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Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 08 Issue 31
Volume 8, Issue 31 Atari Online News, Etc. August 4, 2006
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2006
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:
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=~=~=~=
A-ONE #0831 08/04/06
~ Kazaa Pays, Goes Legit ~ People Are Talking! ~ Students Get Warning!
~ Microsoft Avoids Fine? ~ Women Bloggers Gather! ~ History Without Books
~ AOL Goes Partial Free! ~ MacBook Battery Recall ~ Wi-Fi Hacker Bait!
~ AOL Reducing Workforce ~ Hackers To Test Vista! ~ Social Sites Ban?
-* Atari, 10 Yrs Ago This Week! *-
-* Windows Live Spaces Have Problems! *-
-* Atari Jaguar Goes to the Dogs, er, Dentist! *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
It may be cliche, but it's still the humidity, not the heat! And to add
insult to injury, having both extremes is much worse! That's the way it's
been here for three days. Temperatures nearing triple digits and humidity
above the unbearable mark meant heat indexes well into triple digits. I
continued to do my work outside, but I made sure my project involved being
in the shade, plenty of water, and most definitely took advantage of the
pool! I can't imagine what those people in New York City did without any
power for most of the day during the worst of this weather. In this area,
we set records for electricity use. I hope that you all managed to find
ways to beat this weather.
In this week's issue, you'll find a couple of interesting articles regarding
Atari. Would you believe that it's been 10 years since Atari - having
already been sold to JTS - was in turn sold to Hasbro Interactive for a
paltry $5 million. At least the Atari name was back in some semblance of
its former life, but fading fast. The other tidbit relates to something
interesting about the Atari Jaguar, but I'm not going to spoil it for you;
I'll let you read about it later in the issue!
Meanwhile, I'm going to plant myself in some air conditioned room and relax
from this recent heat wave. If you're lucky, you'll be reading this issue
under the same circumstances.
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 is messin' with us again here in the northeast. It's
been hot... damn hot. Now I'm not saying that we're the hottest
place in the world... or even in the country or the region... but
it's hot to us, and we DO have higher humidity to contend with than
some other places.
Maybe that's why posts on the UseNet have been sluggish. Nah, posts
have been sluggish because Atari hasn't made a computer in years,
and those of us who still frequent the various UseNet resources are
familiar with most of what's out there already.
So that leaves me in a quandary about this column. Should I continue
picking through the UseNet and hoping that there are enough posts
to make it interesting?
Should I interject my personal views on current events in every
installment? Yeah, I can just see some poor guy at the Department
of Homeland Security sitting down with a cup of coffee and an issue
of A-ONE to see what I've mentioned each week. <grin>
Believe it or not, I've got opinions on just about everything.
Politics, religion, economics, social mores... you name it, I've
got an opinion about it.
I guess that I could take on a different problem each week and
hammer at you with things like, "Who would Jesus torture?", "Which
Founding Father would have wanted to curtail the rights that all
the others wrote into the Constitution?", and "Why are the oil
companies making record profits and not building new refineries or
sharing the wealth with their stock holders?", or "Is it REALLY
just a coincidence that people who were in the best position to
know said that there were no WMDs... and there weren't?"
See? No matter what the subject, I can tick most people off with a
minimum of syllables. <grin>
Anyway... if you've got any ideas or opinions, please send them to
me via email... I promise I won't make fun of 'em. No, really. I
promise. <grin>
Well, let's get on with the news, hints, tips and info from the
UseNet, huh?
From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup
====================================
Bear with me for a few minutes here, folks. From what I can piece
together, Joakim H?gberg posted this about XaAES at some point:
"Nowadays it is absolutely fair to say that XaAES despite its alpha
status is a very stable and mature project, that definitely has
reached the original goal - to offer a free replacement for the AES
in MultiTOS. Many would say that it even leaves N.AES behind."
To which Martin Byttebier (I think) adds:
"I'm one of those who states XaAES leaves N.AES behind. I really
don't have any reason whatsoever to fall back to N.AES. And yes
despite it's alpha status it's rock solid (at least on my setup).
