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Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 04 Issue 21
Volume 4, Issue 21 Atari Online News, Etc. May 24, 2002
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2002
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
Rob Mahlert -- Web site
Thomas J. Andrews -- "Keeper of the Flame"
With Contributions by:
Dan Iacovelli
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=~=~=~=
A-ONE #0421 05/24/02
~ Microsoft Will Comply! ~ People Are Talking! ~ Netscape 7.0 In Beta
~ Kids Internet-Friendly ~ Xbox On Losing End! ~ JagFest 2K2 News!
~ Nintendo Boss Retiring ~ Copy-proof CDs Cracked ~ GameCube Price Cut!
~ Major Solaris Upgrade! ~ Kazaa Case Collapsing! ~ HighWire News!
-* Wireless Gaming Gains Ground *-
-* E3 Depicts Gaming Console Battles! *-
-* Microsoft Case 4 Years Old, Far From Over? *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
It has to be the weather! For awhile, we thought it was winter again, last
weekend. Rain, sleet and snowed graced the area on Saturday. Naturally, my
father and brother came up from Maine with their respective dogs, to be with
us and our two dogs. What a weekend! At least Sunday the sun re-emerged
and the temperatures were nice. We were even able to get out onto the deck
for a barbecue.
With the reappearance of the nice weather, things started to improve
elsewhere as well. Remember last week I mentioned my three "problem
children" at work? Well, two are gone officially, finally. One to go! The
red tape that occurs trying to fire someone these days is absolutely insane!
The fear of litigation is overwhelming. But, it's basically over and a huge
weight lifted from my shoulders.
Well, the long unofficial-start-of-summer holiday weekend is here. Boy, did
this spring fly by! But as long as the weather continues to improve, it
should be enjoyable. Time to finish getting my remaining plants in the
ground after sitting around in this weird cold weather we had. Then I need
to get my veggies and get them planted. Then every other spring "ritual" to
get ready for outdoor activities! Good thing it's a long weekend!
Just a reminder, since it is Memorial Day weekend, please be sure to
celebrate responsibly. If you're going to drink, stay away from behind the
wheel of a car. The life you save may be mine!
Until next time...
=~=~=~=
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
compiled by Joe Mirando
joe@atarinews.org
Hidi ho friends and neighbors. Another week has come and gone and Mother
Nature has finally decided to warm things up for us a little bit there
in New England.
After the heatwave we had a while back, I was somewhat worried that we'd
be simmering by now. Well thank goodness for small favors. Of course,
summer isn't even here yet, so there could be a surprise or two in store
for us yet.
Switching subjects, I get asked on occasion why I don't talk about
<fill-in-the-blank> in my column. The suggested subjects range from
Linux to Intel to my choice for dessert.
The fact is that I don't usually feel that most of my opinions are
interesting enough. Let's face it... EVERYONE has opinions. Some are
informed and well founded, and some are born of any of a multitude of
psychological formulations. Whether or not they are founded in fact or
fantasy, there are so many opinions out there that are more interesting
than most of mine that I normally figure that mine pale in comparison.
Of course, I do rant and rave every so often... usually once a week or
so <grin>, but usually aim to make you stop and think more than anything
else. It really doesn't matter what you think about, as long as you
think. It's a dying art these days, and I figure that if I can get you
to exercise that grey matter you might get to like it.
There are, without a doubt, many of you out there who have a more highly
developed batch of synapses than I have. And for you, my hope is that
you'll follow my lead and get others to exercise the mind-muscle.
And, since I brought it up, I think Linux is an outstanding operating
system that's only going to get better, Intel is less insidious than
Microsoft (but it's harder to recognize their monopoly), and my favorite
dessert is anything that's sweet.
Well, let's get on with the news, hints, tips, and info from the UseNet.
From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup
====================================
Dan Ackerman posts this about HighWire, the new browser for Atari 16/32
bit computers:
"The HighWire Development Team has released the fourth demonstration
package, as always we would like to thank you for your interest and
support. At the time of the last release, we promised you some exciting
developments. While we believe that we have delivered that in this package,
we found ourselves in the same position that we were in last month. That
is, with developments accelerating in all directions, new supports and bug
fixes being submitted on almost a daily basis. We finally came to a point
that we agreed to release at. Although to be honest and to peak your
curiosity a bit. The truth of the matter is there are some really fun
things coming in the next package and we realized, that unless we got a
version out quickly we would be back into a major bug elimination phase.
Faced with that situation, we decided that some of the things in this
version were just too nice to have locked away for several more weeks and
that the best thing would be to get everyone up to the next level. What have we been up to for the last month? As always a quick glance at the
history.txt file will give you an idea of the progress that has been made
since the last release. Around 900 lines have been added to the history
file, so that will give the most adventurous something to do. However we
will try to condense that down a bit in this letter to give you an idea of
what has been added.
Although we generally try to avoid pointing any particular team member out,
we do need to specifically recognize a couple of team members for their
contributions with this update.
Highwire is now Unicode compliant, with many thanks going to team member
Rainer Seitel. There are some more details on this below in the section
marked 'International Character Set support', And from this editors point
of view, this code is a truly great addition to the open source repository
of atari code, as well as an exciting addition to HighWire itself. To get
an idea of the magnitude of this support open the uni_bics.html file in
the HTML folder.
Ralph Lowinski (aka AltF4) has made major improvements across a wide range
of functions of HighWire, resulting in greater speed and stability. For his
continuing work on HighWire we all own him a debt of gratitude.
A few of the general highlights of this release include more hotkeys, zoom
text, improved IMG tag handling, background window scrolling, scrolling via
the keyboard... the list goes on. Really improvements have been made
throughout the code again. Tables support has been expanded and is more
robust, frame handling has been improved again. More ÔcommonÕ buggy HTML
code is supported. And that is only a portion of the improvements.
While we have set a great task before us, our goal is achievable, it will
just take time and your support. We can always use more programmers and
support on the documentation side of the project always is a critical need.
Translation support for more languages would be a great addition to the
project as well.
We do feel that we have something here that shows that our platforms need
for an open source browser can be obtained. Currently it should not really
be classified as a browser, but more of a demonstration of a parsing and
rendering engine. This technology is open source, so hopefully with your
support it can be the core to many projects on our platform. Not the least
of which will be in the future a fully modern web browser. To reach that
goal we will need time and the help of community.
Downloads available at http://highwire.atari-users.net/
Related developments include the following.
New Layout for the HighWire site thanks to GokMase
New Fontlist v 1.11
New Highwire Users mailing list thanks to atari-users.net
HighWire Development Team
http://highwire.atari-users.net "
Grzegorz Pawlik tells Dan:
"That's great! Unicode support is the important thing CAB and all other
Atari browsers lacked (forcing sometimes to use weird techniques to
display pages properly)...
There is one weird thing: with MagiC 6.2 and NVDI 5.03 on TT it says
"Highwire needs SpeedoGDOS or NVDI >= 3!" and exits. I can start it only
with SingleTOS. I remember certain problems with the previous version
under MagiC (ie. it *sometimes* crashed the whole system when exiting).
:-(
I will try to deinstall anything else (leaving just MagiC and NVDI)
to check if it isn't caused by some other program running in background."
Edward Baiz tells Greg:
"There is a program that goes with Highwire called FontList. Run this
program. It will list all Speedo Fonts you have installed. I would
imagine that your problem is that you do not have any installed.
Highwire does not use TrueType and other fonts as yet."
Grzegorz replies:
"I have found out that HW4 does *not* recognize NVDI only when the
"Kompatibilitat" option in NVDI Kompatibilitat CPX module is switched
*on*. When I switched it *off*, HW4 recognized NVDI properly.
So now I could start it without problems with my usual setup and I must
say I am impressed! Polish characters are displayed correctly ;) and
a lot of problems with HTML rendering that the previous version had
are now fixed. Some stayed, though, especially problems with <EMBED>
tag which almost always makes HW crash, certain things with <TABLE>
cells widths etc. It also seems HW4 still does not support <TD NOWRAP>
tag...
I tried opening some Hebrew documents (UTF-8, ISO 8859-8) - although
I quickly realised HW4 does not support UTF-8 encoding yet, the Unicode
support makes me look into the future with much hope ;-))
So keep up your great work! This will be surely the best piece
of software released for Atari platform (when finished). But please
take a closer look at the way HW recognizes NVDI presence..."
