Nate Mook

Microsoft on Monday rebranded the Windows Live Safety Center under its recently launched "OneCare" product. The free online tool checks a computer for viruses and makes tune-ups to improve performance. Windows Live OneCare safety scanner can be used an unlimited number of times, Microsoft said.

The tool is now available in 43 international markets, and is updated on a daily basis with protection from the latest threats to Windows. Microsoft frequently directs users to the safety scanner when a new virus surfaces. For a full range of PC protection and care services, users can subscribe to the full Windows Live OneCare for $49.95 USD per year.

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Segway on Monday rolled out its next generation Personal Transporter lineup, cutting bulk off its scooters, but leaving the high price intact. New features include "LeanSteer" for turning and a wireless Bluetooth "InfoKey" controller that replaces the standard key.

LeanSteer does away with twisting handles to turn, enabling the rider to simply lean in the direction they want to go. The Segway is able to differentiate between the rider's moves and terrain changes, the company says, and makes the experience more fun and intuitive.

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AOL on Monday announced it had acquired Userplane, maker of Web based instant messaging and chat software. Userplane's customer base includes 100,000 Web sites that pay a monthly fee based on usage, but most notably MySpace.

AOL intends to use the company's platform to extend the reach of AIM and ICQ, and enable Userplane customers to federate their communities with AOL. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Userplane's 12 employees will remain in Los Angeles and operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of AOL.

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Microsoft on Friday released a beta of Windows Live Writer, a new application designed to create blog posts for Live Spaces and a number of other services. Appearing like a slimmed down version of Microsoft Word, the tool is available free of charge.

Users can author blog posts in a WYSIWYG environment that makes editing easy and shows exactly how the post will look when published. An HTML source code editing mode is included for more advanced users, as well as a Web preview option.

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Brushing off feedback from testers and pundits to push back the first release candidate of Windows Vista and issue a third beta instead, Microsoft confirmed Thursday that RC1 was on the way. Product Manager Nick White says Microsoft will re-open the Vista beta program for the release.

In addition, customers who participated in the Customer Preview Program for Beta 2 will automatically receive RC1, and those who missed the opportunity will have another. "I know you're excited. So am I -- and I'm using a newer build (5505)!" said White. "More news when it's available." Windows Vista RC1 is expected in the coming weeks.

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Always endeavoring to expand the utility of its search engine, Google on Friday rolled out a new feature for movie seekers: trailers. Users can enter the film title and their zip code or city name to see nearby showtimes, critics' reviews and a link to the movie's trailer.

Trailers are hosted on Google Video, and if the theater has ticketing through Fandango, Google will also include links to purchase tickets. The addition follows a "movie:" operator Google added last year to its search, which brings up organized reviews of a flick from across the Web and calculates a film's combined rating.

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"Mission: Impossible III" will set a milestone when it is released to video on October 30, becoming the first movie to be available on DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray simultaneously. The high-def versions will offer 1080p resolution and 5.1 Dolby Digital Plus surround sound.

The HD DVD release will also include an "enhanced commentary" by director J.J. Abrams and Tom Cruise that shows the pair talking in the corner as the movie plays. This capability is possible through HD DVD's iHD feature, which is not included in Blu-ray. Analysts say that more studios will follow with similar three format launches -- at least until one high-definition format prevails.

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The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) this week issued a harsh rebuke to the Recording Industry Association of America's efforts in lobbying Congress to force on the industry an "audio flag" in all digital broadcasts that would prevent them from being recorded.

The RIAA is fearful that the advent of digital broadcasts enables individuals to make near-perfect recordings of content streamed over the airwaves. For example, satellite and HD radio offer customers CD-quality sound, which could pose a threat to music sales if people are able to save individual tracks for later listening, the RIAA claims.

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Giving enthusiasts a taste of what's coming, Microsoft has released a trial version of its much-anticipated Flight Simulator X, which celebrates 25 years of the popular franchise and will be fully optimized for Windows Vista. The demo includes two airports, three missions, and three different aircraft.

Flight Simulator X is compatible with Windows XP SP2 and Vista, requiring 14GB of hard drive space and a DirectX 9 capable graphics card. The new title is expected to fully launch in time for the holiday season in a Standard edition and a Deluxe edition that adds more airplanes, airports, cities and missions. Microsoft is also building in an online component to Flight Simulator X.

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Nikon on Wednesday introduced its latest digital SLR camera, boasting a resolution of 10.2 megapixels thanks to a new DX Format CCD image sensor. The Nikon D80 is aimed at the "prosumer" and takes a number of features from the company's professional digital SLRs.

The D80 can shoot up to 3 frames per second, and 100 consecutive images stored in JPEG format. The new camera boots up in 0.18 seconds and has a shutter time of 80 milliseconds. Nikon has added an 11-area auto-focus, along with an image retouch menu. A new 7.5x 18-135mm lens will be optionally available with the Nikon D80, which retails for $1299.95 USD or $999.95 USD without the lens.

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The Electronic Frontier Foundation's lawsuit against AT&T for its alleged role in turning over customer call data to the NSA has been put on hold until late September or October. The move by U.S. District Chief Judge Vaughn Walker comes less than a month after he rejected the U.S. government's request for dismissal on grounds that the case involves state secrets.

Walker says he would stay the case until an appeal of that ruling was completed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Also mentioned in the reasoning was another court decision that could bundle similar lawsuits against AT&T. Acknowledging that he was dealing with "serious issues," Walker said he was considering bringing on former CIA director James Woolsey to assist the court as an expert in such matters.

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Nokia said on Tuesday it has reached an agreement to acquire Loudeye, which provides a music distribution platform that powers a number of music stores in Europe, including MSN Music. The leading phone maker will use Loudeye technology to launch its own mobile music service.

Claiming it is the largest manufacturer of digital music players, Nokia sold 15 million music-enabled phones in the second quarter. The company plans to roll out the new music service in 2007, which will specifically take advantage of Nokia Nseries multimedia phones. Loudeye currently offers its technology in 20 countries and boasts a library of 1.6 million songs. The deal is valued at $60 million and is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

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Microsoft on Tuesday issued twelve security bulletins, including 7 "critical" patches for Windows and 2 critical updates for Office. Three other "important" patches were released for Windows. All told, Microsoft fixed over 20 vulnerabilities in the two products.

The critical Windows updates address several vulnerabilities in the Windows Server and DNS services, flaws in Internet Explorer and Outlook Express, a vulnerability in the Microsoft Management Console, an issue with HTML Help, and several vulnerabilities in the Windows kernel.

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Microsoft announced Tuesday that it would ship Windows Speech Recognition in eight languages as part of Windows Vista, the first time its flagship operating system would include the technology. Vista users will be able to issue commands and dictate text in applications.

The Redmond company also plans to integrate Speech Server 2007 into Office Communications Server 2007, canceling the individual product. However, Microsoft says it will continue to support current Speech Server 2004 customers until 2014.

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Yahoo on Monday released a Search Builder tool for creating customized search engines based on a select group of Web sites or specific search parameters. The new service is designed to compete with personal search upstarts including Eurekster and Rollyo.

Users can define what Web sites their search engine should scour, or utilize Yahoo's entire index. Yahoo! News sources can also be included. Furthermore, searches can be filtered by including a specific term or excluding keywords. For exampling, a Web site about software can include searches covering only that topic.

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