogs.computerworld.com/is_microsoft_buying_citrix_novell

» why is the internet so infuriatingly slow?
everyone hates their internet service provider. and with good cause: in the age of ubiquitous internet access, web service in america is still often frustratingly slow. tired of being the villain, telecom companies have assigned blame for this problem to a new bad guy. he's called the "bandwidth hog," and it's his fault that streaming video on your computer looks more like a slide show than a movie.
http://www.slate.com/id/2199368

» the growing perils of online game-play
as massively multiplayer online role playing games (mmorpgs) such as "world of warcraft" (wow) and virtual worlds such as linden labs' second life continue to attract millions of users, they have also begun to attract cybercriminals, according to a recent report from eset, a software security vendor.
http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/The-Growing-Perils-of-Online-Game-Play-64410.html

» dell launches inspiron mini 9 notebook
the mini 9, which weighs 2.28 pounds, has an 8.9-inch led display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels and is available with built-in wi-fi and bluetooth wireless support. a webcam comes with the xp model, but costs extra on the linux version. the system supports up to 1 gb of memory and is available with a 4-gb, 8-gb, or 16-gb solid-state drive. the mini-pc is powered by a 1.6-ghz intel (nsdq: intc) atom processor.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/desktop/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=210300576

» socket am3 phenom cpus to debut q1 09
according to a roadmap leaked earlier this month, amd will release their first desktop cpus based on 45nm architecture (codenamed “deneb”) for the am2+ socket some time during q4 08. these am2+ cpus will be rated at 125w tdp. if this latest information is correct the am2+ models will be quickly followed by 95w tdp am3 models rated at 2.4 to 2.6ghz and 2.5 to 2.8ghz. these will both have 2mb of l2 cache and 6mb of l3.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=2565

» 25 "best" business software tools and web services
with capability and frugality firmly in mind, we rounded up 25 of our favorite software tools and web services that we deem the best for powering small and medium-size businesses. of course, not every business needs every type of program or service, but if your small business could use some help in any of the categories below, our list will give you a pretty good shot at picking a winner.
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/150091-1/25_best_business_software_tools_and_web_servi...

» intel's new ssd drive delivers blazing fast performance
... the intel x18-m and x25-m drives are shipping this month, and are designed to fit 1.8-inch or 2.5-inch sata hard drive bays, respectively. both lines come in 80gb and 160gb versions. the drives use multilevel cell (mlc) flash technology, and feature complex wear-leveling algorithms to handle the write stresses placed on drive technology. ...
http://www.pcworld.com/article/150771/intels_new_ssd_drive_delivers_blazing_fast_performance.html

» legal milestone for open source
the court has now said conditions of an agreement called the artistic licence were enforceable under copyright law.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7561943.stm

» researcher urges prompt patch to fix dns flaw
with details of the domain name system flaw discovered now public and attack code in the wild, security researcher dan kaminsky once again is urging it administrators to patch promptly.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/With-DNS-Flaw-Attack-Code-Out-Researcher-Urges-Patch/

» cancer expert issues warning on cell phone risks
the eternal question about cell phone use -- whether the phones can cause cancer -- is being raised again.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/mobility/business/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=209600447

» senior microsoft developer dumps redmond to embrace open source
mike gunderloy spent over a decade consulting for microsoft, helping to build the access and excel versions of microsoft office 97 and 2000, as well as sql server, c#, and asp.net. a series of microsoft moves, most particularly its "patent land-grab," has pushed gunderloy away from microsoft to the point that he's now "100 percent microsoft-free" and has embraced a variety of open-source projects and programming languages.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13505_3-9998419-16.html

» intel switches from ubuntu to fedora for mobile linux
chip manufacturer intel wants to use parts of the fedora project linux distribution instead of ubuntu as the basis for the second version of moblin (mobile & internet linux project). intel is keen on using a linux distribution that uses rpm packages and package management software.
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/113351

» verizon wireless offers mobile banking for some blackberry models
verizon wireless customers who have a blackberry curve 8330, pearl 8130 or 8830 world edition can now access their financial information with verizon wireless’ mobile banking application. users get the following services: account balance information and transaction history; the ability to transfer funds between accounts at the same financial institution; the convenience of viewing and paying bills when enrolled in their financial institution’s bill pay service and the ability to view the last five transactions successfully completed on their mobile device.
http://mobilecrunch.com/2008/07/17/verizon-wireless-offers-mobile-banking-for-some-blackberry-models...

