Firefox Hits 1 Billion Downloads -- So What's Next?

Mozilla's has just hit a new milestone, reaching its . The big event happened Thursday night, according to the company's .

To be clear, that's 1 billion total downloads since Firefox's 2004 debut -- an atypical type of statistic . Still, if you look at the more standard measures of success, Firefox is showing , while the long-time industry giant continues to slide.

Firefox and the Browser Market

Measuring the first 30 days of July, Firefox holds an average of 30.5 percent of the global browser market, according to data from Web metrics firm . Internet Explorer, on the other hand, sits at 60.12 percent. Safari and Chrome are tied at just over 3 percent, and Opera trails behind at 2.65 percent.

Where those numbers become more significant is in a year-to-year comparison: For the same time period in 2008, Firefox held 26.07 percent of the global browser market, while IE held 68.64 percent. Safari had 3.31 percent, Opera had 1.77 percent, and Chrome -- well, Chrome was back then.

Putting that into perspective, Firefox has grown its userbase by 17 percent, comparing its July '08 and July '09 numbers. IE, in the same comparison, has lost 12.4 percent of its users worldwide. Even the recent release of Internet Explorer 8 for the .

Firefox and the Future

So what happens from here? The one certainty is that the browser market is in a state of flux. Even the smaller alternative browsers are slowly reshaping the playing field: In July of 2008, the alternatives made up only about 5 percent of the market. By July of 2009, with the addition of Chrome, they collectively have 8.67 percent of all worldwide users -- a growth of 70.6 percent from the previous year.

In the big picture, IE maintains an advantage with its default preinstalled placement on Windows computers, as well as with its frequent adoption within the corporate world. The former factor, however, is starting to fade: Microsoft is for the first time shipping versions of , thanks to the surrounding anti-competition laws. That's a significant change.

As for the latter factor -- corporate browser usage -- that may be Firefox's toughest hurdle to overcome. Numerous analyses over the years have identified the enterprise realm . Though the company is taking steps to of its product, many question whether the browser is ready for widespread business adoption.

However it is or isn't being used, what's remained constant with Firefox has been its ongoing growth alongside IE's nonstop drop. , that trend certainly seems to suggest the great browser race is far from finished; the tides, it appears, have plenty more shifting ahead.

Is This the iPhone Nano? I Hope Not

Rumors that Apple is working on an iPhone Nano are spreading -- again. The latest batch of rumors began when an Apple patent was rediscovered.

The patent, which depicts a device with all the features you'd expect, including audio and video play, Wi-Fi, phone, SMS, and a still-image camera, has been seen before. uncovered the same filing just over two years ago. The patent was originally owned by John G. Elias, but is now owned by Apple, according to

Elias is best known as the founder of , the company behind the technology that made the iPhone touch screen possible. FingerWorks was sold to Apple in 2005. In addition to his FingerWorks technology, Elias is reportedly working with Apple on other touch-sensitive devices.

Image courtesy of MacNN

Image courtesy of MacNN

While the idea that Apple may be working on an iPhone Nano is admittedly exciting, there's only word I can think of to sum up the device described in this patent: crazy. If you take a look at the designs, the supposed iPhone Nano would have a simple front-facing display with no touch capacity, while the back of the device would have an iPod-style click wheel and possibly a numeric keypad.

That means you would have to keep your eyes on the front display, while your fingers worked madly to control the device from the backside. If you were working the iPod functions that may not be so bad, because you can use the click wheel without looking at it.

But imagine trying to make a phone call with this thing. If you have a regular phone, turn it around and see if you can dial your own phone number that way. It's a terrible way to work, isn't it? MacNN agrees with my assessment, but is willing to give Apple the benefit of the doubt.

In the post, writer Jack Purcher says "knowing Apple, I may just laugh at just how easy it really is with a little bit of practice. Time will tell on that one." We don't need time, Jack, I can tell you right now: This design is nuts. There's just no way that a company like Apple would ever come out with a device like this. It's simply an impractical and counter intuitive solution (if you can even call it a solution).

It may be that Apple is working on an iPhone Nano, but I think the company would be better off just the world is already lusting after. My guess is this iPhone Nano patent is just a safeguard to keep any competitors from coming out with a similar device. As we've seen before, -- and many technology companies, for that matter -- are patent-happy. If you ask me, a device like this will never see the light of day, at least not with an Apple logo on it.

The real question this patent brings up is whether we'll see an iPhone Nano in the future. It's possible, I suppose. But given the fact this iPhone Nano patent has made the blog rounds before, and past about a that have , I wouldn't bet on it.

Intel is Right: Windows 7 Will Succeed

Now here's a prediction you can believe in: , the chief sales and marketing officer for chip maker Intel, that Microsoft's upcoming operating system will be welcomed and adopted by consumers and businesses much more quickly than Vista.

In a story in InformationWeek, Maloney said that Windows 7 will be happily embraced after by millions of users who had heard about Vista's poor compatibility with older printers and other peripherals, and its slow performance.

looks to be "just one big positive" for the marketplace, Maloney said to InformationWeek while making an appearance at Intel's Technology Summit in San Francisco. "This time, we think it will go faster."

I second that emotion. Here's why:

* Even Intel itself shunned Vista last time around. Vista wasn't enough of an improvement over Windows XP; it just wasn't as reliable and well-developed. Intel didn't upgrade some 80,000 of its own workers to Vista from XP because of the issues with the OS, according to a report in last June. To me, that's a very telling move from the world's largest and most popular computer chip maker.

* For whatever reason, there's a pattern with releases of new "improved" versions of Windows being skipped over on a regular basis. Windows 95 was a giant success when it was released, in large part because it truly moved computing forward. It improved on the trusted but less-glitzy and less-polished Windows 3.11 for Workgroups and DOS 6.22

But then came which was a huge dud, with its animated help feature and other nonsense, and Windows Millennium Edition (Me), which was named to PC World's "" list.

The successes, Windows 95 and Windows XP after it, come after waves of expensive embarrassments. It's as though Microsoft brings these things out without enough testing, lets consumers and businesses act as their beta testers, then later saves the day by bringing in the much-needed fixes as a new and improved product. How else can you explain it?

* Maybe Microsoft really, truly believed in all of these operating systems when they created, developed, and released them, but perhaps the company is just so huge that it's lost touch with what consumers and business want. In the lab, maybe those animated dogs and other objects in Bob made perfect sense as a way to help nervous first-time users get acclimated to computers. But did they actually think about using such "innovations" themselves and how ridiculous they would appear?

Some people talk until they are blue in the face about Microsoft being the evil empire that is uncaring about what consumers and businesses want from their computers. I disagree strongly. I think Microsoft's shortcoming is its girth and its layers and layers of insulation from the real world of its users. I think if it listened more to us, they never would have given us Bob and Me and Vista. They'd have given us the good stuff from the start (button).

(Todd R. Weiss is a freelance technology journalist who formerly wrote for . Follow him on Twitter at )

What Will Google Do About The Microsoft-Yahoo Deal?

Google is in a difficult situation. As to create a more credible search competitor, many are left wondering what will be the search giant's response.

After for , Microsoft is hoping to expand its share on the online search market. The Redmond company is pushing its Bing search engine to the next big search market leader, Yahoo, in exchange for billions of dollars worth of advertising revenue.

With Yahoo going out of the search game, the search and advertising deal with Microsoft is set to change the online search market hierarchy. Following this, Google will still be the market leader with 65 percent while Microsoft's Bing will trail with an approximated 30 percent market share (Yahoo and Bing combined).

So Who Does the Search?

As details of the imminent deal keep emerging through the morning, that Microsoft's Bing search technology will replace Yahoo Search results. It is yet unclear whether the changes to Yahoo's search engine will be very visible, but most likely a "Powered by Bing" or similar branding will at least be added to the search results.

As pure speculation, one might guess that in the future, Microsoft will implement more of Bing's into Yahoo's search page, such as quick video previews, seamless image search results, and categorized text search results.

The Money is on the Ads

While Microsoft will gain in search engine market, Yahoo will still control the advertising on its own websites and will also sell ads for some of Microsoft's, all using Microsoft's ad technology, according to a report.

The report says that for the first two years of the deal, Yahoo would keep 110 percent of the revenue, while in the third year the company will get 90 percent. In other words, many billions of advertising dollars would go into Yahoo's pockets, as it sells ads for both its sites and Microsoft's.

The Google Reaction

In the past, Yahoo attempted to do a in 2008, but after an (DOJ), threatening with an antitrust lawsuit, the deal was cancelled.

is reporting that Microsoft was lobbying the DOJ against the Google-Yahoo deal at the time. The publication continues saying that now Microsoft is concerned about retaliation from Google, which could lobby regulators to delay the implementation of the expected Microsoft-Yahoo deal.

The Pressure is on Google

has been up to great start since it launched a little while back, getting Taking over Yahoo Search will mean that Microsoft will control almost 30 percent of the search market, with Google still leading the herd with 65 percent. But for how long?

