SALE! Get It While It's Hot!!
On September 14th Windows Me will hit retail store shelves, and by September 15th, Microsoft hopes to have empty store shelves. To help boost the possibility that consumers will flock to stores to purchase the upgrade, Microsoft announced today that it will be cutting the price of the new operating system from $89 to $59 USD for the upgrade version. Experts say Microsoft may have reason to worry that it will not sell particularly well, and that the sale may not boost purchases all that much. Visit Microsoft for more information.
America Online, Others Sued For Blocking E-Mail
A Rochester, N.Y., online marketing research firm told
Washtech.com this morning it filed a lawsuit against Internet/online
service giant America Online Inc. [NYSE:AOL] and other Internet service
providers (ISPs), alleging that they all are blocking the research firm
from communicating with its members.
Harris Interactive Inc. said it is namely targeting AOL and Redmond,
Wash.-based Microsoft Corp.'s [NASDAQ:MSFT] HotMail for blocking
Harris' e-mail from reaching registered participants who opt-in for
online marketing research. Harris also is charging an antitrust
complaint against Dulles, Va.-based AOL, which operates its own online
market-research company called Digital Marketing Systems (DGS).
Norton AntiVirus 2001 Beta Testing
Norton has announced the availability of its popular Norton AntiVirus 2001 beta. New features in this version of the software include an autoupdate feature that checks for virus pattern updates every single time the customer gets online, and support for Windows 2000 and Windows Millennium Edition. The beta will function for 30 days, and Symantec does not provide support for the product. Visit the beta page for more information and to download the beta.
Stephen King Novel Downloads Break Records
Internet distribution of The Plant, the new novel by
Stephen King, topped 100,000 completed downloads in its first two
days of online sales, Conxion, the Internet operator handling the
e-book, announced.
The download, the firm said, was a record for King's work, and a
respectable figure for the digital delivery of books.
Windows Whistler Beta in October
Microsoft announced that it plans to have a beta ready for testers in October of this year, just one month after the release of Windows Millenium to consumers. The future roadmap predicts that the new operating system will hit RTM in the middle of next year, and storm retail shelves just in time for the holiday and back-to-school computer buying spree. Executives stated they wanted to see Windows Millennium on retail computers for a while before the release of Whistler the following year.
Another Outlook Worm Does The Rounds
Anti-virus companies are warning of another
virus variant that is spreading across the Internet and infecting -
and being spread by - users of Microsoft's Internet Explorer and
Outlook e-mail software.
Computer Associates International (CA) today warned of the
"moderate risk" Wscript/Kak.B worm, a variant of the
widely-spread "Kak.A" worm that hides in the HTML of an e-mail.
Galaxy Contest 2000
In more contest news, ThePluginSite.com is announcing the beginning of Galaxy Contest 2000 to highlight computer graphics skill and creativity. Harald Heim tells BetaNews, "This contest gives everyone the chance of unleashing artistic freedom and presenting the digital creations to the public."
Six categories can be entered including the following:
Decisions, Decisions - The Graphics Card Debate
The guys over at Anandtech have served up a nice little article for all you computer users out there who haven't decided what graphics card to upgrade your computer with yet. The article features 3dfx, ATI, and NVIDIA, and compares the image quality and FSAA support. It is a very in-depth look at the cards, and should help resolve any questions you may have about the current market. Read the report for more information.
Securing Windows 2000
In other Microsoft news, Ars Technica has written up another great article to help computer users everywhere secure Windows 2000. The report takes users from setting up good passwords to anti-virus software, to updating the system. Here is a little preview: "Contrary to what you might think, basic workstation security does not begin with file system permission. Nope, file system permissions are not what we want to deal with right now." Read the article for more information.
Microsoft Patch for Protected Store Vulnerability
Microsoft has released a patch to fix a vulnerability in Windows 2000 that would allow a malicious user to "compromise sensitive data belonging to a Windows 2000 user" due to Windows storing the data with a weaker encryption than it should. According to the Microsoft FAQ concerning the issue "It would not be a simple feat" but a user could obtain sensitive information from the computer. Read the security bulletin for more information and download locations. You can also read the FAQ for more information.
Windows Me Sweepstakes and Giveaway
As part of the promotion of the new operating system, Microsoft is holding a Windows Me Sweepstakes in which it will give away 50 special edition copies of the operating system every day. Each copy will be autographed by Bill Gates himself and the grand prize winner and a friend will receive an exclusive tour of the Redmond campus and more.
According to the Web site, the winner will "visit Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash. to meet the developers who created Windows Me and take an exclusive, private tour of the Microsoft "Digital Home of the Future" and the Microsoft Museum. And since your friends will never believe you unless they see proof, we'll even throw in a brand-new HP Photosmart C200 digital camera so you can record the whole event.""
Diablo II Expansion Pack
According to the gaming site Infoceptor, Blizzard is in fact planning an expansion set to its immensely popular game Diablo II. The expansion will feature new monsters, classes (Assassin and Druid), and skills as well as new items, some of which can only be used by one class. The information was extracted from a txt file found by a staff member at Infoceptor, and has since been posted on the Infoceptor Web site. Read the expansion information to learn the details of this Blizzard project.
Magnitrax Skin Contest
Mark Scott over at Pixel Kenetix sent word of a skins contest for the company's latest software entitled MagniTrax. According to Scott," MagniTrax is a new software application featuring resizable skins and head tracking technology (using a USB camera), among other things. Since we are on the verge of distribution, we are having a contest in search of a skin to ship
as the default skin worldwide." The winner will receive at least $200 USD, and have their skin be shipped as the default for the application. For more information visit the contest site.
Groups@AOL Beta
Internet giant America Online is currently beta testing a new service from the company. Dubbed Groups@AOL, the service allows any AOL user (instant messenger screen names not valid), to form private groups of friends and family where various actions can take place. According to the Web site, "You can post photos from your latest gathering, leave private notes with friends throughout the day, plan parties and outings in a shared calendar, and much more." People must be invited by the group creator to join, keeping them private and tailored to your liking. For more information visit the Groups@AOL Web site.
StarOffice - A Closer Look
The writers over at Win98Central have cooked up an excellent review of StarOffice 5.2 for you readers out there still wondering whether or not it was worth the download. Reviewer Stephen Ristich writes "This suite is the result of true innovation and listening to what consumers really want in an office suite." The review looks at features and quickly summarizes each program in the office suite. Read the review for more information.
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