RAZZ Simplifies Web Audio Recording
Startup RAZZ recently unveiled its Flash based Mixer application that lets users record messages and spice them up with sound effects and music. Behind the scenes of the product are two former Winamp developers, Tom Pepper and Jonathan Ward.
Although Winamp is still slowly chugging along, the majority of the Nullsoft team left parent company AOL in November 2004. Most of the development team have taken similar roles at other music-related companies, or started their own projects.
Microsoft Offers Free Accounting Suite
Upping the ante against Intuit, Microsoft on Monday released a new accounting software package for small and home businesses. The most alluring feature of the offering may not be its Outlook-like interface and Office integration, but rather its price: free.
Office Accounting Express 2007 is largely a basic accounting suite aimed at those who currently use pen and paper or a spreadsheet to manage their finances. Startups and eBay sellers are among the intended audience, Microsoft says.
Microsoft: 6 Million Xbox 360s Sold
UPDATE October 27, 2006, 5:35 pm ET: Late this afternoon, a spokesperson for Microsoft confirmed to BetaNews that CFO Chris Liddell's prediction of four million more Xbox 360 consoles sold between now and the end of the year, is an accurate one. The spokesperson did clarify the meaning of "sell:" Liddell was referring to sales to retailers and distributors (wholesalers and resellers), not to end customers. If NPD were to make an assessment of Xbox 360 end customer sales next January, we were told, that number could be different.
Liddell did not mean "ship" instead of "sell," we were assured. Conceivably, the company could ship fewer units than it sells, though with inventory windows narrow, the book-to-bill ratio in this case is probably fairly even.
3 Million IE7 Downloads in 4 Days
Microsoft is heralding the launch of Internet Explorer 7 as a success, announcing that the new browser has been downloaded three million times in the first four days. Early next month, customers will begin receiving IE7 automatically, at which time adoption numbers will likely skyrocket.
To promote the launch of IE7, Microsoft has bought up radio spots and employed mobile billboards in 10 cities across the United States. The new browser brings added security, tabbed browsing and built-in RSS support, and is currently available for Windows XP SP2. "Of course, we’re not done with IE7 yet. Next up are the localized versions of IE7 for Windows XP and, of course, IE7 in Windows Vista," said Tony Chor, IE7 group program manager.
Adobe Tests New Document Reader
Adobe on Tuesday released a beta version of Digital Editions, a Web application built in Flash that is designed to make reading electronic documents easier. The tool acts like a slimmed down version of Adobe Reader, and can even display PDF files.
Digital Editions, unveiled at Adobe's MAX 2006 conference in Las Vegas, is only 2.5MB in size. It's not intended to replace the bulky Reader, but rather to extend its feature set. It utilizes the same e-book capabilities Adobe built into Reader, and adds Flash to make digital publications interactive.
Windows Defender Final Released
After nearly two years in beta testing, Microsoft has at long last released the final version of Windows Defender, its free anti-spyware software. The tool is available now for Windows XP, and will ship as part of Windows Vista.
Originally named Windows AntiSpyware, Defender came from Microsoft's acquisition of GIANT Software. The company bulked up the detection engine and added protection for pop-ups and other malware that affects PC performance. By offering Windows Defender without cost, however, Microsoft has irked some security vendors.
Mozilla Launches Firefox 2.0 Browser
The Mozilla Corporation on Monday posted to its download site the final release of Firefox 2.0, the second-generation release of the popular alternative Web browser. An official announcement is expected Tuesday.
New features in Firefox 2.0 include enhancements in security, tabbed browsing, performance, and extensions. The browser update also includes a built-in spell checking and an anti-phishing feature, much like Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7, which launched last week.
Microsoft to Train Colombian Fighters
Microsoft on Thursday pledged to donate $300,000 and train former paramilitary fighters in Colombia to handle civilian jobs. The effort comes after Colombian President Alvaro Uribe asked Microsoft chairman Bill Gates for help with re-integrating former militiamen.
$234,000 in cash and $77,000 in software will be donated to the country, with some of the software designed to create an employment database that matches the skills of former fighters with employers. Many paramilitary fighters have had trouble finding jobs due to a lack of education and their history.
AIM 6 Gets Offline Messages, Logging
AOL on Friday released the second beta of AIM 6, adding a number of major features that users have been requesting for years. On the list is the ability to send messages to buddies that are offline, and automatic message logging.
AOL has returned to number-based versioning after launching AIM Triton last year. AIM 6 is the next iteration of Triton, which was named to emphasize that it was a completely new instant messaging platform rewritten from the ground up, but caused some confusion among AIM users.
MS: IE7 Flaw Really in Outlook Express
Microsoft responded Thursday to reports of the first exploit affecting Internet Explorer 7, which cropped up less than 24 hours after the browser's official launch. Christopher Budd from Microsoft's Security Response Center says the flaw lies not in IE7, but in an Outlook Express component.
This fact could explain why the problem first surfaced back in November 2003 and was found to affect IE6 last April. "While these reports use Internet Explorer as a vector the vulnerability itself is in Outlook Express," Budd said. Microsoft notes it has received no reports of any attacks against customers, but is investigating the situation and may release a patch if necessary.
Microsoft AV Head Criticizes Apple
The individual at Microsoft responsible for making sure product releases ship without viruses lashed back at Apple Wednesday, after the company chided Microsoft for having an insecure operating system within an advisory regarding iPods that shipped with a virus.
Apple apologized Tuesday for the roughly 1 percent of video iPods that shipped after September 12, 2006 with the mass-storage virus Win32.RJump.a. "As you might imagine, we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it," the company said.
Windows XP SP3 Pushed to 2008
Microsoft has further delayed the release of Service Pack 3 for Windows XP, moving expected availability from the second half of 2007 to the first half of 2008. The change came silently in an update to the company's service pack roadmap.
Although that date is still listed as "preliminary" a similar delay for Windows Server 2003 SP2 seems to be finalized. Initially planned for the end of this year and currently in beta testing, SP2 will now arrive in the first quarter of 2007.
100GB Hard Drive for Xbox Coming
Microsoft announced in Korea Thursday that it plans to deliver a 100-gigabyte hard drive add-on for the Xbox 360. The current premium version of the console comes with a 20GB hard drive. The news came at the company's X06 conference, but no specific timetable was set.
With 100GB of storage, Microsoft could more easily position the Xbox as a full-blown media center for the living room. In addition, users would have more space to store Xbox Live downloads, and potentially even music and video purchases in the future. The add-on is expected to arrive in Korea next March, but a United States launch, as well as pricing, are still unknown.
Internet Explorer 7 Final Released
Microsoft late Wednesday released the much-anticipated final version of Internet Explorer 7, the first major update to the market-leading Web browser in five years. The company has high hopes for the release, which arrives amid growing competition from Firefox.
Microsoft plans to deliver IE7 to all Windows users via Automatic Updates beginning in November. IE product manager Gary Schare told BetaNews last week that the rollout would be staggered and start in about 3 weeks.
Opera Browser Gets Fraud Protection
Opera Software is adding fraud and phishing protection to the next release of its free Web browser, version 9.1. The technology follows similar features coming in Firefox 2.0 and Internet Explorer 7, but takes a slightly different approach.
Phishing scams and other fraudulent Web sites have continued to pose a major threat to Web surfers. The Anti-Phishing Working Group said last month that phishing sites increased to 14,191, a new record. Scammers often pose as banks, ISPs and even government agencies in order to steal consumers' identity information.
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