Apple: Jailbreaking Could Knock out Transmission Towers

Apple has told the U.S. Copyright Office that could crash a mobile phone network's transmission towers or allow people to avoid paying for phone calls.

The claims are Apple's contribution to the Copyright Office's regular review of the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act , a law that forbids the circumvention of copy control mechanisms.

Apple says that modification of the phone's software, a process known as jailbreaking, could lead to major network disruptions. Jailbreaking that prohibit, for example, the installation of applications unapproved by Apple.

Apple's , filed June 23, seek to rebut a request to the agency by the digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) that modifications to the iPhone's software and should be allowed.

The U.S. Copyright Office holds hearings every three years to consider requests to make exceptions to the nation's copyright law.

Jailbreaking continues to be popular with iPhone users, who can also then use their devices on the networks of operators who have not signed distribution deals with Apple.

Apple argues that the practice constitutes copyright infringement. No one has been prosecuted for jailbreaking, although .

Apple's latest filing describes potentially severe technical problems operators could face with jailbroken phones.

Since the OS code is accessible on a jailbroken phone, Apple said it would be possible to reprogram one to gain access to the phone's BBP (baseband processor), which controls the connection to the operator's network.

"Because jailbreaking makes hacking of the BPP software much easier, jailbreaking affords an avenue for hackers to accomplish a number of undesirable things on the network," the filing said.

By gaining access to the BPP, hackers could change the phone's ECID (exclusive chip identification), which identifies a phone to the transmission towers, Apple said.

"With access to the BBP via jailbreaking, hackers may be able to change the ECID, which in turn can enable phone calls to be made anonymously (this would be desirable to drug dealers, for example) or charges for the calls to be avoided," Apple said.

While some of Apple's claims may be true, network operators rely on a separate identifier, contained in the phone's SIM (Subscriber Identity Module), to distinguish between customers for billing and authentication purposes.

Apple went on to say that if several phones were modified to have the same ECID, it could cause a transmission tower to malfunction or kick phones off the network. Also, operator limits on data transmission could be circumvented, allowing a hacker to conduct a denial-of-service attack and crash the tower.

"In short, taking control of the BPP software would be much the equivalent of getting inside the firewall of a corporate computer -- to potentially catastrophic result," Apple said.

Technical considerations aside, the that Apple's lock on the iPhone is unmerited from a copyright protection perspective and aims to "suppress competition from independent iPhone application vendors."

The Copyright Office is expected to make a decision in the case later this year.

Yahoo Search: RIP

Goodbye Yahoo Search, rest in peace.

The partnership between Microsoft and Yahoo, , will mark the end of Yahoo Search. Next year, when the , if you run a search on Yahoo Microsoft's will be the underlying technology serving up results. Other Yahoo services remain intact, but the departure of Yahoo Search deserves a moment of reflection. After all, search is where it all began for Yahoo.

This is a shot of Yahoo.com from 1996 compliments of the Internet Archive.

Yahoo started out in 1994 as a ragtag site called "Jerry and David's Guide to the World Wide Web," named after founders Jerry Yang and David Filo, who were at the time students at Stanford University. The name changed to "Yahoo" soon after. The name "Yahoo" was picked because it stood for "Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle," . And a hierarchy it was.

Initially, Yahoo was a repository of hand-selected links, complete with written descriptions of each Web site -- a far cry from today's search engines that mindlessly spider billions of Web pages and index them. Back then, if you wanted to find the rules to tennis on Yahoo, for example, you would navigate to the Recreation & Sports category, then Sports, then Tennis and finally Instructions. (The service lives on today as the )

By 1995 Yahoo had an. Its big competitors at the time were Inktomi and Digital Equipment's Alta Vista. In those halcyon days of the Internet, people loved Yahoo's directory because human-picked links did a better job of indexing the Internet than robot Web crawlers.

As the number of new Websites grew, Yahoo couldn't keep pace. Sometime before 2000, it began working with search provider Inktomi to provide an index of Web sites that could be keyword searched. Ironically, Google behind Yahoo Search in 2000, providing faster and better results than the was using at the time. That deal wasn't meant to last, though. Over the next few years, Yahoo made it clear that it wanted a bigger piece of the search engine pie. (The image on the left is of Yahoo.com from 2001 compliments of the )

In 2002, Yahoo , hoping that in-house engineers could formulate a better search experience. A year later, Yahoo made an even bigger buy, plunking down $1.63 billion to own Overture Services, a commercial search provider that Yahoo was already using to handle pay-for-performance listings.

As Google became more dominant, there were signs that Microsoft and Yahoo were destined for each other. Microsoft, for instance, with Overture even with Yahoo in control. It's the "enemy of my enemy is my friend" situation, where neither company wants to be distracted with each other when there's a bigger target out there.

it had used for years. Search was looking like more of a priority for Yahoo, as the company vowed to build new services for Web searchers, such as technology to filter out redundant URLs. Its search engine was called , a version of the search engine is still in use today.

This is an image of the Yahoo Directory as it appeared in 2004. Image is from the Internet Archive.

That was five years ago, but the story hasn't really changed. Google never slipped from its role as the Goliath of search, and Yahoo would only thanks to Microsoft's . It's wise to for Yahoo to hang back and tend to the portal while Microsoft beefs its ranks and goes to war.

Months before the search deal, it seemed Yahoo had soured on the idea of traditional search. The company had laid out a new vision for the site, one that went above and beyond the "" that so often result from a Web search. But I wonder if Yahoo's heart was really in it. Search isn't everything, after all.

In a way, it looks like Yahoo is back to basics, focusing on delivering news, answers, events and e-mail instead of indexing the Internet. , and it still looks like a Web portal, and one can imagine how search will become even less of a featured attraction when it's being powered by Microsoft.

Funny how the company that started out as a filter for the best information will be able return to its roots -- in a sense. But it's also sad in a nostalgic way. Yahoo will never search again.

This is an image of Yahoo.com as it appears today.

Crackberry Addicts Unite: New T-Mobile Blackberry 8520 is Mac-Ready

It's almost here! Blackberry's first-ever fully-featured, native Apple support -- finally -- right out of the box is being offered in the new smartphone that will be available to T-Mobile USA customers starting August 5.

Also topping the new features list for the device is its touch-sensitive optical trackpad, which for months to replace trackball found on other Blackberry devices.

The integrated new Mac compatibility will get into gear in September, when the phone's maker, Research in Motion, officially launches the long-awaited desktop software that promises to make life easier for Mac-loving Blackberry users. Until Blackberry for Mac, Blackberry users have had to use third-party software such as PocketMac to use their devices with their Mac computers.

The new 8520, along with the just-on-the-horizon Blackberry for Mac software, will be a who until now had to put up with some frustrations to bring together their beloved Macs and Blackberries. There is, however, one caveat: Blackberry for Mac will support only Mac OS X version 10.5.5 or higher, leaving some users in the cold for now.

The new 8520 will be offered in black or frost, and includes a built-in 2-megapixel digital camera in an attractive if not distinctive 4.29-inch-tall, 2.36-inch-wide and .54-inch-thin unit.

Other features include:

• New dedicated on-screen media keys that allow users to instantly skip songs, pause their music or repeat favorite songs while easily answering calls.
• A full QWERTY keyboard.
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g enabled
• 256MB flash memory
• 1150 mAHr rechargeable Lithium battery, with a claimed 4.5 hours of talk time
• 320-by-240 pixel screen
• 2.64-inch diagonal color display
• A hot-swappable microSD/SDHC memory card slot, with an included 1GB card.
• Quad-band world phone: EGDE/GPRS/GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)

No pricing has yet been announced by T-Mobile, but customers can when pricing is available.

Amazing -- native Mac support comes to Blackberries. Has hell frozen over today, too?

Western Digital 1TB Drive Creates Dilemma for Laptop Buyers

It's pretty much a given that solid state drives (s) are the future of PC storage, and that hard drives are on the way out. But if you're buying a laptop today, which option is best?

The latest notebook drives, like 1-terabyte model, are astonishingly huge and relatively cheap. Priced at $250, the 1TB Scorpio Blue has more storage than most consumer laptop users will ever need. Amateur filmmakers shooting HD video may want a 1TB drive, but the rest of us could get by with a lot less space. Even the 750GB Scorpio Blue, which sells for a very reasonable $190, is probably overkill for the average user.

Smaller and less expensive hard drives are always an option, of course. But if you're shopping for a premium notebook in the $1500-and-up range, the SSD vs. HD debate may be the hardest part of configuring your system.

Which Is Best?

Solid state drives are faster than hard drives, at least most of the time. , although it hasn't worked out all the kinks yet. For instance, older and cheaper SSDs running the new OS may perform worse than conventional hard drives. But Windows 7 notebooks with the latest SSDs should have a performance edge.

Unlike whirring hard drives with their spinning platters, SSDs are silent and use less energy. Since they have no moving parts, they're far more rugged too. They're slimmer and lighter than hard drives, and manufacturers are finding ways to trim them even more. that weight only 7.5 to 8.5 grams, considerably less than the 75 to 85 grams that 1.8- and 2.5-inch SSDs weigh.

