Google to get real-time space images
Description: The Internet search company has formed a new partnership with scientists building a huge sky-scanning telescope, with hopes of helping the public access digital footage of asteroids, supernovas and distant galaxies.

Not using Windows License? Here is how to get a Windows tax refund
Description: This is awesome way to get at least 52 bucks back. If you buy a computer, you often pay for Microsoft Windows even if you didn't ask for it and aren't going to use it. This article shows you how to return your unused Windows license and get your money back, freeing yourself from the Windows tax.

OpenDocument Format is designed for the future, not the past
Description: Bob Sutor commented IBM's "no" vote for the ECMA Office Open XML file format a month ago in his blog as follows: "ODF is about the future, Open XML is about the past. We voted for the future." This comment reminded me of a similar statement I made myself a couple a times in the past: "ODF is designed for the future, not the past.".What do I mean?

A Russian site? with jaw dropping photos and surrealistic artwork
Description: Really great art with a little fun thrown in.

Momofuku Ando aka 'The Ramen King' died of heart failure. R.I.P
Description: It been eaten by millions of college students and office workers on overtime. It's been sent into space as lunch for NASA astronauts. It's the instant noodle, invented by Momofuku Ando, who died on January 6, 2007. Thank you for creating something that kept me from starving to death the last 2 years of my life. Rest in peace...

GeekBrief.TV meets Diggnation
Description: Cali Lewis from GeekBrief TV was in LA for a GoDaddy commercial, and hooked up up with Kevin and Alex. No... not the "hooked-up" that you're thinking of. (Posted under Industry News, because because they talk about some tech rumors.)

There IS Wii Darts Coming To The US...
Description: Besides 'Super Monkey Ball', WarioWare Smooth Moves is packed with mini games, including darts.. (video includes iwata/gates/kaz darts battle Royal) Be sure to check out 'aaaaaaa4000's videos for translated WarioWare goodness..

Multiplayer games you can get for free
Description: Article on the many multiplayer games you can get for free now. Has a list of first-person shooter's, mmorpg's, and strategy games.

24 Season 6 Leaked on BitTorrent
Description: Episode 1 of the highly anticipated 6th season of "24" has been leaked onto BitTorrent. For those unlucky chaps who don't know, 24 is the wildly popular TV show that has fans the world over dying for each new episode.

Black Employees Find Noose Hanging At Work
Description: James Jackson, a 26-year-old black employee of 180 Connect, was preparing for another day of installing cable, telephone and Internet service to residential customers of Cablevision in Nassau County, New York on December 7.

Steam To See Major Update
Description: Starting next week, you can expect your Steam client to look and operate a little different. Here are the new features those of you still playing Counter-Strike and Half-Life 2 should be looking forward to.

George Carlin's "The Planet Is Fine"
Description: "Save the planet, we don't even know how to take care of ourselves yet. We haven't learned how to care for one another, we're gonna save the f*&king planet?" - George Carlin. He just knocks it out of the park with this one.

Wiimote battery charger, wireless sensor bar to debut at CES
Description: Nyko has announced three new Wii accessories, one of which allows you to simultaneously charge two Wiimotes via rechargeable batteries. Additionally, a wireless sensor bar will allow those with difficult TV setups to abandon the ugly cord that hangs down from atop your television.

Why Social Sites Need Forums
Description: Should social news sites have their own forums or simply rely on the old system of email contact with their members?

Unusually Warm Weather Around The World
Description: Much of the Midwest and the East Coast are going through a remarkably warm winter, with temperatures running 10 and 20 degrees higher than normal in many places.

Destroy your data, the easy way!
Description: Most of the time you want to avoid destroying your data. But eventually you will actually want to destroy it. For instance, if you were selling your hard drive, PC or Laptop ; you would want to make sure that person doesn’t have access to your files, email or personal info. fdisk isn't enough, so check out these handy tools and tips.

Holocaust in Darfur: What ever happened to 'never again"?
Description: The situation in Darfur continues to deteriorate. Women being gang-raped, children beheaded or thrown alive into fires, and young men tortured and executed in a genocidal massacre. The international community postures, warns and threatens, but does not act.Why? What ever happened to "never again"?

Coming soon: Microsoft Windows Home Server?
Description: There's been radio chatter this week of a possible new addition to the Windows family: a "Home server." If the chatter is right, Microsoft will unveil it at CES.

About Those Chicago UFO Sightings
Description: When it comes to coverage by the national media, UFOs (or Unidentified Flying Objects), generally speaking at least, are not a story topping the agenda of your more credible news organizations. This week however, was one where the mainstream media apparently never got that memo.

