Mozilla Ready to Launch Firefox 3 into Browser Wars

Jennifer LeClaire, newsfactor
1 hour, 4 minutes ago

public domainMicrosoft's Internet Explorer

Firefox already has more than 18 percent of the global market, according to Net Applications. With the release of Firefox 3, Mozilla could see a boost in downloads and market share. Microsoft's next version of Internet Explorer won't come to market until later this year.

"Firefox 3 is a very nice browser. It's still going to have to go up against Internet Explorer {Windows] and Safari [Mac], which have the home court advantage on their operating systems," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at JupiterResearch. "It shows that the browser market is anything but stagnant."

A Focus on Security

Firefox 3 is based on the Gecko 1.9 Web rendering platform. Building on the previous release, Gecko 1.9 has more than 15,000 updates, including some major re-architecting for improved performance, stability, rendering correctness, and code simplification and sustainability. The result, Mozilla said, is a more secure, easier to use, more personal product with a lot more under the hood to offer Web-site and Firefox add-on developers.

Mozilla begins with a focus on security. Users can click a Web site's favicon [icon] in the location bar to see who owns the site and to check if the connection is secure. Identity verification is prominently displayed and easier to understand, Mozilla said. When a site uses Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificates, the site's favicon will turn green and show the name of the company.

Firefox 3 also has malware protection to warn users when they arrive at sites known to install viruses, spyware, trojans or the like. And a new Web Forgery Protection service blocks the content of pages suspected as Web forgeries. New SSL error pages, Mozilla said, are clearer and stricter, and Firefox automatically disables old and insecure add-on and plug-in versions.

Add-ons that provide updates in an insecure manner will also be disabled. Firefox will inform antivirus software when downloading executables and the browser respects the Vista parental control setting for disabling file downloads.

Easier, More Personal

Mozilla also concentrated on making Firefox easier to use and more personalized. In terms of password management, that means an information bar replaces the old password dialog so users can save passwords after a successful login. The add-on whitelist has been removed, making it possible to install extensions from third-party sites in fewer clicks. And a new download manager aims to makes it much easier to locate downloaded files. Users can also see and search the Web site where a file came from.

Firefox 3 allows users to add bookmarks from the location bar with a single click and associate keywords with bookmarks to sort them. Web applications, such as a favorite Webmail provider, can now be used instead of desktop applications to handle Web-site mail links. The Add-ons Manager can be used to download and install a Firefox customization from the thousands of add-ons available from Mozilla's Web site.

Gartenberg expects the competition to dominate browsing will continue. Even now, Microsoft is working on the release of IE 8 and Apple is seeding Safari 4. "Clearly, Web browsers are still very important, as important as they were 10 years ago, but just in a different way," he said. "The bottom line is no one is actually paying for a browser any more. A browser is free. It's something you give away in order to make money elsewhere."

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Google CEO: We Don't Know How To Monetize YouTube

Richard Koman, newsfactor
1 hour, 13 minutes ago

Ken AulettaGoogleCEO Eric SchmidtYouTube

In an event at Syracuse University's Newhouse School, Schmidt said it "seemed obvious" that owning YouTube should generate "significant amounts of money" for Google, but that has proven harder than expected. In any case, monetization is not Google's primary concern with YouTube at this point, as YouTube could lead to "the creation of a whole new industry."

And there are two facts on Google's side: "We know people are watching it" and "We have the luxury of time to invest."

Google's Goal: 'Change the World'

Google's goals are loftier than monetizing its products. "The goal of the company isn't to monetize everything. The goal is to change the world. We start from the perspective of what problems we do have," Schmidt said.

For instance, Google.org, the company's philanthropic arm, is devoted to causes such as renewable energy and preventing disease.

A Plan for Monetizing YouTube

Having said all that, Schmidt announced that 2008 is the year for YouTube to move into a profit center for Google. "In January or February, we had a big meeting" where Schmidt called on executives to move into moneymaking. "We have a revenue plan, a usage plan, a scale plan, a bandwidth plan," he said, noting that YouTube "is now the majority of outbound bandwidth. We had to retool the network."

Schmidt also emphasized Google's opposition to a combination of Microsoft and Yahoo. Microsoft's bid to take over Yahoo has failed, but Redmond is still seeking a strategic relationship between the companies. "We think an independent Yahoo is better for competition, for innovation and so forth," Schmidt said.

He acknowledged that Google has been seeking its own partnership deal with Yahoo, but said that shouldn't impact any dealings between Microsoft and Yahoo. "It would seem to me that the decision is up to Yahoo, not to Google," Schmidt said.