But despite SSD's advantages, today's premium laptop buyer would likely choose a hard drive. Because even with recent price drops, solid state drives are still too expensive for mainstream, consumer use. Example: . The 160GB model costs $440. Compare that to Western Digital's 1TB Scorpio Blue at $250.

Apple's Digital Album Plan Sounds Familiar

Apple is working on a new plan to , according to a report taking the Web by storm this week. The story, published Monday , describes a deal involving Apple and four major record labels. It cites "people familiar with the situation" as having provided the information.

Apple and Digital Album Sales

Apple's motivation for such a program would be obvious: Record companies stand to make far more money from full album sales than from single track purchases. Right now, in the era of 99-cent song purchases, people instead of complete collections.

Still, despite in the tech world, the idea -- said to be codenamed "Cocktail" -- may not be as innovative as it sounds. Early last year, for example, Sony BMG debuted a program called . The program offers "complete album and bonus materials" with a full album purchase, packaging in digital booklets, videos, remixes, live tracks, and documentaries.

Compare that to the new "Cocktail" system, which is said to include interactive booklets, liner notes, photos, lyric sheets, and video clips. Aside from the fact that Apple's edition would presumably focus on Internet-based sales -- the MusicPass cards themselves are -- the concepts sound eerily similar.

To be clear, I'm , complete with artwork and all the extras. And I waste way too much time watching live videos and behind-the-scenes footage of my favorite bands. But given that programs like MusicPass, , have seen only middling success, would "Cocktail" be any different? Would it actually motivate the digital music-buying masses to shell out the extra dough for a

Apple Tablet Ready by Xmas, Served with Multimedia 'Cocktail,' Says Report

Apple is racing to launch a tablet-sized device in time for the Christmas shopping season, according to a report from the (FT). Featuring a 10-inch touch screen display, Apple's tablet is also said to launch alongside "Cocktail," a project designed to increase sales of CD-length music.

The Apple tablet, rumored for more than a year now, has finally gained some credibility with FT's report today. The publication also quotes "executives familiar with the plans" saying that Apple could be planning a simultaneous launch of the tablet with a new service that is "all about re-creating the heyday of the album when you would sit around with your friends looking at the artwork, while you listened to the music."

What we know about the Apple tablet

FT is scarce on details about Apple's upcoming tablet device. The report describes device as a "full-featured, tablet-sized computer" which will be out just in time for the Christmas shopping season. The tablet's screen is reported to be up to 10 inches in diagonal but it won't have phone capabilities like the .

The FT says the Apple tablet will have Wi-Fi, allowing it to access to Apple's online stores. Besides Amazon Kindle-like capabilities, the Apple tablet is reported to be great for watching movies, according to an entertainment executive quoted by the FT. No word on pricing, but previous speculation points to an .

What's in Apple's "Cocktail"

The FT is also reporting that Apple is working on a project code-named "Cocktail," a collaboration between the Cupertino company and record labels, namely EMI, Sony Music, Warner Music and Universal Music Group, which will bundle liner notes and video clips with the music sold on the iTunes Music Store (iTMS). The initiative is reportedly expected to be a reality as early as September.

The FT says Cocktail is a new type of interactive album, which will combine photos, lyrics sheets, video clips, and liner notes, all gathered into an interactive booklet. This new breed of album booklet will also play songs directly, without having to go back to iTunes, the report adds.

Myth or Reality?

Convinced by the Apple tablet? Judging by the expected screen size and rumored capabilities, the Apple tablet will not only be an oversized iPod Touch, ready for prime-time movies and music, but also a direct competitor to Amazon's Kindle if Apple will start selling books in the iTunes music store.

Although so far the "Cocktail" news would put multimedia at the heart of the Apple tablet, Internet connectivity is the key to delivering the content to the device. And this is where and today's FT report conflict: Apple Insider said the tablet would feature 3G connectivity, same as the iPhone, while the FT reported today that no such capability will be present.

RSA Software Boosts iPhone Security

SA, The Security Division of EMC, announced the availability of the RSA SecurID Software Token for iPhone Devices that enables an iPhone to be used as an RSA SecurID authenticator, providing convenient and cost-effective two-factor authentication to enterprise applications and resources. The RSA SecurID Software Token App is now available on the App Store at no charge. The required RSA SecurID software token seed as well as RSA Authentication Manager -- the software that powers the RSA SecurID system -- are both available for purchase worldwide.

"We are rolling out the RSA token to those using iPhones at our company and the feedback has been very positive. Our associates always have their iPhones right by their side and prefer not to carry a hardware token," said Rajeev Ravindran, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, JM Family Enterprises, Inc. "We have been users of software tokens from RSA on other smartphones for years, so the move to support the iPhone was an easy decision. The new token is simple to deploy and easy to use."

The new RSA SecurID Software Token for iPhone is engineered to generate a one-time password that changes every 60 seconds, enabling secure access to enterprise applications and resources. The solution complements the existing range of authentication methods offered by RSA, giving customers a choice in the way they assure identities to a system, resource or information based on risk, cost and convenience. Through a simple download from the App Store, the software token application can be installed easily on the user's iPhone. With one tap the user can enable the App with a unique software token seed provided by their IT organization, creating a convenient, secure and cost-effective authenticator.

"iPhones are increasingly penetrating the enterprise and are being used as standard business tools. This aligns with consumerization of IT where companies need to accommodate for these newer devices while maintaining the security of their existing systems," said Scott Crawford, Managing Research Director, Security and Risk Management, Enterprise Management Associates. "This becomes an opportunity to leverage the iPhone for strong authentication while generating a cost-effective asset."

The use of RSA SecurID software tokens can help decrease total cost of ownership for organizations as they do not require any physical shipping, can be revoked and automatically redeployed if an iPhone is lost, eliminating the need for replacement tokens. Additionally, having the software authenticator on a business critical device like the iPhone reduces the number of lost or forgotten tokens, decreasing the number of costly technical support calls.

Microsoft Office File Format 'Vulnerable'

Microsoft's plan to "sandbox" Office documents in the next version of its application suite is an admission that the company can't keep hackers from exploiting file format bugs, a security analyst said.

"What's been happening is that Office has lots of vulnerabilities," said John Pescatore, Gartner's primary security analyst. "For the past 18 months, hackers have been fuzzing Office file formats," he said, referring to a tactic that relies on automated tools that drop random data into applications to see if, and where, breakdowns occur.

Fuzzing has been a hacker's best friend: Microsoft has file format vulnerabilities in Office applications, most recently in July when it fixed a flaw in Publisher 2007 and in June, when it patched seven vulnerabilities in Excel and two more in Word.

"What's happening is that the bad guys are using fuzzing tools to find vulnerabilities in Office, and now Microsoft is saying, 'Okay, we can't find, let alone fix, every vulnerability. So here's a way to put a sandbox around the vulnerability."

The sandbox technique Pescatore mentioned is a new addition to Office 2010, the upcoming upgrade to Microsoft's bestselling Windows application suite.

According to Brad Albrecht, a senior security program manager with the Office team, Office 2010 will sport something called "Protected View" that isolates Word, Excel and PowerPoint files in a read-only environment. The sandbox, said Albrecht in a post to a this week, will have "minimal access to the system, and no access to your other files and information. Even if the file is malicious, it can't get out of the sandbox and do harm to your computer or data."

"That's a good thing," Pescatore agreed. "Sandboxing and isolation are always good things in security, if only to limit the damage of a malicious file."

Albrecht also spelled out other security measures that Office 2010 will implement, including a more flexible file blocker and a suite-wide roll-out of "Office File Validation," a practice that was rolled out in Publisher 2007 Service Pack 2 (SP2).

The file blocker, introduced in Office 2007 then in September 2007 with SP3, automatically bars access to some document types. Albrecht said that Office 2010 will let users fine-tune the feature to better manage which formats Word, Excel and PowerPoint open.

"File blocking was a real broad-brush thing in Office 2007," said Pescatore, "and it would give users obscure error messages." He applauded the move toward flexibility in the file blocker.

Office File Validation, meanwhile, is a system that validates older, pre-XML file formats for Word, Excel and PowerPoint, then blocks those that don't conform to the documented format. Documents that contain malicious code would presumably trigger the block. At that point, Office 2010 will hand off the file to the Protected View sandbox.

"There's still a trade-off," said Pescatore, talking about the improved security Microsoft plans for Office 2010. "The file in the sandbox is read-only, but if I need to open it and add something to it, that's going to annoy users."

Another downside, said Pescatore: Sandboxing, which is essentially lightweight versions of virtual machines, consumes PC resources. "On the other hand, PCs are getting faster, so we have the ability to throw more cycles at [sandboxes]."

Albrecht claimed that the new security features in Office 2010 would have "an indistinguishable performance impact on your [document] load time," but didn't go into detail about system requirements or the impact on the machine's memory and processor resources.

Microsoft declined to make Albrecht available to answer follow-up questions about Office 2010's security plans.

But Pescatore likes what he sees in Microsoft's bird's-eye view. "To build a sandbox, especially around Word docs, that's a very good idea."

