Google Announces Plan To Destroy All Information It Can't Index | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Google Announces Plan To Destroy All Information It Can't Index | The Onion - America's Finest News Source "Executives at Google, the rapidly growing online-search company that promises to "organize the world's information," announced Monday the latest step in their expansion effort: a far-reaching plan to destroy all the information it is unable to index."

More good humor from The Onion; read the whole thing

Hurricane Relief: McCormick Tribune Foundation Hurricane Katrina Relief Campaign

Hurricane Relief: McCormick Tribune Foundation Hurricane Katrina Relief Campaign Dunno if they've hit their $1M target yet; if not, they'll match you 50 cents on the dollar. I had to call (1-800-508-2848); their web site wasn't processing credit cards when I tried that route.

What's in Store : Bored with computers

What's in Store : Bored with computers "Hi, my name is Peter Spiro. I'm the General Manager in SQL Server responsible for the WinFS team and I've been bored with computers and software in general.
...
A few years back Ray Ozzie came to Microsoft to speak at an internal workshop we have called WHiPS (Workshop on High Performance Systems). Ray talked about Groove. It was a pretty cool app trying to be a platform (tough to do for a small company). As we were talking after his presentation he described how he had to first build a platform on top of the operating system, which then enabled him to build the app that he had envisioned. He said he needed storage beyond just a file system; he needed synchronization capabilities to share information between different machines/users, he needed advanced security mechanisms, he needed a way to model his particular schemas in the storage system, he needed to search on the information. So he built a richer storage system that incorporated these types of concepts and then he built the Groove app on top of his platform. His comment to me was that Microsoft should build such a platform and stop selling the same old operating system and storage capabilities that we as an industry have been polishing for 20-30 years. He felt this richer platform would create a new ecosystem that allowed a variety of new apps to be developed.
He was right; and I told him we had already started on it, and that it was called WinFS."

Read the rest of the post for more WinFS historical context

Redmond | News: Developers Get First Look at WinFS

Redmond | News: Developers Get First Look at WinFS: "Clark maintains the underlying themes and functionality of WinFS have not changed since the storage subsystem was disconnected from Longhorn a year ago, but he says the uses for WinFS that Microsoft will emphasize have changed because of subsequent work in Windows Vista.
Two major themes that are apparent in Windows Vista Beta 1 are better organization and navigation of files and folders and enhanced search. Those Vista features depend on additional and improved use of Windows' indexing technology, which already existed in previous versions of Windows.
WinFS was originally positioned as key technology for delivering those organization and search improvements, and WinFS will still be important in driving improvements to those features down the road, Clark said."

Adobe, Macromedia CEOs Speak Out - Forbes.com

Adobe, Macromedia CEOs Speak Out - Forbes.com: "Both companies are very strong financially. But what happens after the merger? When will shareholders see the results?
Chizen: We'll give more guidance of our expectations after the acquisition closes. Right now, we're focused on moving through the approval process, closing the transaction and keeping our day-to-day business on track. What we have shared is our expectation that the acquisition will be break-even or slightly accretive to earnings within the course of the first year of the combined companies' operation, presumably our fiscal year 2006.
Elop: You didn't really expect me to answer that, did you?"

Good Morning Silicon Valley: Apple raises CEO tantrum threat level from yellow to red

Good Morning Silicon Valley: Apple raises CEO tantrum threat level from yellow to red: "Details on the device are few, although sources tell Engadget that it will be a white E790 that will hold only 100 songs because Apple is worried about cannibalizing iPod shuffle sales. It also may be the first of a line."

So Long, AT&T? Not So Fast

So Long, AT&T? Not So Fast: "SBC, which was spun off from AT&T amid the breakup of the Bell telephone system in 1984, will assume its former parent's name, BusinessWeek Online has learned. The plan, which is consistent with speculation that followed SBC's bid for AT&T earlier this year, reflects SBC's new national identity and its desire to market AT&T's Internet phone service to consumers around the country. And it gives SBC a marketing weapon to use against its rivals."

Microsoft to Acquire Teleo, an Internet Phone Company - New York Times

Microsoft to Acquire Teleo, an Internet Phone Company - New York Times: "The announcement follows moves last week by Google and Skype, a Luxembourg-based Internet voice company, to take business away from traditional phone companies. Competition for digital calling - from technology companies like these as well as from big cable television and satellite firms - could make prices more attractive to many consumers who have shied away from so-called voice-over-Internet protocol, or VoIP, service. "

Creative says has patent covering iPod technology - Yahoo! News

Creative says has patent covering iPod technology - Yahoo! News: "Creative Technology, a maker of portable music players, on Tuesday said it was awarded a U.S. patent that applied to Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod and other rivals.
Creative said it was considering its alternatives, but did not say whether it would file a patent suit, which is typically an expensive process, seek licensing agreements or even if it had talked with Apple."

Barron's Online - Sun Microsystems Bets the Galaxy

Barron's Online - Sun Microsystems Bets the Galaxy: "To get back in the game, Sun last year acquired computer start-up Kealia Inc. for $92.7 million in stock.
Kealia's co-founder, Andreas Bechtolsheim, co-founded Sun in 1982 with 'workstation' computers built from cheap computer parts. They were more powerful than personal computers but cheaper than mainframes and minicomputers sold by IBM and Digital Equipment.
The Kealia machine, Galaxy, will be the only one on the market that uses eight AMD chips working in parallel, according to analysts.
AMD chips are increasingly in demand, having risen from 3% of servers in 2003 to 7.4% as of June, says IDC.
Tying together eight chips should make Galaxy almost double the performance of existing systems based on only four chips, says analyst Martin Reynolds with Gartner Inc. in Stamford, Conn., making them an economical alternative for tasks such as databases.
'It looks like they'll have a very compelling offering based on the performance for the price,' says Reynolds"

Fear of excessive game-playing on Net rises in S. Korea - The Boston Globe

Fear of excessive game-playing on Net rises in S. Korea - The Boston Globe "More people drop dead while eating dinner than playing online games. But Lee's death this month gained widespread notoriety, bolstering fears among South Koreans that they've become hooked on the Internet.
South Korean authorities have linked several high-profile deaths to excessive Internet game-playing. Some believe that cyber cafes have in effect become the opium dens of the 21st century, luring players into staying around the clock and disregarding their health and responsibilities."

Microsoft Acquires Teleo, Innovative VoIP Technology Company

Microsoft Acquires Teleo, Innovative VoIP Technology Company: "Microsoft Corp. today announced it has acquired Teleo Inc., a provider of voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) software and services that enable the placement of phone calls from PCs to traditional phones and that deliver this technology in unique ways through a variety of software and Web applications. Microsoft expects to combine the technology and expertise of Teleo with the existing VoIP investments of MSN to further develop products and services that connect consumers to the people and information that most matter to them. Financial details were not disclosed."

WSJ.com - Microsoft, Seeking to Beef Up Services, Buys VOIP Specialist

WSJ.com - Microsoft, Seeking to Beef Up Services, Buys VOIP Specialist: "Microsoft Corp. bought a small maker of technology for handling phone calls over the Internet, part of a push by the software giant to make communications services the center of its battle with Google Inc. and others.
The Redmond, Washington, company this week closed a deal to buy closely held Teleo Inc., a San Francisco maker of voice over Internet protocol, or VOIP, technology, which allows users to make calls over the Internet to regular telephones, cellphones or PCs."