» say goodbye to the computer mouse
a gartner analyst predicts the demise of the computer mouse in the next three to five years. taking over will be so called gestural computer mechanisms like touch screens and facial recognition devices.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7508842.stm

» chip giant won’t embrace microsoft’s windows vista
intel, the giant chip maker and longtime partner of microsoft, has decided against upgrading the computers of its own 80,000 employees to microsoft’s vista operating system, a person with direct knowledge of the company’s plans said.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/25/et-tu-intel/index.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

» google docs adds pdf support
late last week google took the wrapper off its latest addition to the google docs web-based office suite: support for the popular portable document format (pdf). according to a post by product manager jen mazzon on the google docs blog, pdf support represents a “highly requested feature” of the free web-app. the changes made to the service now allow users to upload, preview, and share pdf files via the standard google docs interface, as well as copying text into other documents. editing features aren't yet available, but it's certainly sounding like something the team is planning for the future.
http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2008/06/17/google-docs-adds-pdf-support/1

» sun: we screwed up on open source
many open source developers remain sceptical of sun because their memories of the company focus on sun's interactions with the community in 2001/2002, which sun's chief open source officer simon phipps concedes was a period where sun "screwed up".
http://www.builderau.com.au/news/soa/Sun-We-screwed-up-on-open-source/0,339028227,339290077,00.htm

» nielsen: 9 mln have bought on mobile phones
the nielsen company says nine million u.s. mobile phone users have used their phones to pay for goods and services...and half of all data users expect to do so. the survey also found men are somewhat more likely than women to engage in mobile commerce, with roughly 53 percent of mobile transactions being conducted by men. adults between the ages of 25 to 34 are also the most likely mobile buyers.
http://news.digitaltrends.com/news-article/16993/nielsen-9-mln-have-bought-on-mobile-phones

» microsoft arguments against linux are bollocks
microsoft pr threw down the gauntlet; “see how windows server 2008 stacks up versus linux,” they say. there’s a “get the facts” url being promoted with claims of direct comparisons between the two operating systems. anyone reading the headlines alone could be fooled into thinking there’s substance to be found.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/17883/1141/

» 2010: d-day for the internet as it hits "full capacity"?
doom-filled warnings arrive from at&t this week. the company says that without substantial investment in network infrastructure, the internet will essentially run out of bandwidth in just two short years. blame broadband, says at&t. decades of dealing with the trickle of bandwidth consumed by voice and dialup modems left at&t twiddling its thumbs. the massive rise of dsl and cable modem service in the 2000s has had at&t facing a monstrous increase in the volume of data transmissions. and that's set to increase another 50 times between now and 2015. that's enough, says at&t, to all but crash the system.
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/90339

» a year later, sales of linux on dell computers continue to grow
dell has continued to sell enterprise servers with linux since that 1999 debut, domsch said. the recent linux-on-dell program for laptops and desktop machines, however, has been gaining momentum, he said. "if the program wasn't successful, we wouldn't be able to continue it," domsch said.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9077678&intsrc=hm_...

» will mysql keep lighting up lamp?
the pro-linux crowd of 200-plus were worried that now, with sun in charge of mysql, sun's focus would be on creating a samp (solaris, apache, mysql, perl/php/python) software ecosystem instead of supporting the lamp (linux, apache, mysql, perl/php/python) stack, which has enabled linux to gain $21 billion worth of traction in the server market.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/04/17/Will-MySQL-keep-lighting-up-LAMP_1.html

» what goes in this year's tech top 100
for your trouble, you'll be entered in a drawing to win an ipod touch courtesy of pc world.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143478-c,peripherals/article.html

» sony reports possible security breach on playstation network
sony on thursday reported that hackers may have penetrated security on the playstation network and gained access to some users' personal information. sony said the security breach occurred at the playstation store, a content download service of the network. "although unlikely, it is possible that the passwords of a small percentage of playstation network users may have been changed through unauthorized access," the company said.
http://www.informationweek.com/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207000284

» comcast and bittorrent join on network management plan
comcast (nsdq: cmcsa) and bittorrent announced an agreement to work together to manage network traffic in a transparent and protocol-agnostic way. a joint statement from both companies said comcast will manage internet traffic equally, regardless of the type of content. observers were divided about what the agreement means in terms of future government oversight of network management.
http://www.informationweek.com/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207000258