Verizon May be Getting Ready to Host the Apple Tablet

The rumors just keep coming. We've heard perhaps to make AT&T a little nervous about maintaining or perhaps to actually expand service options. Or, perhaps, Apple is angling to cut a deal with another carrier in regard to a different product.

Here's another clue: TechCruch is Verizon Wireless is to expedite the roll-out of its LTE network (also dubbed 4G), possibly in conjunction with the release of a new Apple device. anyone?

Verizon announced it is aiming to have two test markets this year, and have 25 to 30 markets ready for LTE by the end of 2010. Verizon's new plan (according to TechCrunch's unnamed, but reliable source) is "putting just about everything it has in to moving many of these markets up to Q1 2010."

Rumors of an Apple tablet have been circulating for some time, most have predicted a . TechCrunch's source speculates that a No microphone means no calls. No calls means the device would play nice with AT&T's exclusive iPhone contract, which is set to

Then again, let's not forget other rumors that Verizon has been in

Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing a Verizon LTE iPhone with speeds of up to 80Mbps coming sometime down the road.

Microsoft, Intel Design Windows 7 to Be Speedy

Collaboration with Microsoft could allow the software giant's to take advantage of multithreaded and multicore Intel chips for faster application performance, according to an Intel official.

Microsoft and Intel are working together to give the ability to better identify resources available and break up application processing over multiple chip cores and threads.

A feature called SMT parking allows Windows 7 to take advantage of Intel hyperthreading technology for "better performance on hyperthreaded, multicore Intel processors," wrote Joakim Lialias, an Intel alliance manager, in a blog entry on Microsoft's that was posted late Wednesday.

This feature will help users break up tasks like video encoding and image filtering over multiple task-execution threads, said George Alfs, an Intel spokesman. "The more cores you have, the better," Alfs said. Intel chips based on its new Nehalem architecture are capable of running two threads per core, and ultimately all of Intel's laptop and desktop chips will be based on Nehalem, Alfs said.

The companies also worked together on technologies that could allow Windows 7 to boot and shut down faster, Alfs said. Driver and BIOS-level improvement could improve the start, shut-down, sleep and resume times. Chips based on the Nehalem microarchitecture can go into an idle state faster than earlier chips, and Windows 7 is designed to take advantage of that capability, Alfs said.

Longtime Partners

The cooperation of Intel and Microsoft shouldn't come as a surprise. Most PCs today come with Intel chips and Microsoft's Windows operating system, so there is a benefit in both companies working together.

Intel and Microsoft have been collaborating for more than 20 years now, according to Lialias. "Our mutual goal was to provide the most responsive compute experience possible," Lialias wrote.

The blog entry also sheds light on specific hardware-related improvements Microsoft is incorporating into the new OS, something the company has been quiet about. Microsoft wasn't immediately available to comment on the topic.

Observers have criticized Microsoft's previous operating systems for not taking full advantage of multicore and multithreaded chips. Windows 7 will do a more intelligent job of allocating tasks across hardware resources, said Jim McGregor, chief technology strategist with In-Stat.

The traditional way of boosting application performance on PCs was by cranking up CPU clock speed, McGregor said. That led to software being written in a sequential mode for execution on one core, with an increase in clock speed providing the performance boost. But over time, chip makers like Intel started adding cores to boost performance, as cranking up clock speed led to excessive heat dissipation and power consumption.

Boosting Multicore

Software typically lags hardware development by three to five years, and software developers are still playing catch-up to hardware improvements. Even today, many consumer software applications are not designed to take advantage of multiple cores. But Windows 7 could encourage developers to start writing applications for multicore chips.

The past few years have also seen the emergence of solid-state drives, which are considered faster than hard drives. Intel and Microsoft are working on technologies to by including faster read and write capabilities. Intel plans to deliver firmware for its SSDs that supports the Trim command in Windows 7, which speeds up the writing and erasing of SSDs.

Microsoft is also incorporating DirectX 11 graphics drivers into Windows 7 to effectively break up tasks over multiple cores to boost application and graphics performance. Intel in June already launched new graphics drivers that work with Windows 7, but for now the drivers support only DirectX 10.

But Microsoft isn't the first to focus on multicore OS design. Apple has changed the basic architecture of its upcoming Mac OS X 10.6 OS, code-named Snow Leopard, by introducing new features that tap into the processing power of multiple CPU and graphics cores. A number of enhancements allow the OS to divvy up tasks for simultaneous execution across cores.

What Will Apple’s Big Tablet Cost?

If doesn't introduce a soon, we'll all be sorely disappointed. With all the ongoing speculation about the alleged -on-steroids, I feel like the device is already here.

Today's scuttlebutt from has the Big Tablet arriving early next year, a prediction that matches one two months ago by .

So what do we know about the tablet? Reports say it's an , a handheld slate that's large enough for HD movies, video gaming, and Web browsing without all the window-resizing and screen-tapping calisthenics that smartphone users endure. Apple Insider says the tablet will feature 3G broadband, which seems logical. And since we're speculating here, I'd like to request Wi-fi, Bluetooth, and GPS as well.

Name Your Price

Specs aside, what should Apple charge for the Big Tablet? Some reports say $800 is likely, but that seems high for a consumer electronics device. My prediction: $499. Here's why:

According to a 2007 study by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the average American household spends about $1200 annually on electronics products. Would the typical household blow two-thirds of its tech budget on one handheld device? Probably not.

And that CEA study was two years ago -- before the current recession and consumers' belt-tightening ways. To me, $500 seems like the sweet spot for a premium consumer gadget.

And then there's Apple's product lineup. Currently, there's a big gulf between the 32GB iPod touch ($399) and the $999 MacBook. Let's assume Apple drops the iPod touch price, as it did recently with . The Big Tablet would fill the void nicely at $499.

Of course, for Apple to achieve its desired profit margin, that $500 price tag may include a 3G service contract with a major wireless carrier. Given the enormous success of the iPhone, it wouldn't be surprising if AT&T, Sprint, or Verizon would be willing to subsidize the tablet's cost to sign up new subscribers. are becoming increasing common, so the subsidized model for consumer hardware is already in place.

And, no, I didn't call the Big Tablet a netbook. .

Hey Palm: Dump iTunes!

Last week to its WebOS mobile operating system for the Pre, v1.1.0. The new webOS packs a handful of enterprise-oriented features, like the ability to remotely wipe the Pre, along with a number of maintenance fixes and more. But perhaps most interestingly, webOS v1.1.0 also that earlier this month.That's good news for Pre users, since it's remarkably simple to use iTunes to sync media libraries to the Pre. However, it'll no doubt be short-lived and Pre owners will soon find themselves in the same iTunes-sync-less position they did last week, , which blocked Pre syncing.

that software updates could very well disable Pre syncing, because iTunes And it followed through on its "threat," with iTunes 8.2.1. You can bet that the next version of iTunes will again disable Pre support, so it's only a matter of time before Palm's again faced with a decision to build another workaround to let sleeping dogs lie.

Artwork: Chip Taylor

Here's my advice to Palm: Forget iTunes -- at least directly. Apple is not going to allow Palm users to employ iTunes to directly sync Pres. Mark my words, Apple will disable Pre sync as many times as it takes Palm to get the message. Apple will do this as a matter of principle. So Palm's really only wasting time "fixing" Pre sync via iTunes, while it could be dedicating all of its time and development efforts to its own piece of software that integrates with users iTunes libraries to enable the same functionality.

BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion already offers such a piece of software: , which is available for PC .

I strongly suspect Palm already knows all of this and that it's already in the process of building a BlackBerry-Media-Sync-like software offering for Pre users. I'd be surprised is this wasn't the case. Palm already released a related app, called the , and enables iTunes "reverse sync." In other words, any music purchased via the Pre's standard Amazon MP3 app can be synced with iTunes, adding those tracks to users' iTunes libraries, whenever they connect their Pres to computers running Palm Music Assistant.

So Palm's already proven it can write decent code for Pre/iTunes interactions. It's time for the company to take that extra step and release a separate piece of software--one that Apple has no control over -- for Pre/iTunes syncing. As is, the company's only wasting its customers' time playing foolish games with Cupertino.

Microsoft Readies Emergency IE Patch

Microsoft is taking the unusual step of rushing out two emergency security patches ahead of its regularly scheduled updates on August 11.

The patches will include a critical fix for Internet Explorer as well as a related patch rated "moderate" urgency by Microsoft.

"The Internet Explorer bulletin will provide defense-in-depth changes to Internet Explorer to help provide additional protections for the issues addressed by the Visual Studio bulletin," Microsoft said in a late Friday.

The patches are set to be released on Tuesday at 10 a.m. West coast time.

Microsoft didn't say exactly what it was fixing. The company these "out-of-band" emergency updates unless the bug is being exploited by cybercriminals; however, in this case the flaws being patched are not being leveraged in attacks, according to Microsoft.