Hallvard Tangeraas asks about running GFA code:
"I downloaded a MIDI synthesizer editor ("JXEDITOR") a while back and to
my surprise ended up with neither the usual .PRG, .APP or .ACC, but a
file by the name of "JXEDITOR.GFA" along with 4 ".FNT" files (GEM fonts
I presume).
There were no additional program files or docs. But there was an extra
folder with what seems to be synthesizer patch data, which is what I
want to check out of course.
But how do I run this program? Is it indeed a GFA-BASIC program? I
double-clicked it to try to confirm this, expecting a plain ASCII text
file with the usual BASIC commands, but no.... it looked like a binary
file with lots of strange characters (as with any program), so what is
this mystery program? It's pretty small as well: around 27 Kbytes."
Martin Tarenskeen asks Hallvard:
"Where did you find it? I can take a look at it, and compile with my
Gfa basic compiler."
Hallvard tells Martin:
Can't remember, but I think it was off the Atari-MIDI mailing list's
website.
Anyway, I've uploaded the whole thing here so you can take a look if you
want to: http://home.c2i.net/st_hallvard/jxeditor.zip "
Martin tells Hallvard:
"I have tried it and it looks nice. It's an almost exact copy of the PG800
programmer for the Roland JX8P. I modified one or two lines in the
source code. (In my version you will see the current directory if you open
the file selector, instead of C:\.) I have also added a compiled
ready-to-use jxeditor.prg to the archive. This archive can be downloaded
from here:
http://www.home.zonnet.nl/m.tarenskeen/jxeditor.zip
It's not my intention to keep it there forever. Is anyone willing to adopt
it to put it somewhere permanently (Tim (TAMW), are you reading this?"
Tim Conrardy jumps in and tells Martin:
"I did indeed read it, and now I have put it (with credits of course)
on the Atari-MIDI archive here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/atari-midi-archives/files/SOUNDS/Roland/
This dir is linked to my download page on my site as well.
There is also some other Roland stuff there including 100 sounds for
the JX by David Etheridge.
Thank you for your compiling work."
Well folks, that's it for this time around. Tune in again next week, same
time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying when...
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
=~=~=~=
->In This Week's Gaming Section - GameCube Price Is Cut!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" E3 Showcases Gaming Battles!
Wireless Console Gaming?!
And much more!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Nintendo Cuts GameCube Price to $149
Video game publisher Nintendo Co. Ltd. on Monday said it would cut the U.S.
price of its GameCube game console by about 25 percent, in a bid to
maintain its price advantage over its main competitors in the $20 billion
international video game business.
Nintendo, most famous for its franchise character, the squat and rotund
plumber Mario, lowered the U.S. price to $149.95 from $199 effective May
21.
"We were thrilled to be able to come out at $199 ... so we're just going
to be ahead of the game at 149," Peril Kaplan, vice president of corporate
communications for Nintendo, told Reuters. "We started aggressive and this
just continues it."
Kaplan said there were no plans for hardware price cuts in other regions,
nor are there plans to cut the price of top software titles from $49.99.
Nintendo's two main competitors, Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp., cut the
North American prices of their consoles, the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox, to
$199 from $299 last week,
As opposed to those two consoles, the GameCube has been positioned in the
market as a lower-priced alternative appealing mostly to children aged
6-14, a demographic Nintendo has dominated for nearly 20 years
internationally.
The company said it has shipped 4.5 million GameCubes worldwide to date,
and 2.5 million units of its top title "Super Smash Bros. Melee."
The GameCube was released in Japan in September, in the U.S. in November
(three days after the Xbox), and in Europe earlier this month.
Last week Nintendo said it would release adapters in the fall to allow
people to play games online with the GameCube, though it said it is in no
rush to produce games itself for the online service.
Nintendo's shares have dropped 20 percent since the start of the year in
Japan, due in part to profit-taking after a year-end rally fueled by
strong pre-holiday sales, but also reflecting market concerns about
discounting and rising competition.
Later on Monday in Los Angeles, a Microsoft media conference will kick off
the Electronic Entertainment Expo, better-known as E3, the video game
industry's annual trade show.
Most of the news about price cuts that was made in the last week had been
expected to come at E3, leaving analysts to speculate that the show will
now return to its roots and focus primarily on new games for the various
systems.
Nintendo plans to release GameCube games later this year based on its most
popular franchises -- Mario, "Zelda" and "Metroid" -- all of which are
expected to be exhibited at the show.
"I think Nintendo will come out of (the show) stronger than they went in,"
John Davison, the editorial director of the Ziff Davis Media Game Group,
told Reuters last week.
Davison said Nintendo was virtually guaranteed to do well later this year,
as "Super Mario Sunshine" and its other franchises titles have an eager
audience among people who have been playing games in those series since
Nintendo first arrived in the U.S. in the mid-1980s.
The U.S. video game business is in the early part of what analysts and
industry executives have said will be a multiyear cycle of record growth,
driven by sales of the three consoles and associated games and
peripherals.
Sales of video game hardware and software topped $9 billion in the U.S.
last year, with 2002 expected to easily beat that record.
"Star Wars" To Play on Xbox, PlayStation
LucasArts said Monday that it would begin developing online games for
Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation 2.
The video game division of George Lucas' multimedia empire will begin
producing the first of its "Star Wars Galaxies" online gaming series for
the two consoles.
LucasArts did not disclose a release date, but said it would produce the
multiplayer games for the next two generations of the Xbox and
PlayStation.
Microsoft and Sony have ambitious plans to make the Internet a more
central element in video games. Online gaming allows companies to charge
customers monthly fees so they can play more interactive and collaborative
games.
In one example, Sony's "EverQuest" has experienced wild popularity, with
hundreds of thousands of subscribers paying $13 a month to play.
In the "Star Wars Galaxies" series, players take on character roles and
engage in various quests while interacting with other players. LucasArts
in December will release a PC version of the game, "Star Wars Galaxies: An
Empire Divided," which is being developed by Sony Online Entertainment.
Electronic Arts to Bring 'Sims' to PlayStation 2
Electronic Arts Inc., the largest independent video game publisher, said on
Monday it will bring "The Sims," the best-selling PC game ever, to Sony
Corp.'s PlayStation 2 console this fall.
Redwood City, California-based Electronic Arts said the console version of
the Sims, which has sold a total of 15 million units over its lifetime,
was under development by its Maxis studio.
The company plans to show previews of the PlayStation version at the
industry's Electronic Entertainment Expo this week in Los Angeles, it
said.
"The Sims," in which players control the lives of a number of characters
-- including where they live, what they eat, how they dress, and even who
they love -- was the top-selling PC game for the last two years.
In the console version, which will allow two players to play at once,
players will control one character and move him or her through major life
events, gaining access to better housing and objects (like a bug zapper)
along the way.
Take-Two Says 'Grand Theft Auto' Sequel Coming
Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. said on Tuesday it
is preparing a sequel to its blockbuster "Grand Theft Auto 3" for release
in late October, following on the success of a game that dominated U.S.
sales charts for months.
"Grand Theft Auto: Vice City" will ship to retailers on Oct. 22 for Sony
Corp.'s PlayStation 2 game console, Take-Two said.
"GTA3" was the best selling video game in the United States from its
release at the end of October 2001 until mid-March this year, based on
units sold, and was the top console game of 2001, on the same basis.
It was also the top game at rental in the first quarter, and its strength
was directly responsible for Take-Two raising its fiscal 2002 guidance.
The company said it has sold more than 6 million units worldwide to date.
The game, a criminal adventure that allows players to, among other things,
run over senior citizens and shoot at law enforcement officers, was
initially banned by the Australian government because of its violent
content.
Despite an accounting scandal that led the company to restate its fiscal
2001 results (twice, for some quarters) and the replacement of two chief
financial officers in about three months, Take-Two shares are up more than
62 percent this year.
More details about "Vice City" are expected in July, the company said.
Video Game Publishers Out to Shine at Industry Show
The promise of the $20 billion video game industry comes down to this: fat
plumbers on jet packs, cartoon characters blown to bits, and a touchdown
pass thrown against an opponent several time zones away.
"The only way the companies can differentiate themselves is with better
content," said Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Morgan Securities
who follows the independent game publishers.
