Moving right along according to plan, the first release candidate of Firefox 3.0 appeared this morning among Mozilla's beta and candidate downloads. BetaNews has obtained the link, and RC1 is downloadable now.
Top Stories
Adobe has launched the public beta for Flash Player 10, the company's ubiquitous runtime graphics platform. Added features include 3D animation and transformation support and new rich text layouts.
Google tries to make its spreadsheets more like wikis
May 16 - 7:22 PM ET
In a strange move, Google has added a new feature to Google Docs that enables users to allow anyone to edit a spreadsheet, advertising the option as a way to make a spreadsheet like a wiki.
2 Comments...
Gates demonstrates touch UIs everywhere, including walls and furniture
May 16 - 5:41 PM ET
"Little thin, tablet-like computers" and giant, sensitive walls with interchangeable touch- and pen-based "natural interfaces" are still on the way, said Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, speaking at a CEO Forum Wednesday.
16 Comments...
Backup feature surprisingly removed from Windows Home Server refresh
May 16 - 5:30 PM ET
Testers of a forthcoming service pack for Windows Home Server were the first to discover that a feature they'd come to rely upon had been removed from the product -- as it turns out, intentionally.
21 Comments...
Sony announces in-house video game lineup
May 16 - 5:05 PM ET
Looking to keep up the current string of positive news, Sony on Friday detailed its game lineup for the rest of the year and into 2009.
17 Comments...
Municipal Wi-Fi sustains fatal blow with likely loss of MetroFi
May 16 - 3:50 PM ET
After scrapping its citywide Wi-Fi deployment project for Portland, Oregon, municipal wireless company MetroFi is planning to liquidate its network assets or close down entirely.
1 Comment...
Sprint eyes 2008 for WiMAX launch, ahead of AT&T and Verizon LTE
May 16 - 3:13 PM ET
Sprint this week unveiled plans for a commercial launch of its WiMAX 4G network by the end of 2008 in the Baltimore and Washington, DC area, capping about a year of testing with Samsung and other wireless vendors.
2 Comments...
Beta of an Outlook synchronization gadget for Google Apps
May 16 - 2:34 PM ET
A great many Microsoft Outlook users don't have the benefit of an Exchange server, so their e-mail and calendar are bound to one PC. Now, a gadget just entering beta could help by extending the reach of personal data to the Web, through Google Apps.
6 Comments...
Yet another cross-site scripting vulnerability affects IE7 on XP
May 16 - 2:11 PM ET
A private security researcher well known for turning up cross-site scripting vulnerabilities in Web browsers has discovered another one, and is trumpeting the find as another milestone in Web history.
5 Comments...
Yahoo's SearchScan irks some Web site owners
May 16 - 1:58 PM ET
False positives and errors have some developers seeing red over Yahoo's new security feature.
Report: Alltel's choice of LTE a big loss for WiMAX, UMB
May 16 - 1:47 PM ET
With the smallest subscriber base of the top five wireless carriers in the US but one of the biggest networks, ABI Research thinks Alltel has picked a winner by aligning its future development with GSM-based Long Term Evolution (LTE).
1 Comment...
Study: BitTorrent blocking common on Comcast, Cox, StarHub
May 16 - 12:37 PM ET
Blocking of BitTorrent traffic is widespread among some ISPs in the US and Singapore, but not in Canada or any other country on the globe, says a new study released this week from German researchers.
2 Comments...
Yahoo chairman's response to Icahn leaves possibilities open
May 16 - 11:58 AM ET
Roy Bostock had every opportunity to simply just say no to Carl Icahn, whose open letter yesterday launched his hostile takeover strategy. But instead the Yahoo chairman wrote a candid, curiously unsolicited history of Microsoft's walkout.
1 Comment...
iPhone's reach expands further into Middle East, Africa
May 16 - 11:27 AM ET
Cellular operator Orange announced Friday that it will sell the iPhone in most of the markets it serves sometime later of this year.
2 Comments...
OLPC hopes Windows is its sales savior
May 16 - 11:24 AM ET
Representing a major alignment shift, the One Laptop Per Child project announced Thursday it had come to an agreement with Microsoft to put Windows XP on its XO Laptop.
12 Comments...
Philadelphia takes a pass on saving muni Wi-Fi network
May 15 - 6:27 PM ET
The Mayor of Philadelphia has indicated that he will not use city funds to keep the Earthlink wireless network running in the city.