The problem appears to lie in a widely used Windows component called the Active Template Library (ATL). to security researcher Halvar Flake, this flaw is also to blame for an ActiveX bug that Microsoft identified earlier this month. Microsoft issued a kill-bit patch for the problem on July 14, but after looking into the bug, Flake determined that the patch didn't fix the underlying vulnerability, so new attacks are possible.

Whatever the issue, the new patch should be a top priority for IT staff next week. "When Microsoft goes to an out-of-band patch, I think it's sensible for people to apply it," said Roger Thompson, chief research officer with AVG Technologies.

Microsoft didn't give a reason for the rushed update but it may be trying to stay ahead of any public disclosure at next week's in Las Vegas. The emergency updates are set to be released the day before the Black Hat Briefings, where researchers Mark Dowd, Ryan Smith, and David Dewey will talk about

According to security experts, thousands of Web sites have been used to launch on-line attacks that exploit the ActiveX vulnerability patched in July. The flaw was first reported to Microsoft more than a year ago.

Dear Vista: It's Time to Part Ways

Vista, I have to tell you something, and I thought it would be easier to say in a letter. Microsoft's newest operating system is on its way; . So, I know this is kind of awkward, Vista, but I'm going to have to ask you to get your things ready and start packing up.

Look, I know you'll miss your old hard drive, but this kind of thing happens all the time. I hope you aren't crying. Don't you remember your cousin? ? He had a tough career too, and now he's got his own . Retirement is going to look good on you too, Vista. And, remember, for a few more years anyway.

I know we've gone through some good and bad times together. I really felt for you when InfoWorld started that petition to . I mean, how embarrassing for you, really. Then there was the whole , but let's just chalk that up to a natural human tendency to resist change.

I certainly hope you're not still mad about that whole . I told you it was something that I just said in the heat of the moment. I didn't mean it. Look, put yourself in my shoes, would you? I had just found out I needed to purchase a new machine that was supposed to work well with this new OS called Vista. You had so many neat-sounding things like Aero, BitLocker, ReadyBoost, SuperFetch, Windows Connect Now, and Windows SideShow. I had no idea what all that meant, but it sounded fun. So there were some problems at first, but in the end I didn't go through with joining the lawsuit, did I? Besides, a federal judge decided the anyway, so it all worked out didn't it? I mean, you turned out to be a wonderful OS for this machine; well, you were very pretty and very nice anyway.

Now, I know what you're probably doing right now. You're and asking me if I want to continue. Look, I know this is hard, but yes, we have to have this discussion. Your security obsession always annoyed me. Yeah, I know I could've just gone into your Control Panel, selected User Accounts and Family Safety, then User Accounts, and then clicked . But then I wouldn't have had that added security, would I? I just wanted to have greater control, that's all; and a little bit more.

Please, let's not talk about those hard times; I think it's best to remember the good days we had. I'll never forget how confused I was when I saw you for the first time. Here you were, this pretty little OS and I had a heck of a time that were renamed and moved all over the place. Fun stuff.

Artwork: Chip Taylor

Remember when it took me all night to put you on an upgraded XP machine? Those were good times. I remember I wanted to back up my files, wipe the hard drive and then do a clean install. That meant I instead of just installing Vista and then inserting my old XP disc to verify that I qualified for an upgrade. But eventually we got there, and I finally saw your shiny interface on that old computer.

What a crazy night that was, and if it makes you feel any better there have been reports the won't be easy either -- although . I realize you're probably thinking about all those features you've got over XP right now. It's true: were so much better than XP. I mean, who really liked that flea-bitten XP dog anyway?

It's also true that some are saying , and the , but, look -- everybody's really excited about Windows 7. Did you see yesterday? He was so excited. I know , but I felt there was even a little more excitement than usual this time. .

Anyway, Vista, this is getting a little long. I know a lot of people are saying they won't miss you, and I regret that things didn't work out. But that's how it goes sometimes. The world just wasn't willing to accept you, even though Look, I hope retirement is really great for you Vista, and let me just close by saying I am truly sorry about that time I tried to .

Take care, Vista.

Amazon Apologizes for Kindle Book Deletions

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos apologized Thursday for its , including George Orwell's "1984" and "Animal Farm," on its

In , Bezos wrote:

"This is an apology for the way we previously handled illegally sold copies of 1984 and other novels on Kindle. Our "solution" to the problem was stupid, thoughtless, and painfully out of line with our principles. It is wholly self-inflicted, and we deserve the criticism we've received. We will use the scar tissue from this painful mistake to help make better decisions going forward, ones that match our mission."

Amazon has for the move, which removed purchased files from Kindles while refunding the purchase price to a customer's account. The books in question were offered for sale by an Amazon publishing partner that did not have the rights to distribute them in the United States.

• Sponsored Resource:Improve your network with the right mix of features, performance and pricing.
• Sponsored Resource:
• Sponsored Resource:Thinking about a new Laptop? Lenovo has models to meet everyone's needs.
• Sponsored Resource:Twitter: A how-to guide for using Twitter as a business tool.
• Sponsored Resource:Smartphone security threats are on the rise. Is it time to safegaurd your device?

For more Macintosh computing news, visit . Story copyright © 2009 Mac Publishing LLC. All rights reserved.

How to Learn Anything on the Web

A tutorial or class for almost everything and anything is available online these days. Whether you're looking to beef up your résumé with some new skills, to get a degree while waiting for the job market to pick up, or simply to have a little fun learning something new, the Web has a wealth of educational resources--many of them free of charge.

To give you some ideas, we've put together a list of sites in several categories, from skills for budding entrepreneurs and learning foreign languages to gourmet cooking and the choreography for Michael Jackson's iconic Thriller dance.

You can always Google for anything you don't see here, but be careful as you click. In researching this story, I ran into many sites that either tried to sell me classes (with little or no real free instruction) or were infested with pop-ups and adware. Antimalware software is a must. (See PC World's free downloads of antimalware programs.)

Get a Business Up and Running

So you have a business in mind? Start with a business plan that outlines the specifics of how you intend to make money--essential for attracting investors and useful for your own reality checks. BPlans.com, run by PaloAlto Software (creators of Business Plan Pro software) offers dozens of articles, sample plans, and templates to help you get going. This is one of the few sites that, while it does market a product (you need its software to edit a sample plan and use it for your own enterprise), delivers a slew of genuinely useful content for free. (And you can always simply recreate the sample plan using Word and Excel.)

Once you've launched your business, you'll have to keep financial records. But even if you use software such as Quickbooks, it's a good idea to understand how basic accounting works. Small business consultant Dave Marshall's Bean Counter site features free tutorials on basic business accounting and bookkeeping.

And because so many aspects of business require presentation skills, it's useful to have a working knowledge of Microsoft's PowerPoint. About.com's Presentation Software site provides a Beginner's Guide to PowerPoint that gathers 11 tutorials to get you going.

Your business will need a Web site too. You can pay someone a lot of money to create it, but if you would like to dig into the complexities of modern Web design, LearnWebDesignOnline.com is a good place to start, with links to tutorials, videos, and books on all aspects of site creation. Another resource is SiteGround, a Web hosting company that provides an impressive tutorials page for learning about both Web hosting in general and a wide array of specific applications for content management and site creation (WordPress, Dreamweaver, and the like).

If you're interested in putting together a news site, J-Learning.org provides guidance on everything from blogging tools and multimedia creation to SEO and legal issues--all for free.

To help bring visitors to your site, you'll need to learn the basics of search engine optimization (SEO). Search consultants SEOmoz's free Beginners Guide is a good place to start.

Improve Your Tech Skills

Okay, time out for a little self-promotion. For general hardware upgrades, setup instruction, and software tips, look no further than PC World's own How-To page. Organized by category, there's an amazing wealth of guidance (in print, video, and slide shows) for everything from swapping out a PC's processor to getting Microsoft Office to work better.

However, for professional in-depth training in specific applications, Lynda.com has established itself as the go-to place, with thousands of videos and tutorial files for hundreds of applications. It's not free, but if you're serious about learning a complicated application, its subscription-based fees are a good value. (Read PC World's recent review of Lynda.com.)

Have you ever wanted to explore the mysteries of computer programming? You can find a slew of programming tutorials online, but I like British programmer Alan Gauld's Learning to Program, an online version of a book he's written. It's not particularly slick, but he writes clearly and accessibly, and he uses Python, which experts tell me is a good programming language to start with.

Microsoft Details Windows 7 RTM Plans: What You Need to Know

Microsoft still hasn't officially announced that has been "released to manufacturing" (RTM) for production and packaging in preparation for its October 22 release to consumers. But the company did share more fascinating details yesterday on its on the Windows 7 Team Blog.

The company said it's still right on target to deliver the RTM as promised in the second half of this month. Well, that's got to mean we're pretty darn close -- today is July 22, leaving only nine more days this month for RTM to happen. Let the guesswork begin!

Meanwhile, while Microsoft is , let's look at what it will mean for you every step of the way.

*For beta testers and other enthusiasts: The biggest news so far is Microsoft's confirmation that they will indeed offer a "family pack" for Windows 7, which will be a specially-priced copy that can legally be installed on up to three PCs.