Scarlett Johansson's Esquire Photos
Description: 'nuff said

Watch thousands of movies and tv shows for free.
Description: Movie Spider, is an awesome **free** movie on demand, web site.. The company has developed technology,, that crawls the net 24 hours a day, without human intervention, looking for the latest movies, tv shows and films.. The site curently has 2000 movies, 6000 tv shows, and 3000 cartoons. their spider's are addng about 500 new shows a day.

U.S. ships block escape route as Somalia assault readies
Description: MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP)--Somali troops backed by Ethiopians prepared to launch a major assault Friday on the last stronghold of Islamic movement militiamen. U.S. Navy warships were patrolling off the Somali coast to prevent the militiamen from escaping by sea. Naturally, Ayman al-Zawahiri is stirring up jihadis to make war on Ethiopian Christians..

Senators introduce bill to repeal Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)
Description: As a CPA, I see the AMT hit more and more taxpayers every year. It is projected to hit half of all taxpayers including almost all middle class taxpayers in the next few years. This is one piece of legislation that definitely needs to be passed.

Evolution of the Handheld Gaming Consoles - Pictures
Description: The handheld gaming scene has witnessed many attempts by a variety of companies to gain commercial success, but over thirty formats shown below, only a handful have been able to gain support of the mainstream. Showcased here are all the attempts - with pictures.

Microsoft Crosses 10 million Xbox 360s Sold
Description: Bill Gates and Robbie Bach are expected to announce at the Consumer Electronics Show that Microsoft has sold more than 10.4 million Xbox 360s since the launch in November, 2005. That means Microsoft has also hit its targets for sales of consoles during the holidays.

The "most connected" Americans watch the most network TV
Description: New findings from CBS Research show that Americans with a broadband connection and digital television are most likely to watch traditional network television.

A breathtaking multimedia tour of the world's forests.
Description: Enjoy!

Shatner Says Abrams Wants Him and Nimoy In Star Trek XI
Description: For months now William Shatner has made no secret that he wants to be in Star Trek XI, and even Leonard Nimoy has said he would come out of retirement for something substantial. Now in a new interview with IGN, The Shat says that JJ Abrams is writing them into the script:

CBS: Military Tells Bush It Has Only 9,000 Troops For 'Surge' (VIDEO)
Description: ThinkProgress has vid of a CBS report on how the military has just 9,000 Army and Marine soldiers available for a surge into Iraq. Various estimates have put the surge levels much higher, between 20,000 and 40,000 troops.

CES 2007: Xbox 360 Announcements Leaked: IPTV, DVR, VOD
Description: "Dean T. of the Mercury News just made an oops and leaked some Xbox 360 announcements Microsoft was planning on dropping next week at CES."

Sony disconinues ALL computer monitors
Description: Sony, after dropping Trinitron monitors, has now dropped ALL LCD monitors.....

Socially Driven Charity
Description: With social Media tools, including social news sites like Digg, anyone can start a charity. This levels the playing field on raising money for good causes, but it also means that fraudulent charities could be started and operated by a con-man online.

Browser Popularity Project
Description: A new way to check the browser popularity. Offers great, real time, statistics as well as dynamic images you can place on your site. See for yourself!

PCs Get Set to Scream in 2007
Description: Quad-core power and flash-memory assists will make computers faster and cooler than ever before. Here's what to expect from next-gen PCs.

Exclusive: 360 HDMI Proof - HR Pictures and Video - HANA Scaler
Description: X-Scene published several High-Resolution shots of the outside and inside of the new Xbox360 with HDMI port. Also included a video of the HDMI port in action.

Self-Cleaning Underwear Goes Weeks Without Washing
Description: A protective coating of nanomaterial repels water, oil and bacteria.

BC Place Collapse (VIDEOS)
Description: Holy crap! The largest inflatable stadium roof in the world spring a leak and deflates! This has happened in the last few hours and the video was taken by some guys at Rockstar Vancouver (Next door)

Iranian official: If threatened, we will use nuclear weapons
Description: "After countless declarations of peaceful intentions of nuclear plan, Iran's chief nuclear envoy confirms fears by saying if county is threatened, situation may change" - They are going to nuke the world!.

Boy kills himself after meeting his blind date face to face.
Description: A 17-year-old boy in northeastern China was so disappointed with the looks of a woman he met over the Internet that he hanged himself after seeing her face-to-face, state media reported Friday.