5 Comments...
Tiny game controller company wrests $21 M from giant Nintendo
May 15 - 6:21 PM ET
In 2006, Texas game controller company Anascape filed patent infringement suits against both Nintendo and Microsoft. On Wednesday, Nintendo was ordered to pay $21 million to the company.
14 Comments...
Beta test of a wireless headset for office workers
May 15 - 5:50 PM ET
Beta testing firm Centercode is seeking testers to try out a new wireless headset designed for office environments that promises unparalleled range and audio quality. Individuals must work in actual offices in the United States or Europe.
5 Comments...
On second thought, Facebook opts out of Google 'Friend Connect' for now
May 15 - 5:34 PM ET
UPDATED In a blog post today, Facebook developer Charlie Cheever said Facebook will be blocking Google's Friend Connect, citing a revelation about how it distributes users' private information.
4 Comments...
A hundred bucks turns a BlackBerry into a Garmin navigator
May 15 - 5:18 PM ET
Garmin announced a new lifetime offer to Research in Motion BlackBerry smartphone owners: its complete turn-by-turn, voice direction service for a one-time fee of $99.99, for the life of their BlackBerrys.
8 Comments...
WD unveils a hard drive expansion kit for Dish Network DVRs
May 15 - 5:00 PM ET
To help Dish Network customers seeking to store even more television content when they are unable to watch it live, Western Digital today introduced the My DVR Expander USB Edition 500 GB HDD designed specifically for DVRs.
4 Comments...
AOL Instant Messenger for Windows 6.8.5.17 Beta 3
May 16 - 6:30 PM ET
AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) should be used because e-mail just isn't fast enough sometimes. This convenient, add-on to your system lets you communicate one-on-one or in a group with family, friends, and business associates who also use it. Finding people online can be easy too. Use the Member Directory to locate friends by name or by e-mail address.
AOL Instant Messenger has the following other editions available: AOL Instant Messenger for Mac OS X, AOL Instant Messenger for Linux and AOL Instant Messenger Pro.
Windows 2000/2003/2008/Vista/XP
License: Adware
User Rating: 3.4
License: Adware
User Rating: 3.4
MediaInfo Lite 0.7.7.0
May 16 - 5:15 PM ET
MediaInfo Lite is a tool to analyze media files. It can give you information about the audio and video format, video resolution, duration, etc. It optionally includes a shell extension for Windows Explorer. When installed, it will show you information when you move your mouse pointer over the media file.
Windows (All)
License: Freeware
User Rating: 3.4
License: Freeware
User Rating: 3.4
K-Lite Codec Tweak Tool 2.2.7
May 16 - 5:15 PM ET
K-Lite Codec Tweak Tool will scan for broken filters and remove them. If the tool detects something that is broken, it will then prompt you with the details and you will be given the option to remove the broken item.
Windows (All)
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.4
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.4
Process Lasso (x32) 2.88
May 16 - 5:10 PM ET
Process Lasso improves system performance, responsiveness, and stability in high load situations. It watches for processes consuming too much of the CPU and automatically restrains them to improve system responsiveness. It can also automatically terminate undesired processes, apply default priorities and CPU affinities to processes, or log all processes executed. It is not a task manager replacement, but does have task manager like capabilities only as a compliment to its core functions.
Process Lasso has the following other editions available: Process Lasso (x64).
Windows 2000/2003/2008/Vista/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.0
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.0
xpy 0.10
May 16 - 4:30 PM ET
xpy is a small tool which disables the default threats of a Windows XP installation. Besides the classic antispy features, it closes recent security holes like the remote procure call (rpc) service and the distributed component object model (dcom).
Windows 2000/2003/XP
License: Open Source
User Rating: 4.1
License: Open Source
User Rating: 4.1
StrongDC++ 2.13
May 16 - 4:16 PM ET
StrongDC++ is a client for downloading files in Direct Connect network. Two of the best features are its automatic search for alternates and segmented downloading.
Windows 2000/2003/9x/XP
License: Open Source
Not Yet Rated
License: Open Source
Not Yet Rated
Kantaris Media Player 0.3.7 Beta
May 16 - 4:01 PM ET
Kantaris Media Player can play almost anything you can throw at it - AVI, MPEG, MGEG-AVC, WMV, MOV, MKV, quicktime, matroska, divx, xvid, H264, MP3, WMA, OGG files and more. It can also play DVD's and audio cd's. The player also displays some of the most beautiful music visualizations ever seen. All this is completely free.