RED HERRING | Media Center PC Shipments Up

RED HERRING | Media Center PC Shipments Up: "Sales of media center PCs have climbed dramatically over the past month to 43 percent of all desktop PCs sold at retail outlets for the week ending August 20, according to a report released Monday.
That's a marked improvement from the equivalent week at the end of June, when media center PCs were barely above the 15 percent mark, according to research firm Current Analysis. "

BBC NEWS | Technology | File-sharers move from BitTorrent

BBC NEWS | Technology | File-sharers move from BitTorrent: "File-sharers have moved away from the popular BitTorrent system following legal action, say experts.
Instead they have moved to another network called eDonkey, showed a study by internet analysis firm CacheLogic. "

Verizon Wireless Cuts Price in Promotion - New York Times

Verizon Wireless Cuts Price in Promotion - New York Times: "Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone, said it would offer the service for $59.99 a month through year-end. It had been charging $79.99 a month for the service, which delivers the Internet to laptops at speeds comparable to some home computers."

Exclusive: Latest Windows Vista, Longhorn Server, WinFS, SQL Server 2005 Timelines Revealed

Exclusive: Latest Windows Vista, Longhorn Server, WinFS, SQL Server 2005 Timelines Revealed: "According to a second set of documentation I viewed Monday, Microsoft will ship Windows Vista Release Candidate 0 (RC0) on April 19, 2006, and Windows Vista RC1 on June 28, 2006. Microsoft currently plans to release Windows Vista to manufacturing on August 9, 2006, and make the product broadly available by November 15, 2006.
...
Microsoft surprised a lot of people by shipping WinFS Beta 1 Monday, and as it turns out, the project is suddenly well ahead of schedule. I've seen two contradictory schedules for WinFS. In the more recent schedule, WinFS Beta 1 will be followed by at least one Community Technology Preview (CTP) release, which is currently due on February 15, 2006. Then, on May 1, 2006, Microsoft is scheduled to release WinFS Beta 2. Beta 3 is currently scheduled for November 15, 2006, with a Beta 3 Refresh release expected in April 2007. WinFS is currently scheduled for RTM in Q3 2007, well after Longhorn Server."

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Report has Microsoft opening NYC retail store

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Report has Microsoft opening NYC retail store: "Microsoft may open a glitzy retail store in New York City's Times Square to raise its profile and showcase consumer-oriented products such as the new Xbox."

Microsoft releases Windows file system beta - Computerworld

Microsoft releases Windows file system beta - Computerworld: "Microsoft Corp. today released a test version of its next-generation file system, WinFS, well ahead of schedule.
The software giant made the first beta of the new file system available to Microsoft Developer Network subscribers, according to a company spokesman. Developers had not expected to see a test version of WinFS until next year, according to a previous timeline provided by Microsoft. "

Wired News: Flickr Fans to Yahoo: Flick Off!

Wired News: Flickr Fans to Yahoo: Flick Off! "A splinter faction of Flickr photo-sharing community members is threatening a symbolic "mass suicide" to protest closer integration with the website's new owner, Yahoo.
The portal giant bought Flickr's developer, Ludicorp, for an undisclosed sum in March and took ownership of the site when it moved from Vancouver, Canada, to Yahoo's Sunnyvale, California, campus this summer.
Now, angered by a new requirement to tie their member profiles with Yahoo accounts, some Flickrites say they plan to kill off their identities before they can be moved into the new family next year."

FTPOnline.com: Websphere Family Grows

FTPOnline.com: Websphere Family Grows: "Since I was spending the time to decipher the growing family of IBM Websphere and Rational products, I might as well list them here to help save you the time. "

Wow -- quite a list

Barron's Online - Soft Sell

Barron's Online - Soft Sell: "FOR YEARS NOW, LARRY ELLISON has been warning that the good old days of the software business are gone forever. There's a tendency in Silicon Valley to ignore Ellison's skeptical view, and to conclude instead that the next big thing is just around the corner, that we're just one breakthrough away from some mega-billion-dollar opportunity that will bring a new round of riches. But the Oracle founder has loudly proclaimed that idea to be hooey, and instead asserted that we inevitably are headed for a period of intense consolidation, where the big will get bigger, and the small will get eaten or squashed. Of course, Ellison hasn't only been preaching the gospel of consolidation, he's been following his own advice, as illustrated by the company's mammoth 2004 acquisition of PeopleSoft and a host of other deals."

Also see companion tables of recent software M&A activity and "buyout bait".

Business 2.0 :: Magazine Article :: What's Next :: Free Wi-Fi? Get Ready for GoogleNet.

Business 2.0 :: Magazine Article :: What's Next :: Free Wi-Fi? Get Ready for GoogleNet. "What if Google (GOOG) wanted to give Wi-Fi access to everyone in America? And what if it had technology capable of targeting advertising to a user’s precise location? The gatekeeper of the world’s information could become one of the globe’s biggest Internet providers and one of its most powerful ad sellers, basically supplanting telecoms in one fell swoop. Sounds crazy, but how might Google go about it?"

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Outdoing Outlook

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Outdoing Outlook "Trimergent is tackling ways that office workers can search for information, publish findings online and share them with others. Its product combines multiple tiers of search — including Web, desktop and database search — with collaboration and sharing features.
...
After Outlook, Raman was one of the leaders of Netdocs, a huge e-mail and information-management project championed by Chairman Bill Gates. The Netdocs team grew to hundreds of people before the project was canceled. Parts of Netdocs eventually emerged in Infopath, a separate information-management program.
It was understandable that Raman would want to take a break from Microsoft after the Netdocs debacle, former co-workers said."

Early Look at Research Project to Re-engineer the Internet - New York Times

Early Look at Research Project to Re-engineer the Internet - New York Times "The new project, the Global Environment for Networking Investigations, was described for the first time by researchers and foundation officials at a technical meeting held in Philadelphia last week.
The project, which has not yet received financing and may cost more than $300 million, is intended to include both a test facility and a research program. As described in documents circulated by National Science Foundation officials, the network will focus on security, "pervasive computing" environments populated by mobile, wireless and sensor networks, control of critical infrastructure and the ability to handle new services that can be used by millions of people."

Internet3?...

Cutting through search-engine clutter - The Boston Globe

Cutting through search-engine clutter - The Boston Globe "Answers.com, an Israeli company founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate Robert Rosenschein, is the best online destination for anybody in search of a few quick facts on nearly any subject.
Answers.com doesn't search the Web, and its gigabytes of irrelevant gabble. Instead, Rosenschein and his partners struck deals with over 100 reference databases, ranging from Wikipedia to Fogwell's Guide to Wine.
Yes, wine. Type the word ''claret" into Google, and you get 871,000 Web pages where the word appears. Type it into Answers.com, and Fogwell informs you that a claret is a red Bordeaux wine. You also get a definition of the word from the American Heritage Dictionary, a brief history of the wine from Wikipedia, and 14 translations of the word into different languages, including Arabic and Japanese. All this, collected onto a single Web page and available at a glance.:

I've been a fan of Answers.com (aka GuruNet and Atomica) for many years. Download the Mac or Windows client today...

