Microsoft barred from selling Word; The high cost of cheap PCs; HDTV lies [ZDNET WEEK IN REVIEW]

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Must-Read News Stories U.S. national broadband strategy: Funding is the elephant in the room Larry Dignan: The Federal Communications Commission held a series of discussions about broadband polices, wiring rural locales and fostering innovation, but the elephant in the room was funding. READ FULL STORY FCC takes first step toward National Broadband plan Sponsored Live Webcast: Meeting Enterprise Application Demands on a Budget Discover how to use managed services to cost effectively address enterprise challenges and deliver secure, highly available apps across your global WAN. SmartPlanet: A 230 mpg electric car. Are you charged up yet? Larry Dignan: Chevrolet's new electric hybrid claims an astounding 230 miles per gallon in city driving. Is it the answer for General Motors? READ FULL STORY John Dodge: Tips for getting the most out of cashing your clunker This Week's Highlights Examine the patent that made selling Microsoft Word a crime Larry Dignan: Microsoft is barred from selling any Word products that can open XML files, according to a U.S. District Court ruling in favor a small Canadian company that sued the software giant for patent infringement. READ FULL STORY Microsoft patents XML word processing documents Microsoft releases XML fix for Mac Office, Open XML converter tool Major security holes in popular XML libraries Sponsored Live Webcast: Meeting Enterprise Application Demands on a Budget Discover how to use managed services to cost effectively address enterprise challenges and deliver secure, highly available apps across your global WAN. Are Google's 'Caffeine' search results more like Bing's? Mary Jo Foley: Google wants your help testing a new-and-improved search system, codenamed Caffeine, complete with changes to its indexing, ranking and crawling mechanisms. See how Caffeine compares with Google's current search engine and Microsoft's Bing. READ FULL STORY Google to Caffeinate search results Google Caffeine and the perception game My Bing experiment: Can it be the default search engine? It's official: Microsoft-Yahoo ink 10-year search pact Google: Looking over shoulder at Wolfram|Alpha? Culture of cheap: How discount PCs cost consumers Andrew Nusca: The American obsession with low-priced products cramps innovation, speeds the decline of successful industries and alters our expectations of quality - leaving computer makers to compete on price instead of innovation. You get what you pay for. Almost. READ FULL STORY Dead-Finger Tech: The gadgets we can't live without Back to school goes cheap: Another round of Mac vs. PC 10 full-featured laptops for less than $750 Extreme PCs and homebrew systems: Dead or alive? Mac prices: Bargains to some, still too high for others Analysts: Sales of Palm Pre have slowed, could drag down company Sam Diaz: Wall Street is starting to turn on Palm, concerned that the Pre smartphone isn't selling as well as previously expected and will miss projections for the quarter ending August 31. READ FULL STORY Palm snags Apple veteran Zwerner to head brand design Palm's creepy Pre ads: will they actually make you buy the phone? Palm's Pre can't offset Sprint's subscriber losses Microsoft Exchange 2010 buzz grows louder Mary Jo Foley: I'm hearing from various people that Exchange 2010 could be finalized any time now. That goes hand in hand with the recent announcement that the 2010 version of Mac Office will include Outlook, rather than Entourage, as its new e-mail client. READ FULL STORY Microsoft takes sharper aim at business users with two new Mac Office releases Microsoft to replace Entourage with Outlook. Nice idea but kind of too late On2 shareholders sue to stop Google acquisition Larry Dignan: On2 Technologies, the video compression company acquired by Google last week, has been sued by shareholders looking for a better deal. According to an SEC filing, two class action suits were filed in Delaware and New York State. READ FULL STORY A look at On2 Technologies and why Google wants it Ed Burnette: Google buys one of my favorite companies Google buys video compression outfit On2 Technologies Photo Gallery How do I get my free Windows 7 upgrade? That's a key question being asked by students, parents, and anyone in the market for a new laptop. We detail every major PC maker's win 7 upgrade process. VIEW THE GALLERY Samsung Mondi 2009 Volkswagen Touareg TDI More ZDNet Photo Galleries Is cloud computing more or less secure than on-premises