At the video game industry's annual trade show, the Electronic
Entertainment Expo, attention has focused on the battle between the major
console makers -- Sony Corp, Nintendo Co. Ltd., and Microsoft Corp.
But the game publishers have been the biggest winners as the game box
makers cut prices and spend millions to market the PlayStation 2, GameCube
and Xbox, analysts have said.
Shares in the top U.S. game publishers are outperforming the Nasdaq by a
wide margin again this year. First-quarter sales by the three that have
reported -- Electronic Arts Inc. , Activision Inc. and THQ Inc. -- were up
a combined 45 percent.
Looking to maintain that momentum, the game makers are showing off a mix
of new games that aim to strike a balance between online offerings, which
are seen as the wave of the future, and franchises built around familiar
characters, which, like Hollywood sequels, are seen as a low risk
proposition.
I think you're going to see innovation in different genres people haven't
tried before," Pachter said.
Many of the games on preview at E3 are updates on familiar brands.
Nintendo, for example, has debuted its latest version of its enduring
"Mario" series, built around the misadventures of the company's signature
squat plumber in red overalls.
Analysts expect the August debut of the game to support sales ofNintendo's
GameCube, whose price was cut by some 25 percent in the United States this
week to an industry low of $149.95.
Meanwhile, rivals Sony and Microsoft both clinched deals with the game
publishing arm of filmmaker George Lucas' entertainment empire to bring
online versions of role-playing games based on "Star Wars" to their
competing consoles.
Sony and Microsoft both cut prices of their game machines to $199 in the
run-up to the trade show.
In another sign of the increasingly close ties between the Hollywood movie
studios and the game publishers, AOL Time Warner unit Warner Bros has
announced a raft of licensing deals, from games based on sequels to the
action thriller "The Matrix" to those featuring cartoon icons like Bugs
Bunny and Daffy Duck.
Electronic Arts, the No. 1 independent publisher, plans to show a number
of sports games, including an online version of "Madden NFL 2003" for
Sony's PlayStation 2 and the latest game based on the successful "Harry
Potter" franchise.
The company also said on Monday it will bring a version of "The Sims," the
best-selling PC game ever, to the PS2 this fall, with changes that will
allow two players to play simultaneously.
A major part of Activision's push is "Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4," the latest
game in the series credited for a major part of the company's recent
successes. It will also show a number of other games in its growing
"extreme sports" brand.
That brand, which the company calls Activision O2, has grown in importance
to the company, which now has dozens of "extreme" athletes under contract
for future titles.
THQ, with a firm grip on the older children/younger teens market, will
show a number of new games in its co-publishing deal with Sega Corp. for
the Game Boy Advance.
The company also plans to show titles from its long-standing World
Wrestling Entertainment franchise, as well as games based on pop singer
Britney Spears.
Sega will also be active at the show. The Japanese publisher, which made
game consoles until last year, will show a number of online games for PS2,
as well as for newly-announced online platforms for Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox
and Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s GameCube.
Other titles expected to draw attention include Acclaim Entertainment
Inc.'s "Turok," a dinosaur adventure game on which the company is betting
heavily, and a "Lord of the Rings" title from Universal Interactive based
on the famous book series, rather than the new films.
"Myst" Adds Twist To Online Gaming
The creators of "Myst," one of the most popular PC games of all time, are
working on an online version of the adventure game, publisher Ubi Soft
Entertainment announced Thursday.
"Myst Online" will go on sale next year at a date to be announced, the
company said at the Electronic Entertainment Expo trade show here. The
game will include both a boxed software product and a subscription online
service, the company said.
The announcement marks the latest attempt to expand the popularity of the
potentially lucrative online gaming world, currently dominated by fantasy
games such as Sony's "EverQuest," which has hundreds of thousands of
players paying monthly fees to access its virtual world.
Analysts have said that for online gaming to expand, publishers will have
to develop titles likely to appeal to more mainstream consumers. Leading
candidates include "Star Wars Galaxies," a role-playing game based on the
film series, and "The Sims Online," an online version of the hit PC game.
Jason Rubinstein, general manager of Ubi Soft's online operation, said the
company expects "Myst Online" to replicate the broad appeal of the
original games, which have sold more than 11 million copies.
Rand Miller, CEO of "Myst" developer Cyan Worlds, said that instead of
creating a "massively multiplayer" online world that can accommodate
thousands of players at once, "Myst Online" will focus on offering players
an ever-expanding environment to explore. The game's world will be
expanded with regular updates, creating an episodic approach to gaming
similar to a TV series, he said. Such an approach is more likely to appeal
to mainstream consumers than potentially addictive role-playing games
would.
"I think to have mass-market appeal, you can't require the level of
attention a lot of these online games demand," Miller said. "Most people
don't want to hang around with a thousand other people. They want to
explore interesting places with a few of their friends."
The episodic format will create ongoing deadline challenges, acknowledged
Miller, who became notorious in the industry for repeated delays in
delivering "Riven," the first sequel to "Myst." "That's the strength and
the challenge: We have got to build stuff continuously that will keep
people engrossed and wondering what's going to be there next week," he
said.
Ubi Soft said pricing for "Myst Online" will be announced closer to the
release.
Nintendo Banking on New, Improved 'Mario'
In the heated battle for the fast-growing market in video games, Nintendo
Co. Ltd. is sticking with the pair that made it an industry contender: a
squat plumber and his almost equally famous creator.
To the roar of an elated crowd, Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo's famed video
game designer, appeared at an event here on Tuesday to demonstrate his
latest creation: the newest version of the company's flagship "Mario" game
franchise.
Miyamoto appeared from the back of a hotel auditorium using Nintendo's new
"WaveBird" wireless control pad to play "Super Mario Sunshine" at a media
event on the second day of the video game industry's annual trade show,
the Electronic Entertainment Expo.
The game is the latest in a Nintendo series centered around Mario, the
rotund plumber in red overalls, that has sold tens of millions of copies
worldwide. It has been hotly anticipated since Nintendo first showed
preliminary screenshots last year.
Analysts expect the August debut of the game will support sales of
Nintendo's GameCube console, which came out in the United States last
November and has sold well, but is still fighting for significant market
share against market leader Sony Corp. and ambitious rival Microsoft Corp.
Sony all but declared victory in the console wars on Tuesday, saying that
a recent price cut to $199 on its PlayStation 2 unit had ignited sales and
would give it an insurmountable lead against its
rivals.
Nintendo, which chopped $50 off the price of its GameCube, taking it to an
industry low of $149, rejected Sony's claim as premature.
"I think they know now the battle is on," said Peter MacDougall, executive
vice president for sales and marketing for Nintendo of America.
MacDougall said Nintendo's marketing budget for the rest of the year would
be 25 percent larger than the same period last year. "GameCube in this
market is currently showing a healthy momentum," he said.
Nintendo also emphasized its handheld system, the Game Boy Advance, which
was released last June and has a near-complete lock on the handheld game
market.
By the end of this year, Nintendo will have 300 games out for the GBA in
America, in addition to 150 GameCube games, said Satoru Iwata, director of
corporate planning for Nintendo.
As opposed to competitors Sony and Microsoft, who often tout the hardware
advantages of their PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles, Nintendo's strategy
has always been to showcase the games themselves.
Besides "Mario," Miyamoto showed another game, "The Legend of Zelda,"
which was heavily criticized in previews last year for moving away from
the franchise's traditional look in favor of a graphics style most often
described as cartoon-like.
While Nintendo is hopeful the game will be ready for the holiday season,
MacDougall said the official shipping target is February 2003.
MacDougall also addressed criticisms that the GameCube skews too heavily
toward Nintendo's traditional core audience of preteen gamers, showing off
titles like "Resident Evil Zero" and "Eternal Darkness" that were laden
with flesh-eating zombies and medieval weaponry.
In another contrast to its rivals, Nintendo has downplayed online gaming
plans. While it said last week it would release adapters in the fall to
allow online gameplay, Nintendo has also said from the start that online
gaming was still largely an experiment.
That cautious stance is in stark opposition to Sony and Microsoft, which
are actively pushing their online offerings, both launching later this
year, as the next frontier of gaming.
Microsoft, in particular, has staked much on the development of online
gaming, announcing this week it will build its own network called "Xbox
Live" to connect players around the world.
"We agree that online games do hold promise," Iwata said.
Wireless Video Game Controllers Gain Steam
If you think video game consoles have taken over the living room, look out:
your kitchen or dining room may be next, thanks to the slew of wireless
game controllers set to hit the market this year.