Google Anything, so Long as It's Not Google - New York Times

Google Anything, so Long as It's Not Google - New York Times: "Mr. Schmidt's is a special case, however. He or his proxy apparently was angered by a journalist who did nothing more than use for policy discussion Mr. Schmidt's own service to gather publicly available material. Mr. Schmidt's home address comes from a Federal Election Commission database, which lists this and other details about donors who contribute more than $200 in a year to a candidate. If CNET's mention of the readily available information discomfited Mr. Schmidt, it should not have. Two months previously, when Google was host of a briefing for members of the news media, it was Mr. Schmidt who had explained his company's ambitions so boldly: 'When we talk about organizing all of the world's information, we mean all.'"

Apple, Digital Music's Angel, Earns Record Industry's Scorn - New York Times

Apple, Digital Music's Angel, Earns Record Industry's Scorn - New York Times: "Two and a half years after the music business lined up behind the chief executive of Apple, Steven P. Jobs, and hailed him and his iTunes music service for breathing life into music sales, the industry's allegiance to Mr. Jobs has eroded sharply.
Mr. Jobs is now girding for a showdown with at least two of the four major record companies over the price of songs on the iTunes service.
...
Mr. McGuire said Apple was not likely to quietly surrender its position in the market.
"I think if they're throwing down for a street fight," he said, "they may have picked somebody who's as good or better at it than they are.""

Intel and Skype buddy up for better VoIP - silicon.com

Intel and Skype buddy up for better VoIP - silicon.com: "'I'm happy to announce a partnership between Intel and Skype to make their clients better on our platforms using our software technology, codec technology [encoding and decoding software], and our dual-core platforms,' he said during his keynote at the Intel Developer Forum. The collaboration will lead to 'improvements in the number of participants in calls and the quality of calls as well', he added.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. An Intel representative said Skype does not receive funds from Intel Capital, the chipmaker's investment arm."

PBS | I, Cringely . August 25, 2005 - Has Google Peaked?

PBS | I, Cringely . August 25, 2005 - Has Google Peaked?: "What the heck Google is up to is a favorite topic of conversation this week in high tech circles. What's driving this is a combination of things including the new Google Toolbar, Gtalk, but most especially the company's announcement that it will shortly sell another $4 billion in shares. What does Google plan to do with all that money, people are wondering?
Nothing at all.
It's just a hunch of mine, but with more than $2.5 billion in cash already on-hand, I don't think Google has any plans at all for that extra $4 billion. The company just knows that this is the time when it can probably get the most money for the least stock EVER, so selling a few million extra shares now is just a cheap insurance policy against some later day when Wall Street might not be so enamored of the giant search company."

Cringley goes on to speculate about Apple becoming a more strategic threat to Microsoft.

Google Talk (Beta) review by PC Magazine

Google Talk (Beta) review by PC Magazine: "The new Google Talk Beta doesn't do much, but what it does, it does well. Google's long-awaited communication client offers instant messaging and Voice over IP?nothing more. You won't find video conferencing, file-transfer utilities, games, search boxes, stock tickers, or any of the myriad other tools available with its three primary competitors: America Online's AIM client, Microsoft's MSN Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger. But if you're merely interested in sending instant messages and making the occasional online voice call, Google Talk is as slick, simple, and easy to use as any other Google app. "

CRN | Breaking News | Novell 3Q Profits Fall 92 Percent

CRN | Breaking News | Novell 3Q Profits Fall 92 Percent: "Sales of Novell's products -- which includes its flagship NetWare network server operating system -- fell to $290.2 million from $304.6 million in the year-ago period. New software licenses during the period fell to $45.6 million from $57 million last year. The company said currency exchange rates boosted revenue by about $4 million, but did not affect net income.
...
'While we were profitable this quarter, we still have improvements to make in our business which will lead to cost reductions,' said Jack Messman, chairman and chief executive, in a statement. The company did not outline cost-cutting plans in a press release. "

No comment...

I just turned off the comment capability on my blog, after getting some instant comment spam on posts this morning -- looks like comment-spam has been automated for Blogger.

The Seattle Times: Flashy Baidu debut fades

The Seattle Times: Flashy Baidu debut fades: "Baidu.com's bubble has already deflated remarkably, less than three weeks after its U.S. stock-market debut.
The Chinese Internet search engine's shares soared 354 percent to $122.54 on their first day of trading Aug. 5, a rise that, for some, triggered uncomfortable memories of the late 1990s go-go days.
The stock's ascent, which peaked at $153.98 during the second day of trading, reflected investors' love affair with Baidu's much larger U.S. cousin, Google, and outsize hopes for China's consumer class and budding Internet industry.
The enthusiasm is already waning. Baidu's Nasdaq-listed American depositary shares are worth little more than half their Aug. 8 peak value, based on yesterday's closing price of $79. The stock went public at $27"

Google Gets Better. What's Up With That? - New York Times

Google Gets Better. What's Up With That? - New York Times: "In high-tech circles, that's pretty much what people are saying about Google these days. If you hadn't noticed, Google is no longer just an Internet search tool; it's now a full-blown software company. It develops elegant, efficient software programs - and then gives them away. In today's culture of cynicism, such generosity and software excellence seems highly suspicious; surely it's all a smokescreen for a darker, larger plot to suck us all in. What, exactly, is Google up to?
...
In a single week, then, Google, the software company, addressed deficiencies in Windows, tried to create a grand unified chat and voice network, and opened its clean, capable, capacious e-mail system to all comers. All of this software is beautifully done, quick to download and fun to use - not to mention free and (apart from the Gmail service) entirely free of ads and come-ons."

Google's Move into IM

Google's Move into IM: "With Google now officially in the world of voice communications via its Talk product, and Skype furthering its development efforts with API releases, the two company's strategies are dovetailing nicely.
Here's a purely speculative scenario: Google recently announced that it will be conducting a secondary offering of stock expected to net the firm an additional $4 billion in capital. Meanwhile, it is rumored that Skype was almost sold to News Corp. for $3 billion. So what if Google bought Skype? It'd be a mega-merger, of course, with enormous implications for instant messaging and communications. And it would also be an announcement that might justify hyped-up headlines."

Or maybe Google is instead out to establish new case studies for not-invented-here syndrome...

Line56.com: The Future of Collaborative Workspaces

Line56.com: The Future of Collaborative Workspaces: "Never underestimate the power of email. It is a ubiquitous tool that requires virtually no training--similar to the powerful Swiss army knife. The problem is that even the Swiss army knife has its limitations, as does email. While very powerful, email is not inherently secure across organizational boundaries and provides very little structure for teams to work together. As the volume of email increases, important items are increasingly lost in a sea of information. Keeping track of approvals or the latest version of documents is difficult if not impossible. The bottom line is that email is an ineffective tool for team collaboration. The solution to the business need for managing communication exists, and it is surprisingly effective. "

By Rob Koplowitz, Oracle -- timely essay.

Line56.com: BEA-Plumtree Challenges

Line56.com: BEA-Plumtree Challenges: "BEA has acquired Plumtree, adding an enterprise-class portal to its application infrastructure offerings, but plenty of execution challenges loom.
Here's an immediate one, according to analyst Jim Murphy of AMR Research: 'Plumtree has only relatively recently moved to an environment with J2EE as its foundation, leaving most customers running a Microsoft .NET infrastructure and not necessarily caring to move to the J2EE version.' "

Adobe, Macromedia shareholders approve takeover | InfoWorld | News

Adobe, Macromedia shareholders approve takeover | InfoWorld | News : "Stock holders of Adobe Systems (Profile, Products, Articles) and Macromedia (Profile, Products, Articles) on Wednesday voted in favor of plan for Adobe to acquire Macromedia in an all-stock deal expected to close later this year, the companies said in a joint statement.
...
Last month, U.S. regulators asked the companies for more details regarding the acquisition."