Credit Card Information Sent Over AOL Instant Messenger (w/pic of receipt!)
Description: I thought he was entering data on a Point-Of-Sale machine. Imagine my surprise when he showed me that my name, street, city, state, zip, credit card number and expiration date had just been sent unencrypted over an instant message session!

Microsoft Pushes Interoperability at ApacheCon
Description: Sam Ramji, Microsoft's open-source point man, promotes the company's efforts in the areas of interoperability and open-source software at the Apache Software Foundation's ApacheCon conference. In a keynote at the event, Ramji discusses various Microsoft interoperability efforts involving partnerships with WSO2, HBase, AMQP and the company's Oslo modeling technology. - In a keynote at the ApacheCon conference of open-source developers and users, Sam Ramji, senior director of platform strategy at Microsoft, outlined a series of new moves the software giant has made regarding interoperability as it continues to make nice with the open-source community. At the Ap...

IBM, Sun Deliver OpenSolaris Prototype for IBM Mainframes
Description: IBM and Sun Microsystems deliver a prototype of OpenSolaris running on the IBM System z mainframe, with the help of a consultancy named Sine Nomine Associates. - IBM and Sun Microsystems have made good on a promise to make open source code from the OpenSolaris operating system available on IBM System z mainframes. Enlisting the help of Sine Nomine Associates, a consultancy out of Ashburn, Va., IBM and Sun on Nov. 3 announced the availability of OpenSola...

Symbian Foundation: To EPL or Not to EPL?
Description: By choosing the Eclipse Public License as the license for the software to come out of the Symbian Foundation, the group takes a road safely chosen. The Eclipse Foundation welcomes the foundations support. But what about the GPL? - LONDON With the Symbian Foundation throwing its weight behind the Eclipse Public License, the cache of that license has grown a great deal. But what prompted the foundation to go with the EPL? Was it just a total aversion to the GNU GPL (General Public License)? Well, Nokia's David Rivas will n...

OpenOffice.org Base Is No Microsoft Access Replacement
Description: The OpenOffice.org 3.0 desktop database application offers new features that make it better than previous versions, but it still lags behind what Microsoft Access offers. Among the key concerns is OpenOffice.org Base's limited file support for Microsoft Access database files. - OpenOffice.org Base is a desktop database application that can be used to perform the standard tasks of creating and manipulating tables, queries, forms and reports. Base is well integrated with the rest of the OpenOffice.org suite for instance, data sources that live in Base are easy to pull i...

Upcoming Linux Distributions in Pictures
Description: The Linux world's three most influential community distributions, Fedora, OpenSUSE and Ubuntu, are each undergoing beta testing toward a late fall release. eWEEK Labs takes a look at some of what's new in this Linux OS trio. - ...

Microsoft, OpenLogic Further Open-Source Efforts
Description: Microsoft delivers the beta of a download manager and packaged open-source applications to make it easier for Web developers to install Web products. The move follows Microsoft's support for an Eclipse Foundation project related to Silverlight and precedes sponsorship of the Government Open Source Conference. GOSCON will take place in Portland, Ore. Meanwhile, OpenLogic announces a slew of professional services to help companies interested in trying open-source software during the economic downturn. - Microsoft and OpenLogic both made moves Oct. 15 to further their open-source initiatives, with Microsoft releasing new software for Web developers and OpenLogic announcing new professional services to help companies increase their usage of open-source software. Microsoft delivered the beta of ...

Linux Foundation Releases Beta of Porting Solution
Description: The Linux Foundation releases the first public beta of Linux Standard Base 4.0, which reduces the differences between various Linux distributions for developers. LSB 4.0 features a new application checker, a new shell script checker and a new multiversion software development kit. - The Linux Foundation has released the first public beta of its solution to enable developers to more easily build applications that run on different Linux distributions. The foundation on Oct. 14 announced the availability of the first beta of LSB (Linux Standard Base) 4.0, which introduces a ne...

Linux Vendors Increase Security Features
Description: Analysis: Red Hat, Canonical and Novell are enhancing the security features in their Fedora, Ubuntu and OpenSUSE Linux distributions, which are all slated for release later in 2008. - Linux-based operating systems are built on an open-development model, which can afford organizations an early view of and an opportunity to influence the technologies and implementations that will eventually work their way into these companies' infrastructures. What's more, these early looks ex...

