Microsoft takes on Adobe

Microsoft has finally unveiled its long awaited strategy for taking on the market leaders in web development, Macromedia and Adobe (not quite yet the same company). At the Microsoft Professional Developer Conference 2005 the company has launched a set of tools known as Microsoft Expression aimed at designers both for the Web and for the upcoming Windows Vista operating system. Amongst the tools announced are the Acrylic Graphic Designer, a painting, illustration and effects tool for creating graphic designs, the Sparkle Interactive Designer, a user-interface design tool for application development using the Windows Presentation Foundation; and Quartz Web Designer, a layout and design tool for creating Web sites. ...more

Deep-linking lands site in deep trouble

Online recruitment agency StepStone has won an injunction against a German competitor to prevent it from deep linking to job pages within StepStone's site. The injunction was brought under the European Union copyright and database law and centres around StepStone's objections that rival OFiR essentially re-branded StepStone content as its own, while bypassing StepStone's homepage and expensive banner ads. With the injunction coming under EU law, it may provide a test case for the spate of ongoing similar actions. ...more

Into the frying pan

There are some great gadgets around and some not-so great gadgets - but the jury is still out on the digital frying pan. Wireless Alarm Products has taken the somewhat ridiculous steps of announcing a digital frying pan on its Web site. Don't expect this little beauty to cook your breakfast for you and then automatically pop itself into the dishwasher. ...more

Microsoft anti-trust ruling, the confusion continues

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has finally come to a judgement over the Microsoft anti-trust case, and it's a bit of a curate's egg. In part, the circuit judges have affirmed the decisions of the lower court and in part they have reversed them. Microsoft has been found guilty of anti-competitive practices, but the ruling to break-up the company will be challenged. ...more

Internet child porn clampdown

The Internet Watch Foundation has drawn up a list of 76 Internet newsgroups it wants ISPs to remove from its servers and newsfeeds. Of these, 51 sites 'regularly carry child abuse images' and 25 'appear to advertise or advocate paedophilia'. The IWF is not disclosing the names of the groups, but will supply them to ISPs. ...more