How to Face Off Against Microsoft

How to Face Off Against Microsoft: "That kind of grassroots popularity might be Intuit's biggest edge. According to Intuit founder Scott Cook, now chairman of its executive committee, when Bill Gates proposed a merger with Microsoft in 1995, he told Cook: 'I can copy your products, but I can't copy your word of mouth.' Ten years later, it's still true. And that bodes well for the home team. "

Personal Technology -- Google Wants to Be Your Best Friend On Your Computer

Personal Technology -- Google Wants to Be Your Best Friend On Your Computer: "That is the aim of two new, free products the search giant released this week. One is an instant-messaging program called Google Talk, intended to be your primary means of real-time digital communication. The other is an information-management utility called Google Desktop 2, designed to become a permanent part of your desktop, grabbing space from Microsoft's Windows desktop.
I've been testing pre-release versions of both new products, which only work on Windows PCs, and have found that both work well, with a couple of exceptions. More important, both products, especially Google Desktop, have great potential for expansion and are meant to become indispensable.
...
Still, Google Desktop and Google Talk are useful programs that have great potential. They just might make Google your new best friend, and that would be bad news for Microsoft."

(BTW sorry for the sparse posts during the last couple days -- on the road with an awful hotel Internet connection again...)

WSJ.com - Vonage Plans to File for IPO To Raise Up to $600 Million

WSJ.com - Vonage Plans to File for IPO To Raise Up to $600 Million: "Vonage Holdings Corp., a fast-growing provider of residential phone service over the Internet, is planning to file for an initial public offering to raise as much as $600 million, according to a person familiar with the matter.
...
Vonage faces increasing competition from deep-pocketed rivals, including AT&T Corp. and many of the nation's cable companies, which are quickly adding voice over Internet protocol, or VOIP, to their high-speed Internet offerings. It also faces competition from a growing number of Internet giants, including Microsoft Corp.'s MSN unit and Yahoo Inc., that are adding voice components to instant messaging and gaming.
Vonage has raised more than $400 million in venture capital so far from firms that include Bain Capital, 3i Group PLC and Institutional Venture Partners."

WSJ.com - Google to Introduce Instant Messaging

WSJ.com - Google to Introduce Instant Messaging: "In instant text messaging, America Online is far and away the leader. In July, AOL had 41.6 million average active users from its various services -- the most well known of which is AOL Instant Messenger -- according to comScore Networks, a market-research firm. Yahoo's competing service had 19.1 million users, while Microsoft's MSN Messenger had 14.1 million users last month, according to comScore.
AOL declined to comment on Google's service. A Yahoo spokeswoman said it welcomes newcomers to a market where it 'has consistently taken share from competitors.' Microsoft, which has 170 million instant-message users world-wide, continues to invest in its communications products and build stronger relationships with its users, a Microsoft spokesman said."

Verizon to Sell High-Speed Net Connections for $14.95 a Month - New York Times

Verizon to Sell High-Speed Net Connections for $14.95 a Month - New York Times: "Verizon's $14.95 service, which uses digital subscriber line, or D.S.L., technology, requires that customers sign a one-year renewable contract. The new service allows users to download e-mail, pictures and other information at top speeds of 768 kilobits a second, or about 10 times the speed of a typical dial-up Internet connection. However, its speed is only about a fourth that of Verizon's other D.S.L. service, which costs $29.99.
Comcast and other cable companies typically charge $39.99 or more for high-speed lines."

Relax, Bill Gates; It's Google's Turn as the Villain - New York Times

Relax, Bill Gates; It's Google's Turn as the Villain - New York Times: "For years, Silicon Valley hungered for a company mighty enough to best Microsoft. Now it has one such contender: the phenomenally successful Google.
But instead of embracing Google as one of their own, many in Silicon Valley are skittish about its size and power. They fret that the very strengths that made Google a search-engine phenomenon are distancing it from the entrepreneurial culture that produced it - and even transforming it into a threat."

Zimbra - Home

Zimbra - Home "
Welcome to Zimbra, the leader in open source collaboration."

Zimbra, formerly Liquid Systems, is the start-up that WebLogic co-founder (and former BEA CTO) Scott Dietzen joined several months ago. Skimming screen shots and their summary of what they've open-sourced, however, Zimbra appears to be more about communication than collaboration.

BEA picks up Plumtree for $200 million | CNET News.com

BEA picks up Plumtree for $200 million | CNET News.com "Business software maker BEA Systems said on Monday it agreed to buy Plumtree Software, a maker of software used to connect work groups and computer systems, for about $200 million in cash, sending Plumtree shares sharply higher."

I think that just about does it for the pure-play portal software category...

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Investors rush to Clearwire

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Investors rush to Clearwire "Clearwire, the Kirkland company led by wireless entrepreneur Craig McCaw, has raised $260 million through a debt offering, with the possibility the total could soar to $520 million or more."

Never underestimate Craig McCaw...

New Google software moves in on Microsoft

New Google software moves in on Microsoft "Google's latest software gives it more presence on the PC, taking the company farther beyond the traditional search business and into an area Microsoft has long dominated.
A new version of Google's free hard-drive search tool, released as a test version Monday, comes with an on-screen "sidebar" that allows users to see and access content from the Web and their own machines. Personal photos, news feeds, weather forecasts and e-mails are among the materials the optional sidebar displays.
...
Google may take a bigger step beyond traditional search later this week. The New York Times, citing company executives, reported Monday that Google plans to unveil some form of a "communications tool" on Wednesday. There has been widespread speculation that Google is working on an instant-messaging program to compete with programs from Yahoo! and Microsoft's MSN unit."

CRN | Star Search | Adesso Systems

CRN | Star Search | Adesso Systems "“[Our] Notes DNA makes us a natural fit. IBM’s handling of the future of Notes and Workplace has enabled us to gain an audience with those partners. [Microsoft Business Solutions] has no [mobile] strategy, yet MBS partners and their customer are calling for it.”
...
Adesso Systems is counting on three important things in its channel push: The thirst for truly mobile applications, the disaffection of Notes/Domino solution providers who feel left behind in IBM’s plans for that franchise and the need to mobilize Microsoft Business Solutions (MBS) applications."

Good Morning Silicon Valley: Google claims secondary offering is "for the Christmas party"

Good Morning Silicon Valley: Google claims secondary offering is "for the Christmas party": "A $79 billion market value, nearly $3 billion in cash on hand, and Google needs more money? Apparently so."

JBoss program aims to ease migrations from WebLogic - Computerworld

JBoss program aims to ease migrations from WebLogic - Computerworld "The first iteration of the program targets companies looking to migrate from BEA Systems Inc.'s WebLogic application server to JBoss, said Joe McGonnell, director of marketing at JBoss.
JBoss plans to tailor the program for migrations from IBM's WebSphere offering in the future, he added."

WSJ.com - Google Plans New Share Offer

WSJ.com - Google Plans New Share Offer: "Google Inc. plans to sell 14.2 million shares of Class A common stock, which at current market prices would raise more than $4 billion, according to a filing Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Google, of Mountain View, Calif., said it intends to use the net proceeds from the offering -- which will increase the amount of its Class A shares outstanding by 8% -- for working capital and possible acquisitions of complementary businesses, technologies or other assets. But it added that is has 'no current agreements or commitments with respect to any material acquisitions.'"