IT? Dana Gardner: Much of the cloud security debate revolves around perceptions. Will applying conventional security approaches and best practices be enough for low-risk, high-reward, cloud computing adoption? READ FULL STORY Cloud computing proves a natural for offloading time-consuming test and development processes Pushback on cloud computing: next year, 'Intelligent Fog'? Federal government validates cloud computing How long can Apple dodge the antitrust bullet? Adrian Kingsley-Hughes: Apple is getting dangerously close to putting itself in the line of fire from an antitrust bullet. And when it comes, it'll have nothing to do with the iPod or Mac OS, but instead the way Apple manages the App Store. READ FULL STORY Apple shoots TV commercial for mystery product in '40s diner Q2 worldwide smartphone sales show Apple increasing a whopping 10.5% over 2008 Philip Schiller: Apple's fireman (and perhaps most valuable exec) Featured TalkBack Poll: What's your dead-finger tech? David Grober: They're not called Crackberries for nothing. Technology can be addictive. With 5.2 million iPhones sold in the most recent recessionary quarter, it's clear that a whole lot of folks just got to have their gadget fixes. So what's yours? READ FULL BLOG What do you think? Post Your Thoughts in TalkBack Reader TalkBacks Microsoft blunders with a confusing Windows 7 upgrade chart "Give Microsoft a call. Maybe they will license your chart from you." -- GuidingLight Twitter knocked offline by DDoS attack; Koobface returns with a twist "Withdrawal for the Twitter addicts." -- jpr75_z Government is killing Silicon Valley innovation Tom Foremski: I just spoke with Bob Ackerman, founder of Allegis Capital, and he is very concerned about innovation in Silicon Valley, primarily because of the cumulative impact of U.S. government actions and regulations. Here are some notes from our conversation. READ FULL STORY U.S. CTO: Time for government innovation has arrived When Collaboration is Literally Life or Death Could open source have built Silicon Valley? Silicon Valley's recession rebound: Optimism or Arrogance? ZDNet Reviews Zune HD release, Apple iPod announcement uncomfortably close to each other Jennifer Bergen: As of today, Microsoft's Zune HD is available for pre-order. It has gotten rave reviews, and it seems like it could be the first product in Microsoft's line of MP3 players that could actually compete with Apple's iPod. But things might not go as planned. READ THE REVIEW Dell Inspiron Mini 10 Netbook Olympus SP-590 UZ More ZDNet Reviews Sign up for ZDNet's Product Watch Newsletter for the latest product reviews, news, and expert analysis How much do stores jack up ambient lighting to sell you HDTVs? Sean Portnoy: HDTV retailers are scamming customers by boosting brightness in their stores to entice buyers. Why? Because bright screens can mask poor black-level performance on cheaper sets. Buyers are then surprised when sets that "pop" in a store appear far more muted when they are hooked up in the living room. READ FULL STORY Study: LCD viewing angles are too narrow, many TV features are marketing fluff Survey: Majority of American households now have HDTVs Samsung, LG unveil cool new LED-backlit HDTVs Der Frankenputer: A last hurrah at system building Jason Perlow: Like a modern day Victor von Frankenstein, who digs up bodies in order to bring his creature to life, I scoured the Internet for component parts to put this monster PC together. It all started with a few spare parts I had lying around... READ FULL STORY Extreme PCs and homebrew systems: Dead or alive? Build it! Best PC components now available Monster PC upgrades - Without the monster price tag Adrian Kingsley-Hughes: When do you buy a new PC? Eight excellent PC upgrade ideas	In The Blogs Report: Apple planning Sept. music event; No hint of a tablet Brazilian ID thieves using Twitter as botnet command channel Is Bing worth all the money Microsoft is throwing at it? Dell introduces, 14.1", 15.6" Vostro laptops for small business Use H-1B or L-1 workers? Prepare for a Federal audit! Google Books privacy debate: Whose side are you on? The T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8520 reinforces the need for family data plans Pragmatic new models for enterprise architecture take shape VMware completes the PaaS to vCloud SmartPlanet: Want a productive business meeting? Schedule it earlier in the week SP: Six tips for great Web meetings SP: Surviving the recession: 4 tips to keep up morale SP: How to ditch your cable provider for good Now Introducing... Technology, perspective & insights