Apple’s rising popularity lures hackers  —  After years of relative safety, the Apple Mac is becoming an increasingly tempting target for malicious computer hackers, according to a new report published this week.  —  Security researchers have been aware of the threat to Apple since last year …

Source:   Financial Times
Author:   Kevin Allison
Link:   http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c79b814e-a364-11dc-b229…

iPhone 1.1.3 to bring voice capture, disk mode?  —  Apple may be preparing a significant update for the iPhone as early as this weekend that will have some heavily requested features, according to a claim from CNET France.  The site points to multiple reports that a 1.1.3 upgrade for the iPhone …

Source:   Electronista | […]

Microsoft to Field Test PC For Developing Countries  —  Microsoft Corp. said that it will field test an inexpensive laptop PC for developing nations being championed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nicholas Negroponte.  —  Microsoft’s plans mark a step closer …

Source:   Wall Street Journal
Author:   Robert A. Guth
Link:   http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119690646231415314…

Major copyright bill boosts penalties, creates new agency  —  In the aftermath of the $222,000 jury verdict that the Recording Industry Association of America recently won against a Minnesota woman who shared 24 songs on Kazaa, the U.S. Congress is preparing to amend copyright law.

Source:   CNET News.com
Author:   Declan McCullagh
Link:   http://www.news.com/8301-13578_3-9829826-38.html

Facebook Rethinks Tracking  —  Site Apologizes,  —  Makes It Easier  —  To Retain Privacy  —  After weeks of criticism over a new advertising program that was perceived as a privacy threat, Facebook Inc. has tweaked its privacy settings and offered a public apology from its chief executive — but advertisers remain wary.

Source:   Wall Street […]

IBM researchers build supercomputer-on-a-chip  —  San Francisco - Supercomputers may soon be the same size as a laptop if IBM brings to market research detailed on Thursday, in which pulses of light replace electricity to make data transfer between processor cores on a chip up to one-hundred times faster.

Source:   InfoWorld
Link:   http://news.yahoo.com/s/infoworld/20071206…

AT&T claims completely open network, too — “the most open,” even!  —  Who’d have thought the end of 2007 would see US cellphone carrier heavyweights duking it out with PR one-upsmanship to be… open?  Seriously, someone pinch us, it’s as amazing as it is farcical.

Source:   Engadget
Author:   Ryan Block
Link:   http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/06/atandt-claims…

Yahoo! Messenger for Vista: Preview Release Available!  —  It’s here!  It’s really here!  We’re thrilled to bring you the preview version of Yahoo! Messenger for Vista, the first Yahoo! Messenger built from the ground up for the Windows Vista operating system.

Source:   Yahoo! Messenger Blog
Link:   http://www.ymessengerblog.com/blog/2007/12/05/yahoo…

Facebook Messages: Small Change, Big Impact.  —  Dear Facebook: Thank You.  Thank You.  Thank You.  —  In August Facebook opened up their messaging system to allow people to add normal email addresses.  I wrote a post praising the change, but I specifically asked for more:

Source:   TechCrunch
Author:   Michael Arrington
Link:   http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/12/06/facebook…

AT&T flings cellphone network wide open  —  NEW YORK — Starting immediately, AT&T (T) customers can ditch their AT&T phones and use any wireless phone, device and software application from any maker — think smartphones, e-mail and music downloading.  And they don’t have to sign a contract.

Source:   USA Today
Link:   http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/phones/2007-12…