"We are currently locking down IE7 for shipping and I wanted to give an update on the CSS work that went into IE7. Chris originally outlined our plans for IE7, and we listened to a lot of feedback to help us address the most grievous bugs and prioritize which features to put in for IE7. I like to thank especially the contributors on this blog for their participation. Your feedback made a difference in deciding what issues to address."

Gizmodo reports that a battery recall program for Apple PowerBooks and iBooks has started. "The US Consumer Product Safety Commission just made the Apple battery recall official. It'll affect 1.1 million Sony-made batteries in the US alone. Between all the PS3's bad press and these battery recalls, it's not going to be an easy year for Sony, is it?

Hardware and Software failures are part of Life. That is why you need to have a backup. However, you do not need to backup all installed binaries (mostly software). In order to reinstall or restore your installed software you need to have a list of all installed software. This tutorial show how to backup list of installed software and apply it when needed after crash. It will not just save your time but both Debian and RHEL distro can update them instantly for you.

You have probably heard the term WMI, but may not be familiar with the power behind it. If you are a Windows Administrator or support technician WMI can be one of the most valuable tools in your arsenal. In this article we look at the basics of WMI and how to perform WQL queries to retreive information.

Massachusetts will begin using OpenDocument as the default document format later this year as planned, but it will be sticking with Microsoft Office in the near term, the state's top tech executive said.

The Mozilla team has more or less accepted Microsoft's help in working on Firefox for Windows Vista. Besides the fact that the two parties are already working together, Mike Beltzner, Mozilla developer, has accepted Microsoft's invitation, saying: "Yes, we'd definitely be interested in getting some 1:1 support." Note Sam Ramji's good sense of humour: "I sent this invitation to [email protected] as well, but in case their spam filters are set to block @microsoft.com email addresses, I'm posting here."

NewsForge reviews Syllable, and concludes: "Overall, I was pleased with Syllable's speed and ease of use. Most of its drawbacks come from it not being finished yet. The glitches were minor and the lack of features in its applications come from them not being finished yet. I feel kind of guilty complaining that a browser that's on version 0.4 isn't full-featured enough, but for now, these issues prevent Syllable from being useful as a full-time desktop OS."

Microsoft will release new versions of its Windows operating system in South Korea on Thursday to comply with an antitrust ruling, a company source said Wednesday. South Korea's Fair Trade Commission fined Microsoft USD 34 million in December, saying the world's biggest software company breached antitrust laws by selling a version of Windows that incorporated its media player and instant messaging services. My take: This will join the ranks as another Windows version nobody bought.

Sun Microsystems, which has been undergoing a drastic realignment of its server business over the past couple of years, in the second quarter regained its position as the world's third-largest systems maker, overtaking rival Dell. The company saw its market share increase to 12.9 percent in the second quarter, according to numbers released by analyst firm IDC.

"The PCLinuxOS 0.93a Full Edition was quietly released yesterday and is the equivalent of PCLinuxOS releases of the past several years. They have recently been releasing scaled down versions to accomodate other tastes and desires, but many folks were looking and waiting for the fully loaded edition. Weighing in at 685 MB, Texstar referred it as the 'Full Monty'. Its code name has been 'Big Daddy'. Whatever the name, I think you'll call it home."

Mandriva 2007 will have support for 3D desktop effects through Xgl/AIGLX. The choice between AIGLX and Xgl will be made automatically according to the graphic card driver possibilities. The support is currently being tested in Mandriva Cooker, and will work for both GNOME and KDE through Free as well as proprietary drivers.

In an effort to promote the adoption of GNU/Linux desktops, SpreadGNOME.org has launched with the goal of being a resource to help spread the word of GNOME to GNU/Linux desktop users and potential converts. It is meant as a place to share ideas to help promote GNOME in the community, and helping those who wish to get involved with GNOME. In the meantime, Builder.au has some shots of the upcoming GNOME 2.16.

"Rumor, innuendo, demands, and all of the other juicy elements that one expects from a sordid love triangle have been cropping up in the AMD-ATI-Intel story over the past few days. I've been following the twists in the tale primarily via the ever-vigilant TR, so I thought I'd put together an Ars rundown with my own information and analysis for those of you who haven't been keeping track."

"We are creating a new team within Haiku - a Marketing/Communications (Marcom) team. Koki is leading it. For those who don't know him, Koki is a long time member of the BeOS community. He is fluent in Japanese, English and Spanish. He is also a professional in the realm of marketing with more than 10 years of experience. He will be responsible for website content, starting the Haiku User Groups, WalterCon, press inqueries and marketing materials."