KDE Ships 'Codename'
Description: The KDE community has released KDE 4.1.2, which is code-named Codename. KDE 4.1.2 is a monthly update to the KDE 4.1 series of the popular free Linux desktop environment. The community will continue with monthly updates, ultimately reaching the next major release, KDE 4.2, in January 2009. - The KDE community has announced quot;Codename, quot; which is actually the code name for KDE 4.1.2, the latest version of the popular free desktop for Linux. Officials at KDE, the nonprofit organization that represents the KDE Project, said KDE 4.1.2 is a bug fix and maintenance update for the ...

OpenOffice.org Grows Up
Description: Nine years after Sun Microsystems bought StarOffice, the resulting OpenOffice.org project is ready to roll out its 3.0 release. Enhanced format compatibility and features put it on par with Microsoft Office. - When Sun Microsystems bought the little-known StarOffice productivity suite in 1999, and soon thereafter released the product's code base as open-source software, it was unclear how far the arguably quixotic initiative might reach and what damage it could possibly wreak on Microsoft's ironclad ...

Financial Crisis Offers Opportunity for Linux, Open Source
Description: Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, says technologies such as Linux and open-source software can help enterprises cut costs during tough economic times. Zemlin says users should look to open source and Linux, systems management tools, and virtualization technology to keep budgets in line. - In lean times, look for technologies such as Linux and open source to do well. The current financial crisis may just be one of those times. Well, you might expect to hear that from the leader of one of the most influential Linux organizations around. But in an interview with eWEEK, Jim Zemlin, exec...

Red Hat's Jim Whitehurst: The Challenges of Competing with Free
Description: Red Hat's CEO discusses the companys expansion to new platforms and markets, and the challenges around building solid business models for products that can be obtained for free. - Red Hat, which bills itself as the worlds leading open-source solutions provider, has managed to make free software pay by gathering, extending and packaging Linux and complementary open-source components into certified and supported products that are ready for enterprise consumption. As the fo...

Google's Sergey Brin Denies Chrome Is OS for Web Apps
Description: Google co-founder Sergey Brin says the new Chrome Web browser is not the Web operating system many people see it as, but acknowledges it will get more robust through the open-source community under the Chromium project. Microsoft and other search engines and Web services providers must be wary about this evolution in application development. Google may be treading lightly with Chrome now, but the browser, combined with Google's search and Apps, could end up being a big threat to Microsoft Windows' market share. - Despite attempts by reporters to goad Google into spiking Microsoft, Google co-founder Sergey Brin denied that Google views its new Chrome browser as an operating system for Web applications. quot;I would not call Chrome the operating system of Web apps, quot; Brin said after a demo of Chrome...

Enterprises Tap Open Source via Eclipse
Description: Enterprise organizations are tapping the benefits not only of using open-source software, but of contributing to it by using the Eclipse model. The Eclipse Swordfish, Tigerstripe, Open Financial Market Platform and Open System Engineering Environment projects are all based on code contributed by enterprises that use open-source technology. - As an indication that the open-source model is beginning to mature and move beyond just ISVs and into the enterprise, Eclipse Foundation leaders say a new trend in Eclipse indicates that enterprises are beginning to develop and contribute code to Eclipse projects. This means the promise and princip...

KDE Momentum Continues with New Updates, Features
Description: The KDE community has released KDE 3.5.10, a maintenance release for the KDE 3.5 series of the popular Linux desktop. Meanwhile, KDE developers continue work on bringing service-oriented computing to KDE, as well as a new Amarok media player and enhanced Qt support. KDE also has adopted the Free Software Foundation Europe's Fiduciary License Agreement. - The KDE Community has announced the availability of KDE 3.5.10, a maintenance release of KDE, the free desktop for GNU Linux and other Unix flavors. The KDE desktop is the system of choice for a broad array of Linux users. And although the KDE community released KDE 4.1 at the end of July, K...

Thinking Consumer Security for the Holidays
Description: Want to protect that new laptop or desktop from malware, spam and other cyber-attacks? A software security suite could be the perfect gift. Brian Prince lists some security gift ideas for this holiday season. - ...

Microsoft Vulnerability Faces New Round of Attacks
Description: The vulnerability in the Windows Server Service that Microsoft patched in an emergency update last month is facing a new wave of attacks. Microsoft officials reported a spike in exploits targeting the vulnerability earlier this week. If you haven't patched, now is the time to put it on your schedule. - If you havent patched the Windows Server Service vulnerability fixed by Microsoft last month, its time to make it a priority. Though Microsoft issued a rare out-of-band patch for the issue in October, a number of exploits taking advantage of the vulnerability continue to be a problem. This past ...