Sure there are still some issues which needs to be fixed but as far
I can tell these issues are minor and doesn't affect the good
working of XaAES (latest cvs version)."
Then, Edward Baiz... evidently... replies:
"I agree with Martin here. The one time I got XaAES to load, I was
impressed."
Odd Skancke asks Edward:
"You only got XaAES to load once?"
Edward replies:
"Yes, just once, but I really had not finished the setup. I just
wanted to see how I stood. I really was not trying to get it to
load. I was more interested in loading Mint 1.161. I paid the price
though. My fat tables got messed up. Luckily I had backups."
Edward Baiz asks for help with SetMMU:
"I am having trouble running the SetMMU program (takes the place of
the Hades accessary program) and Mint. It seems if I try and run it
in the boot process, Mint reports that it cannot load my Mint.CNF
file. If I do not run it, then Mint loads fine. Has any other Hades
owner had this problem? I am thinking it is the position of the
program in the auto folder that is the culprit, so I am going to do
a little experimenting."
Odd Skancke tells Edward:
"You can NOT use both setmmu and the Hades ACC simultaneously. The
Hades ACC doesn't setup a good translation tree, and it modifies
the PMMU too late for MiNT. Also, you need to make sure you tell
setmmu how much ram you have in your Hades by chaining mmusetup.cnf.
Do you get this problem with 1.16.x versions found in xaaes alpha
packets on xaaes.atari.org? If so, read carefully the part about
<sysdir>, and use the name "1-16-cur" for the alpha versions
(because they're "current CVS" binaries)."
Joakim H?gberg now posts this about adjusting mouse sensitivity:
"[I] Just managed to get my Eiffel interface working, and am testing
a wireless keyboard/mouse. This seems to work pretty good, but
there are a couple of hiccups.
The main problem is that the mouse sensitivity is way too high, the
mouse pointer is moved across the screen very fast even with small
mouse movements. Does anybody know of a configuration program that
will allow me to reduce mouse sensitivity? Silkmouse looked
promising, but it would only allow me to *increase* the
sensitivity."
Jean-Francois Lemaire tells Joakim:
"You might check out CKBD 1.5. It seems pretty complete. Don't know
if it will slow the mouse down, though."
Joakim tells Jean-Francois:
"Thanks for the tip! It actually seems to be able to slow it down
too, although I have not figured out exactly how to fine tune
things. But now I am at least able to use the wireless mouse!"
Well folks, that's about it for this week. 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 - E3 To Get More "Intimate"?!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" The Dentist's Atari Jaguar!
'Hitman: Blood Money"!
10 Years Ago!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Video Game Trade Show E3 To Get More 'Intimate'
The Entertainment Software Association said on Monday it will downsize and
refocus its sprawling Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3Expo) video game
trade show, which attendees describe as "sensory overload."
The profitable show, the industry's largest, will evolve into a more
intimate event focused on targeted, personalized meetings and activities,
said ESA President Douglas Lowenstein.
"The world of interactive entertainment has changed since E3Expo was
created 12 years ago," Lowenstein said. "It is no longer necessary or
efficient to have a single industry 'mega-show."'
Game demonstrations will still be part of the down-sized show, which will
stay in Los Angeles, but no longer be held at the Los Angeles Convention
Center, he said.
The original intent of the E3Expo was to raise the profile of the industry
and to foster relationships between game makers and retailers. As the
industry has grown and matured, numerous niche trade shows have sprung up,
catering to different aspects of the now-mainstream entertainment product.
While final plans are still in the works, the ESA said the show will
continue its focus on press events and small meetings with media, retail,
development and other key sectors.
Hitman: Blood Money for PlayStation 2
'Hitman' is a series like no other. It is an action title, with guns and
drama and conflict, but what's kept it fresh is the extra measure of
realism: you find yourself in the shoes of a contract killer who is forced
to leave no trace of his work. In this newest 'Hitman' game, 'Blood Money,'
Agent 47 is back again, and a scarred man confined to a wheelchair tells
the story of how he finally killed the infamous cloned gun-for-hire. With
each cutscene, you are taken to the early 21st century, where the
storyteller is recalls the contracts which led Agent 47 to his apparent
doom.
