"In the company's communications with education buyers late last month, Apple said that schools will still be able to purchase Mac OS 9 hardware in 2003. While Apple's new hardware models will next year boot into Mac OS X only, the company now plans to offer certain configurations to the education market that will boot into OS 9." Read the full article at Think Secret.

"IBM has released the Web Services Tool Kit for Mobile Devices. Its a free set of tools that provide run-time environments that allow development of applications that use Web Services on small mobile devices. This tool kit's Java Web service run-time environment is supported on PoctketPC, Palm, and BlackBerry." More at the IBM Website

"A shoot-out between the two most popular distributions of the open source operating system found that each has its strengths, but that SuSE is the best option for people new to the operating system." Read more at ZDNet.

"Installing a new program, or the OS itself, proves cumbersome for some users. Creating a home network or developing individualized settings can be confusing or frustrating." Read the full story at osOpinion.com.

"According to a Reuters report that crossed the wires late today, the speculation is that Microsoft will make bids to buy both Rational and Borland. Shares of both Rational and Borland are up on the news, and so far both IBM and Microsoft have no comment on this report." This from Java Developer news. I've been digging around but haven't been able to get a confirm or deny from MS sources.

And the winner for yesterday's Beatware competition is... Paul Go! The lucky winner will receive an ESD version of e-Picture PRO, normally priced at $129.

Opera Software ASA today released the final version of Opera 6 for Mac OS 8.6-10.2.2, offering Mac users a faster and better Internet experience. This is the first final Opera released for Mac OS X, and today's released version runs on Mac OS 8.6-10.2.2.

Developments in the *BSD area, such as the OpenSSH project, have greatly benefited Linux. By the same token, Linux companies have funded a lot of work on software like GCC and Wine that is also used on *BSD systems. Read the editorial at OSOpinion.

Honda unveiled on Wednesday an improved version of its two-year-old robot, which can now do much more than ring the famed opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange as it did in February this year. The new model, which Honda plans to begin leasing next month, can greet and recognize people, as well as perform advanced commands such as moving in the direction indicated by reading hand gestures. A small step closer to more functional AI and Robotics.

"LinuxCertified,Inc. a leading provider of Linux training, will offer its System and Network administration bootcamp on January 18 - 19, 2003 in San Francisco bay area (south bay). This workshop is designed for busy information technology professionals and is designed to cover the most important Linux administration areas. All attendees get a free Linux laptop." Read the rest at NewsForge.

e-Picture Pro 3.0 is the complete web graphics design application for users that want to jazz up their sites with refined graphics, animations and rollovers, including built-in text effects. With e-Picture Pro, you get a powerful still image and animation tool that can take your web graphics to the next level. Now, you can win a free copy of e-Picture Pro 3.0 (valued at $130) for Windows by entering the competition.

"A notice posted yesterday by IBM said that on the 12th of March 2003, IBM will stop marketing OS/2 Warp V4 and Warp Server for e-business programs." Get the rest at The Inquirer.

David Chester writes: "On my website, I propose some enhancements to the FreeType font rendering library. The changes are aimed at rendering antialiased text at small sizes. I explain an alternate stem-alignment algorithm as well as a new hinting configuration which balances contrast and loyalty to the original shape of the glyph. At the site there's explanation and examples, as well as patches and a binary for download."

And the winner for the Xandros competition is... Helen Jette (hjette AT cogeco DOT ca).