"Character, conviction and wisdom, oh my!"
COMPETITION
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Critics say Microsoft server license snubs open source
Proposed server interoperability license--demanded by the EU--will shut the door
on open-source software such as Samba, say critics.
Kmart Clears Antitrust Review
Kmart's plan to acquire Sears picked up momentum Friday after the deal cleared
the Justice Department's antitrust waiting period. The waiting period prescribed
by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act expired at the end of the
day Thursday, Kmart and Sears said. Still, shares of Kmart showed volatility in
Friday trading, recently down 28 cents, or 0.3%, to $94.07. Earlier the stock
was as high as $95.73, up 1.5%.
EU: We could fine
Microsoft into submission
The European Commission on Friday held out the possibility on Friday that
Microsoft may be fined up to 5 percent of its average daily turnover unless it
complies soon with a European Union antitrust decision. Last month, Microsoft
lost a months-long court bid to suspend sanctions for breaking the law and said
it would offer a stripped-down version of Windows and share some protocols with
rival makers of servers by early February. "We obviously expect the remedies to
be complied with within a matter of weeks--measured from last December--rather
than months," EU spokesman Jonathan Todd said Friday.
Dial M for merger
If SBC buys AT&T, the reunion of two players in the old Bell system could set
off a round of mergers.
Oracle layoffs, changes worry PeopleSoft users
Oracle’s plan to lay off 5,000 PeopleSoft employees and restructure the acquired
company are raising concerns among PeopleSoft customers.
MARKETS
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Opera, the
Forgotten Browser
Jan. 26, 2005 Firefox gets all the attention these days, but it wasn't the first
to fight the Internet Explorer hegemony. Nor is it alone: Opera is still
plugging away.
Porn star hawks mobile 'moan tones'
Porn star Jenna Jameson is now hawking "moan tones." For $2.50 mobile phone
users can choose from a variety of moans, and sexual noises all recorded by the
blond bombshell. If that's not enough, Jameson will talk dirty to you when your
phones rings, in English or Spanish. Also available are color pictures of the
porn star posing naked that can be displayed on your phone for $2.99.
P2P
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File-sharing battles
leave us out
You think the red state-blue state divide is deep? Nothing rivals the shrillness
between the content industry and P2P file sharers. You want name-calling? File
sharers are 'thieves' and 'pirates.' The Recording Industry Association of
America and the Motion Picture Association of America are 'evil,' and one
commenter to a recent CNET News.com story said the RIAA sought nothing less than
world domination.
PRIVACY
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Study: More identity theft off-line than online
Although federal regulators warn that the Internet is the thriving frontier for
identity theft, almost three-quarters of the thefts of personal data from scams
in 2004 occurred off-line, according to a study by Javelin Strategy & Research.
CAFE RASKOLNIKOV
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Teen Sentenced for Releasing Blaster Worm
A Minnesota man was sentenced Friday to 18 months in prison and 10 months of
community service after pleading guilty to unleashing a variant of the Blaster
Internet worm in 2003.
AMUSING
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Phila Lawyer is getting some
play on the greedy associates boards. Thought you might find it entertaining.
TOO MUCH TIME ON THEIR HANDS
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Intel baffles with latest trademarks
Intel has added a pair of trademarks to its large roster of protected names:
'Intel Inside VIIV' and 'Intel VIIV'. Not surprisingly, there's a considerable
amount of head-scratching going on in web-based Intel-watching circles as to
what the chip giant is thinking. The speculation isn't helped by Intel's refusal
to comment, even though the trademark filings are a matter of public record. The
trademarks have also been filed in Germany.
TASMANIA
==========
Girl wins battle over 'vindictive' barring
A 12-YEAR-old girl barred from a major equestrian event because one of the
judges wanted to buy her horse will now be allowed to compete after lodging an
appeal. Frenece Banovich, one of the state's top young riders, was told last
week by the organising committee that because one of the judges of this
weekend's coveted Horse of the Year title had expressed an interest in her pony,
Gusto, she could not compete. She was also barred from competing on two other
ponies she had entered.
Internet and Society News -- 050128
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