UK Office XP prices announced

Microsoft has announced its UK pricing scheme for the forthcoming Office XP release, along with details of a pre-release trial programme. The latest version of the all-singing all-dancing Office suite that replaces Office 2000 will be available for similar retail prices. There are four versions: Standard (ERP ?429, upgrades ?199), Professional (?519, ?269), Professional Special Edition (ERP ?319) and Developer (?749, ?449). ...more

Smartphone with Weeble-like screen

MyOrigo, a subsidiary of handset maker Microcell, will release its flagship MyDevice in high street stores as well as through network operators. MyOrigo reorients mobile devices MyDevice has a number of unique, and of course patented, features geared around making the device as physically ergonomic as possible. For example, the colour display is self-righting, so no matter what orientation you hold the device, the display remains upright. ...more

Online child pornography virtually wiped out in the UK

Online child pornography has been virtually wiped out in the UK, according to the organisation Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). Content hosted in the UK has dropped from some 18 per cent in 1997 to 0.2 per cent in the first half of this year, the IWF's latest report reveals. ...more

Korean portal drops antitrust complaint against Microsoft

A South Korean Internet portal has dropped its antitrust complaint against Microsoft in return for $30m. Daum Communications will receive a third in cash, a third in an advertising commitment and the final third via miscellaneous business agreements, such as Daum content appearing on MSN. Oliver Roll, Microsoft's general manager for marketing in Asia, said that the two companies have 'become friends'. ...more

Windows Vista - the impact on developers

What impact will the release of Windows Vista have on developers and their building of applications for the new OS? Talking on this subject, Ian Moulster, Developer Platform Evangelist at Microsoft UK, first highlighted a strong attendance at the official UK 'developer launch' of the software, held earlier this month at Microsoft's base in the Thames Valley Park (see here for online resources from the event). The main point he made concerned rapid development, an important issue when development teams are squeezed and software lifecycles shortened. 'Windows Vista lets developers build a new generation of applications,' he claimed, highlighting a recent project from the London Underground featuring a rich media interface which was built in three weeks buy a small team of four developers. ...more