That's great news for all of us who maintain multiple PCs and want to be able to afford to move them all to Windows 7 without having to take out a second mortgage. "We have heard a lot of feedback from beta testers and enthusiasts over the last 3 years that we need a better solution for homes with multiple PCs," wrote Microsoft's Windows Communications Manager Brandon LeBlanc in the blog post. "I'm happy to confirm that we will indeed be offering a family pack of Windows 7 Home Premium (in select markets) which will allow installation on up to 3 PCs. As I've said before, stay tuned to our blog for more information on this and any other potential offers."

Also notable for beta testers and enthusiasts: Following the move to RTM, Microsoft will be releasing an evaluation of Windows 7 Professional for IT Professionals via its TechNet , LeBlanc wrote. "Over 40 percent of beta testers are IT Professionals and this will allow them to quickly access the RTM code and plan for deployments," he said. That should provide lots of needed information that can be used to evaluate and plan the move for corporate users.

Beta testers won't automatically get a free copy of Windows 7, LeBlanc reiterated, but will be able to continue to use their Release Candidate test versions through its expiration on June 1, 2010. Microsoft TechNet subscribers will be able to download and install the RTM version when it is ready, LeBlanc said.

*For general consumers, there are no other major new details to report today, except for the good news about the pending family pack: Windows 7 will be available for sale starting October 22 in retail stores and on new PCs, according to Microsoft.

*For partners and OEMs: Windows 7 RTM downloads will be available to Independent Software Vendors (ISV) and Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV) partners starting on Aug. 6 from Microsoft Connect or MSDN, the blog said. "If you are a partner who has been working on Windows 7 for a while, now is the time to complete your testing with final version of Windows 7," LeBlanc wrote. "For partners that haven't gotten started yet with Windows 7, now is the time to get involved. You can also visit to learn more about getting ready for Windows 7."

Downloads in English will be available starting August 16 for Microsoft Partner Program Gold/Certified Members through the Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) Portal, LeBlanc wrote. Other language versions will be ready by October 1.

"OEMs will receive Windows 7 RTM software images beginning approximately 2 days after we officially RTM, as a little time is required to release and distribute these images," LeBlanc wrote. "This will allow them to begin preparing images for new PCs to ship with Windows 7 on them. We know our OEMs are excited for Windows 7 and we can't wait to hand them the final RTM bits!"

*For business customers: Downloads of Windows 7 RTM in English will be available starting August 7 if you are a Volume License (VL) customer with an existing Software Assurance (SA) license, according to Microsoft. Other languages will be available later using the same Volume License Service Center (VLSC) portal for downloads. Volume License customers who don't have an SA license will have to wait until September 1 to purchase Windows 7 through Volume Licensing.

*For IT professionals: If you have a TechNet subscription, you'll be able to download Windows 7 RTM in English starting August 6, with other languages available by October 1. The Microsoft Web pages provide lots more information to help with successful deployments and with finding answers to problems, the company said.

*For developers: If you have an MSDN subscription, you'll be able to download Windows 7 RTM in English starting August 6, with other languages available by October 1. Several helpful information resources are being touted by Microsoft to help you with application development for Windows 7, including the , the on MSDN and a series of helpful .

We'll get you more details as soon as we have them. We know you're excited.

Mozilla Proposes Firefox 3.7 Interface Changes

It looks like the Mozilla Foundation wants to make some significant changes to the user interface in the 3.7 version. The has some initial mockups to start the discussion off among developers. Right now, they're showing only Windows changes, for both XP and Vista/Win7.

Simplification seems to be the order of the day. There's less button space on the left of the address bar, and buttons have a separated and distinct look to them. The whole File/Edit/View/etc. bar is gone, replaced by a View drop-down box to the right of the search bar, with a button to make the bookmarks bar appear. Far more of the window is "glass", which makes it integrate better with Vista/Win7's OS elements like explorer windows and such.

The changes to the XP version are similar, though of course without the glass stuff. The main difference appears to be the Tools and Bookmark Bar buttons to the right of the search bar, which have a different design but presumably similar functionality to that in the Vista/Win7 design.

The changes look good to me. Removing the File/Edit/etc. bar, or at least hiding it away, makes sense. It increases the amount of your Firefox window that is used by the page itself, rather than the interface, which is one of the things I love about Chrome. It seems like use of the Home button has fallen out of favor, so it makes sense to get rid of that, too. Of course, this is a mockup of proposed changes to a version 3.7, when 3.6 isn't even out yet. So it may look quite different by the time this version ships. What do you think of the changes? Leave us your comments.

It's Official: Windows 7 Goes RTM

Microsoft has announced this afternoon that has been released to manufacturing. In other words, Windows 7 development has wrapped up, and it'll now go on to PC manufacturers so they can prepare for October's Windows 7 launch.

According the the , the RTM is build 7600. was build 7000, and was build 7100. Microsoft has also announced that Windows Server 2008 R2 has also reached RTM status.

"What happens is a build gets designated as a RTM contender after going through significant testing and meeting our quality bar for RTM," explains Brandon LeBlanc. "Then, it goes though all the validation checks required for RTM including having all languages of that build completed. If all the validation checks have passed – sign-off for RTM can occur."

So what happens between now and October, you ask? when you'll be able to get your hands on Windows 7. Although the general consumer launch is on October 22, vendors and partners will get Windows 7 in the coming days. Volume License businesses with Software Assurance licenses will be able to download Windows 7 on August 7 -- about three weeks from now. MSDN and TechNet subscribers will be able to get Windows 7 on August 6. Also, if you're currently testing the release candidate, it'll work until July 2010.

Yahoo Home Page Gets a New Look

Yahoo today launched what some are calling a significant overhaul to its . Yahoo says the new home page is designed to help you stay on top of what is going on in your world, and on the rest of the planet. What the search company has really done, however, is tweaked its old design and added some new, more flexible features that just might pull more users into its sphere. This includes adding more personalized features and the ability to pull a wide range of third-party services into Yahoo in ways that weren't previously available.

Here's what's new:

My Favorites

The most significant change is in Yahoo's right-hand column, which has been renamed My Favorites. Under the old home page, this column was filled with Yahoo services including games, shopping, Yahoo personals and other features. The new design allows you to choose from a wide range of third-party sites and services, including Facebook, news sites, and e-Bay. Yahoo has also moved , Messenger, and other Yahoo service over to the "My Favorites" section. When you hover over any of these widgets, a display pops up with an advertisement and your information.

For me, the best functionality came with the Facebook widget. The widget is a full-functioning mini-Facebook, and looks a lot like the mobile version of . It includes your full news feed, and links to your 'Events & Birthdays,' Profile, and Friends list. If you pull your cursor off the pop-out widget, the service will disappear after a second or two. A similar Facebook feature can also be embedded in your iGoogle account.

App Maker

In addition to the more than 65 widgets you can place on your new Yahoo homepage, you can also make your own. Just click on 'Add' at the bottom of the My Favorites list, and then at the very top of the widget list you can enter the Web address for anything you want to keep track of and give it your own name. If the import is successful, you now have a new widget on your home page.

I tested this out by adding and FriendFeed to my page. Today@PCWorld worked out fine, but Yahoo wasn't able to add an icon to the pop-out widget, and I wasn't able to add my own. Not suprisingly, I wasn't able to add my home page from FriendFeed, but I did have the option to add the home page for several FriendFeed users.

Trend Setter

Taking its cue from , Yahoo now features the current top ten favorite searches. The Trend Setter box is located on the top left of the home page, where users used to access their e-mail, messenger, games and weather under the old design.

Personalized News

The news tabs have moved down a bit, but now have a local news section. Just type in a U.S. City or Zip and Yahoo delivers news from local news outlets.

PC To Mobile Sync

This feature isn't available yet, but Yahoo says that soon your Yahoo mobile page will match the edits you've made on the desktop version.

If you want to try out the new features you have to opt-in when you arrive at Yahoo's home page; alternatively, you can go to . Today's launch is only available to users in the United States, and availability will expand over the coming week to users in France, India, and the U.K. Mobile device users will also see the new Yahoo home page this week, but the company didn't specify which countries would see the mobile version first. If you live in the rest of the world, Yahoo says it will be rolling out the new home page to more countries i

Barnes & Noble: Please Avoid These Kindle Mistakes

Now that Barnes & Noble has unveiled its and an e-book store to take on rivals such as Amazon.com and Sony, we want to get them out the door on the right track.

So here are the top five features we'd love to see them include so that the new Barnes & Noble e-reader doesn't the same glaring shortcomings that many of us found in Amazon's original Kindle and new .

1) Please include great and easy file handling from the start. Amazon's Kindle 2 still hasn't gotten this right, which is very frustrating. The Kindle 2 still doesn't have integrated PDF reading capabilities. That means it requires a kludgy conversion process where the user has to or other document file to themselves to be able to convert it so it can be read on the device. Not cool. Imagine how useful an e-book reader can be ( reader includes this) if it can natively read various common document formats. Eureka! Don't disappoint us, Barnes & Noble.

