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Changes in Windows music feature in offing
MICROSOFT has agreed to make changes in its Windows XP operating system to satisfy government concerns that it steered users seeking online music to Microsoft’s web browser, officials said.
The changes were made after objections were raised by US authorities monitoring Microsoft’s compliance with an antitrust agreement, amid concerns the music shopping feature within Windows may be a violation of the settlement.
The US Justice Department said in a statement that the “Shop for Music Online” feature in Windows XP invoked Microsoft’s Internet Explorer even when the user has chosen a different default web browser, such as Netscape, Opera, or Mozilla, in violation of the settlement accepted by a judge in November 2002.
“Without necessarily agreeing with the Department’s position, Microsoft has agreed to remove the override of the user’s default browser contained in ‘Shop for Music Online,’” the statement said.
“Regardless of the reason for the change, the Department is pleased with the removal of the override and firmly believes that it is the appropriate outcome.”
Oficials had said the feature was inconsistent with the antitrust settlement, in which Microsoft agreed to allow rival software to be used within the Windows operating system on the vast majority of personal computers.
The plan accepted by a federal judge endorsed most of a settlement already reached last year between Microsoft and the government, ending a four-year battle over the company’s illegal squelching of competitors.
The settlement imposed no financial penalty, but it forced billionaire Bill Gates (news - web sites)’s software giant to disclose more technical information and barred anti-competitive agreements on Microsoft products.
Centrino upgraded
Intel has boosted the performance of its popular Centrino mobile-computing technology, introducing a new Wi-Fi wireless local area networking standard to the platform.
The Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection enables both 802.11b and the higher-speed 802.11g wireless networking capabilities for notebook PCs running Centrino.
With 802.11g capability, portable machines can get data-transmission rates of up to 54 million bits per second, which is about three times faster than the rates offered by 802.11b. Intel’s latest offering is designed for high throughput at longer ranges in the office or home, as well as longer battery life.
The Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection comprises a communications and radio chip, both designed and developed by Intel at its wireless-networking facilities in Haifa, Israel, and San Diego, California.
The Centrino platform, which includes Intel’s Pentium M mobile processor with chips enabling Wi-Fi local area network access, has helped the world’s leading chip-maker improve sales since its introduction last year.
The Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection also features Intel PROSet for Wireless software and advanced profile management, which enable multiple setup profiles to connect to different WLAN networks as the user moves among different access points.
Among manufacturers who plan to use the new Wi-Fi technology, Intel said, are Fujitsu, Matsushita Electric Industrial, NEC, Sony and Toshiba. The PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection sells for US$25 in 10,000-unit quantities.
Red Hat releases Linux update
Red Hat, the top Linux seller, has released its first quarterly update to its premium version of the open-source operating system, the company said Friday.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Update 1 makes the software run better on servers with IBM’s Power processor, Advanced Micro Devices’ Opteron and Intel’s Itanium, Raleigh, N.C.-based Red Hat said.
The software runs large databases better and improves support for IBM mainframes, Red Hat said. Customers can download the update over the Red Hat Network. — Sci-tech World Report
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