You start at your first mission in an abandoned amusement park grounds.
Here, you will get a hands-on tutorial on what you can do and with what.
You have several methods of dispatching witnesses, threats, and targets at
your command, from sedatives to poisons to semiautomatic weapons. You can
use any weapon you want in any manner you want, but 'Blood Money' is not a
game built as a third person action shooter. You must use your wits for the
most part, and you must not allow people to become aware that you have come
in their midst to kill a target.
You will get the feeling that Agent 47 has been given a very realistic
tolerance for pain because this game wants you to rely on stealth more than
your ability to gun down everyone in your sight. Agent 47 is often given a
cover or dons outfits that blend him into the scene. Sometimes you can find
an outfit lying around, but more often than not, you will have to
incapacitate someone to take their clothing. You can also take any key
items they have. Killing people in the presence of witnesses starts a
domino effect where your tension meter rises and anyone who is able to stop
you will try their best. Once you blow your cover, everyone with a weapon
has the potential to kill you. If two or more people are shooting at you,
expect to be dead within a few seconds.
The main stealth element of 'Blood Money' lies in the tension meter, a
meter next to your health bar that gives you a hint as to how good your
cover is or how much attention you are getting. As the tension rises, it
changes from green to yellow to red. At the yellow level, you have some
chance to fix things before you're caught and killed. The challenge of
Blood Money is all in how efficiently you complete your job while
minimizing the attention you draw to yourself. Luckily, the AI is
inconsistent, and NPCs act as they should sometimes, while at other times,
they behave stupidly. That inconsistency allows you sometimes to escape
what should be 'game over.'
Although 'Blood Money' provides you with a varied selection of weapons,
most of them are too noisy or turn out to be useless in missions that
require stealth. Your fiber wire, the sniper rifle, and occasionally your
handgun are all that you need for even the toughest of missions. To add to
the conspicuousness you want to maintain, you can refit and upgrade all of
your weapons and buy accessories to add a silencer or buy items that allow
Agent 47 to stay alive just a while longer.
One problem with 'Blood Money' concerns the save-game mechanism. For
seemingly no reason, 'Hitman' requires that you free up about twice as much
memory card space as any other game, but it doesn't allow you the ability
to save your progress within a level, just after you make progress. There
doesn't seem to be any reason at all that so much memory should be set
aside.
Otherwise, the 'Hitman' series is an excellent concept that - in this
edition - not only manages to continue its good track record, but also
contributes new concepts to the genre. You'll have to play through the game
yourself to find out if more assassinations are on Agent 47's dance card.
Ratings (1-10):
Graphics: 8.5. Some collision detection fumbles mar a game based on stealth
and the element of surprise.
Sound: 9.0. This is a game that has to be played with the sound up high,
because your mission depends on what you hear and what non-playable
characters are saying.
Gameplay: 8.5. 'Hitman' is a unique stealth action title that allows you
many options for completing each level.
Story: 8.0. Two characters that recall the past tell Agent 47's story, a
method of storytelling that works well enough.
Replayability: 9.5: Each level begs to be replayed to work as efficiently
as possible and grab better headlines.
Overall: 8.5: Hitman is truly fun, challenging, and as difficult as you
want to make it.
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE Gaming Online - Online Users Growl & Purr!
"""""""""""""""""""
10 Years Ago, This Week!
1996: Atari merges with JTS Inc (a hard drive manufacturer) forming JTS
Corp. The interesting part happens two years later when JTS sells the
Atari name and assets to Hasbro for $5 million. Nobody who had, say, $5.5
million saw the incredible value here?
9 Out of 10 Dentists Recommend The Atari Jaguar
The Atari Jaguar still lives. In your mouth. Surrounded by whirring drills,
novacaine spurting needles and more microscopic organisms than people who
have ever lived.
The guys over at AtariAge discovered that Imagin Systems, a manufacturer of
dental imaging equipment, is, in fact, an old Jaguar, painted white and
with a camera attached. It's called 'The Hotrod'; apparently, Imagin
purchased the molds of the Jaguar and used it to make their $5000 dental
camera. It even has the expansion slot for the Jaguar's CD-Rom slot!