Smartphone Security Good Filler for Christmas Stockings
Description: With all the talk about smartphones such as the Apple iPhone 3G, security vendors have sought to stir up discussions about mobile phone security. While those mobile and wireless malware threats haven't fully materialized, this holiday season may be the time for consumers to begin arming themselves for the mobile malware battles ahead. - Even with all the good news lately regarding spam, with Thanksgiving days away and Christmas around the corner, we can all safely assume cyber-criminals will be hard at work. For the rest of us, that means having up-to-date security software and malware protection. But with the popularity of sma...

Santa Thinks IT Security This Christmas
Description: Have a loved one with an unpatched computer? Or someone who does mobile banking or has difficulty remembering passwords? Consider some of these IT security solutions for their stockings. - Spammers arent taking the holiday off, so end users shouldnt either. For those interested in doing some holiday shopping, here is a short list of products to consider for that security-minded someone. The products span a number of technologies, from anti-virus to Web security. Norton Internet S...

Spam Levels Creep Back Up 2 Weeks After McColo Shutdown
Description: Spam levels are heading back up after dropping dramatically following the shutdown of Web hosting company McColo. According to Symantec security research, some notorious botnets are back in action. - Spam levels appear to be rising again after a steep decline. According to researchers at MessageLabs, now part of Symantec, spam volumes have doubled since last week. Spam levels dropped off dramatically with the shutdown of Web hosting company McColo on Nov. 11. Though the firm briefly gained ne...

Google Says Reports of Gmail Flaw Unfounded
Description: Google says GeekCondition.com's claims about a Gmail vulnerability are incorrect. The issue is just an example of a successful phishing attack targeting Web domain owners, Google says. - Google officials have challenged the assertion that a Google Gmail security flaw was at the center of an issue described on the GeekCondition.com blog. A posting on GeekCondition.com Nov. 23 warned of a flaw allowing attackers to force Gmail users to create a malicious message filter without the...

How to Secure Your E-commerce Web Site for Online Holiday Shopping
Description: Cyber Monday is just around the corner to officially kick off the 2008 online holiday shopping season. Retail organizations' e-commerce Web sites need to be prepared to handle the surge in online holiday shopping traffic. To help ensure their e-commerce Web site is ready, Knowledge Center contributor Mark Sarbiewski offers IT professionals an e-commerce Web site readiness checklist. - Last year, Cyber Monday attracted 72 million shoppers who spent a grand total of $733 million in one day. With consumers looking for the best possible bargains, some experts are predicting even more online shoppers this year. While the holidays may bring the online shoppers, poor e-commerce Web sit...

Phishers Increase Abuse of Specific Top-Level Domains
Description: A study from the Anti-Phishing Working Group shows phishers are increasing the use of top-level domains in their campaigns to breach security through social engineering. According to the APWG research, the .hk and .th domains lead the way with the most phishing attacks per 10,000 domains. - Gangs of phishers are stepping up their abuse of specific top-level domains, according to a survey by the Anti-Phishing Working Group. The study, quot;Global Phishing Survey: Domain Name Use and Trends in 1H2008, quot; (PDF) which covers the first half of 2008, surveyed 47,324 unique phishing ...

Underground Economy for Stolen Data Thriving, Symantec Says
Description: In a new year-long study, Symantec took a look at the black market for stolen credit cards, banking information and other goods. According to the report, the overall value of the goods observed by Symantec to the traders is around $276 million, but the potential value for cyber-thieves stretches into the billions. - Big bucks are being made in the black market for stolen data, according to a report from Symantec. Researchers at Symantec turned the spotlight on the underground market for stolen data in a new year-long study that uncovered black market traders advertising stolen data at prices totaling more tha...

Key Features of CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2009 for Desktop, Laptop Security
Description: The CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2009 for desktop security offers upgrades to the user interface; security updates and alerts; anti-virus, anti-spyware and anti-phishing protection; firewall settings; parental controls; data backup and recovery; and data migration, as well as a smaller install size. - ...

Internet Freedom and Security Are Necessarily at Odds
Description: When people are free to run whatever they want on their own computers, there's no way to make the overall system secure. - Enterprises aren't completely safe these days from a computing standpoint, but they are a lot safer than they used to be. I feel safe saying that if you're willing to put money into the right products and into the right policies and people to enforce them, you can have an extremely secure networ...

Do You Know Where Your Laptops Are?
Description: Laptop thefts are a huge problem for individuals and companies of every size. Personal and corporate information are at risk when they're stored on devices that can pick up and walk away easily. This video discusses tools that help prevent laptop theft and that minimize the damage in case a mobile machine is stolen. - Video Content....