For most of the past two decades, home video games have come equipped with
controllers -- also called gamepads -- with a trailing 8-10 foot (3 meter)
wire that allowed the user to shoot aliens, jump over mushrooms and
otherwise play games.
At the Electronics Entertainment Expo, the industry's major trade show,
several companies including peripheral maker Logitech International SA
showcased cordless gamepads that allow users to keep their games going
from as far as 30 feet away from the console.
The devices feature fast reaction times and little or no interference from
cordless phones and human bodies that might cross between the gamepad and
the device.
Logitech's this week unveiled its Cordless Controller compatible with
Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox video game console, boasting up to 50 hours of game
play and a "rumble" feature. It also showcased a controller that works with
Sony Corp.'s PlayStation consoles.
"The technology allows the performance to be identical between a corded
and cordless device, so there is no reason in the world for people to want
a corded device. There is no benefit that cord brings," said Fred Swan, of
Logitech's Interactive Business unit.
While people may prefer to be free to roam with a controller, price may
play a factor in buyers decision to move to cordless controllers, however.
Swan said that the gamepads will sell at various prices: $49 each for
models that work with personal computers, $59 for PlayStation models, and
$69 for Xbox controllers.
That comes on top of the $200 that most buyers will pay for the actual
game console and $50, on average, for games. Game consoles come equipped
with a corded controller.
Logitech's does not have plans to develop a device for Nintendo Co. LTD.,
which last week introduced its own wireless model, Wavebird.
The device, due on June 10 at about $35, works from up to 20 feet (6
meters) away from its GameCube console. The company said its batteries
will last for more than 100 hours.
Private technology development company Eleven Engineering Inc. debuted a
demonstration model of its xiSpike system for wireless controllers, which
can switch with the press of a button which console the gamepad controls.
For example a player could shift from Xbox to a PlayStation without
changing gamepads.
The company said it has an agreement with a consumer electronics device
maker to will mass produce the device for sale by the peak year-end
holiday season this year.
Nintendo Chief to Step Down After 52 Years at Helm
Japanese videogame maker Nintendo Co Ltd said on Friday its charismatic
president Hiroshi Yamauchi, 74, would step down after more than half a
century at the helm, handing power to a carefully groomed management
group.
Yamauchi, outspoken but publicity-shy and a stand-out with his purple suits
and plainspoken style, guided Nintendo's meteoric rise from a tiny maker of
card games to a videogame powerhouse.
His strategy, centered on creating innovative games rather than building
ambitious entertainment platforms like the rival PlayStation 2 and Xbox, is
expected to remain intact under the new management team.
Taking the post of president on May 31 will be Satoru Iwata, the
42-year-old chief of corporate planning who joined the company two years
ago from a game software developer.
"Six executive board members will form a management team that I hope will
move quickly on vital matters," Yamauchi told a news conference at the
company's headquarters in the ancient capital city of Kyoto.
"My job now will be simply to keep an eye on the whole process."
He will retain the title of adviser to the company but will not be part of
the top management team.
The market had long expected that Yamauchi would be replaced by a team
rather than a single, charismatic individual, said Takashi Oka, chief
analyst at Tsubasa Research Institute.
Nintendo's share price showed little reaction to the news, closing up
0.17 percent at 17,630 yen in a generally flat market.
"I don't think the move will affect Nintendo's share price," Oka said.
There are worries that Yamauchi's influence with game software companies
may be sorely missed -- particularly his knack for selecting talented
partners and enforcing strict loyalty to the Nintendo platform.
"The new management does not have a charismatic or 'god-like' figure, so
there is a risk that software makers may be able to get the upper hand
in their dealings with Nintendo," Oka said.
Other members of the top management team will include Genyo Takeda, head
of hardware development, and Shigeru Miyamoto, software development leader
and creator of the hit "Zelda" game series. Executive Vice President
Atsushi Asada will become chairman.
Yamauchi, who succeeded his grandfather as Nintendo's president in 1949
while he was still a university student, led the company through such
milestones as the 1983 launch in Japan of the so-called Family Computer.
Later successes such as the Game Boy handheld game machine and hit game
titles such as Mario and the Pokemon series fueled rapid profit growth.
A perennial fixture on Japan's billionaire list, Yamauchi dropped hints
of his impending retirement in January, telling reporters that he may step
down in the first half of the year.
He built the company into one of Japan's most cash-rich enterprises and
grabbed headlines when he bought the Seattle Mariners baseball team.
His departure comes at a challenging time for the game maker, with its
flagship GameCube home console entangled in a fierce three-way battle
that includes Sony Corp's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Corp's Xbox.
All three have announced deep price cuts over the past two weeks for
their mainstay game machines.
Xbox Struggling With Math Test
For the software publishing industry, video games are a numbers game. And
for now, Microsoft is on the losing end.
That's the upshot from the Electronics Entertainment Expo, the game
industry's main trade show, where new games for Microsoft's Xbox have
largely been limited to "me too" titles--games already appearing on other
consoles. Microsoft has said it expects to have more than 200 games for the
Xbox by the end of the year, but less than two dozen of those will be
exclusive Xbox titles from third-party publishers.
Sony, by contrast, is touting high-profile exclusives from game publishers.
"Grand Theft Auto III," the top-selling video game for the past few months,
will remain available only for Sony's PlayStation 2, with publisher Take
Two Interactive Software scrapping previous plans for an Xbox version. New
versions of Eidos' "Tomb Raider" and Electronic Arts' "Medal of Honor"
franchises will also be available only for the PS2, as will upcoming online
and offline updates of the "Final Fantasy" series from longtime Sony
booster Squaresoft.
Game publishers say it's a simple matter of economics. With Sony having
sold more than 30 million PlayStation 2 units worldwide and the Xbox just
edging up to the 4 million mark, they have to put their money where the
market is. The result is that even the biggest Xbox supporters are
producing two PlayStation 2 games for every Xbox title.
"We love the Xbox; we love Microsoft," said Jeff Brown, vice president of
corporate communications for leading games publisher EA. "The worst thing
that could happen to EA is to wake up one day to find Sony out there by
itself. But when you make decisions short term, you have to look at the
installed base. It's pretty clear if you're running a business selling
games, you're simply going to sell more units on the PS2."
Console makers can try to tip the balance by offering marketing assistance
to game publishers and even helping to pay development costs, but such
efforts only go so far, said Luc Vanhal, president of Vivendi Universal
Publishing. Vivendi earlier announced that "Malice," a game Microsoft
touted as an exclusive at the Xbox's public unveiling, will also be
available for the PS2.
"Microsoft is much more aggressive going after exclusive deals," Vanhal
said. "They realize they really need to give an incentive to publishers to
focus on the Xbox.
"But it still comes down to economics," Vanhal said. "It costs quite a bit
of money to develop a game. I need to recoup that money, and it's easier
to do that when you're selling to a market of 30 million."
Kaz Hirai, president of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, said
publishers have found it more expensive than many had expected to produce
multiple versions of a game.
"There's a significant investment to having multiple retail packages,"
said Hirai, who kept E3 buzzing by declaring victory in the console wars.
"At some point you have to say, 'Time out: Does it make sense for me to do
a PlayStation exclusive? How much value do I get from doing other
versions?'"
Publishers say the recent round of console price cuts will help Microsoft
build an installed based for Xbox more quickly. Leading retailers have
reported sales increases of up to 800 percent for both consoles since the
Xbox and the PlayStation 2 were each lowered to $199.
But Microsoft also needs to break out of the commodity market that game
consoles have become, they say. Despite clear technological advantages
enjoyed by the Xbox, especially its built-in hard drive, Xbox games so far
have pretty much played like those for competing systems.
"I believe the marketing mistake has been in letting people believe the
Xbox is the same product as the other consoles," said Bruno Bonnell,
president of Infogrames. The game publisher recently dealt another blow to
Xbox by announcing plans to publish a PlayStation 2 version of its
upcoming game based on "The Matrix," despite Microsoft having invested $1
million in recent Infrogrames acquisition Shiny Entertainment to fund
development of the game.
"Xbox has a lot of features nobody's really taken advantage of yet,"
Bonnell said. "If someone built a game that fully utilizes the hard drive,
the voice capability, people would see there's a real difference. The best
evidence is the price: Microsoft knew they couldn't get people to pay
extra for better technology, because they don't have a case yet for how
that improves the games."
