Microsoft's Anti-Spyware Sells Out; Google Readies Firefox
Browser Bar; AIM Adds Plaxo; Pay-for-Performance Comes to
Health Care
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Microsoft's Anti-Spyware Sells Out
A few weeks ago, the nastyware from Claria, called Gator,
was flagged and removed by Microsoft's anti-spyware program.
But now that the two companies are in buyout talks, suddenly
an updated version of the Microsoft program is programmed to
"ignore" those spyware apps by default. And let's face it,
who changes the defaults? It's just another example of
Microsoft selling out. Didn't we learn this lesson long ago?
One company, controlling everything, just isn't good for
users.
AIM Adds Plaxo
You've probably gotten a bunch of those messages -- "Hi, I'm
updating my address book, and ..." Well now the company
originating all that pseudo-spam has hooked up with AOL.
That's right, AIM users will get Plaxo, for free, coming
later this summer. Does that mean address-updating spam will
now be spread by instant message? Or is it a good thing?
Read our article and decide for yourself.
Great Low-Cost Color Laser
Remember when color lasers cost more than a brand-new Yugo?
Those days are long gone, and now they've even cracked the
$400 barrier -- which is almost what you'll pay for
replacement cartridges. They won't print amazing color
photos, but apart from that they produce some pretty
stunning results. So if you're in the market for a printer
-- and you're thinking color -- take a look at our review,
and add it to your consideration set.
Google Readies Firefox Browser Bar
Finally, Firefox users will soon feel like first-class
citizens. That's because Google will be releasing its great
browser toolbar for the up-and-coming browser, adding
in-place search, pop-up blocking, autofill and more. I love
the Google browser, but I'm tired of just having it on IE. I
can't wait for the update! For details on when it'll be
available, and how to get it, check out our story. Firefox
has finally matured!
Torrent Support Added to Opera
In the wake of the Supreme Court's recent ruling, BitTorrent
might just be the only peer-to-peer service still standing
in six months. And it's gaining traction in other ways too
-- alternate browser vendor Opera is adding support directly
into its browser. How will it work? When will it be
available? Our story has the details, along with links to
help you download the "preview" version to try it yourself.
SCO and IBM Case Drags Out and Out
I thought justice was supposed to be swift and sure. In this
case it's lengthy and tenuous. No, I'm not talking about
Michael Jackson, I'm talking about the other celebrity trial
of the century, Linux on the spot. SCO's suit against IBM
has a trial date, but it's not until 2007! Find out when the
case will go before a judge, and who will be the surprise
star witness, in our story. Talk about delays!
10 Hard-Drive MP3 Players Reviewed
Looking for a new home for all those MP3 files? Take a new
look at portable players -- they're bigger and badder than
ever - -while being smaller at the same time. An
impossibility? Nope, not according to our just-completed
roundup of the latest hard-drive players. We really analyzed
these players, focusing on audio performance, battery life
and portability. Want a new player? Check out our reviews,
along with three editors choice winners -- and guess what?
Not all of them are from Apple!
A Quiet Case Gets Better
Want a computer case that won't exhale lots of noise into
your home or office? I've been a big fan of Antec's Sonata
case -- I'm writing this on an Athlon 64-based system built
inside one right now. But the new Sonata II is even better
-- according to ExtremeTech's Jason Cross. It's quieter,
easier to configure and comes with an even bigger power
supply! It's among our favorite cases, and it even looks
good. Building a new PC? This is the case for you! Check out
our reviews and the slideshow that really shows you what's
inside.
New Acrobat 7 Reviewed
This is not your father's PDF creation engine. Nope, instead
Acrobat 7 adds all sorts of enhancements, including support
for OpenType fonts without compression, custom color spaces,
3D artwork and more. Our in-depth review analyzes what's new
and provides guidance for whether users should upgrade to
the new version, or move from Standard to Pro. If you
create, store or manage documents, our review will reveal
the capabilities of this fine new tool. Plus it takes a look at a new plug-in from WindJack that lets you add customized
dialog boxes to add user-friendliness to your PDFs.
Pay-for-Performance Comes to Health Care
Well, maybe. I'm a big fan of providing incentives to people
to do a good job. In the private sector, raises, promotions
and bonuses help focus employees on making the right
decisions. But in the medical field that motivation is sadly
lacking. However, at least pay-for-performance is finally
starting to get a hearing. Two senators have introduced a
bill that will earmark some Medicare money to reward health
care providers that do a good job. What a concept! Bonuses
for exemplary performance. Our story has the details, but
why didn't this happen a long time ago?
Post Office Explores Letter Tracking
It's one of the biggest "white lies," and if a new Post
Office experiment with bar codes works, it will be obsolete.
Yes, that envelope with the check in it will be tracked,
along with other personal correspondence. It's all part of
helping to keep snail mail relevant in the digital age. At
least that's the claptrap being fed to our author. Believe
it? Read the story about how the Post Office is adding
trackbacks, and when it will come to you, along with details
on what else the old PO is doing to remain viable. I just
wonder why they didn't jump right to RFID.
That's it for What's New Now today. I'm on vacation over the
next two weeks, so I've lined up four guest columnists to
put together our compendiums of What's New Now. Oh, and if
you've been missing the Podcast, it's on temporary hiatus. I
just wasn't happy with the audio version of this newsletter.
I've got big plans, though, so stay subscribed. We'll be
back in late July with a Podcasted What's New Now that's
better than ever!
—Jim Louderback
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Staying out of the Litigation Hot Seat - A Legal and Technical Perspective on Outbound Content Compliance
7/28 -- Join us July 28th for a web seminar on how to mitigate risk and improve outbound content compliance across all your enterprise communications including email, instant messaging, file transfer and Web communications. We will review the legal issues surrounding outbound content compliance, including selected case studies, followed by a discussion of the latest advances in content analysis technologies. Register now.
Improving Business Performance with Effortless Systems Management
7/12 -- The selection of systems management software has been a dilemma: Agent-less solutions are easy to use and inexpensive to operate but provide limited functionality; agent-based solutions do almost everything but have a high TCO. Register now.
DigitalLife 2005 - October 14-16, Javits Convention Center, NYC
Click here to sign up for special offers from DigitalLife,
New York City's only consumer technology, entertainment and
gaming event for gadget enthusiasts of all ages. DigitalLife
- this October 14-16 at the Javits Center - three days for
you to score the coolest prizes, meet your favorite
celebrities and join the gaming insanity. Don't miss out on
this once-a-year digital extravaganza!
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