2) The new support after the original Kindle came without it. Don't put us through that, please. Just give us USB capabilities from the start. It means one less bulky power adapter to have to lug along and less aggravation for users.

3) Get the price lower from the start. Amazon's new for the Kindle 2 is nicer, but it's still probably too high for consumers to wildly embrace these e-readers. Yes, it's $60 less than it was earlier this year, but if you get the price to the right spot from the start, say maybe a loss-leading $99, all the catching-up that would follow would be the Kindle 2 trying to catch up with your new success.

4) Please give us a . The Kindle 2 still doesn't have one, which makes it hard to read in dimly lit places. The Sony e-reader has one. We like it. Give us one on your new reader, Barnes & Noble!

5) Be with your new reader. Digital Rights Management is a very emotional issue. Musicians, filmmakers, and authors deserve to be paid and shouldn't have to give up their profits due to illegal distribution of their works without payment. At the same time, a consumer who legally buys such a work should have reasonable rights to use it on any compatible device he or she owns without having to purchase it separately for other devices. If I buy a printed book, I can read it in an airplane or in a car or in my living room, without having to buy separate copies for each. The same should go for my e-reader or computer or other device. Consumers have rights, too.

That's it for now. Thanks, Barnes & Noble, for bringing us more options in the e-reader marketplace. Now get to work and make us all proud.

All-in-One PCs With a Touch of Style

We'll say it up front: The iMac is no longer the final word in all-in-one PCs. Though Apple's latest aluminum iMacs were the performance champs in our tests, it's the new wave of competing all-in-ones that are changing the game.

All-in-one makers now put greater emphasis on style and design, and touchscreens have practically become the norm. Some models--such as the and , and the --even have multitouch displays, which let you use two fingers at a time to pinch, push, rotate, and scroll items on screen. The TouchSmart PCs are also among several stylish big-screen all-in-ones that have built-in Blu-ray drives and double as Media Center HDTVs.

Contributing to the all-in-one renaissance as well are budget (roughly $500) models with netbook-like specs. Though they lack the power and the entertainment extras of the high-end models--and almost always run Windows XP instead of Vista--their single-touch displays and low price make them attractive.

To reflect these differences, we split our chart into two groups: Those , and those . For this story, we tested 11 all-in-one PCs from all the brands you expect (and some you might not): Apple, Asus, Averatec, Dell, HP, Lenovo, MSI, Shuttle, and Sony. We're continually testing new models, though, so see our all-in-ones chart for the latest reviews and rankings. See "" for a look at what's ahead later this year, too.

Our top pick among the larger models is the . A striking design, solid performance, and upgradability you won't find on other all-in-ones helped clinch the deal. While the A600 doesn't have the touchscreen capabilities of HP's TouchSmart PCs, it does have an HDTV tuner, as do each of our top four big-screen all-in-ones. The A600 also includes a unique Media Center remote that doubles as a VoIP handset, an air mouse, and a Wii-like motion game controller.

If you're willing to accept a display of 19 inches or smaller, you can pick up a good all-in-one for less than $1000. Our top pick in this group is Dell's Studio One 19, which starts at $699. You'll need to add $100 to any configuration for the dual-touch display included in our $944 test unit. Though that $944 price tag is almost double the cost of some budget all-in-ones, the Dell also delivers more than double their netbook-like performance. It outpaced some high-end models, as well.

All-in-Ones vs. Desktop PCs

Despite the improvements in all-in-one PCs over the last year, they still struggle to match the performance of a good value desktop computer. The very compact size that makes them so appealing also creates heat and power limitations that usually require the use of a laptop processor.

Even the fastest all-in-one PC we tested----can't match competitive recent desktops such as Dell's Studio XPS 435. That $999 system's 2.66GHz Core i7 920 processor, 6GB memory, and ATI Radeon HD4870 graphics helped it achieve a WorldBench 6 score of 125, a perceptible 12.6 percent increase over the iMac's result of 111. And while the iMac leads in all-in-one graphics performance, delivering truly playable gaming frame rates, in this respect too it pales compared with the Dell desktop.

Of course, all-in-one PCs offer lots of benefits. They don't require you to buy a new monitor, or to have an old one sitting around. Wall-mounting options are common, as well. And these days, almost all budget all-in-ones feature a single-touch display. Spend a little more, and you can have Dell's Studio One 19 or one of HP's TouchSmart PCs, which boast multitouch displays. This kind of interactivity is ideal for families (but you should probably stock up on wipes to clean up your loved ones' greasy finger marks).

All-in-one PCs also integrate many add-ons, such as speakers, Webcams (the Lenovo has a 2-megapixel camera with VeriFace recognition log-in software, for instance), and wireless networking (usually 802.11n, though the Dell and Averatec cheap out with 802.11g).

On the other hand, on an all-in-one you're pretty much stuck with the screen, and the parts. You can expand a regular desktop to increase its life span, but an all-in-one PC has serious upgrade limitations. Lenovo's IdeaCentre A600 gets big points because users can upgrade its hard disk, optical drive, memory, and fans; in contrast, the HP TouchSmart PCs and the let you upgrade only the memory and hard drive. (A small consolation in the VAIO's case is that an ExpressCard reader allows for laptop-style add-ons.) Apple's iMacs allow you to upgrade the RAM easily, but anything else involves a 21-screw ordeal. The compact also permits memory upgrades; that's noteworthy because every other all-in-one with a screen 19 inches or less--including the Dell--is a completely closed system.

Are Laptops the Smarter Buy?

If all you want is a machine that comes in one simple package, you might be better off with a laptop. The main argument here is simple: Laptops don't need to be plugged into the wall, and just try fitting an all-in-one PC--even the portable Shuttle X50--into your bag! And if it's a touchscreen that you crave, plenty of convertible laptops and Internet tablets are available for you to poke around with. Even some netbooks have touchscreens now: Witness the , the , and the upcoming .

Most Atom-powered netbooks, priced at roughly $500, perform on a par with the similarly priced "nettop" all-in-one PCs on our chart. So the question is: Do you want portability and a 10.1-inch display, or a kitchen PC with a much larger touchscreen? If you're leaning toward a portable, see our for our reviews.

For the multimedia-minded, another option could be a desktop-replacement laptop with a roomy screen measuring 17 inches or more. Take our current top-ranked model, the , for instance. It boasts a mammoth 18.4-inch (1920 by 1080) display, a Blu-ray drive, and a USB TV tuner, and it earned a score of 102 in WorldBench 6. That makes it faster than all of the models here but the 24-inch iMac; and at $1890, it's cheaper than HP's own TouchSmart IQ816 all-in-one. Of course, the HDX18 doesn't have a 25.5-inch multitouch display, and it's pricier than the 22-inch Lenovo and HP all-in-ones. But that's just more food for thought. In the end, your choice could come down to how important a supersize all-in-one touchscreen is to you. If that isn't a

Amazon Removes E-Books From Kindle Store, Revokes Ownership

Today, Amazon removed George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm from its Kindle e-book store. The company also went ahead and removed any digital trace of the books, too-striking them from both users' digital lockers and from Kindle devices. This disturbing, move underscores how, in spite of comments otherwise, a purchase in the digital realm can't be compared to physical ownership of content.

I've long considered digital more ephemeral than the physical. It is why I still, for artists I enjoy, purchase the physical CD of an album. It is why I prefer to purchase DVDs and Blu-ray Discs, as opposed to relying on the possibly here-today, gone-tomorrow offerings of electronic distribution. Why my advocacy of the physical? It certainly isn't because I enjoy storing it, that much I can tell you. It's because I have access to it when I want it, where I want it. I don't have to worry about content going out-of-print, nor do I need to keep track of where I have it backed up, in case my hard drive fails.

I've heard one set of theories that posit that the world of digital distribution could theoretically offer unlimited content, for unlimited periods, simply because of the lack of physical distribution costs (production, packaging, shipping, shelf-space, and so on). The other theory, however, is the one that's omnipresent, but more sharply in focus in a tough economy such as the one we're in now. That theory is governed by the basic tenets of business, which look at profit and bottom line. If content isn't generating revenue, then why should a digital distributor maintain the server space to keep up the data, even if all it takes up are more bits and bytes?

Back to the Amazon example. What Amazon did with the Orwell books is different from the above concerns, but it dovetails into the same question of the permanence of digital ownership. Yes, Amazon refunded the money for the books -- but that's not the point. When one purchases something, one acquires the item, and assumes ownership of that item. That item is there.

This unusual maneuver, which Amazon says occurred because Orwell's publisher changed its mind about offering the electronic version of these titles, is all the more unsettling simply because readers already purchased the books and had their ownership of the item revoked. In the Orwell book case, the item was simply no longer there -- it was as if those Kindle users never owned it.

The implications of the Orwell case are highly unsettling -- for any type of copy-protected content, but especially for printed content. What happens if a controversial book comes out, and a publisher decides to remove it from distribution? Or, a book is banned for whatever reason -- as happened in parts of the world with The Satanic Verses? Neither is a common scenario, but both are examples of the control we, as owners, can potentially lose over the content we've purchased in the digital realm. With physical content, no one, even a disgruntled copyright owner, can take away what you've paid for.