Don Coyner, Microsoft's director of marketing for Xbox, said it's typical
for developers to need time to fully exploit a new console. He's confident
that "Blinx," a Microsoft-created jump-and-run game that allows players to
record and replay segments, will show developers how a hard drive can
improve game design.
"'Blinx' is really the first game that takes full advantage of the hard
drive," Coyner said. "Console developers are not used to working with a
hard drive. It takes awhile for a developer to think about what it can do,
and it takes someone who sees the potential to take advantage of it and
really push gaming concepts forward."
Nintendo's survival strategy has been to come up with its own
system-selling franchises, including characters such as Mario, Pokemon and
Zelda. Perrin Kaplan, vice president of marketing and corporate affairs for
Nintendo of America, said Microsoft could learn a thing or two from the
Nintendo approach.
"We're worried about Microsoft," Kaplan said. "They've spent all this
money building an online network, and they've lost focus on the games.
Microsoft is doing technology, versus investing in content, and content
drives this business."
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE Gaming Online - Online Users Growl & Purr!
"""""""""""""""""""
Jagfest 2002
Just want to remind you that Jagfest 2002 (aka Jagfest 2k2)
will be held in Saint Louis, MO on July 12th and 13th,2002
at The Mayfair Wyndham Historic Hotel 806 St. Charles Street
St. Louis, MO 63101 Phone: (314) 421-2500
Right now we are looking for users groups and/or dealers to come
or support the fest the following two Press Releases goes into
more detail:
Now accepting payment for Jagfest 2002
For Immediate Release:
April 25, 2002
Greg George, Webmaster of The Atari Times website, has announced that he is
now accepting payment for the Sixth Annual Atari Jaguar Festival (dubbed
Jagfest 2k2) in downtown St. Louis, Missouri at The Mayfair Wyndham Historic
Hotel. (806 St. Charles Street St. Louis, Missouri 63101.
Phone: 314-421-2500) on Friday, July 12th and Saturday, July 13th 2002.
Admission cost for this event is $25.00 for those who wish to pre-pay and
$30.00 for those who wish pay at the door; this cost covers for both days.
Table prices are as follows (admission price is included): Visitor tables:
$35.00 before July 9th (after July 9th its $40.00), Dealer Tables: $45.00
before July 9th (after July 9th its $50.00) (extra tables are $5.00 each).
You can pay either by paypal (greg@ataritimes.com) or by sending a Check or
Money Order to:
Gregoary D. George, 347 Banyan Drive, Winter Haven, FL 33884
Attn. Jagfest payments
For more information On Jag fest 2k2 e-mail Greg George at
greg@ataritimes.com, James Garvin at omc@omcgames.com or Daniel Iacovelli at
atarivideoclub@yahoo.com or visit the Jagfest 2002 site at
http://omcgames.com/jagfest/
(be sure to visit the Jag fest message board and post your ideas for this
event.)
END PRESS RELEASE
Jagfest 2002 Program Ad Pricing
For Immediate Release:
May 3, 2002
Greg George, Webmaster of The Atari Times website, has announced that he is
now accepting payment for advertising in the Sixth Annual Atari Jaguar
Festival (dubbed Jagfest 2k2) Program. The pricing for placing an ad in the
Jagfest 2002 program is as follows:
$15.00 for quarter page
$25.00 for half page
$50.00 for full page
A listing on the back page is under $15.00
For full details on how to place your ad in the program contact Greg George.
You can pay either by paypal (greg@ataritimes.com) or by sending a Check or
Money Order to
Gregory D. George, 347 Banyan Drive, Winter Haven, FL 33884
Attn. Jagfest ad payments
For more information On Jag fest 2k2 e-mail Greg George at
greg@ataritimes.com, James Garvin at omc@omcgames.com or Daniel Iacovelli at
atarivideoclub@yahoo.com or visit the Jagfest 2002 site at
http://omcgames.com/jagfest
(be sure to visit the Jag fest message board and post your ideas for this
event)
if you want to help out by spreading the word about Jagfest 2k2
e-mail me and I'll tell you where to d/l the flyer.
Daniel M. Iacovelli
Atari Video Club Chairperson
Editor of The Atari Zone Fanzine and E-zine
E-mail: Atarivideoclub@yahoo.com
(ICQ #14051068)
Webmaster of AVC Online
http://avc.atari.users.net
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
Four Years On, Microsoft Case Far From Over
Saturday marked the four-year anniversary of Microsoft's antitrust case,
which, legal experts say, could still go on for quite some time to come.
And the longer the case drags on, they say, the more likely it is that
Microsoft would escape largely unscathed from its legal tangle with federal
and state trustbusters. Many of the company's court-affirmed violations
occurred at least five years ago. With appeals, the process now under way
could stretch on for two more years or longer, which could make any remedy
essentially meaningless.
"At some point, Microsoft could argue that the fast-changing technology
sector has moved beyond the scope of the original case brought by the
Justice Department," said Andy Gavil, an antitrust professor with Howard
University's School of Law.
On the other hand, the nine states that continued with litigation against
Microsoft, despite a November settlement by their former comrades in arms,
have been trying to use the flip side of that argument to wring a wide
array of new concessions from the software giant. Their claim is that
Microsoft committed further antitrust violations with newer technologies
and later versions of its software, despite earlier rulings that found it
at fault.
On Friday, after 32 days of testimony--nearly half that of the original
trial--and two months in the courtroom, lawyers left U.S. District Judge
Colleen Kollar-Kotelly to ponder what sanctions she would eventually
impose against Microsoft as a result of that continuing litigation.
Attorneys for Microsoft and for the nine states and the District of
Columbia, which rejected the settlement by the Justice Department and nine
other states, are scheduled to present final arguments in the current
proceeding on June 19. Kollar-Kotelly is expected to issue a ruling in
late summer or early autumn.
The Justice Department and 20 states had filed the landmark lawsuit on May
18, 1998, alleging that Microsoft used its monopoly in Intel-based
operating systems to crush upstart Netscape Communications, now owned by
AOL Time Warner.
During the four years since, two states dropped out of the case, a federal
judge ordered a breakup of Microsoft, an appeals court threw out that
order, a new judge took responsibility for the case, and the majority of
original plaintiffs settled with the software giant. Yet even with the
findings of two courts--in April 2000 and June 2001--that the software
giant violated the Sherman Antitrust Act, no remedy has been put into
effect to rein in Microsoft's monopoly power.
At some point in the future, Microsoft could convince the Court of Appeals
or the Supreme Court to send the case back for retrial.
"In the war of attrition, so far Microsoft is winning," said Rich Gray, a
Menlo Park, Calif.-based attorney closely following the trial.
Kollar-Kotelly's decision, say legal experts, won't be an easy one. The
judge must sift through a virtual mountain of evidence before deciding
what remedy is appropriate for Microsoft's antitrust violations. The
settlement, which she has not yet approved, further complicates the
process. No matter what she decides, one thing is certain: An appeal from
either side, or both, means the case brought four years ago might still be
years from being over.
Kollar-Kotelly is expected to issue what are known as findings of fact and
conclusions of law as the main part of her ruling. U.S. District Judge
Thomas Penfield Jackson also issued such documents, but he chose to
separate them by about six months. Kollar-Kotelly is expected to take the
more common approach of issuing the documents at the same time, possibly
with her court-imposed remedy, should she issue one. She also could
release the remedy decree at a later time.
Issuance of the remedy would likely trigger one or more appeals, as it did
when Jackson issued his breakup order in June 2000. Any appeal would
likely be heard by the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit and possibly the Supreme Court.
The more time the process takes, the greater the likelihood that Microsoft
could find new ways to entrench its Windows monopoly, legal experts warn,
potentially nullifying the legal process--to the company's benefit.
"Without a doubt," Gray said, "the longer this thing goes on, the better
for Microsoft's position in the marketplace."
Unlike criminal law, in which those convicted of crimes are punished for
their wrongdoings, antitrust law focuses more on correcting the damage
done by the wrongdoing. Trustbusters have not asked for punitive action,
such as fines, against Microsoft. Kollar-Kotelly instead will be looking
to put in place mechanisms that will prevent further anti-competitive acts
by Microsoft. In theory, her remedy would help restore competition and
foster more consumer choice.