1UP enthuses: "We look forward to perhaps seeing other dead consoles - the
roomy Turbografx-16 case, maybe, or the classic Odyssey 2 - revived for
other technology applications." Might we recommend a PS3 as a CAT scan?
It's certainly the right size.
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
Microsoft Submits Documents In Bid To Avoid Fine
Microsoft Corp has submitted documents required by the European Commission
in an effort to avoid further fines for breaching an antitrust ruling, the
European Union regulator said on Monday.
The Commission said it was studying the files and that it was too early to
tell whether the world's largest software company would be subject to an
additional non-compliance penalty.
"We have received technical documents from Microsoft. Our people are
looking at it, including the trustee, and it's too early at this stage to
give any indication of whether there will be another payment, another
penalty, and if there is to be another penalty, how much it would be,"
Commission spokesman Michael Mann told a news briefing.
Microsoft said that it had made a final submission of 2,600 documents which
"further demonstrates our ongoing commitment to reaching full compliance
with the Commission's decision of March 2004."
"We are working with the trustee to ensure that all of this documentation
meets his requirements and to respond promptly and fully to any further
requests for information," the statement said.
Earlier this month, EU regulators fined the company 280.5 million euros
($356 million) for defying a 2004 antitrust ruling that required it to
share key information on its office servers with rivals. They warned the
company to comply or face bigger daily fines from next month.
The information is needed so that rivals' servers can compete on a level
playing field with Microsoft's own. Microsoft must help its rivals
interconnect smoothly with its Windows operating system for personal
computers.
Part of the decision was based on an evaluation by an independent
monitoring trustee, British Professor Neil Barrett, who was nominated by
the U.S. software giant.
The non-compliance penalty imposed on July 12 was the first of its kind and
came on top of a record 497 million euro fine the Commission levied in its
landmark antitrust decision against Microsoft in March 2004.
That decision found that the company abused the dominance of its Windows
operating system to squeeze out competitors.
Microsoft faces a further fine of up to 3 million euros a day if it is
found to be still not in compliance with the ruling.
The move signaled the Commission's determination to force the software
company to obey its order. Microsoft had two years to comply.
Microsoft says it has made massive efforts to comply with the Commission's
ruling and had 300 people working to complete its package of
interoperability information.
The company, which has appealed against every ruling the Commission has
made against it, has said it will appeal against the non-compliance fine
as well.
Kazaa Settles Case, Goes Legit
File-sharing service Kazaa, a longtime thorn in the side of the recording
industry, has buried the hatchet with major record companies in an
out-of-court settlement in which Kazaa will pay in excess of $100 million
to settle the case.
Kazaa owner Sharman Networks will also introduce filtering technologies to
ensure that its users can no longer distribute pirated digital music files.
The settlement, announced today by the Recording Industry Association of
America (RIAA) and the international recording industry organization IFPI
affects Kazaa's operations worldwide and ends an ongoing legal case brought
by the labels against the service's operators in Australia and the United
States.
"Kazaa was an international engine of copyright theft which damaged the
whole music sector and hampered our industry's efforts to grow a legitimate
digital business," said John Kennedy, chairman and CEO of IFPI, in a
statement. "Kazaa will now be making a transition to a legal model and
converting a powerful distribution technology to legitimate use."
The agreement arrives a year after the U.S. Supreme Court, reversing lower
court rulings, said developers of Grokster and other peer-to-peer programs
could be held liable for unauthorized file sharing by their users - if the
technology companies were found to be encouraging customers to steal music
and movies.
Grokster settled its case with the record labels and motion picture studios
last November. At the same time, the Federal Court of Australia last year
found Sharman Networks guilty of authorizing widespread copyright
infringement.
Kazaa, which at one time boasted some 4 million users, was cited by the
IFPI as one of the world's most popular file-sharing networks for the
illegal trading of music and movies.
"This is the conclusion of a long legal process during which the U.S.
Supreme Court laid down guidelines for the operators of peer-to-peer
networks," Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler said. "The court
provided some clarity for how business is conducted online, and this is a
reflection of that."