Definitely looks like Google is going shopping...

ACM Queue - Attack Trends 2004 and 2005 - Taking stock of the attacks from the past year, and what we can expect to face in the year ahead.

ACM Queue - Attack Trends 2004 and 2005 - Taking stock of the attacks from the past year, and what we can expect to face in the year ahead.: "In this brief survey, Schneier takes stock of the attacks we've endured over the past year, and what we can expect to face in the year ahead."

The Free Toaster? Today, It's an IPod - New York Times

The Free Toaster? Today, It's an IPod - New York Times: "To lure customers these days, marketers at corporations and small businesses are capitalizing on the iPod craze by giving away the popular digital music players made by Apple Computer. In fact, iPod Minis are the No. 1 'motivational' electronics product, according to the trade publication Incentive."

Microsoft: Worm Attack is Your Fault

Microsoft: Worm Attack is Your Fault: "Only Windows 2000, eh? According to AssetMatrix, Windows 2000 is the most-often used Windows version in medium- and large-sized corporations, edging out XP 48 percent to 37 percent. Put another way, roughly half of all Windows installs in corporations are Windows 2000.
So we have an interesting situation. Hackers are now able to exploit Windows flaws within days, and when they do so, corporations are admonished by Microsoft. No offense to the world's largest software company, but that's no way to talk to customers."

Yahoo sticks to $5 music service, launches ad push - Yahoo! News

Yahoo sticks to $5 music service, launches ad push - Yahoo! News: "Whether you prefer hard rockers or accordion-pumping folk singers, Yahoo Inc. will stick with an aggressively low $5 monthly fee in the first major marketing push for its online music service.
After an introductory roll-out in May, Yahoo was set to announce on Thursday that it would keep its music download subscription priced well below those of competitors, such as RealNetworks Inc.'s Rhapsody and Napster Inc., in an effort to become 'the standard online music service.'"

I'm still pleased with the $5/month service.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Microsoft sets price for Xbox 360

BBC NEWS | Technology | Microsoft sets price for Xbox 360: "Microsoft's next generation console, the Xbox 360, will cost $299 (£209) when it goes on sale at Christmas.
The company announced the price at the German Games Convention in Leipzig.
A more expensive version costing $399 (£279) will include a 20GB hard drive, wireless controller, headset and remote control."

Vacation | Steve Gillmor's Inforouter | ZDNet.com

Vacation | Steve Gillmor's Inforouter | ZDNet.com: "It's amazing what you don't need to read once you've seen Peter O'Kelly's abstracts. It's becoming my secret 5th Law of Attention -- it is far more efficient to identify what I don't care about than choosing between what I do."

Hey, thanks, Steve. Sorry for the sparse posts this week; I've been on the road with generally awful network access.

The Real Deal On Microsoft's Playlist Patent - Forbes.com

The Real Deal On Microsoft's Playlist Patent - Forbes.com: "Microsoft is close to patenting a technology that, for all intents and purposes, makes a Tivo out of your digital media player.
The technology in question, patent application number 20030221541, was filed in May of 2002 and 'relates generally to systems and methodologies that facilitate generation of playlists,' according to a summary of the invention patent. 'It reduces effort and time required to generate a playlist that meets or is similar to desired characteristics or features by automatically generating a playlist.' "

Software Notebook: 'Evil Empire' Microsoft warms to open source

Software Notebook: 'Evil Empire' Microsoft warms to open source: "Spotting the Microsoft contingent at last week's LinuxWorld was as easy as singling out Darth Vader and two Stormtroopers -- literally.
Three company representatives donned 'Star Wars' costumes for an event at the convention, poking fun at Microsoft's reputation as the 'Evil Empire' in the eyes of people involved in open-source software.
The scene, and Microsoft's participation in the conference, illustrated the ongoing thaw in the company's historically icy approach to open-source communities, the software developers whose collaborative projects often rival Microsoft's own products."

There's More Where Baidu Came From

There's More Where Baidu Came From: "All this doesn't mean Baidu truly warrants its own sky-high valuation. Baidu, co-founded five years ago by former Infoseek engineer Robin Yanhong Li, is the mainland's No. 1 search engine, with 45% of the market. But the company earned just $1.45 million on $14 million in sales in 2004. At $90 per share, Baidu's market capitalization is nearly $3 billion -- which values it at more than 1,800 times 12-month trailing earnings, compared with price-earnings ratios of 70 or so for Google and Yahoo."

Oh my...

RealNetworks: Legal Threats from Microsoft, Apple Top Agenda

RealNetworks: Legal Threats from Microsoft, Apple Top Agenda: "Streaming media pioneer RealNetworks is entering a crucial phase of its existence. Founded by Rob Glaser, an ex-Microsoft executive, RealNetworks has watched as companies such as Apple Computer, Microsoft and Napster have eaten into its core markets. So although the company just reported record revenues for the most recent quarter, its earnings are far outstripped by the cost of its legal battle with Microsoft and by an expected legal battle with Apple."

See the full article for details. Looks like Real aspires to become primarily an intellectual property licensing company.

Microsoft says PC 'recycle bin' yielded Google clue | CNET News.com

Microsoft says PC 'recycle bin' yielded Google clue | CNET News.com: "According to papers filed with a Washington state court by the software giant, a document that describes terms of an apparent agreement between Google and Lee was 'recovered from the 'Recycle Bin' of one of Dr. Lee's computers.' "

Oops...

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Microsoft enters the ring to give iPod competition

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Microsoft enters the ring to give iPod competition: "'Now that Apple has single-handedly taken the market, all the world's consumer electronics makers are zooming in on it,' [head of Microsoft's Digital Media Division] Huggers said. 'They are just not going to let them get away with it. The first quarter of 2006 is going to get very interesting.'"

Open source database enters crowded field

Open source database enters crowded field: "Since EnterpriseDB is based on PostgreSQL, which has been under development for many years, the database already supports enterprise features such as views, functions and triggers. The company says it has improved the performance of PostgreSQL, and added compatibility with Oracle's database, which means many applications will run without modification, according to the company. "

CRN | Breaking News | Microsoft Lures Top Developers To Exchange Team

CRN | Breaking News | Microsoft Lures Top Developers To Exchange Team: "The Microsoft Exchange team has brought aboard two highly-respected developers known for their expertise in collaboration software.
Julio Estrada, a former star at Lotus Development who went on to found Kubi Software, has joined the Exchange Server team, sources said.
Also joining Microsoft is Bob Congdon, who was at IBM till recently. Congdon's Web log, updated July 29, indicates that he has left IBM for Microsoft. "

ACM: Ubiquity - What the Dormouse Said: An Interview with John Markoff

ACM: Ubiquity - What the Dormouse Said: An Interview with John Markoff: "UBIQUITY: When he looks back over the last four or five decades, does Doug Engelbart's predominant mood seem to be one of pride, or disappointment, or what?
MARKOFF: Engelbart is a very forlorn figure some of the time because he feels that the world cherry-picked his best ideas and mainly ignored his larger vision of using the technology to augment groups that could then build the technology more effectively. I think that Doug is being too hard on himself; I think he should just claim credit and be at peace with himself. But that's just not part of his personality."

(Read the full interview; also read the book...)