» why wal-mart won't have linux desktops on its store shelves
opinion -- the other day, wal-mart let it slip that it would no longer be selling linux-powered computers in its stores. the retail giant will, however, continue to sell linux desktop and laptop systems via its online store.
http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS9088528047.html

» the secret china-u.s. hacking war
recent reports have the u.s. military not quite blaming the chinese military for a long string of cyber-attacks against u.s. military computers. it sure sounds like they believe it, but they're not quite saying it. also left unsaid is how much actual damage and compromise has happened already.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/The-Secret-ChinaUS-Hacking-War/

» will google buy adobe
google's advantages over microsoft in leveraging the internet to make money and attract users are well documented, but there is one area google isn't playing in where microsoft seems to have google beaten: rich media applications.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Application-Development/Will-Google-Buy-Adobe-to-Challenge-Silverlight/

» tracking people via cell phone
an experiment completed this week by the california center for innovative transportation (ccit) has caused people some concerns about the privacy issues related to cell phone tracking. these concerns are also being reflected in court cases that involve the tracking of a suspect’s location through his or her cell phone. the ccit experiment is part of a project to test out methods for predicting and monitoring traffic on california’s freeways.
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Tracking-People-Via-Cell-Phone-91738

» embryos created with dna from 3 people
british scientists say they have created human embryos containing dna from two women and a man in a procedure that researchers hope might be used one day to produce embryos free of inherited diseases. though the preliminary research has raised concerns about the possibility of genetically modified babies, the scientists say that the embryos are still only primarily the product of one man and one woman.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080205/ap_on_sc/embryo_research

» image uploader bug blights myspace
security flaws in an activex control used in myspace upload images onto the social networking sites leave users open to attack. facebook users may also be at risk. a buffer overflow vulnerability in aurigma's image uploader control library might be used to compromise a user's system. the affected control is used for uploading images onto social networking sites using microsoft's internet explorer. users might be vulnerable if tricked into visiting a specially crafted web page that exploits the vulnerability.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/02/01/myspace_image_uploader_bug/

» php 4 is dead—long live php 5
on february 5, a group of influential open source projects will collectively stop all new development on their respectively platforms using php 4. however, there are still some holdouts opposing a complete transition to php 5 and it's not entirely clear whether or not php 4 will ever truly disappear. php 5 isn't a new technology, either. but it's been the anointed successor to php 4 since php 5's initial launch in 2004.
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3725291

» third undersea cable cut, this time near dubai
flag, a wholly-owned subsidiary of india's number two mobile operator reliance communications, said in a statement on its web site its falcon cable had been reported cut at 0559 gmt, 56 kms (35 miles) from dubai on a segment between the united arab emirates and oman. (editing by paul bolding)
http://www.informationweek.com/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206102006

» intel, micron claim to boost solid-state drive speeds by 500%
the nand flash memory chips developed jointly by the two companies can reach speeds of up to 200 mb per second for reading data and 100 mb per second for writing data, the partners said. current memory chips have maximum read-write speeds of 40 mb and 20 mb, respectively.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206102135

» how a yahoo merger could screw up microsoft
news commentary. microsoft's $44.6 billion bid for yahoo is wrought with integration risks. a yahoo merger would be a huge integration project, even for microsoft. the task may even be too big. the numbered points are some areas where microsoft faces potential hardship. the numbering is for ease of reading. the items are not in any order of importance.
http://www.microsoft-watch.com/content/corporate/how_a_yahoo_merger_could_screw_up_microsoft.html

» novell`s wordperfect lawsuit against microsoft to go forward
despite novell's close partnership with microsoft, novell has never given up on its wordperfect lawsuit. with this new decision, and microsoft's appeal, the two will continue to fight in the courts, no matter how close they may appear in cross-platform linux and windows development. novell, for its part, claimed that microsoft withheld critical windows 95 technical information from novell, thereby making it difficult for novell to deliver a windows version 95-compatible version of wordperfect. novell also claimed that microsoft had deliberately made windows 95 so that it would be harder for novell to create a fully functional wordperfect for windows.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Legal/Novells-WordPerfect-Lawsuit-against-Microsoft-to-go-Forward/

