Has Firefox 3 certificate handling become too 'scary?'
In a scenario reminiscent of the fairy tale about the fellow who cries "wolf" too often, security engineers are actively wondering whether Firefox' "blowing of the whistle" on self-signed certificates is a) frightening, and b) fair to developers.
One of the oft-touted improvements in Mozilla's Firefox 3.0 Web browser has been its improved handling for sites that authenticate their own identities using SSL certificates -- the kind used to initiate encrypted transactions with HTTPS protocol. For instance, a site whose authentication is verified will be indicated in Firefox's address bar by having its icon expanded to a full name, printed on a green background. Supposedly, this is to reassure the user that everything's copacetic.
Apple gives MobileMe subscribers more free time
Subscribers who have remained with MobileMe through its continued growing pains will be rewarded with another 60 days free, bringing the total free time to 90 days.
To be eligible for the new extension, customers must be enrolled members by midnight Tuesday. Those who have already enrolled will see their free trial periods extended another 60 days.
Microsoft supports Blu-ray mastering in Windows; is Xbox next?
Finally giving up the last vestiges of its exclusive support for the HD DVD format, Microsoft has quietly launched a beta test of Windows-based mastering software for Blu-Ray discs.
Microsoft's new Image Mastering API update for Blu-Ray media is now available for download from the Microsoft Connect Web site as part of Windows Feature Pack for Storage, a software package in pre-release for Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server platforms.
Japan says iPod nanos may pose overheating risk
The country's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry said Tuesday that it had received two additional reports of iPod nanos that caught fire after overheating.
The incidents involve the following model numbers: MA004J/A, MA005J/A, MA099J/A, and MA107J/A, which encompass about 1.81 million units sold in Japan between September 2005 and September 2006. Neither of these most recent events caused injury, although earlier incidents were to blame for at least two cases of minor burns.
Users to Microsoft: 'Just make Windows faster'
Continuing an unprecedented public dialog on the future of Windows begun last week, a Microsoft senior vice president admits that the request he's hearing most often from users is pretty simple: Speed it up.
Though we won't make it a point to post a story every time a Microsoft Senior Vice President, such as Steven Sinofsky or Jon DeVaan, issues an utterance about the next edition of Windows on its newly launched corporate blog, one statement from Sinofsky this morning will raise eyebrows: In response to the blog's inaugural call for ideas from the general public about what features they'd like to see in "Windows 7," he surprisingly acknowledged that many were more interested not so much in features but in behavior.
TSA-approved laptop bags: $220+
The US Transportation Safety Administration's recent relaxation of rules on removing laptops from luggage at airport checkpoints, carried an announcement of soon-to-be available TSA pre-approved bags. This fall, we should see the first.
"The Checkpoint Flyer" by Tom Bihn adheres to TSA guidelines as presented in the group's five-month design challenge. To achieve this, it integrates a protective laptop sleeve into a messenger-style bag that allows the two to be separated for scanning in "less than three seconds" (re-attachment times were not included).
Apple releases iPhone 2.0.2 update, 3G problems remain
Just two weeks after the initial update to the iPhone's second generation firmware, another has appeared with promises of more "bug fixes."
At a little under 249 MB, the latest iPhone firmware update, version 2.0.2, is about the same size as the previous patch. While many had hoped for fixes to the 3G connectivity issues the device has been experiencing, reports on Apple's support forums seem to indicate there may be no fix in this patch.
Google: Android-based HTC Dream may not be alone for long
Hot on the heels of FCC approval of HTC's "Dream" phone, Google has hinted to BetaNews that the "Dream" isn't the only Android phone already under way.
"To prepare for Android's public launch, we are testing the platform on a variety of devices," a Google spokesperson said, in an e-mail to BetaNews.
Yahoo to open up Buzz submissions to public
While news aggregator Buzz has been up for about six months, until now, users could only vote for content, and the link inclusion process was limited to suggestions from only 400 publishers. That's about to change.
Beginning next Monday at 10:00 pm EDT, users will be able to submit content suggestions to Yahoo Buzz, as it emerges from beta. If a content item gets enough votes, it will appear on the front page of Yahoo.
Microsoft alters server app licensing for virtualization
It's been a slow, painful separation that's taken decades: divorcing Microsoft from its reliance upon per-processor licensing of its software. Today, the company took another hard step toward turning its back on an obsolete practice.
Up until this week, it has actually been a violation of Microsoft's Windows licensing terms for data center admins to do one of the quintessential tasks in their environment: moving running applications on virtual systems between physical processors. For data centers that consolidate their workloads by deploying multiple virtual servers on far fewer processors, live migration is a critical load balancing operation. In fact, it's one of VMware's key administrative features for its popular VMware Fusion.
Four US news broadcasters expand on fast-growing Facebook
With Facebook growing at a far brisker clip than any other major social network, four big news organizations, including Fox News -- whose parent company owns rival MySpace -- are now expanding their Facebook presences.
News opportunities on Facebook could loom huge. Although about 32 percent of all Internet users belong to social networking sites, only roughly 10 percent of them regularly receive news on those sites, according to a new survey by Pew Research.
Skyfire Beta 0.6 heats up pocket screens
Upstart mobile browser Skyfire this weekend rolled out its Beta version 0.6 to select testers in the US, using the Olympic craze to highlight the browser's native support of Microsoft's Silverlight.
Skyfire's default page provides a link to NBC Universal's glut of Olympic content, and no Silverlight plug-in needs to be installed, giving users almost immediate access to hours of video content. Add to this the browser's full support for Adobe's Flash, and Skyfire opens the user's handset to hundreds of hours of free video from Google Video, YouTube, Hulu and other content providers that deal in Flash.
CEO Mel Karmazin admits Sirius XM is in bad financial shape
The satellite radio company's CEO told reporters this past week that the company had to accept less than favorable debt terms to close the merger of the two companies.
The US Federal Communications Commission approved the deal on July 25, and the company wanted to move quickly to avoid any potential delays related to court challenges of the merger.
Android SDK moves to 0.9 beta status, on track for 1.0
It may be unusual for the SDK for a platform to be finalized on or about the same time as the release of the platform itself, but news from Android's key developers today indicates they're quite comfortable with cutting it close.
In yet another indication that the first mobile phone supporting the Android platform is imminent, the Open Handset Alliance took the "preview" label off of its SDK this afternoon, officially upgrading the project to a beta which it hopes will have the look and feel of the final 1.0 release.
Dell's cloud computing effort must proceed without exclusive trademark
Key to Dell's comeback as the leading server manufacturer is the repair of its image as a fair corporate citizen. So this week's public notice that it probably can't trademark the phrase "cloud computing" won't help.
An effort initiated by Dell in March 2007 to register the phrase "cloud computing" as a United States trademark appears destined for defeat, as the US Patent and Trademark Office's database now indicates it sent Dell a non-final action notice last Tuesday refusing its request.
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