The Mossberg Solution -- Personal Computers Break Another Price Barrier

The Mossberg Solution -- Personal Computers Break Another Price Barrier: "The T6520 comes with an incredible one gigabyte of memory, twice the 512 megabytes that the H-P includes; a processor capable of running next-generation software, which the H-P lacks; and a pair of speakers, which the H-P omits.
Both computers sport huge 200-gigabyte hard disks; twin DVD/CD drives that can both play and record; memory-card readers that can handle the cards from most cameras; seven USB ports, some of which are on the front; and a one-year warranty."

$600 after $50 rebate...

The Treo 670 is real and does run Windows Mobile - Engadget - www.engadget.com

The Treo 670 is real and does run Windows Mobile - Engadget - www.engadget.com: "... we were skeptical, but now we're convinced: roc a fella himself just emailed us a video of a Treo 670 running on Windows Mobile. Yeah, it's a little blurry, but there's no mistaking that this is the real deal. Everything just got very interesting."

This would be a milestone event in many ways but also a very smart move on Palm's part.

Microsoft execs reunite to save AOL | The Register

Microsoft execs reunite to save AOL | The Register: "But today, in the biggest shake-up for five years, AOL has renewed its ambitions by creating a new Wireless Division. This is no ordinary shake-up. It reunites old Microsoft pals Craig Eisler and Eric Engstrom to lead the unit - Engstrom joins with AOL's acquisition of Wildseed Inc, also announced today. The 2000 start-up joins AOL's Tegic, responsible for the T9 software used by hundreds of millions of phone users, under the Wireless Division umbrella."

Open Letter from Brad Smith, Microsoft General Counsel: Microsoft to expand enforcement efforts against illegal Internet practices.

Open Letter from Brad Smith, Microsoft General Counsel: Microsoft to expand enforcement efforts against illegal Internet practices.: "Self-proclaimed “Spam King” Scott Richter has agreed to pay over $7 million in damages, pending approval by the court.
After covering our legal expenses for the case, Microsoft will then reinvest every penny from this settlement. We’ll dedicate $5 million dollars to increase our Internet enforcement efforts and expand technical and investigative support to help law enforcement address computer-related crimes.
...
In appreciation of the role of the New York Attorney General, another $1 million of this settlement money will be directed to New York state through Microsoft Unlimited Potential donations, which help community centers to expand computer-related skills training for youths and adults."

Software Maker Plans to Share as Way to Fight Microsoft - New York Times

Software Maker Plans to Share as Way to Fight Microsoft - New York Times: "VMware, the leader in the fast-growing market for virtual machine software, plans to announce today that it will share its code with partners like I.B.M., Intel and Hewlett-Packard in an effort to make the VMware technology an industry standard."

Google's Chief Is Googled, to the Company's Displeasure - New York Times

Google's Chief Is Googled, to the Company's Displeasure - New York Times: "Google says its mission is 'to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.' But it does not appear to take kindly to those who use its search engine to organize and publish information about its own executives."

Google refuses to answer questions from CNet for a year -- because CNet published a story about Google's CEO that included results from Google searches...

AOL purchases wireless company Wildseed Ltd. - Yahoo! News

AOL purchases wireless company Wildseed Ltd. - Yahoo! News: "It purchased Wildseed Ltd., a privately held company founded by Microsoft Corp.(Nasdaq:MSFT - news) veteran G. Eric Engstrom, who co-invented Microsoft's DirectX multimedia and games technology.
Financial terms were not disclosed."

Cisco Systems said to mull buying Nokia - The Boston Globe

Cisco Systems said to mull buying Nokia - The Boston Globe: "John Chambers, is believed to be interested in merging with a wireless infrastructure company. Nokia has been identified as the most likely target, the paper said."

The New York Review of Books: Cold Comfort

The New York Review of Books: Cold Comfort "Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds is a movie at once authentically unsettling and deeply nostalgic. The nostalgia is for scary, long-cherished fantasias concerning alien invasions and men from Mars as filtered through boyhood comic books and drive-in movies and tattered paperbacks, a whole century of cheap thrills summed up and transfigured in a return to their primal source, H.G. Wells's 1898 novel. But Spielberg doesn't try to reproduce the camp goofiness of Mars Attacks! or the video game hijinks of Independence Day: he wants us to care about what is happening in front of us, as if we were contemplating this scenario for the first time."

Thought-provoking essay. I saw the movie recently and found it both disappointing and disturbing.

Dvorak Uncensored -- Are You ready for This?

Dvorak Uncensored -- Are You ready for This?: "OK, readers are invited to guess what this might be. First Hawkins invented the Palm Pilot — that was the “mature” product. Then the next was the Palm with a built-in phone and email. What’s after that?"

John Dvorak highlights some what's-next clues from Jeff Hawkins, including this excerpt from a recent inteview:

"There is a third business that I’ve been working on but I’m not going to tell you what it is. It’s in mobile computing. It’s something different and it’s in its early stage. We have three businesses at PalmOne. One you don’t even know about, which is just a child. Another is the teenager and the other one is the mature 45-year-old."

My guess: tablet form factor, Windows...

Cisco says Web site was compromised - Yahoo! News

Cisco says Web site was compromised - Yahoo! News: "Internet computer gear maker Cisco Systems Inc., which last week went to court to keep a security flaw in its routers under wraps, on Thursday said its Web site had been 'compromised' and users' passwords changed as a precaution."

Now, if My Software Only Had a Brain ... - New York Times

Now, if My Software Only Had a Brain ... - New York Times: "EverNote's big idea is the time band, a kind of chronological ruler that runs down one side of the screen. As each bit of information is stored, it is attached to its specific point in the great river of time. The underlying insight, similar to the work of David Gelernter, a computer scientist at Yale, is that sequence of arrival is one of the brain's fundamental organizing concepts. EverNote has a variety of other unusual features, many aimed at people who take notes in handwriting on tablet computers.
Onfolio's comparative advantage is in handling feeds of R.S.S., for really simple syndication, and other regular inflows of information. Its professional version also has many tools for publishing the information you've organized, in a blog or other formats."

Notebook prices breaking the $500 barrier - Computerworld

Notebook prices breaking the $500 barrier - Computerworld: "For example, Toshiba Corp. offered a $449 version of its Satellite A85-S1072 notebook with a 15-in. display, Intel Corp.'s Celeron M 360 processor, 256MB of DRAM, a 40GB hard drive and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive at Best Buy. Over at CompUSA, Acer Inc. had a $499 AS3502WLCi notebook on sale with a Celeron M 360 processor, a 15-in. widescreen display, 512MB of DRAM, a 40GB hard drive and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive. Dell's $499 Inspiron 1200 came with a 14-in. display, a Celeron M 350 processor, 256MB of DRAM, a 30GB hard drive and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive.
Those prices, however, are reached only after several rebates."

AppleInsider | PlayStation 3 processor could support Mac OS X Tiger

AppleInsider | PlayStation 3 processor could support Mac OS X Tiger: "'Sony is expected to offer optional hard drives for the PlayStation 3 with potential memory capacity of 80 or 120 GB. It remains to be decided whether the standard version of the PS3 will come complete with a hard drive,' reads a company statement.
'The operating system has also yet to be clarified. The integrated Cell processor will be able to support a variety of operating systems (such as Linux or Apple's Tiger).'"