Script Fragmentation Attack Could Allow Hackers to Dodge Anti-virus Detection
Description: Stephan Chenette of Websense describes a new Internet attack vector that could allow hackers to bypass anti-virus protection at both the gateway and the desktop. The technique, called script fragmentation, involves breaking down malware into smaller pieces in order to beat malware analysis engines. Web 2.0 requires new ways of thinking about browser security. - Security researcher Stephan Chenette opened up to eWEEK about a new Web attack vector that could potentially render desktop and gateway anti-virus products useless. Chenette, manager of security research at Websense, calls the attack script fragmentation. Similar to TCP fragmentation attacks, i...

Botnet Operators Likely to Change Tactics in Wake of McColo, Intercage ISP Shutdowns
Description: Botnet operators may change their tactics due to the shutdowns of ISP Intercage and Web hosting company McColo. Security researchers predict a shift to a more distributed botnet model and redundant command and control servers. - Between the shutdown of Web hosting company McColo Nov. 11 and the death of ISP Intercage, aka Atrivo, in September, we may be entering a new phase of Internet security one where every part of the Internet's ecosystem takes a more proactive role in securing Web users. But attackers always adap...

Barack Obama Mobile Phone Call Records Hacked by Verizon Wireless Employee
Description: President-elect Barack Obama's cell phone calls and wireless account records were hacked by a Verizon Wireless employee, Verizon Wireless admitted Nov. 20. Verizon Wireless said Bacack Obama's device was a simple voice phone, not a BlackBerry or other smartphone or mobile device designed for e-mail or other data services. In a statement, Verizon Wireless President and Chief Executive Lowell McAdam apologized to Obama and said all employees who had had access to Obama's account, whether authorized or not, were put on immediate leave with pay. - NEW YORK, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Verizon Wireless said on Thursday that some employees had gained unauthorized access and viewed a personal cell phone account held by President-elect Barack Obama that is now inactive. An Obama aide said his voice-mail messages and e-mails were not breached in the...

How to Accurately Plan for Windows Server 2008 Hardware
Description: Microsoft Windows Server 2008 promises to deliver simplified server management and enhanced security, as well as resource optimization and server consolidation through support of built in virtualization technology. But before an organization can realize these benefits, it must first evaluate its server hardware situation to determine which existing servers can run the new OS. Knowing that, an organization can then estimate what new hardware will be needed to migrate to the new operating system. - Video Content....

Windows Live Wave 3: Microsoft Hangs 10
Description: Microsoft officially launches on Nov. 13 new and revamped Windows Live services that will start rolling out over the coming weeks and, internationally, into 2009. - ...

What Can You Expect from Windows 7?
Description: On Oct. 27, Microsoft debuted Windows 7 during Professional Developer Conference 2008. Microsoft Watch editor Joe Wilcox sat down with Debby Fry Wilson, senior director for Windows Product Management about the forthcoming operating system. Wilson discusses elements of the new user interface and what services integration means to end users and developers. - Video Content....

Microsoft Demos, Delivers Pre-Beta of Windows 7
Description: Microsoft demonstrated a pre-beta release of Windows 7 and also delivered a bit of the technology to developers at the company's Professional Developers Conference. Windows 7 extends developers' investments in Windows Vista and encourages the creation of new applications and services for the Windows platform. - LOS ANGELES Microsoft showed its first full public demonstration of Windows 7 at the Microsoft Professional Developers Conference here on Oct. 28. Microsoft officials said Windows 7 extends developers investments in Windows Vista and encourages the creation of new applications and services for ...

Windows 7 a Big Improvement over Vista
Description: Microsoft shows off Windows 7, a less ambitious offering than Vista but one with more realistic goals. With its new features and improved performance, Windows 7 seems like a better version of Vista rather than a major step forward. - LOS ANGELES Microsoft is giving the public its first glimpse of Windows 7, the successor to the companys unevenly accepted Vista client operating system. The unveiling of Windows 7 at the Professional Developers Conference here Oct. 28 calls to mind the early debut of quot;Longhorn, quot; the ...

eWEEK Labs Walk-through: Windows 7
Description: Today at its Professional Developers Conference, Microsoft gave the public its first peek at the Windows client release thats supposed to make up for Vista. Based on our early tests of the new client, were impressed with Seven's speed and polish. - ...

