XP Plus! ?29.99

Microsoft has unwrapped the add-on pack for its forthcoming OS: Plus! For Windows XP. What you get with the "eXtra Package" that you don't get with XP by default is new games, more desktop themes, 3D screen savers and a multitude of multimedia tools. The tools include Plus! Voice Command for adding voice recognition to the Windows Media Player, Plus! Speaker Enhancement to help bolster the sound of common desktop PC speakers, Plus! CD Label Maker for customising CD covers and labels, Plus! Personal DJ for customising playlists and Plus! MP3 Audio Converter for converting MP3 files to Microsoft's preferred format, Windows Media Audio (WMA). ...more

Google fortifies Desktop Search against IE flaw

Google has altered its Desktop Search so that it can no longer be used in digital attacks in conjunction with a flaw in Microsoft's Internet Explorer. On Friday, an Israeli hacker reported having discovered a means of remotely using Google desktop search to remotely search the computers logged on to a specially built website using Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Problems in the way the browser handles CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) led to a short cut round the restrictions the browser places on interaction between different domains. ...more

Spyware threat needs enterprise-class solution, says analyst

Research group META is highlighting the lack of an enterprise-class tool to prevent spyware. According to the company, businesses will be lumbered with having to cobble together their own methods for combatting the rise of spyware on the Net for some years to come due to a lack of a single solution. 'IT organizations must understand the spyware threat environment and develop a mitigation plan,' said Peter Firstbrook, senior research analyst with META Group's Infrastructure Strategies. ...more

UPDATED: Watford Electronics takes over the Carrera and Demonite brands

Watford Electronics has taken over Carrera SSC and Demonite, which worked under the parent company of Digital Networks. Rumours were circulating of Carrera seeking administration, but it is believed that Watford Electronics has bought the brands. Shiraz Jessa, MD of Watford Electronics confirmed today that the company was the new owner of the Carrera and Demonite brands and it would be honouring existing orders. ...more

Mozilla fixes more holes in Firefox

Mozilla has released an update to Firefox which addresses three security vulnerabilities. The three vulnerabilities now fixed comprise the Privilege escalation via non-DOM property overrides, 'Wrapped' javascript: urls bypass security checks and Code execution via javascript: IconURL. The update also fixes DHTML errors encountered at some websites - for more information on this go to developer-test. ...more