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Yahoo close to Google deal, sources say

2 hours, 44 minutes ago

Yahoo IncGoogle IncYahooMicrosoft Corp

Talks between Microsoft and Yahoo concluded after Yahoo
decided to pursue a deal with Google, one of the sources said.

Yahoo also asked Microsoft if it would renew its
$33-a-share takeover offer for the Internet company, but
Microsoft was not interested, another source said.

(Reporting by Anupreeta Das in San Francisco and Daisuke
Wakabayashi in Seattle; editing by John Wallace)

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Yahoo, Google set for announcement: report

Yahoo IncGoogle IncTechCrunch

TechCrunch said the announcement is likely to be a search
partnership between the two companies that outsources all or
part of Yahoo search marketing, and possibly search itself, to
Google.

Yahoo shares were down 3.29 percent at $25.29 in afternoon
Nasdaq trading. Google shares were up 0.79 percent at $549.50.
Shares of Microsoft Corp, which is in talks about a partnership
with Yahoo, were up 1.14 percent at $27.43.

All three companies were not immediately available for
comment.

(Reporting by Michele Gershberg, editing by Dave Zimmerman)

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Santa Fe City Council OKs plan for wireless

By DEBORAH BAKER, Associated Press Writer

wireless Internet service

Free wireless will be available by next year at three public libraries, a convention center still under construction, city hall, the municipal airport and two recreation centers.

"My first reaction is, it's a disaster. My second reaction is, they're inviting a lawsuit," said Arthur Firstenberg, a leading opponent of the proposal.

Opponents complain they are sickened by electromagnetic pollution and say it will keep them from using the libraries or attending meetings in city hall.

City attorney Frank Katz, who had been asked to determine whether the opponents are covered by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, said there's no legal case in which hypersensitivity to wireless signals has been found to be a disability, nor has any case identified Wi-Fi as its cause.

That "doesn't mean that someone couldn't bring a case," he said.

Julie Tambourine, an advocate for the disabled and homeless, said after Wednesday's meeting that the legal analysis was flawed, because it didn't take into account those with diabetes, seizure disorders, respiratory ailments and other conditions that can be adversely affected by microwave radiation.

She also said the opponents could have been accommodated under federal law by having one of the three library branches be designated Wi-Fi-free.

City Councilor Patti Bushee proposed taking city hall out of the wireless plan — "since this is the local seat of democracy" — but that motion failed. Other councilors said wireless is a useful tool for them during meetings. The council chambers is the one spot in the city complex now with wireless.

Opponents of Bushee's motion also argued that wireless service bleeds into the council chambers from nearby businesses, so opponents wouldn't gain anything by having the city eliminate it there.

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Verizon expands fast DSL to more areas

Verizon Communications Inc

The service, with downloads of 7 megabits per second, was available on 400,000 lines when it launched in January. In other areas, Verizon's fastest DSL service is at 3 mbps.

The 7 mbps plan costs $42.99 per month with an annual contract.

Verizon has not been putting much investment behind DSL, or Digital Subscriber Line technology, focusing instead on drawing fiber-optic lines that can provide even faster Internet access, plus cable-TV service. In the first quarter, it added a net of just 4,000 DSL customers, compared with 262,000 FiOS Internet subscribers.

Several other phone companies, including AT&T, provide top DSL speeds of at least 10 mbps in some areas. Qwest Communications International Inc. introduced 20 mbps service in April.

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Two Marines disciplined for puppy-toss video: military

Iraq

A press release from the US Marines Corps base in Hawaii said Lance Corporal David Motari, who was seen in the video hurling the puppy into a rocky ravine, faced expulsion for the incident.

Motari, part of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment at Kaneohe Bay, is "being processed for separation," the statement said. He also faced unspecified "non-judicial" punishment.

Another Marine, Sergeant Crismarvin Banez Encarnacion, whose role in the incident was unclear, received non-judicial punishment the Marines said.

"The actions seen in the Internet video are contrary to the high standards we expect of every Marine and will not be tolerated," the Marines statement read. "The vast majority of Marines conduct their duties with honor and compassion that makes American people proud."

The video in question surfaced on Youtube in March and drew outrage from animal-lovers before later being removed.

In the footage, a Marine identified as Motari can be seen smiling and dangling a small black and white puppy before launching it off the cliff, where it can heard yelping as it plunges to its death.

"That's mean. That's mean, Motari," an unidentified voice off-camera is heard saying before sniggering as the video ends.

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