:CSIS1180-006 Spring 2008

“People say that if consumers are down to their last $50, the last three things they’ll buy are milk, eggs and video games,” said Colin Sebastian, a video game industry analyst with Lazard Capital Markets.   It’s not just Grand Theft Auto (GTA) that is selling like crazy, it is every kind of video game.  Since 1997, GTA  sold 70 million copies!  Couch potatoes are in heaven these days.  Not only are these video gamers spending $50-$60 dollars every time they buy a new game, they are also spending endless hours playing the game when they can be doing something productive.  What is this world coming to?

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Microsoft will not give up in trying to buy out Yahoo! Microsfost Chief Executive, Steve Ballmer, will definitley not accept being second to Yahoo.  Mr. Ballmer has fought this far to buuy Yahoo, he would look stupid backing out of it at this point.  Keep reading.

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A young business woman was flying to Chicago and and had to check her luggage which included plenty of valuable things.  That backpack held an Iphone, G.P.S. locator, snacks, and a laptop.  Unfortunatley her bag got lost somewhere along the way and the airport never found it.  The business woman gave up looking and had to buy a new laptop. She had to change all of her passwords and her I.M screenname.  Months later a coworker saw her old screen name online.  They decided to IM the screenname and have a friendly conversation.  They found out that the laptop which was hers, was in South America and was sold to a Spanish speaking man.  The airlines took her computer and resold it!  Check out the article.

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The NY state senate recently has passed into law an “Amazon Tax” that requires online retailers to collect NY sales tax on transactions.  Seattle-based Amazon has filed a lawsuit against the state in the NY Supreme Court, citing that the tax is unconstitutional.  Amazon says that they should not have to pay any state sales tax to NY because the company does not have an office in the state.  Furthermore, the company says that NY state passed the law because it intentionally targets Amazon, which is not legal.  The logic behind the so-called “Amazon tax” is that New York-based affiliates qualify as a “physical presence” and therefore internet retailers with New York-based affiliates should be taxed by the state.  I agree with Amazon in this case, because it seems as though they are being singled out, although all their actions are legal.  I think NY will ultimately lose this case like they should.

http://blog.wired.com/business/2008/04/amazon-objects.html

Keith Meyer

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A new flaw detected in Quicktime, developed by Apple, can be exploited to comprimise PCs running Windows Vista SP1 and XP SP2.  The attack uses a maliciously crafted file that when opened begins to open its own processes.  The file opens such applications like Notepad, Paint, and Calculator, along with a host of others.  The flaw was found by Petko D. Petkov, who has published flaws in Quicktime, Gmail, and PDF files in the past.  Petkov hasnt released the details of the vulnerability until Apple gets back to him.  For the time being, however, the attack does not seem extremely threatening since its unlikely the vulnerabailty is in the wild.  As a precatuion, Petkov recommends not opening files that you are unsure of their origin, especially now when using Quicktime.  It seems ironinc though that an Apple application is causing problems on Windows since the two have been in competition since the beginning of the computer age.  More news on this subject is sure to come.

http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2008/04/quicktime-flaw.html

Keith Meyer

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Windows XP SP3 (Service Pack 3) has finally arrived as either a 300 MB stand-alone download or a 70 MB upgrade package.  It features security updates and applications that build on the SP2 released in 2004.  It also includes features from the recently released Vista OS, which include “Black Hole” router detection, an access protocol called NAP, and a product activation module allowing you to install XP without a product key.  SP3 is reported to have over 1000 fixes along with performance enchancing improvements.  The x32 version is out now, but users will have to wait until the June 2008 release of Windows Server 2003 Update to get the x64 version.

http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2008/04/windows-xp-upda.html

Keith Meyer

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A new beta version of Google Earth is available with some interesting new features.  Revamped navigation controls, 3-D photo realistic buildings, and time-lapse views of sunrise/sunset are whats new in this version.  A new “North” button automatically rotates the Earth until North is at the top if you got lost or disorientated, and the Street view found in newer versions has been upgraded considerably.  Google Earth 4.3 is still a beta version however, and certian standard features are still missing.  All of this problems will be fixed by the time Google Earth 4.3 is officially released, but if your in a dire need for a Google Earth fix the beta version can be downloaded from their site or by using the Google Updater.

http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2008/04/google-earth-up.html

Keith Meyer

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Google has just recently released a new developing package for its iGoogle gadgets that seem to put into place an unique social networking site.  The package allows developers to build and test applications that use the OpenSocial tools Google announced last year.  With iGoogle membership in the tens of millions, it seems as though Google has finally produced a worthy competitor to MySpace and Facebook.  Google hopes to have dedicated customers to their other services sign up, as well as steal some from the competition through services not availables on their platforms.  Google plans for its service to become the centralized hub of internet social networking, allowing users to access other networking site through the Google interface.  This in turn puts the heavy lifting on the other sites while Google handles the traffic.  Google seems to be in position to claim a major stake in the social networking scene with this move, and more advancements are sure to come.

http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2008/04/igoogle-sandbox.html

Keith Meyer

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“Internet search engine shares information on thousands of Orkut social-network users in child pornography investigation. ”

This past Wednesday, Google Brazil, willingly handed over information to Brazil’s senate panel to investigate pedophilia.

“Felix Ximenes, Google’s communications director, delivered a set of DVDs containing information on 3,261 users of the company’s popular Orkut social-networking service for an investigation into the spread of child pornography on the site.  ‘With the information we have received, we will be able to strike a major blow against the pedophile network acting in the country,’ said Sen. Demostenes Torres.”  Here’s the whole story.

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Even if your Myspace page or Facebook page is private, you should worry about the risks of the social network. On Facebook, applications have a box that is necessary in order to gain access to the application saying “know who I am and access my information.” This includes everything except contact information. Meaning your pictures, location, job, income, description of yourself and likes and dislikes are available. the 70 million users of facebook also provide their full name, which the 17 million users on Myspace do not have to include. The third party can target ads relating to your gender and age. If your listed as married, you will get ads involving marriages and pregnancies. It’s pretty creepy. Facebook and Myspace are great means of communication and lots of fun but people need to be more aware of the applications they use as well as the personal information listed on their pages, whether your view is private or not!

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