The breadth of enforcement actions has had some effect on illegal
downloading, some analysts have reported, driving sales higher at legal
music services. But many are doubtful that piracy can be wiped out
completely by antipiracy initiatives. Some reports have suggested that
illegal downloads still are continuing at a relatively fast clip.
"There are just too many tools and ways to exchange files, and these guys
are smart enough to know how to use them," said Yankee Group analyst
Michael Goodman in a recent interview. "If e-mail is closed to them,
they'll go to instant-messaging clients. If that's blocked off, they'll
resort to usenets."
People seem to be sharing as much as they ever did, but are merely finding
new ways to swap, Goodman noted. Although it makes sense that those in the
industry would put up roadblocks to protect their property, it also is
reasonable to assume that some dedicated pirates simply will find ways to
go around those barriers, Goodman added.
Apple Initiates 15-inch MacBook Battery Recall
Apple Computer on Monday issued a battery recall for its 15-inch MacBook
Pro. Apple said the affected batteries do not pose a safety hazard and
users can continue to use them until the new ones arrive.
We recently discovered that some 15-inch MacBook Pro batteries supplied to
Apple do not meet our high standards for battery performance, said Apple's
statement announcing what it calls an exchange program.
According to Apple the affected batteries have model number A1175 and a
12-digit serial number that ends with U7SA, U7SB or U7SC. To view the model
and serial numbers located on the bottom of the battery, you must remove
the battery from the computer. The battery serial number is located above
the barcode.
More information on the exchange programand details on how to receive your
new battery is available from Apple's Web site.
Microsoft to Charge for Office 2007 Beta 2
Microsoft says that it will begin charging $1.50 for users to download a
copy of the Office 2007 beta 2.
"In just the past two months since its launch, more than 3 million people
have downloaded the 2007 Microsoft Office system beta 2," the company said
in a statement sent via e-mail.
"Given how dramatically the beta 2 downloads have exceeded our goals, we
have made the business decision to implement a cost-recovery measure for
downloading the beta."
Microsoft will begin charging users starting Wednesday, it said. The
company released beta 2 of Office 2007 in May.
Though users will be charged for downloads of the actual Office 2007 beta
2 software, Microsoft will continue to offer an online test drive of Office
2007 it launched In late June that users can access through a Web
browser.
Users can visit Microsoft's Web site to access the online test version of
Office 2007.
Microsoft plans to release Office 2007 to business customers before the end
of the year, and to consumers in early 2007.
Both of those releases have been delayed from their originally scheduled
ship dates.
Windows Live Spaces Launch Beset With Problems
Microsoft's highly anticipated upgrade of its MSN Spaces blogging and
social networking service has run into significant and unforeseen
performance problems.
Microsoft began rolling out the "next generation" version of the service,
dubbed Windows Live Spaces, on Tuesday night, but things got quite bumpy
along the way.
For more than 12 hours, pages loaded extremely slowly at best, and at worst
they didn't render properly at all, according to a message posted late
Wednesday by Microsoft on the official MSN Spaces blog.
"We know we disappointed a bunch of you with the issues we had in our
rollout last night," the message reads. "We planned long and hard for this
release and unfortunately it was one of those gotchas that only showed up
once we were in production."
Microsoft has been working hard to fix the problems and has solved some of
them, according to the posting. Still, in angry comments to the posting,
exasperated users continue to report a variety of design and performance
problems. A common request from them is for Microsoft to roll back the
upgrade until all the problems are taken care of.
MSN Spaces is one of the most successful online services launched by
Microsoft in recent years, and its popularity has been a great source of
pride for the company, which is otherwise fighting a losing battle against
Google in the search engine market.
About 40 million people have set up MSN Spaces blogs, and the network
receives about 120 million unique users per month, Karin Muskopf, an MSN
product manager, said in June.
The Windows Live Spaces upgrade gives the service an extended
social-networking functionality that is a clear attempt to provide features
made popular by MySpace. The upgrade is also designed to make it easier for
people to customize their blogs through support for Microsoft Gadgets.
These are lightweight applications that can extend the functionality of
larger desktop and Web-based applications.
Google Sets Up Open Source Service
Google has launched a beta site service for open source software, called
Google Code Project Hosting, available at http://code.google.com/hosting.