shaping the world. SmartPlanet is the premier destination for savvy advice, thought-provoking analysis and expert discussion on the intersection of technology, business and life. Visit SmartPlanet.com today! (Want more? Sign up for the SmartPlanet newsletter to receive a regular digest of the best stories.) Most Rated Posts Benchmarks: Windows 7 RTM versus Vista, XP Microsoft blunders with a confusing Windows 7 upgrade chart HD DVD returns and kicks Blu-ray to the gutter A killer Windows 7 bug? Sorry, no Google Wave too complicated? I don't think so   New Technologies Sponsored White papers Live Webcast: Meeting Enterprise Application Demands on a Budget Discover how to use managed services to cost effectively address enterprise challenges and deliver secure, highly available apps across your global WAN. New Tracking Poll: The Business Role of Unified Communications Today See how 766 of today?s leading IT professionals use unified communications technologies to reduce costs and help grow the organizational bottom line. JD Edwards ROI tool and Spotlight video If you haven't yet upgraded your JDE EnterpriseOne or World ERP platform to the latest release, find out what you're missing. First, view this 10-minute, on-demand video for a demonstration of the ROI assessment tool, then try out the interactive tool for yourself! (IBM) Free Download: Business Continuity Reference Guide Don?t let a disaster bring your company to a screeching halt. Stay up and running with a thought-out, detailed strategy for business continuity. Disaster Preparedness: How to Develop a Business Continuity Plan Don't put off business continuity planning -- that's a critical mistake that can jeopardize a company's very survival. Instead, find out how you can prepare for a disaster -- before it's too late. (CDW) More white papers: Most popular papers Recently added papers Most popular papers by industry More Popular Resources The 10 most annoying programs on the Internet Take charge of Windows XP with these 10+ power tips Steer clear of these 10 illegal job interview questions How to fully degunk a PC to get rid of crapware 10 IT flame wars that will never go away Videos and Podcasts Which smartphone platform should developers aim for? For start-ups without a lot of time or money, is it smarter to develop for the iPhone first or the Android OS? Panelists at the AlwaysOn Summit at Stanford discuss the pros and cons of each platform. With 65,000 apps available, the iPhone may be the most popular smartphone, but that also means that many more apps can eclipse yours. PLAY VIDEO Open-source bonuses for the big guys At the AlwaysOn Summit at Stanford University, panelists discuss benefits that huge companies like Google and Facebook could get from embracing open source, such as third-party developers integrating their products into new application versions and easier connectivity with emerging technologies. PLAY VIDEO The month ahead: Tech companies set sights on students As students savor their last weeks of summer vacation, parents are trying to decide which laptop will best suit their kids' needs. ZDNet correspondent Sumi Das and senior editor Sam Diaz look ahead to August and discuss what the tech companies have to offer. PLAY VIDEO How does a solar cell work? How does solar conversion work now and how do we want it to work in the future? Paul Altivisatos, interim director for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory at UC Berkeley, explains how a solar cell works and how the solar energy of the future can become more efficient. PLAY VIDEO Freemium: The first business model of the 21st century At the Revenue Bootcamp Conference in Mountain View, Calif., Chris Anderson, author of "Free: The Future of a Radical Price," discusses how different companies use the free-to-premium, or freemium model to not only make money, but often keep customers at a higher rate than fully paid services. PLAY VIDEO Play more video and audio Hot Sponsored Downloads Webroot Spy Sweeper Visual Studio Team System GoToMeeting GoToWebinar 1.0 Iron Speed Designer - Freeware Most Popular Downloads  Duplicate File Finder Most people are unaware of how many duplicate files there are cluttering their hard disks. Duplicate File Finder can reclaim all that wasted disk space by simply deleting duplicate files. License: Free OS: Windows  Docks 2.0 You can have a Dock for work, a Dock for play, and a Dock for whatever your heart desires. It's easy to create a Snapshot of your current Dock, and switch back to it whenever you'd like. 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