But unlike her predecessor, Kollar-Kotelly has the complication of deciding
whether she should weigh two possible remedy options against each other or
treat them separately.
On track one is the Justice Department settlement, which for five years
would place some restrictions on Microsoft's business practices and compel
the company to disclose more Windows technical information to software
developers. Microsoft also would agree to let PC makers and consumers hide
access to so-called middleware technologies, such as Web browsing and
instant messaging, but not remove any software code. Later this month,
Microsoft is expected to release a beta--or test--version of a Windows XP
update that would address these changes.
On track two, the judge must contend with the stiffer remedies--many
affecting software code--requested by the litigating states. Among other
things, the states want Microsoft to sell a second, modular version of
Windows from which PC makers could remove middleware; license its Office
application through auction for use on other operating systems; give away
for free the source code, or blueprint, to Internet Explorer; and carry
support for Sun Microsystems' Java language in Windows for 10 years. A
crown jewel provision would force Microsoft to give away for free the
source code to any software, including Windows, found in violation of the
10-year decree.
"Technically they should be two separate processes, but I think you will
find the two are going to go hand in hand," Gavil said. One reason:
Kollar-Kotelly has yet to approve the settlement deal cut in November.
Gavil predicted that the judge would eventually approve the settlement but
also impose additional remedies. "Understanding that her order will be
stayed, subject to appeal--that's why she will approve something on track
one," he said.
In terms of the settlement, Kollar-Kotelly is very limited in what she can
do. On the other hand, she has broad discretion in crafting a remedy.
"Under the statute (for the settlement), she only has two options: She can
approve or reject it," Gavil said. "But in practicality she has the middle
ground of saying, 'I will only approve if you agree to certain changes.'
She hasn't shown any inclination to be that hands on, but that doesn't
mean she wouldn't at some point sit down with the federal government and
Microsoft and ask for changes. There would then be a lot of pressure on
the Justice Department and Microsoft to make those changes."
Such a request would not be without precedent, say legal experts. The
judge overseeing the AT&T breakup, for example, requested eight changes
before approving the settlement.
"If she doesn't ask for any changes, then she's not likely to do very much
with track two," Gavil said. "But it's very unlikely for her to go through
all of this process and say, 'I'm not going to order any additional
remedies.' I don't think there's a basis for saying the states failed to
meet their burden of proof in whole--maybe in particular parts or sections,
they did."
A truism in the tech industry is that Microsoft is notorious for getting
software "right" on the third try. Does the same rule apply to judges? An
appeals court removed Microsoft's first jurist, U.S. District Judge Stanley
Sporkin, for refusing to sign a 1994 settlement deal between the Justice
Department and Microsoft. The appellate court removed Jackson for talking
to the media behind the scenes during the main part of the antitrust trial.
Kollar-Kotelly, who has little experience with antitrust issues and is
burdened with taking over the case late in the process, might appear to be
the right judge for Microsoft.
"She certainly made a lot of rulings that appeared to favor Microsoft,"
Gray said. "But many of those were procedural issues. Most of the big stuff
went to the states."
If anything, Kollar-Kotelly's ongoing chastising of the states "could
indicate she was frustrated with them for not putting on a better case,"
Gray said. "They also made a number of procedural errors. The last thing
any judge wants is to be reversed on appeal because of a point of
procedure. She knows no matter what she does, Microsoft is going to appeal
this thing."
Kollar-Kotelly, unlike Jackson, made few comments during testimony and
asked few questions. In fact, her quiet demeanor made it "pretty difficult"
to read her impressions of testimony and evidence, Gavil said. "She's close
to the vest."
But in court last week, as lawyers argued several motions before her,
Kollar-Kotelly not only asked lots of questions, but also demonstrated that
she understands some of the case's technological nuances.
"I was astounded by some of technical questions she asked," said Bob Lande,
an antitrust professor with University of Baltimore Law School. "I think
she surprised everyone by her technical grasp of the case."
That understanding could be essential to sorting out several complex issues
vital to crafting a remedy. No matter what she does, Kollar-Kotelly made
clear to Microsoft on Friday that she expects the company to hold to its
promise to abide by whatever the court orders.
During three days in court last month, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates
testified that the company is "committed to complying fully with court
orders, including any remedy that might be ordered in this case. We can do
that only if the remedy is clear as written and its terms feasible."
"I would expect that that's going to be the case," Kollar-Kotelly told
Microsoft's attorneys on Friday, "because these are the kinds of things
that come back to haunt you if it turns out you don't, because I will have
a memory for all of these statements."
Windows XP Patch to Comply with Anti-Trust Deal
The first product changes dictated by a proposed anti-trust settlement with
Microsoft Corp. will appear next week in a software patch for Windows XP,
the company said on Friday.
Microsoft and the U.S. Department of Justice agreed to a settlement in
October designed to address complaints that the software giant was using
its market dominance to bully computer manufacturers and others to favor
its products.
The settlement, which is being challenged as inadequate by nine states,
would give computer makers more flexibility to feature rival software on
their machines.
The settlement is not binding until signed by the judge, although
Microsoft agreed to comply with certain conditions before then, Jim
Cullinan, lead product manager, told Reuters.
The Windows XP Service Pack 1 will be released to more than 10,000 beta
testers by the end of May and then made available to the public around the
end of August, he said.
The software allows computer manufacturers and users a variety of options
in making default settings for certain popular programs including Web
browser, e-mail, instant messenger and media player for audio and video.
A new button on the Windows start menu, titled "set program access and
defaults," allows users to choose between four default options: computer
manufacturer choice; Microsoft only software; non-Microsoft software; and
customized settings, which is the default choice.
Users can choose to set defaults to one program but also display
alternative programs, or they can hide other programs so that the icons
are not on the desktop or in other areas, eliminating easy access to the
programs.
Previously, computer makers could set defaults to programs other than
Microsoft's but could not hide Microsoft programs, except for the browser,
like they can now.
Microsoft allowed computer makers to hide access to Microsoft's Internet
Explorer browser after an appeals court in June agreed with a lower court
that Microsoft had illegally maintained its monopoly in personal computer
operating systems.
In the coming months, Microsoft plans to share code with competitors that
will enable them to write programs that interact with XP in the same way
Microsoft programs do, Cullinan said.
Microsoft will release application programming interfaces, code that
reveals how a software program talks to the operating system, he said. The
company also will license protocols used in communications between desktop
Windows PCs and servers, he added.
The company did not decide to release the service pack because of the
settlement, but rather because Windows NT code, formerly used in products
aimed at the corporate market, is now in XP and being used by consumers,
Cullinan said.
Service packs are meant to fix critical compatibility, reliability and
security issues in a product until an updated version of it can be
released.
"We've never issued a service pack for a general consumer" product, he
said.
The service pack will reflect specialized employee training in anti-trust
law as well as in secure product design and development, Cullinan said.
The company announced a push earlier this year to make security a priority
in all its products.
"You will see some fixes based on that work," he said, of the security
training. "It's one step. There's still a long way to go."
The service pack will roll up about a dozen or so critical security
problems that have already been patched in XP and accompanying programs
like Windows Messenger instant messaging, he said.
The software also changes the Passport settings so that they don't pop up
soliciting registration until a user accesses a service that requires
Passport, such as Hotmail, Microsoft Network or Windows Messenger.
Passport allows users to enter their personal information once and have it
accessible by multiple Web sites and services, rather than the user having
to enter that data for each new service they sign up for.
The settlement was reached after the appeals court decision ruled that
Microsoft was a monopoly but rejected a proposal to split the company in
two.
California,
Massachusetts and seven other states are pressing for more
severe sanctions against Microsoft, such as forcing the company to sell a
cheaper, stripped-down version of Windows and giving rivals easy access to
detailed Windows code.
About 32 million copies of Windows XP have been sold since its release in
October, according to Cullinan.
Netscape 7.0 Heats Up Browser Wars
America Online's Netscape Communication's subsidiary on Wednesday launched
a preview of its newest Web browser, another sign of AOL's reinvigorated
campaign to win consumers back from Microsoft.
The new browser, called Netscape 7.0, is the latest version developed
around a technology called Gecko, which was created by the AOL-funded
Mozilla open-source browser movement. Over the past year, the online giant
has been testing Gecko in preview versions of its popular flagship AOL
service.