Microsoft's Ballmer Defends Windows Vista, Slaps Google
Description: On the last day of the 2008 Gartner expo, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer defends the software giants Windows Vista operating system and claims that the adoption rate is better than when Windows XP first rolled out. Ballmer also tells the audience that Google Apps do not offer the same type of functionality as Microsoft Office. - ORLANDO, Fla. At a talk before thousands of IT professionals at Gartners annual expo, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer defended the companys rollout of its Windows Vista operating system nearly two years after the OS was delivered to negative reviews. Ballmer, speaking at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo...

Microsoft Takes High Performance Computing Mainstream
Description: At the High Performance on Wall Street conference, Microsofts high performance computing honcho, Bill Laing announced Windows HPC Server 2008. Microsofts goal is to take HPC mainstream and make Windows an alternative to Linux and Unix for HPC customers, particularly in the financial sector. - NEW YORK Underscoring the importance of the financial sector in the push to take high performance computing mainstream, Microsoft announced the release to manufacturing of its latest entry into the HPC arena, Microsoft Windows HPC Server 2008, at the High Performance on Wall Street conference here...

The Origins of Microsoft's Oslo Software Modeling Platform
Description: Microsoft's data-centric platform, which is aimed at empowering nondevelopers to build distributed applications, has roots in some very familiar apps. - Microsoft set out to create Oslo, its general-purpose software modeling platform, back in 2003 in an attempt to make software development more accessible to more people by enabling them to create applications from models or diagrams. The initial goal was to deliver a visual tool for creating ...

Microsoft's Distributed Destination: Oslo
Description: Microsoft's Oslo tools and language platform is poised to push the company past .NET and into the cloud. - When John Shewchuk, Robert Wahbe and Brad Lovering met for grilled steaks at Loverings Seattle-area home in 2000, lutkefisk (Norways most famous dish) might have been more appropriate. After all, that meeting paved the way for Oslo, Microsofts new distributed computing/modeling platform, which the c...

Microsoft's Platform Strategy Is 'Open' to Interpretation
Description: Sam Ramji, Microsoft's senior director of platform strategy describes the company's evolving open-source involvement in this eWEEK interview. - Sam Ramji is focused on Linux and open source, which is more significant when you consider that he works for Microsoft. Ramji leads Microsofts platform strategy efforts across the company, including long-term strategic planning in the Windows Server and Tools organization. But Ramjis primary ...

Executive Departure Reshuffles Microsoft Deck
Description: Kevin Johnson led the charge on Yahoo, and headed the platform and services division. The new Windows division will include Windows, Windows Live and Internet Explorer. The new Online Services division will include search, MSN, advertising platforms, and e-commerce. - The departure of Kevin Johnson may give Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer the opportunity to reshape the huge platform and services division into more effective business units. The end result may be better financial results for Microsoft and better products for Microsoft customers. Those changes highlig...

Toasting a Favorite Source
Description: Bill Gates will still serve to inspire; Proximic looks at Googles gold. - The Grizzled Grimalkin cant understand why everybody is getting so maudlin about Bill Gates stepping away from day-to-day management of his software company. Its not as though hes going very far. Even if he spends more time managing his familys charitable foundation and his personal investments, do...

Can Microsoft Afford Live Mesh Success?
Description: Microsoft's financial health, which is wrapped up almost entirely on sales of fat clients running the latest Windows operating system with the latest version of Microsoft Office, is completely at odds with the mesh model. - Last week, Microsoft made two major online services announcements, both focused on initiatives intended to address data accessibility pain points by knitting together the devices you own with Web-based services that Microsoft provides and promises to maintain. What should be giving users and deve...

Microsoft MVPs: Enthusiasts Are the Best Evangelists
Description: Microsoft's MVPs (Most Valuable Professionals) may have gone home, but the enthusiast outreach continues and increasingly using new social networking tools. Microsoft's vice president of Supportability and Customer and Partner Experience, Rich Kaplan, discusses the MVP program, last week's MVP conference and new enthusiast engagements in this week's Microsoft Watch podcast. - Audio Podcast Content....

India considers anti-terror body
Description: India's prime minister opens urgent talks on setting up a federal agency of investigation after the Mumbai attacks.

Harman 'concerned' by MP's arrest
Description: The leader of the Commons says she is "very concerned" by the arrest of Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green.

'Armed' man shot dead by police
Description: A man has been shot dead by armed police in Surrey, the Independent Police Complaints Commission confirms.

Thailand urged to assist Britons
Description: The UK urges Thailand to assist thousands of stranded Britons, but says sending planes to rescue them is not the answer.