Announced late last week at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in
Portland, Oregon and sporting a tagline of "Release Early, Release Often,"
Google Code provides space for developers and users to exchange open source
software and collaboratively work on projects.
On its FAQ page, Google describes the service as a site for "external
developers interested in Google-related development. It's where we'll
publish free source code and lists of our API services." Although the
initial emphasis is on Google-related software, other kinds of open source
sharing are anticipated by that community.
The home page is typical stripped-down Google, shielding a database that
searches and stores registered users' software. The results page resembles
a basic Google search results page. Google has said its search software
will rank projects by activity and participants, and that dormant projects
will eventually be removed from its repository. Tools for browsing source
code, issue tracking and administering projects are available.
Any efforts to use the service for storing inappropriate materials - such
as MP3s or pilfered passwords - will be filtered and removed, the company
said.
Greg Stein, a technical lead at Google, has said that the company does not
intend to compete with such old-line open source exchanges as
SourceForge.net, run by VA Software, or Tigris.org. SourceForge alone said
it has more than 150,000 projects, while Google's Project Hosting has begun
with four.
For its part, SourceForge has said that it is in the midst of a major site
overhaul to improve searching and other features, and that Google's new
service only validates the open source community. Google Code and
SourceForge have said they are working to create a database of common
project code names, so as to avoid possible duplication and confusion.
Laura DiDio, an analyst with Yankee Group, said that this open source
service helps Google as well as users.
"Google's going after Microsoft at every turn," she said, noting that the
more Google promotes open source, the more it helps create alternatives to
the software giant from Redmond.
"For the open-source user," she said, "it has the potential to become very
useful," while becoming yet another Google project that "helps their halo"
of providing services to the community.
Google has been a strong supporter of open source software and attitude.
For example, it promotes the use of the Firefox browser, uses MySQL
in-house, and makes its APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) freely
available so that "mash-ups" - such as data overlaid onto Google Earth
maps-can be generated.
AOL E-mail Accounts, Software To Be Free
AOL just gave its customers more reasons to stop paying. In a strategy
shift likely to accelerate the decline in its core Internet access
business, AOL said Wednesday it would give away e-mail accounts and
software previously available only to customers who paid as much as $26 a
month.
AOL hopes to chase additional online advertising dollars instead.
Encouraged by such trends as its 40 percent jump in ad revenue in the
second quarter, AOL figures that by making services free, it can prevent
users from defecting to Yahoo Inc., Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp., which
have offered free, ad-supported e-mail for years.
Rob Enderle, an analyst with the Enderle Group, said the restructuring
brings Time Warner Inc.'s online unit in line with "this decade as opposed
to the last decade" and lets the company "hold on to the customers they had
left."
"Had they done nothing, by the end of the decade, they would have been
gone," Enderle said.
The move marks the end of an era for a company that grew rapidly in the
1990s by making it easy to connect online, giving millions of Americans
their first taste of e-mail, the Web and instant messaging through discs
that continually arrived unsolicited in mailboxes.
America Online, as it was then known, became the undisputed leader of
dial-up Internet access when many people still used that method to get
online. The greeting users got when signing on - "You've got mail!" -
became so ensconced in pop culture that it was the title of a movie. AOL's
shares flew so high in the Internet bubble that the company bought the Time
Warner media giant in 2000.
But many promises of synergy from that deal evaporated. The company's stock
plunged, key AOL executives left under pressure and now Time Warner
management is firmly in charge.
"This is the final goodbye to the days when AOL was the king of the
Internet," said Jeff Lanctot, general manager of aQuantive Inc.'s Avenue
A/Razorfish, an agency that places some ads on AOL sites. "They now know
they are the underdog."
The company expects to save more than $1 billion by the end of 2007 by
cutting marketing, network and overhead costs. That's also roughly the
amount AOL could lose annually if all 6.2 million of its subscribers with
broadband stop paying extra - generally $15 a month - for access to AOL's
content.
"Any guesses or speculation that this plan requires a `hit' to AOL earnings
is not right," said Jeff Bewkes, president and chief operating officer of
Time Warner.