Although AOL uses Microsoft's Internet Explorer as its default Web
browser, the company has been clear about its intentions for reviving
Netscape. It is currently beta testing its AOL 7.0 online service with
Gecko for both Windows and Mac users, and its CompuServe subsidiary is now
using Gecko in the official version of its service.
"'Browser wars' is a catchy term but not necessarily apropos," said AOL
spokesman Marty Gordon. "Microsoft was found to be engaging in monopolistic
behavior. We think consumers want a choice, and Netscape is giving it to
them."
Gordon would not say whether future generations of the AOL service plan to
drop IE as the default Web-browsing technology.
Web browsers do not generate direct revenue to companies, but have the
power to route people to Web sites through buttons and links featured
throughout the software's interface. Netscape 7.0 comes bundled with
buttons to AOL Instant Messenger, Netscape Mail, RealNetworks' streaming
media player, Internet telephony service Net2Phone, and AOL Music's
Radio@Netscape service.
Along with the new preview release, Netscape also unveiled a makeover of
its home page, Netscape.com. The changes only go so far as a tweaking of
its interface design, and the page continues to act as a traffic funnel to
content produced by parent company AOL Time Warner. For example, the site
still taps sites such as CNN for breaking news, Time Magazine for
commentary and EW.com and People for entertainment gossip.
Sun Releases Major Software Upgrade
Sun Microsystems Inc. launched on Wednesday its biggest software upgrade in
years, a new version of its flagship Solaris operating systems, which the
computer maker is trying to integrate with popular upstart Linux.
Aiming to simplify networks choked by many layers of software, Sun has
incorporated features that are usually separate programs into the operating
system, the software which sits between applications and the machine, it
said.
The roughly 300 new features of Solaris version 9 would help networks run
with less intervention from administrators, a key to Sun's vision of the
future and a potential cost savings for customers. It would also provide
most users with a handful of "killer" improvements, said IDC analyst Al
Gillen.
Sun says its strategy to add features such as a security "firewall" and
elements of "middleware" that let different programs share information,
redefine the operating system.
"This is a new class of product," Ed Zander, president and chief operating
officer, told a news conference. Sun shares easily outpaced many rival
technology stocks on the Nasdaq on Wednesday, rising 4.7 percent, 32
cents, to $7.20 by midday.
Sun soared to renown as companies built networks and the Internet using
its powerful work stations, but has had a hard time recovering since the
economy slowed and the Internet boom collapsed about a year ago.
One element of Sun's historic success was its single-minded devotion to
Solaris, a Unix-type operating system.
But it has sown confusion among analysts recently by promising to come out
with a Linux low-end computer expected in July.
Linux is a newer but so far less powerful Unix that has captured the hearts
of programmers, since it is not owned by a single company, was developed
collaboratively, and corporations enamored of Linux's price: it is free.
Total Linux revenue nearly doubled in the first quarter from a year ago
and it is still growing fast, Gartner Inc. server analyst Shahin Naftchi
said.
While some critics say Linux will devour the entire Unix market, Sun's
operating systems chief, Anil Gadre, says, "Fundamentally Linux and
Solaris are two brothers."
Both systems compete with Microsoft Corp. Windows and other systems, he
said in an interview ahead of the Solaris launch. Sun was developing Linux
for network "edge" services, like print serving and mail serving, while
Solaris, much more powerful, handled bigger computing tasks, he said.
"We are a very practical company at the end of the day," Gadre said.
Competitors International Business Machines Corp and Hewlett-Packard (news
- web sites) Co. have supported Linux for some time. IBM, which released a
more modest update of its Unix operating system, AIX, on Wednesday also,
claims it is far ahead of Sun in Linux and "middleware".
"They don't have the middleware and they are late on Linux," said Vice
President Surjit Chana, head of marketing for the high-end Unix computers
for IBM. He also said customers did not want middleware thrown into the
operating system, as Sun plans to do.
Technology researcher Bill Claybrook of Aberdeen said that Sun would fall
behind quickly if it kept its Linux focused on the low end, since Linux
was bound to get more sophisticated.
But he did not expect them to do so. "I think that Sun will be relatively
aggressive in the Linux area," he said.
Sun also plans to make its own distribution version of Linux, giving it
more room to incorporate some of the features from Solaris over time, he
said.
"Of all the companies that are involved in Linux -- there is the new HP,
Dell, IBM and now Sun -- they are the only ones that have their own
distribution," he said.
Linux is maturing slowly, and it won't be able to take on tasks currently
done by high-end Unix computers until around the end of the decade, he
said.
Sun faced a dilemma about what hardware to use for its Linux systems,
since selling hardware has been key to Sun's profits, he said.
But, he said, "Sun is the Unix company. There is no reason they can't
become the Linux company if they want to."
House Passes Kid-Friendly Internet Bill
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a proposal to create
a kid-friendly Internet zone free of violence, pornography and other adult
material.
By a vote of 406 to 2, the House approved a bill that would set up an area
within the United States' ".us" Internet domain allowing only Web sites
deemed appropriate for children 12 years old and younger.
Web sites bearing a ".kids.us" address would have to certify that they do
not contain sexually explicit material, hate speech, violence or other
material not suitable for minors.
"The wild West of the World Wide Web will get tamed somewhat," said bill
sponsor Rep. John Shimkus, an Illinois Republican, at a press conference.
In the Senate, North Dakota Democrat Byron Dorgan said he will introduce
similar legislation later in the day with Nevada Republican John Ensign.
Unlike previous attempts to screen out online smut, the bill would regulate
content only on a corner of the Internet that falls directly under U.S.
government control. Better known domains such as ".com" and ".net," as well
as the rest of the ".us" domain, would not be subject to restrictions.
"If you're in Tennessee, Taiwan or Timbuktu, you can publish or speak any
content you want on the Internet," said co-sponsor Rep. Ed Markey, a
Massachusetts Democrat, in remarks on the House floor.
The bill represents the latest attempt to keep children away from the
sexually explicit material easily available to anyone with a computer and
an Internet connection.
The Supreme Court had thrown out an early attempt, the 1996 Communications
Decency Act, as an infringement on free speech. A second, the 1998 Child
Online Protection Act, remains sidelined by a court injunction.
More recently, lawmakers had hoped the international body that controls
domain-name policy would set up a ".kids" domain.
After the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers passed on
the idea in November 2000, Markey and Shimkus introduced a bill that would
force it to set up a ".kids" domain.
But they backed off from that plan last fall after witnesses told them it
would be difficult to dictate policy to ICANN, which is not under direct
U.S. government control.
The revised bill would place a ".kids" subdomain under the control of
NeuStar Inc., the Washington-based telecommunications company that won the
contract to manage the ".us" country-code domain last fall.
NeuStar would be expected to police the subdomain to ensure it remains free
of inappropriate content, and it would answer to the Commerce Department's
National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
Web sites in the domain would be prohibited from linking to sites outside
it, and they could not set up chat rooms, instant messaging or other
interactive services unless they could certify that they did not expose
children to pedophiles or pose other risks.
If privately held NeuStar were to lose money on the venture, it could give
control back to the Commerce Department, which would seek another operator.
House Moves to Protect Kids on Web
Citing the recent death of a Connecticut child who apparently fell victim
to a man she met online, the House voted overwhelmingly to establish a new
domain for kid-friendly Web sites and to expand wiretap authority to target
Internet predators.
The domain measure, approved on a 406-2 vote, would have the federal
government oversee a ".kids.us" domain on the Internet that would have only
material appropriate for children under 13. Web site operators'
participation would be voluntary. Parents could set computer software to
limit a child's access to only addresses ending in .kids.us.
Lawmakers cited the death of Christina Long, a sixth-grader from Danbury,
Conn., in urging passage of both bills. Police say she was strangled and
her body dumped in a ravine by a 25-year-old man she met in an Internet
chat room.
"Sometimes I think the World Wide Web should be renamed the World's Wicked
Web," said Rep. Fred Upton (news, bio, voting record), R-Mich.
Supporters of the domain bill, sponsored by Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., say
it should reduce the chance of accidental exposure to pornography and to
other Web sites considered harmful to children, and it would not provide
any access to interactive features, such as chat rooms.
Groups opposing the domain, including the American Civil Liberties Union,
have called the legislation a backdoor attempt at censorship.
Shimkus said parents need to be aware of what Web sites their children are
surfing.
