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TOP STORIES FOR WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 05, 2003 German Twist on Copyright Compensation Microsoft Wins Stay of Java Ruling Sun Delays New Java Specification Lindows OS Available from Walmart AND Blackboard Buys SA Latest Distributed-Computing Project: Smallpox Cure GERMAN TWIST ON COPYRIGHT COMPENSATION A nonbinding recommendation from the German Patent Office calls for makers of personal computers to pay copyright owners about $13 (U.S. dollars) for every PC they sell. The fee is intended to reimburse copyright owners for the digital copies of copyrighted works that PC users are likely to make. This latest move in Germany is the first attempt at levying a copyright fee on computers, though other levies already exist in some countries on products such as blank compact discs, recordable digital videodiscs, and CD writers. The new recommendation comes on behalf of so-called "collecting societies," which have been formed to represent copyright owners in ongoing disputes with hardware manufacturers. Collecting societies endeavor to collect monies from users or device manufacturers to compensate content owners for copies that computer users are likely to make but that otherwise would be subject to royalties. A spokesman for the law firm representing Fujitsu Siemens said that company, as well as the rest of the industry, are likely to fight the PC levy in court. Wall Street Journal, 5 February 2003 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1044385225838491533,00.html MICROSOFT WINS STAY OF JAVA RULING A federal appeals court has stayed a judge's ruling that Microsoft must include Sun Microsystems's Java in new versions of its Windows XP operating system and in Internet Explorer. Judge Frederick Motz, who is overseeing several cases against Microsoft, including one by Sun, had ordered Microsoft to begin shipping Sun's Java on Tuesday. Sun's lawsuit argues that Microsoft attempted to undercut the Java platform, developed by Sun, by building its own, incompatible with Sun's, and shipping it with its operating system and browser. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit accepted Microsoft's motion that the order to ship Sun's Java should be held until the suit is resolved by the appellate court. A spokesman for Sun said the company "regret[s] the Fourth Circuit Court's decision" and hopes the appeal of Motz's ruling will be handled quickly. InfoWorld, 3 February 2003 http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/02/03/HNjavarule_1.html SUN DELAYS NEW JAVA SPECIFICATION Sun Microsystems announced this week that it will delay release of Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) 1.4 for about three months, unveiling the specification in the summer. Sun said the postponement will give the company time to make J2EE 1.4 compliant with upcoming standards issued by the Web Services Interoperability (WS-I) Organization. Ralph Galantine of Sun said it was important that "there was no conflict between J2EE 1.4 and the WS-I." Analysts said the delay of the new J2EE specification is unlikely to have a negative affect on sales of Java software from most major vendors, such as Sun, Oracle, IBM, and BEA Systems, because the introduction of specifications typically outpaces adoption by users. Shawn Willett of Current Analysis said, "Most customers are not using all that's in the current standard." CNET, 4 February 2003 http://news.com.com/2100-1001-983212.html LINDOWS OS AVAILABLE FROM WALMART Lindows.com announced that its stand-alone operating system is now available at Walmart. The LindowsOS 3.0 Membership Edition costs $98.72 and includes one year of the Lindows.com Warehouse service, which allows members to download any of 1,700 applications for free and to keep them for life. Applications in the Warehouse service include StarOffice 6.0 from Sun Microsystems, Inc. and the Bitstream Inc. Deluxe Font Pack, which otherwise cost $75 and $99, respectively. LindowsOS supports Microsoft software. Walmart also sells PCs, made by Microtel Computer Systems Inc., with LindowsOS installed, for between $200 and $500. IDG, 4 February 2003 http://www.idg.net/ic_1122987_9677_1-5042.html AND ***************************************************** BLACKBOARD BUYS SA Blackboard Inc. this week bought SA Cash from Student Advantage Inc. for $4.5 million. SA Cash is an application that allows students to use ID cards to make purchases from several vendors. The acquisition gives Blackboard another level of presence on campuses. The company, known primarily for its e-learning software, has been trying to broaden its offerings to other aspects of campus life and had already developed a transaction system for on-campus purchases. Adding SA Cash to its products gives Blackboard conncections with off-campus vendors. Student Advantage has been having severe financial difficulty for the past three years and is trying to sell the rest of the company as well. Washington Post, 4 February 2003 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20911-2003Feb3.html LATEST DISTRIBUTED-COMPUTING PROJECT: SMALLPOX CURE A group of universities and public and private organizations has announced a new distributed-computing project to try to find a cure for smallpox. Project participants include Oxford University, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, IBM, United Devices, Accelrys, and the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases. Recent fears about smallpox as a tool for terrorists have led President Bush to call for vaccinating millions of health-care workers, firefighters, police officers, and military personnel. The smallpox vaccination, however, carries a risk of infection. The goal of the new project is to narrow the list of substances that might prove effective as a cure for smallpox after infection. As with other distributed-computing projects, volunteers will download a screen saver that gives the project access to unused processing power. The project needs a few million computer users to download the screen saver and donate their extra processing power to the molecular modeling and screening of possible compounds. New York Times, 5 February 2003 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/05/health/05SMAL.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change your settings, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For past issues of Edupage or information about translations of Edupage into other languages, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE PUBLICATIONS EDUCAUSE publishes periodicals, including "EQ" and "EDUCAUSE Review," books, and other materials dealing with the impacts and implications of information technology in higher education. 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