» sun acquires mysql; adds to its software stack
with the move, announced wednesday, sun takes a big leap into the $15 billion database market and pits it against the likes of microsoft, ibm and oracle. mysql (all resources) also gives sun entry to some customers that may be interested in buying more equipment and software. schwartz followed up on his blog: we’re putting a billion dollars behind the m in lamp. if you’re an industry insider, you’ll know what that means - we’re acquiring mysql ab, the company behind mysql, the world’s most popular open source database. sun to acquire mysql press kit
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=7611

» major html update unveiled
the first major update to html in 10 years - factoring in changing tastes around rich-media applications and online collaboration - has been unveiled by the world wide web consortium (w3c). much has changed since the early dot-com days of december 1997 when html 4 was published, as developers, designers and users have unlocked the web's potential. web sites have moved from being a collection of static pages to media-rich communities leveraging participation.[fire up the hookah, boys - ed]
http://www.regdeveloper.co.uk/2008/01/22/html_five_preview/

» wikia search launches with google in its sights
declaring that internet search is currently broken, wikipedia co-founder jimmy wales is trying to fix it. and he wants your help. following a brief period of private alpha testing, today's unveiling is billed as a "public alpha release." wales has freely admitted that today's launch is something of a test drive, and that the application will continue to see substantial modifications and updates.
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3719906

» update: 'hacker safe' geeks.com hacked
geeks.com, a web site that still displays a banner from mcafee's scanalert certifying that it is "hacker safe," on friday sent a letter to customers saying that it was hacked last month. geeks.com has reported the incident to federal authorities and visa, and is encouraging customers to review their credit card statements for unauthorized charges. the company has set up two help numbers...
http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=205600099

» boeing 787 at risk of in-flight hacking
in plain english, the faa document says that connection points exist between on-board flight systems and the passenger internet and entertainment networks.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/projectfailures/?p=562

» sony bmg ready to sell some music without drm
sony bmg will sell some of its music without digital rights management through amazon, according to a new report. three of the four major music companies already sell tunes without drm. businessweek.com reported friday that sony will become the last of the major four labels to do away with the copyright protection on at least some of the music it sells.
http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=205208748

» comcast to cooperate in fcc web traffic probe
comcast said on wednesday that it will cooperate with an investigation by u.s. regulators into how it manages some internet traffic on its network, but again denied it had interfered with file-sharing services. federal communications commission chairman kevin martin said on tuesday that the agency will investigate claims by consumer groups that cable operator comcast has blocked file-sharing services such as bittorrent.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6225337.html

» new wi-fi technology maturing while other networking options emerge
802.11n and wi-fi in general won't be your only option. equipment for powerline networking is getting more prevalent and there's even a skinny new cable for creating wired networks much more easily.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,141201/article.html

» olpcs to be dual-boot linux/windows machines? why?
microsoft officials have not publicly acknowledged any such plans. all microsoft officials have said is that they are still trying to determine whether xp will work on the olpc xo systems. field tests of xp-based olpcs were set to begin this month (january 2008), last anyone heard.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1092

» roadblocks en route to free, legal music
a handful of analysts are calling for the music industry to focus less on cds, digital rights management, and subscription services, and more on giving their product away for free. whatever gold that is still left to be mined from the music industry is supposed to be had through advertising revenue, according to some.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6225388.html

» 5 disruptive technologies to watch in 2008
a new year always brings changes and new challenges for it managers, and 2008 will be no exception. while there are dozens of emerging technologies that have the potential to disrupt current standards, five that have significant opportunity to lead to major implications for enterprises in the coming year are: virtualization, the role of apple and managing cross-platform shops, managed data centers, video over ip networks, and presence-aware applications. what all five have in common is the ability to change the course of your it plans, rework your network infrastructure, manage your desktops, and alter the way you build and deploy your applications.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=204800563

» intel quits one laptop per child program
the seemingly endless soap opera involving the one laptop per child program and intel (nsdq: intc) has apparently come to a conclusion with intel announcing that it's leaving the program.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=205208563

» the most hated company in the pc industry
who in the hell is asustek, and why does microsoft hate them more than any other company in the industry? why does apple, dell and palm computing hate them? and why does intel love them? taiwan's asustek -- better known as asus -- is one of the most interesting, innovative and fastest-growing companies in technology.
http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/columns/executive_tech/article.php/3719776