Dragon 'may bid for Woolworths'
Description: Dragons' Den entrepreneur Theo Paphitis is among potential bidders for collapsed High Street chain Woolworths, reports say.

Police assault allegation probed
Description: The Independent Police Complaints Commission investigates an alleged attack by three police officers in Greater Manchester, caught on CCTV.

Nigerian city tense after riots
Description: Sporadic gunfire can be heard in Jos, Nigeria, where two days of religious and ethnic clashes reportedly left hundreds dead.

Inquiry starts after flats blast
Description: An investigation into an explosion that ripped through a block of flats in Wigan, seriously injuring two men, is launched.

Sydney Opera House architect dies
Description: The Danish architect of the iconic Sydney Opera House, Jorn Utzon, dies at the age of 90, after suffering a heart attack.

Last tango on Strictly - another celebrity dancer bites the dust
Description: The One Show presenter Christine Bleakley becomes the latest contestant to leave BBC One reality show Strictly Come Dancing.

The Killers beat Guns N' Roses to the top of the album charts
Description: The Killers go to number one in the UK album charts, beating the heavily-anticipated Guns N' Roses album Chinese Democracy.

Chelsea sunk by Van Persie double
Description: Robin van Persie's double earns Arsenal a remarkable 2-1 win at Premier League leaders Chelsea.

Ronaldo sent off as Man Utd win derby
Description: Cristiano Ronaldo is sent off as Wayne Rooney's goal gives Manchester United victory.

Barrow handed FA Cup trip to Boro
Description: Barrow are drawn away to Middlesbrough in the stand-out tie of the FA Cup third round draw.

Send your video, pictures and story ideas
Description: Have you got a good story? BBC News wants to hear from you.

Under pressure
Description: Tories are back on the front foot with Green arrest

Your pictures
Description: Sydney Opera House - Australia's architectural icon

Guantanamo end?
Description: Bin Laden's driver may have brought down Guantanamo

Terror chic
Description: Hmmm, what could have attracted film-makers to this pair?

Flushed with pride
Description: Why the Japanese are in love with their luxury loos

Hello? Pirates?
Description: A BBC reporter's 12-year-old child set up a scoop

Escaping car thief kills owner
Description: Police investigating the death of a man who was run down with his own car as he tried to stop it being stolen, treat it as a murder inquiry.

Two charged over accountant death
Description: Two men are charged in relation to the abduction and death of Glasgow accountant Andrew Ramsay, police say.

Three arrested in murder inquiry
Description: The death of a 20-year-man is being treated as murder, while a separate suspicious death is being investigated.

Dissident threats 'hamper police'
Description: Police take longer to respond to emergency calls because of the threat of attacks from dissidents, the chief constable says.

Congo rebel chief threatens 'war'
Description: Rebel leader General Laurent Nkunda threatens war unless the government of DR Congo holds talks after months of conflict.

Betancourt makes Colombia return
Description: Ingrid Betancourt, who was held hostage by Farc rebels in Colombia for six years, makes a surprise visit to the country.

Israel approves prisoner release
Description: Israel approves the release of 250 prisoners after an earlier promise from outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Tension grows over Thai blockade
Description: Fears of conflict in Thailand rise and thousands of tourists remain stranded as the blockade of Bangkok airports goes on.

Pirates 'to release Ukraine ship'
Description: Somali pirates holding a ship full of military hardware reach a deal with its Ukrainian owners to release it, reports say.

Taleban's ex-spokesman killed
Description: Former high-profile spokesman for the Taleban, Mohammad Hanif, is shot dead in eastern Afghanistan, officials say.

Minister targets viable companies
Description: Business Secretary Peter Mandelson outlines plans to draw up a list of industries that could be saved from collapse.

MP's arrest not Stalinist - Smith
Description: The home secretary denies the arrest of Damian Green was "Stalinist" - but faces mounting anger and criticism from MPs.

Decision due on conjoined twins
Description: Doctors will decide next Tuesday whether to operate on two conjoined twins born in a London hospital last week.

Grant targeted on poorer students
Description: Better-off teenagers would lose out under plans to re-target Scottish education allowances at poorer students.

Amazon deforestation accelerates
Description: The destruction of the Amazon rainforest in Brazil has accelerated for the first time in four years, officials say.

Spanish singer voted off X Factor
Description: The public vote Ruth Lorenzo off the X Factor the same night Britney Spears performs for the first time in the UK in four years.

Europe backs mobile roaming cap
Description: Sending text or downloading data while abroad looks set to get cheaper as Brussels backs caps on roaming charges.