Microsoft lifts the lid on Office 12

Microsoft is promising that Office 12 will supply the biggest makeover of the standard business productivity suite in over a decade. Recognising that rampant featuritis over the years has made the applications harder, not easier to use, the new version will offer a new streamlined user interface. The aim of the new UI, according to Microsoft, is to make work more efficient by allowing users quick access to the features needed to complete their tasks. ...more

Microsoft ruffles anti-trust feathers with IE-only documents

The MHT file format 'significantly limits the practical usability' of the relevant documents, claims the US Government and the seventeen states who were part of the final settlement. Microsoft, which has been forced to publish details of its software as part of its antitrust settlement, is providing the information in a form which can only be read by Internet Explorer, according to Associated Press. The US Government and the seventeen states who were part of the final settlement have complained that the MHT file format 'significantly limits the practical usability' of the published documents as it doesn't support sufficiently useful search technologies. ...more

A New Year's resolution: do-it-yourself ADSL

BT confirms New Year launch date of its DIY broadband service. The self-install broadband ADSL service will be officially launched on 15 January, BT has confirmed. BT Wholesale will be able to connect up users to broadband services without the need for a home visit by an engineer - you simply plug yourself in, as it were. ...more

Navman takes GPS mainstream

As GPS devices strike ever farther into the mainstream, Navman has launched the F20 for ?179 inc VAT. With a 3.5in touch-sensitive colour screen and incorporating an SiRF Star III GPS receiver, the F20 features postcode search and a Back on Track function so that, should you make a wrong turn, you'll still have the quickest route to your destination. ...more

Extended DVI with ex*tend*it hub

Macs with DVD video output can now connect to more than one digital monitor or projector via the Gefen ex*tend*it DVI hub. The hub connects to the DVI port on the Mac and duplicates the signal to its two output ports. It also boosts the signal strength enabling DVI devices to be located up to 15m (50 ft) away from the computer. ...more