"I have repeatedly said that libraries have children's book sections, why
can't the Internet have the same type of section devoted to children's
interests?" he said.
Sen. Byron Dorgan (news, bio, voting record), D-N.D., plans to introduce
a similar bill in the Senate, according to a spokesman.
The wiretap measure, approved 396-11, would allow investigators to seek
wiretaps for suspected sexual predators to help block physical meetings
between molesters and children they meet via the computer.
"The threat to our children is real," its chief sponsor, Rep. Nancy Johnson,
R-Conn., said.
Wiretaps could be authorized for people suspected of engaging in child
pornography, of trying to get children to perform sexual acts for money
or of traveling to or bringing children for sexual activity.
Rep. Robert Scott, D-Va., argued against expanding wiretap authority,
voicing concerns that even current limited use by law enforcement typically
results in overhearing innocent conversations.
"It ought to be necessary," he said of wiretapping authority. "It's not
enough for it to be helpful for law enforcement."
Rep. George Gekas, R-Pa., a former prosecutor, countered that safeguards
against potential abuse would be in place because a court would determine
whether any wiretap should proceed.
A similar wiretapping bill passed the House last year but died in the
Senate.
'Copy-Proof' CDs Cracked With 99-Cent Marker Pen
Technology buffs have cracked music publishing giant Sony Music's elaborate
disc copy-protection technology with a decidedly low-tech method:
scribbling around the rim of a disk with a felt-tip marker.
Internet newsgroups have been circulating news of the discovery for the
past week, and in typical newsgroup style, users have pilloried Sony for
deploying "hi-tech" copy protection that can be defeated by paying a visit
to a stationery store.
"I wonder what type of copy protection will come next?" one posting on
alt.music.prince read. "Maybe they'll ban markers."
Sony did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Major music labels, including Sony and Universal Music, have begun selling
the "copy-proof" discs as a means of tackling the rampant spread of music
piracy, which they claim is eating into sales.
The new technology aims to prevent consumers from copying, or "burning,"
music onto recordable CDs or onto their computer hard drives, which can
then be shared with other users over file-sharing Internet services such as
Kazaa or Morpheus MusicCity.
Monday, Reuters obtained an ordinary copy of Celine Dion's newest release
"A New Day Has Come," which comes embedded with Sony's "Key2Audio"
technology.
After an initial attempt to play the disc on a PC resulted in failure, the
edge of the shiny side of the disc was blackened out with a felt tip
marker. The second attempt with the marked-up CD played and copied to the
hard drive without a hitch.
Internet postings claim that tape or even a sticky note can also be used to
cover the security track, typically located on the outer rim of the disc.
And there are suggestions that copy protection schemes used by other music
labels can also be circumvented in a similar way.
Sony's proprietary technology, deployed on many recent releases, works by
adding a track to the copy-protected disc that contains bogus data.
Because computer hard drives are programmed to read data files first, the
computer will continuously try to play the bogus track first. It never gets
to play the music tracks located elsewhere on the compact
disc.
The effect is that the copy-protected disc will play on standard CD players
but not on computer CD-ROM drives, some portable devices and even some car
stereo systems.
Some Apple Macintosh users have reported that playing the disc in the
computer's CD drive causes the computer to crash. The cover of the
copy-protected discs contain a warning that the album will not play on
Macintoshes or other personal computers.
Apple has since posted a warning on its Web site at:
http://kbase.info.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/kbase.woa/wa/query?search
oode=Assisted&type=id&val=KC.106882.
Sony Music Europe has taken the most aggressive anti-piracy stance in the
business. Since last fall, the label has shipped more than 11 million
copy-protected discs in Europe, with the largest proportion going to
Germany, a market label executives claim is rife with illegal CD-burning.
Kazaa, Morpheus Legal Case Collapsing
A legal fight that has pitted file-swapping software companies Kazaa BV
and StreamCast Networks against big record labels and movie studios is
collapsing as the small companies run out of funds.
Netherlands-based Kazaa BV, which created the file-swapping technology
underlying Kazaa, Grokster and earlier versions of Morpheus, is conceding
defeat--although its founders already appear to have started another
near-identical company. Meanwhile, StreamCast is losing a high-powered
attorney with a winning track record against the music companies in court.
The disintegration of the companies' legal case will have little immediate
affect on the popular Kazaa and Morpheus file-trading networks themselves.
But it appears the second generation of high-profile peer-to-peer
companies may be going the way of Napster, crushed by litigation too
expensive for start-ups to fight.
"The case is in jeopardy of collapsing simply from the financial attrition
of the defendants before a decision on the merits can be reached,"
StreamCast's attorneys wrote in a legal brief filed with the court Friday.
"If that happens, it would be an unfortunate procedural triumph of a band
of enormously powerful and wealthy companies, arising purely from their
power and entirely unrelated to the substantive issues in the case."
The StreamCast and Kazaa BV case was viewed by some in the legal community
as the best hope for vindicating basic peer-to-peer technology as legal in
the wake of Napster's court losses. The technology created by Kazaa BV
functions differently from Napster's original file-swapping directory
service, giving the companies involved no direct role in the file-trading
process, supporters said.
Indeed, a Dutch appeals court recently ruled that Kazaa BV was not
responsible for copyright infringement by people using its technology, the
first such ruling anywhere in the world.
The record companies have contested this view of the technology and law,
however. The differences between Kazaa BV's and Napster's technologies are
slight, and the file-swapping companies are still responsible for the
widespread copyright violations committed by people using their
technology, the record labels and movie studios say.
The entertainment giants have brought the full weight of their legal
operations to bear on the small file-swapping companies, stretching the
resources of the start-ups to a breaking point. Moreover, squabbling
between StreamCast and Kazaa BV has badly weakened the defendants' case.
StreamCast attorney Andrew Bridges, a partner with high-profile Palo Alto,
Calif., law firm Wilson Soncini Goodrich & Rosati, said Wednesday that he
is withdrawing from the case and that StreamCast is seeking new counsel.
Bridges was one of the lead attorneys who successfully defended Diamond
Multimedia against claims by the Recording Industry Association of America
(news - web sites) (RIAA) that the original Rio MP3 player violated
copyright law.
"I've been informed by my client that they cannot sustain the burn rate
for legal fees," Bridges said.
In its own court filing Friday, Kazaa BV said it could not afford to
continue the case and that it would accept a default judgment. That could
put the two-person company on the hook for damages in the millions or tens
of millions of dollars, forcing it out of business altogether.
"Simply put, plaintiffs have run Kazaa out of business," Kazaa BV's
attorneys said in their court filing. "Accordingly, Kazaa has asked
plaintiffs for their terms of surrender."
An attorney for Grokster, the third file-swapping company in the Kazaa BV
lawsuit, could not be reached for comment.
Kazaa BV sold the actual Kazaa file-swapping software to a Vanuatu-based
company called Sharman Networks in February. It maintained control of the
underlying peer-to-peer technology, called FastTrack.
Despite their court filing, Kazaa BV's founders already appear to be
licensing the FastTrack technology though another company. According to
documents filed with federal regulators in the United States, a company
called Blastoise--owned and operated by the Kazaa BV founders--has already
licensed the FastTrack technology to a Los Angeles company named Brilliant
Digital Entertainment.
According to those documents filed April 1, Blastoise--operating under the
name Joltid--licensed the FastTrack technology to a Brilliant Digital
subsidiary called Altnet, whose software contains the core of a new
peer-to-peer network. Blastoise also took a 49 percent stake in Altnet,
according to the filing.
Sharman, which now provides the actual Kazaa file-swapping software, also
plans to continue using the FastTrack technology. A Sharman representative
said the company had been assured that the license to the technology would
continue even if the Kazaa BV company goes under. Sharman, which has seen
tens of millions of people download the Kazaa software since the company
acquired it in February, has not yet been sued.
Executives from the RIAA said that Kazaa, Sharman and the other parties
were simply trying to evade judgment by shifting corporate assets between
different companies.
"They're playing an international shell game, trying to make a mockery of
the judicial process," said Matt Oppenheim, senior vice president for the
RIAA.
A trial date is scheduled for October 1, although the current round of
difficulties could change that.
Sharman released its own new version of the Kazaa file-swapping software
Wednesday. It includes the first portions of the Altnet network, which
will sprinkle paid search results into ordinary Kazaa searches, as well as
a few new security features.
=~=~=~=
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