E-Commerce News: Legal : Bloggers Cautioned About Being Copy Cats

E-Commerce News: Legal : Bloggers Cautioned About Being Copy Cats: "What's Fair Use?
There's also the consideration of 'fair use,' which allows portions of copyrighted material to be reproduced without the copyright holder's permission, added Llewellyn's colleague, Thomas Smart, who is co-chair of the intellectual property and patent litigation group at Kaye Scholer. However, to claim fair use, one must meet the standards.
Smart explained that the courts ask four questions to determine if someone is making fair use of copyrighted material:
What is the nature or purpose of the use? 'Commentary or adding your ideas to someone else's ideas or literary criticism are more favored than just copying for purposes of passing it on to someone or reselling it,' he said.
What is the nature of the work being copied? 'A work of fiction is entitled to more protection than the daily weather chart in the newspaper,' he explained. 'The higher the degree of creativity in a work, the more entitled it is to protection.'
How much of the work was copied? 'If you take an entire article from The Wall Street Journal or Newsweek and recapitulate the whole thing, that's more problematic than if you take a couple of quotes from it,' he observed.
How did the copying affect the market for the copyrighted work?"

I wonder if I copied too much of this article...

Seriously, I suspect this issue will eventually lead to a major recalc in my blogging strategy. My blog is mostly a news filter, with sparse commentary, but I've long suspected that some publishers may eventually object to news filter-oriented blogs.

CRN | Breaking News | NewsGator Goes Corporate With RSS Server

CRN | Breaking News | NewsGator Goes Corporate With RSS Server: "NewsGator said Thursday that it will take its flagship RSS aggregation engine to the corporate market in the third quarter with the introduction of NewsGator Enterprise Server (NGES).
The server-based software will let companies create internal and personalized feeds for workgroup collaboration, lead tracking, and project management, said NewsGator, as well as build feeds by monitoring external and internal keywords and URLs."

Cisco's Consuming Ambitions

Cisco's Consuming Ambitions: "Now, Cisco is cranking up its plans for Linksys. Chambers says it will use the Linksys brand on a growing portfolio of low-end products, both for consumers and increasingly for the medium- and small-business market.
To that end, the company has arranged its first two consumer-oriented acquisitions since buying Linksys. In April, it bought Sipura Technology, which makes the gear that consumers need in order to use Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone-calling plans from the likes of Vonage. And on July 22, Cisco bought Denmark-based KiSS Technology, which makes new-fangled entertainment equipment for the home, such as networked DVD players and even a sofa with built-in speakers."

Good Morning Silicon Valley: AOL subscribers: RUN AWAY!!!!!!

Good Morning Silicon Valley: AOL subscribers: RUN AWAY!!!!!!: "The departure of AOL subscribers these days isn't so much an exodus as an outright stampede. AOL lost 2.6 million U.S. subscribers in the past year -- almost a million of them in its second quarter alone. A tough break for AOL, which, much as it would like to think otherwise, hasn't yet managed to effectively recast itself as an online advertising seller."

Not a great PR week for AOL, with subscriber losses and Time Warner $3B settlement strategy (reserve to cover shareholder lawsuits over its AOL merger).

When Capital Goes to the Founders, Not the Company - New York Times

When Capital Goes to the Founders, Not the Company - New York Times: "Rather than wait for eHarmony to go public, which might never happen, or for some bigger company to acquire it, which also might not happen, the company's founders decided to look for venture capitalists willing to cash out some of the stake they and others held in the company.
They had no trouble finding eager venture investors, even though a big chunk of the investment would end up paying for vacation homes and other personal luxuries, rather than building the company.
To many venture capitalists, this kind of deal, known as a 'founder sale,' is generally viewed as a necessary evil, the price of admission for doing a deal with a hot property. An investor would much prefer to see his or her investment used to create a new product, hire new talent or build a sales team - something that would increase a company's odds of succeeding."

Joseph Schumpeter would frown upon this practice...

Microsoft Shops at Wal-Mart for an Operating Chief - New York Times

Microsoft Shops at Wal-Mart for an Operating Chief - New York Times: "The executive, Kevin Turner, 40, had a 19-year career at Wal-Mart, where he rose quickly through the management ranks to become the retailer's chief information officer and, most recently, the chief executive of Sam's Club, the company's warehouse club division.
The post of chief operating officer at Microsoft has proved daunting over the years, lucrative yet precarious. The real power at Microsoft resides with its longtime leaders - Bill Gates, the co-founder and chairman, and Steven A. Ballmer, the chief executive."

He'll be doing better than average for Microsoft hires at this level if he lasts two years...

WSJ.com - Pixar's Earnings, Revenue Plunge Without 'Nemo'

WSJ.com - Pixar's Earnings, Revenue Plunge Without 'Nemo': "Pixar Animation Studios reported steep drops in net income and revenue for the second quarter as a result of tough comparisons with last year's strong performance of 'Finding Nemo' on home video.
After the close of the market, the Emeryville, Calif., company said net for the quarter ended July 2 fell 66% to $12.7 million, or 10 cents a share, from $37.4 million, or 32 cents a share, a year earlier.
Revenue shrank 60% to $26.4 million."

(I still think Steve Jobs should merge both of his companies with Sony...)

WSJ.com - Amazon Appears to Be Moving Toward Offering Digital Music

WSJ.com - Amazon Appears to Be Moving Toward Offering Digital Music: "Internet retailer Amazon.com Inc. appears to be moving toward offering a digital-music service, joining a crowded field that includes Apple Computer Inc., Napster and RealNetworks Inc., among others.
Amazon has held talks with record-label executives in the past two weeks about licensing music, according to people familiar with the discussions. Amazon of Seattle has discussed a music offering that would include options such as song-by-song downloads and a monthly subscription service, those people say.
Amazon has discussed tapping MusicNet, a New York distributor of digital music, to support the service, people familiar with the talks say. Amazon indicated that it is interested in launching a digital-music service in the fourth quarter of this year, according to people who have been briefed on the discussions."

BZ Research Study Names JBoss #1

BZ Research Study Names JBoss #1: "JBoss is the leader in J2EE application server usage according to BZ Research. Not only is JBoss the standard in open source Middleware; the industry has now made JBoss the overall leader in Middleware -- ahead of IBM, BEA, Oracle and others. How do we do it? By delivering enterprise-proven open source technology and backing it up with expert technical support directly from the source."

Interesting milestone. I haven't yet read the full report, but I don't doubt that JBoss has very strong momentum. Check the page for a free download of the market analysis.

(Or maybe not -- the report download app seems to be broken...)

WSJ.com - Microsoft Names Turner As Chief Operating Officer

WSJ.com - Microsoft Names Turner As Chief Operating Officer "Microsoft Corp. named Kevin Turner, formerly a top Wal-Mart Stores Inc. executive, as its chief operating officer.
The Redmond, Wash., software giant said Mr. Turner, 40 years old, will be responsible for the "strategic and operational leadership" of Microsoft's sales, marketing and services work force, as well as the company's fulfillment and information-technology operations.
Mr. Turner was previously president and chief executive officer of Sam's Club, the warehouse club unit of Wal-Mart. Mr. Turner joined Wal-Mart in 1986 as an hourly associate and rose steadily in the company. Microsoft said he has served as executive vice president and chief information officer for Wal-Mart, a role in which he oversaw all information systems operations for the company."