It is based on code from Videolan client (VLC) and Bass audio library. The graphical user interface is similar to that of Windows Media Player.
Windows 2000/Vista/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 3.6
License: Freeware
User Rating: 3.6
MediaInfo 0.7.7.0
May 16 - 3:45 PM ET
MediaInfo supplies technical and tag information about a video or audio file. It provides general information for multimedia files like: title, author, director, album, track number, date, duration, etc. It also provides more specific information for audio files such as: codec, aspect, fps, bitrate and more, and information for video files such as: codec, sample rate, channels, language, bitrate and more. This information can be exported as text, CSV or HTML.
Linux, Windows 2000/9x/XP
License: Open Source
User Rating: 5.0
License: Open Source
User Rating: 5.0
Flock for Windows 1.2b Beta
May 16 - 3:23 PM ET
Flock is a social Web browser, open source, cross platform and based on Mozilla technologies. Currently, the browser implements support for del.icio.us and Flickr. Users can also install alternative hosted bookmarks or photo sharing services. In the search box and the blog manager, Flock offer users a number of choices and the ability to install other services using open standards. Expect the same, over time, for hosted bookmarks, photo-sharing and other services Flock integrates. Flock is based on the open source Mozilla code base.
Flock has the following other editions available: Flock for Mac OS X and Flock for Linux.
Windows 2000/2003/9x/Vista/XP
License: Open Source
User Rating: 3.4
License: Open Source
User Rating: 3.4
VSO Image Resizer 2.0.1.1
May 16 - 3:05 PM ET
VSO Image Resizer organizes your photos by shrinking their resolution or moving them within your hard drive. It is the perfect tool for those who store their digital pictures and images on their PC and who want to resize, compress, convert, create copies, create thumbnails, import or organize photos.
Windows 2000/2003/Me/Vista/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.4
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.4
Intel Processor Identification Utility 3.8
May 16 - 2:45 PM ET
Intel Processor Identification Utility was developed to identify the processor inside a system, assuring the processor contains intended technologies and is operating at the tested and rated frequency intended by Intel Corporation.
Windows 2000/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.0
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.0
Ad-Aware 2007 Reference File 0083.0000
May 16 - 2:20 PM ET
This is a reference file update for Ad-Aware to detect and remove the newest advertising systems.
Once the update has been applied, you can delete the reflist.zip file as it is no longer needed.
Windows 2000/2003/9x/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.3
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.3
Mozilla Firefox for Windows (Gran Paradiso) 3.0 Release Candidate 1
May 16 - 2:12 PM ET
Mozilla Firefox project (formerly Firebird, which was formerly Phoenix) is a redesign of Mozilla's browser component, written using the XUL user interface language and designed to be cross-platform. It includes a popup blocker, tabbed browsing, a smarter search, hassle free downloading, and improved privacy and security.
Mozilla Firefox has the following other editions available: Mozilla Firefox for Windows, Mozilla Firefox for Linux, Mozilla Firefox for Mac OS X, Mozilla Firefox for Mac OS X (Gran Paradiso) and Mozilla Firefox for Linux (Gran Paradiso).
Windows (All)
License: Open Source
User Rating: 4.1
License: Open Source
User Rating: 4.1
AntiVir Personal Edition for Windows 8.1.0.46
May 16 - 2:00 PM ET
AntiVir Personal Edition offers effective protection against computer viruses for the individual and private use on a single PC-workstation. It detects and removes viruses and includes an Internet-Update Wizard for easy updating. The built in resident Virus Guard serves to monitor file movements automatically, for example when downloading files from the Internet. Heuristic scanning protects Protection against previously unknown macro viruses.
Windows 2000/Vista/XP
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.3
License: Freeware
User Rating: 4.3
UltraEdit 14.00b
May 16 - 1:37 PM ET
UltraEdit is a text editor with support for unlimited file sizes, a spell checker, drag and drop, full HEX editing capabilities, user configurable syntax highlighting, column editing, sorting, and a configurable toolbar.
Windows 2000/Vista/XP
License: Shareware
User Rating: 3.7
License: Shareware
User Rating: 3.7
