The Newspaper Shop -- Friday edition

[walktalker]

Damn, I had a lot of sleep to catch on this week...

Judge backs MS-DOJ settlement
A federal judge Friday largely accepted a proposed settlement in Microsoft's long-running antitrust case with the U.S. Justice Department. U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said sanctions against the software giant are to last five years unless extended by the court. "The court is satisfied that the parties have reached a settlement which comports with the public interest," Kollar-Kotelly wrote. The settlement "is conditionally approved as the final judgment in this case," the judge wrote. The settling parties have until Nov. 8 to refile the settlement with changes requested by the judge.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-964278.html

Microsoft attacks spam in new Outlook
Microsoft is taking spam fighting more seriously in the next version of its widely used Outlook e-mail and contact-management software. Outlook 11 will, by default, no longer grab data such as images from outside servers when previewing e-mail formatted like Web pages. The ability to send and receive e-mail formatted in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) was at one time touted as a feature in Microsoft's e-mail programs. "We've taken a step backward, so to speak, by blocking external content when you preview e-mail," Simon Marks, Office XP product manager, said this week. Marks described the new feature as an important spam-fighting tool.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-964166.html

Gateway steps up with a $399 PC
Amid fears that consumers won't be shelling out for high-ticket items this holiday season, PC makers are lowering prices to try and loosen consumers' purse strings. Gateway on Friday became the latest PC maker to offer a $399 PC, selling its 300S model for that price -- sans monitor -- after a $100 rebate. Gateway joins Hewlett-Packard and eMachines, which also offer $399 PCs. Poway, Calif.-based Gateway plans to tout the desktop as part of a new ad campaign that starts Friday, built around the new "A better way" theme and highlighting Gateway's push into digital electronics. Gateway's ad will also feature the 42-inch plasma screen TV that will be formally announced Monday. As earlier reported, the model will sell for just under $3,000, which analysts say will make it the lowest-priced plasma-based television on the market.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1103-964238.html

Bugbear worst virus in October
A variant of the Bugbear worm was the most widespread bit of malware in October, according to statistics released yesterday by Sophos Anti-Virus. Bugbear-A displaced Klez-H at the top of the virus list last month, although the latter is still causing serious problems. Natasha Staley, anti-virus consultant, Sophos Anti-Virus, said: "After seven months at the top, Klez-H has finally been knocked off its perch by the Bugbear worm. Bugbear is a box of tricks that not only spreads via email and network shares but can also log the victim's keystrokes - allowing hackers to monitor everything a user types from passwords to bank account details."
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-964197.html

I need to reboot...