Boston airport tries to kill free Wi-Fi node | CNET News.com

Boston airport tries to kill free Wi-Fi node | CNET News.com: "Boston's Logan International Airport is attempting to pull the plug on Continental Airlines' free Wi-Fi node, which competes with the airport's $7.95-a-day pay service."

Cellphones? Over There, Right Next to the Nachos - New York Times

Cellphones? Over There, Right Next to the Nachos - New York Times: "When 7-Eleven started its own mobile phone service last year, stocking handsets on the shelves near the beef jerky and burritos, it became one of dozens of companies, many with no experience in the phone business, making a new sideline of selling mobile communications. "

Technology 'optimists' turn off TV -- study - Yahoo! News

Technology 'optimists' turn off TV -- study - Yahoo! News: "Broadband Internet surfers in North America watch two fewer hours of television per week than do those without Internet access, while those using a dial-up connection watch 1.5 fewer hours of TV. "

Mozilla Plans Faster Growth for Its Browser - New York Times

Mozilla Plans Faster Growth for Its Browser - New York Times: "The Mozilla Foundation, developer of the Firefox Web browser, plans to announce Wednesday that it has created a for-profit subsidiary to pursue wider potential for the software.
...
Foundation executives say they want to help Firefox gain greater use. That will require offering service and support at a fee, which are beyond the scope of the original nonprofit organization, they say."

IE 7.0 Technical Changes Leave Web Developers, Users in the Lurch

IE 7.0 Technical Changes Leave Web Developers, Users in the Lurch: "My advice is simple: Boycott IE. It's a cancer on the Web that must be stopped. IE isn't secure and isn't standards-compliant, which makes it unworkable both for end users and Web content creators. Because of their user bases, however, Web developers are hamstrung into developing for IE at the expense of established standards that work well in all other browsers. You can turn the tide by demanding more from Microsoft and by using a better alternative Web browser. I recommend and use Mozilla Firefox, but Apple Safari (Macintosh only) and Opera 8 are both worth considering as well."

Surprisingly harsh for Paul Thurrott. BTW Firefox also doesn't pass Acid2.

[print version] IBM targets Microsoft's suite spot | CNET News.com

[print version] IBM targets Microsoft's suite spot | CNET News.com "Once mired in a stagnant market, IBM's Lotus division will use industry standards to loosen Microsoft's grip on desktop software, according to the outgoing Lotus general manager.
The Lotus division, which includes IBM's Notes, WebSphere Portal and Workplace products, turned in a 17 percent year-over-year revenue increase in the second quarter--the third consecutive quarter of double-digit growth."

Cool to see revitalized competition in the communication/collaboration space -- always good for customers.

CRN | Breaking News | Oracle To Buy Assets Of Context Media

CRN | Breaking News | Oracle To Buy Assets Of Context Media: "Oracle is breaking out its checkbook again, this time to acquire technology and staff from Context Media, a Providence, R.I.-based content integration company, industry sources said. "

WSJ.com - Vonage, TowerStream Join Forces

WSJ.com - Vonage, TowerStream Join Forces: "Under the partnership with closely held TowerStream, of Middletown, R.I., Vonage's Internet-phone service will be made available to TowerStream's 1,000 corporate clients, mostly banks, retailers and colleges.
TowerStream provides a technology known as WiMAX, short for world-wide interoperability for microwave access. WiMAX delivers high-speed Internet access using antennas that send and receive signals, potentially as far away as 30 miles."

Polaroid cuts R&D, digital plans - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Technology - Business

Polaroid cuts R&D, digital plans - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Technology - Business: "Three months after completing its takeover of Polaroid Corp. in Waltham, Petters Group Worldwide LLC has abandoned the company's digital imaging technology and laid off most of its once-vaunted research and development staff, according to an internal memo and Polaroid employees.
The moves, detailed in a July 11 memo, mean Polaroid is now little more than a brand name, which Petters has affixed to a line of standard consumer electronics, and a shrinking manufacturing operation that produces instant film for Polaroid cameras."

Tupperware Deploys Oracle(R) Collaboration Suite - Forbes.com

Tupperware Deploys Oracle(R) Collaboration Suite - Forbes.com: "To better manage and streamline business processes and communications with its sales force, Tupperware, a leading manufacturer of food storage, preparation and serving products, successfully implemented Oracle(R) Collaboration Suite and Oracle Portal. "

Significant milestone for Oracle as a communication/collaboration vendor.

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Skype's online calling rings through industry

The Seattle Times: Business & Technology: Skype's online calling rings through industry: "Skype is adding 130,000 registered users a day — in the process creating its own vocabulary, as in "skype me" — all without spending a cent on advertising.
...
Skype gets revenue in two ways. The first, SkypeOut, lets users place calls to regular phones for about 1.7 euro cents a minute. Callers buy prepaid calling cards for 10 euros ($12), which provide about 600 minutes.
The second source of revenue, SkypeIn, provides users with a phone number so they can receive calls from regular phones. A customer in London can get a San Francisco number that lets friends and family in California call him or her at local rates. The service costs 30 euros a year.
Zennstrom says about 5 percent of Skype users pay for one plan or the other.
Zennstrom estimates that as many as 30 percent of skypers are business clients such as Kern and Vollenweider."

Check the full article for details on how AOL plans to challenge Skype.

Rating System Will Evaluate Free Software - New York Times

Rating System Will Evaluate Free Software - New York Times: "So companies often have to do their own testing and tweaking to see if such open-source programs - free software available for programmers to modify or enhance - work reliably. That obstacle has slowed the software's advance.
To address the problem, Carnegie Mellon University, Intel and SpikeSource, a company that supports and tests corporate open-source projects, have devised a rating system intended to reduce confusion and guesswork in evaluating such software. The initiative, Business Readiness Ratings, is to be announced today at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in Portland, Ore."

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Making online connections the Microsoft way

The Seattle Times: Microsoft: Making online connections the Microsoft way: "Now Spaces users have more than 15 million Spaces blogs, and some 500,000 are updated every day, according to MSN. Users would be able to pull some parts of their Virtual Earth postings into their Spaces blog.
Spaces still has a way to go before it overtakes Google's Blogger as the top blogging service. It ranked fifth in June, with nearly 4 million unique visitors, according to comScore Media Metrix. Blogger had nearly 12 million unique visitors.
MSN is planning to boost Spaces' popularity by launching social-networking features this fall. The service could compete with more established services, such as MySpace, Friendster and Orkut."

More People Turn to the Web to Watch TV - New York Times

More People Turn to the Web to Watch TV - New York Times: "For two decades, media company executives and advertisers have been talking about creating fully interactive television that would allow viewers to watch exactly what they want, when they want it.
It looks like that future may well be by way of the computer, as big media and Internet companies develop new Web-based video programming and advertising that is truly under the command of the viewer. As Americans grow more comfortable watching programs online, Internet programming is beginning to combine the interactivity and immediacy of the Web with the alluring engagement of television."

Start-up slashes cost of international wireless - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Technology - Business

Start-up slashes cost of international wireless - The Boston Globe - Boston.com - Technology - Business: "In just one year, computer users around the world have downloaded 140 million copies of the Skype program that lets them make free phone calls over the Internet to other Skype users.
Now a Kendall Square start-up is pushing Skype into a new frontier: cellphones. Through a $10-a-year software rental that goes on sale today, iSkoot promises to let people make international calls to other Skype users for nothing more than the price of local air time for the link from their cellphones to their broadband-connected home computers."