Microsoft Reader Available for Download
As part of its new e-book promotion, and the beginning of the Microsoft branded e-bookstore at BarnesandNoble.com, Microsoft has announced the availability of Microsoft Reader free of charge from the Microsoft Web site. In addition to the software, major publishers have announced major e-book deals for consumers at bn.com. ClearType technology developed at the Redmond campus makes Microsoft Reader "clearly the best software for extended reading on any computing device." For more information visit the MS Reader Web site.
SQL Server 2000 Released to Manufacturing
Microsoft has announced that SQL Server 2000 was released to manufacturers today. According to the press release, some customers have been producing the program as part of an early adoption program for the newest software. SQL Server 2000 is the first in the .NET server family, and will serve as the backbone for future .Net software releases. Paul Flessner, vice president of .NET enterprise servers at Microsoft said "SQL Server 2000 has received unprecedented quality-assurance testing." For more information visit Microsoft.
Linux on Your Wrist
Big Blue is reportedly working on a watch running Linux that will be able to communicate with PCs, cellular phones, and other wireless devices. According to the press release, the watches will be able to "view condensed email messages and directly receive pager-like messages. In addition, it will provide users with calendar, address book and to-do list functions..." for starters.
Future plans for the time piece being developed at IBM include high-res screens and applications to allow the watch to access the net and other Internet-based services.
Microsoft Begins Office 10 Beta Testing
Beta 1 of Microsoft Office version 10 was released to testers today. As the next step from Office 2000, version 10 of the software will incorporate many new features such as new formatting options, various Web parts components, and a new Web-based data storage feature. No word yet when the Redmond giant will ship this version to consumers, though the Mac version of the popular office suite is expected in October. Visit Microsoft for more information.
Windows ME for MSDN Subscribers
Subscribers to Microsoft's Developers Network now have access to download the final version of Windows Millennium Edition, dubbed Windows ME. Consumers will be able to purchase Windows Millennium on September 14th, when it will be available in retail stores. The operating system hit gold status in June, and was released to manufacturers at that time. For more information about Windows Me, visit Microsoft.
Sega.Net Online Gaming Service Beta Begins
Over 100 Dreamcast gamers will be chosen to participate in the Sega.Net online gaming service beta test beginning August 21st and ending August 29th. The service is expected to launch in September, and during the testing period these "hard core gamers" Sega is looking for will be asked to play games across the net, and will have the chance to win various prizes during that time. Sign-ups begin August 9th at Sega.com and the testers will be randomly chosen shortly thereafter. Winners must be at least 18 years of age and be required to sign a nondisclosure agreement about the services. Media members and professionals in the gaming industry are ineligible to participate.
Xypoint Launches Wireless Audiotext E-mail Service
Mozilla M17 and Netscape Beta 2 Coming Soon
According to posts on Mozillazine.org, Beta 2 of Netscapes browser, and M17 of Mozilla are near completion. Testing of the final software was requested on Friday, and users could expect to see it released to the public sometime this week. For more information read the article at Mozillazine.org.
.Net Frameworks SDK Pre-Beta
Microsoft has released the .Net Frameworks SDK, also known as ASP+, to MSDN Universal Subscribers. This pre-beta is the same build number as the PDC bits, and will give developers an idea of the power and features of the .Net framework and what to expect in the future. Visit the DevX site for information and tutorials about ASP+ and Visual Studio .Net, or visit the download site to get a copy today.
Brown Orifice - Netscapes Backdoor
An article over at Progenic.com is saying that a Silicon Valley computer consultant named Dan Brumleve has discovered a backdoor in Netscape entitled Brown Orifice. The flaw "turns Netscape Navigator into a secret web server by exploiting vulnerabilities residing in the browsers Java interpreter," according to the report. So a malicious user need only to have a person visit a Web site that installs the backdoor to then be able to view anything on that persons hard drive. Brumleve told reporters, "This is a pretty scary bug...I think what I did with it is pretty cool -- it might have a lot of practical uses. The danger here is what other people might do with the same technique in the future." For more information read the full article at Progenic.com.
XDK Details Emerge
Win98Central has reported this morning that thanks to the dedicated X-Box site, XBox365, techies now have a glimpse of what the XDK released to developers this week has inside it. The documentation for the XDK has a slew of information about the X-Box and some of its components, which include a stripped down version of Windows 2000 as the operating system, and the absence of DLL loads for the console. The image format for the games is not supported by any other executable system, including the Windows 2000 executable format. You can read the XBox365 article for more information, or go straight to the XDK documentation.
Microsoft To Update Reader To Beat Copyright Worries
Weekend editions of the Financial Times said that Microsoft will launch a new version of Reader, its e-book software, on Aug. 8, in a bid to counter online copyright worries.
The financial paper said that new version of Reader will feature greatly enhanced copyright protection facilities, and will link with
a Microsoft-branded e-bookstore at barnesandnoble.com .
Bill Sounds Off
In a recent interview with RedHerring magazine, Microsoft founder Bill Gates sounded off against his Silicon Valley mates and the recent anti-trust troubles the company has had. While there was discussion of Microsoft's new .net strategy and the direction that the Redmond giant is headed for the future, the most interesting remarks spurred from the one question the magazine was allowed to ask Gates with regards to the DOJ.
An excerpt from the interview is as follows:
Judge: Yahoo Must Turn Over Data On
A judge reportedly ordered GeoCities, a
subsidiary of Yahoo Inc. [NASDAQ:YHOO], to give Apple Computer Inc.
personal data on an individual accused of posting Apple trade secrets
online.
GeoCities was issued a subpoena late Thursday ordering that it turn
over records of "worker bee," a pseudonym used by a member who
posted photos and information about Apple's new computer mouse and
dual-processor PowerMacs prior to their unveiling at a company trade
show last month, the Associated Press reported.
AOL To Cut Download "Spying" Feature From Netscape
America Online Inc [NYSE:AOL] will remove a feature of
its Netscape browser's SmartDownload technology that has alarmed
privacy advocates and spawned at least one class action lawsuit, a
report said.
In late June, New Jersey photographer and Webmaster Christopher
Specht filed a lawsuit against AOL, which purchased Netscape
Communications in 1999 for $10 billion, claiming the company was
using the popular file-download module to "spy" on browser users as
they retrieve certain kinds of files from servers across the
Internet.
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