A final thought: If, in this digital realm, we're not truly purchasing content, but rather "borrowing" it at a set price, and according to someone else's changing rulebook, we as consumers we deserve to know this up front, in clear and obvious language (unlike Amazon's clear references to "" books, and all the assumptions of ownership that go with buying books). If the rules have changed on us, we deserve to know.

Barnes & Noble Makes a Big Splash Into E-books

Updated at 3:15 p.m. PST with additional information after Barnes & Noble's press conference and interview.

Barnes & Noble, which calls itself the world's largest bookseller, has given hints that e-books will play an important role in the company's future strategy. Today, we get the first insights to Barnes' digital strategy with the company's two-prong announcement of the and its e-book reader plans -- including the company's partnership with Plastic Logic to produce an e-book device.

The eBookstore, launched today, offers 700,000 titles according to Barnes & Nobles' press release, but in a conference call after the release went out, Barnes & Noble clarified that it includes Google's 500,000 free public domain books as part of that number. That means for now, store has the edge: It offers more than 300,000 titles. As on Amazon's Kindle store, the Barnes & Noble eBookstore will offer new releases and bestsellers at $9.99. Barnes says it expects its selection to increase to over one million titles over the course of the next year, including e-books from established publishers, independent direct-to-e-book publishers, and Google.

When asked about how quickly Barnes & Noble planned to grow its portion of the eBookstore (excluding Google offerings), William J. Lynch, President of BN.com, reiterated "We're committed to offering Barnes & Noble consumers every title available in digital format."

Barnes & Noble's eBookstore will support only , the free and open e-book standard from the International Digital Publishing Forum. Books will have DRM, and will be downloadable to your device as well as digitally stored in Your Library. According to Lynch, you can download books to multiple devices; Barnes & Noble offers its latest eReader software across a number of device platforms, including mobile phones (iPhone, Blackberry) and PC and Mac computers, and as part of today's announcement, noted that the eBookstore will be available across all device platforms via the eReader software (acquired earlier this year from Fictionwise).

If you lose your cell phone or your hard drive fails, no worries: Barnes & Noble makes it easy to access your books digitally. "We have on record proof that you purchased the file, so you can download as many times as you need to," explains Lynch.

In addition to the eBookstore, Barnes & Noble discussed its partnership with Plastic Logic. Plastic Logic's eReader digital book reader is due out in early 2010. The Barnes & Noble eBookstore will be the exclusive storefront for the eReader; the company declined to discuss any other level of cooperation between the two companies, though it would not be surprising for Barnes & Noble to sell the eReader in its stores. "We have over 77 million readers who go through our stores," noted Lynch.

Even without knowing the device's price, the integrated Barnes & Noble eBookstore means that Barnes & Noble and Plastic have reached a powerful combination so far only seen from Amazon in the nascent e-book reader market. The device will be 8.5 by 11 inches, with a wireless connection -- making it a direct threat to Amazon's (also about the size of a sheet of paper, with wireless, and integrated Amazon Kindle bookstore). The on-device bookstore integration is a critical component of the puzzle: With it, an e-book reader offers the ease and immediacy of a digital shopping and acquisition experience, in addition to the convenience of an electronic book. Without an integrated storefront, an e-book reader is a static, lifeless device

Redmond Releases Code to Linux Kernel Community

, which has been at odds with the community over the years because of intellectual property issues, said on Monday it has released 20,000 lines of Linux code to the Linux kernel community.

Available for inclusion in the Linux tree, the code includes three Linux device drivers; it will be available to both the Linux community and customers. It will enhance the performance of the Linux operating system when virtualized on Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 virtualization software, according to Microsoft. Code will be offered under the GNU General Public License 2.

[ About two and a half years ago, . ]

"We are seeing Microsoft communities and open source communities grow together, which is ultimately of benefit to our customers," said Microsoft's Sam Ramji, senior director of platform strategy in the company's Server and Tools organization, in a statement released by the company. "The Linux community, for example, has built a platform used by many customers. So our strategy is to enhance interoperability between the Windows platform and many open source technologies, which includes Linux, to provide the choices our customers are asking for."

"Today's release would have been unheard of from Microsoft a few years ago but it's a prime example that customer demand is a powerful catalyst for change," said Ramji.

Indeed, with open source advocates, with Microsoft claiming open source projects like Linux .

Ramji also cited the current economic climate as a driving force. "Many companies are turning to Microsoft more frequently to help them succeed in a heterogeneous technology world because we understand that reducing complexity is a key factor to reducing cost. We are seeing interoperability as a lever for business growth," Ramji said.

In a statement, the executive director of the Linux Foundation saw Microsoft's effort as validation of open source.

"We see the move by Microsoft to submit its device driver code to the Linux kernel as a validation of the open source development model and the GPLv2 license," said Executive Director Jim Zemlin. "Even if a bit overdue, we applaud Microsoft for recognizing the value of collaboration in order to compete in today's IT market."

An industry analyst concurred that the move was precedent-setting.

"This is a logical but precedent-setting decision for Microsoft. Credit Microsoft for recognizing the reality that a sizable portion of its customer base was going to be running Linux and Microsoft side by side in virtualized environments, so it would be important to be competitive on an interoperability front," said Stephen O'Grady, analyst at Redmonk.

"For all of its logic, however, this is a move that would have been inconceivable a few years ago, meaning that the glasnost of Microsoft vis a vis open source continues," O'Grady said.

Continuing a recent mantra of accommodations for open source, Tony Hey, corporate vice president of the external research division at Microsoft Research, will address the O'Reilly OSCON (Open Source Convention) audience in San Jose, Calif. this Thursday about the company's commitment to open access, open tools and interoperability in the "heterogeneous world of research," according to a statement from the company. Hey will discuss tools for scientists to process and analyze massive amounts of data to accelerate scientific discovery.

Microsoft also is highlighting on Monday its ongoing investment in optimizing PHP on Windows Server and the Microsoft SQL Server database. The company has had work ongoing on a SQL Server driver available for PHP to support more native features in SQL Server 2008. Microsoft also has partnered with PHP tools vendor Zend Technologies to boost PHP.

New Apps Will Give iPhone Blu-Ray Power

You'll soon be able to control content right from your . Universal has announced plans to launch a new series of iPhone apps that'll interact with its Blu-ray movie releases. The apps will allow you to tap into interactive features and access other extra info stored on the Blu-ray discs.

The iPhone Blu-ray Apps

Universal's first Blu-ray app for the iPhone will be released next Tuesday, July 28, to coincide with the . The app, which will be offered as a free download, will unlock a bonus section of the disc entitled "Virtual Car Garage." In it, you'll be able to use your iPhone or iPod Touch to browse through galleries of the cars used in the movie, controlling the models with your touchscreen and loading technical details about the vehicles as you go.

The Blu-ray app will use the platform to transit data wirelessly to Internet-enabled players. Universal says the Fast and Furious release is just the tip of the iceberg, too: Future title-specific apps will offer the ability to download bonus content directly from the discs onto your iPhone or iPod for later viewing; to use the devices as fully functioning Blu-ray remotes; and to pull up facts about the cast midmovie. You'll eventually be able to connect to social networks from inside the application as well, allowing you to update your Twitter or Facebook profile while using the program.

Thus far, Universal has announced no plans for similar Blu-ray apps on any other mobile platforms.

The iPhone Blu-ray app, by the way, isn't Universal's first attempt at tying its film marketing into Apple's mobile device: The studio released a in April to help promote this summer's Will Ferrell flick.

Bug in Firefox 3.5.1 Isn't Exploitable, Mozilla Says

A bug discovered in the latest version of Firefox is not exploitable, Mozilla said on Sunday, responding to reports of another vulnerability in the browser.

Mozilla released , the latest version of the browser, last Thursday. The release fixed several recently discovered security holes in version 3.5, which came out in June. Among the that were closed was a critical vulnerability that allowed an attacker to install and run code on a PC without any interaction from the victim.

On Friday, began to emerge of a stack-based buffer overflow in Firefox 3.5.1 that could be used to gain access to a computer or launch a distributed denial of service attack. But after examining the reported vulnerability, Mozilla said that's not the case.

"The reports by press and various security agencies have incorrectly indicated that this is an exploitable bug. Our analysis indicates that it is not, and we have seen no example of exploitability," wrote Mike Shaver, Mozilla's vice president of engineering, in a on Sunday.

The bug causes Firefox 3.5 and Firefox 3.5.1 to crash on a Windows PC, but does not give an attacker access to the PC, Shaver said, calling the crash "safe and immediate."

The bug can also cause Firefox 3.0 and 3.5 to crash on Apple computers.

"A crash occurs inside the ATSUI system library (part of OS X), due to what appears to be a failure to check allocation results," Shaver said, adding the same issue could affect other applications using text-handling libraries in MacOS X. "We have reported this issue to Apple, but in the event that they do not provide a fix we will look to implement mitigations in Mozilla code."