However, AOL will continue losing dial-up subscribers, perhaps at a faster
rate as the company scales back its notoriously aggressive retention
efforts and no longer actively markets the service to obtain replacements.
"But we have to remember that we're changing the nature of this game,"
Jonathan Miller, AOL's chairman and chief executive, told The Associated
Press. "Before, when someone left us, that was not good for our company.
They probably went to one of our competitors."
Now they can stay with AOL for free and view its ads.
"They were leaving us over price," he said. "They weren't leaving us
because they were unhappy."
Lanctot said AOL could pull off the strategy shift given its "tremendous
potential" to tap video and other resources from other Time Warner units
as well as a sizable subscriber base - which, while dwindling, still makes
AOL the leading Internet access provider.
The strategy shift will mean layoffs in marketing and customer service,
but AOL would not say how many. Implementing these changes is expected to
cost $250 million to $350 million through 2007, about half for employee
severance.
AOL first moved away from its roots as a "walled garden" emphasizing
exclusive content in 2004, making most of its news, music videos and other
features available for free on its ad-supported sites.
Although the company tried to keep some customers paying by giving free
e-mail accounts only with less-desirable AIM.com addresses, many
subscribers defected to free offerings elsewhere. Miller said the latest
strategy shift aligns AOL with the industry "instead of us fighting a
trend."
While customers with broadband no longer will have to pay AOL anything, AOL
will still offer dial-up accounts at $26 a month for unlimited use. To
compete with cheaper dial-up services from companies like United Online
Inc., AOL is creating a new $10 monthly plan with unlimited access but
fewer features than the $26 plan.
Besides AOL.com e-mail, AOL is giving away its proprietary software for
accessing the once-premium offerings, as well as safety and security
features such as parental controls. Most features become free immediately,
though parental controls and services targeted at kids and teens won't be
free until early September.
Subscribers who dropped AOL within the past two years - about 6 million
households, some with multiple e-mail addresses - will be able to reclaim
their old AOL.com addresses simply by logging on with their old passwords.
Those who want to stop paying will have to call AOL.
John Goodman, 58, a longtime AOL user who works in public relations in
Crestwood, N.Y., was among those who, until Wednesday, paid $26 a month
primarily for e-mail.
"I stayed with it for years paying, knowing I was an idiot," he said. "I'm
very pleased they are making this move."
The changes were announced Wednesday as Time Warner reported a profit of
$1 billion for the second quarter. AOL, which saw a 2 percent drop in
revenue, accounts for one-fifth of Time Warner's revenue, and most of that
contribution comes from subscription sales.
So the bet here is that rising advertising income and cost savings can be
enough to replace the missing subscription revenue. AOL believes the trend
was already in effect anyway: While its ad sales rose 40 percent in the
second quarter, subscription revenue dropped 11 percent.
AOL considers its paying subscribers loyal, crediting them for 80 percent
of the pages viewed - and ad dollars generated - even though they make up
only 36 percent of the unique audience. But AOL would have risked losing
them - and the ad opportunities they represent - by making them keep
paying.
The company lost 976,000 U.S. subscribers in the past quarter alone. As of
June 30, AOL had 17.7 million subscribers, a 34 percent drop from its peak
in September 2002.
The number of unique U.S. visitors to AOL sites has remained steady, while
its three chief rivals all saw gains in June, according to
Nielsen/NetRatings. ComScore Media Metrix found that in June, pages viewed
at the main AOL sites - by subscribers and free users - dropped 26 percent,
while Yahoo increased 23 percent.
Nonetheless, AOL sees opportunities in emerging features like online video.
On Friday, AOL is revamping its video portal to give visitors one-stop
access to free and for-pay clips from around the Internet, including those
at rival sites like YouTube. The company hopes that by creating a
user-friendly experience, the market would grow for everyone, including
AOL.
AOL To Reduce Work Force Within Six Months
AOL will shed as much as a quarter of its global work force within six
months as the company seeks more than $1 billion in savings to offset its
decision to give more services away for free.
Some employees in Europe will still have jobs but with a different company
as AOL looks to sell its Internet access businesses there. But in general,
massive layoffs are expected as AOL stops actively marketing its dial-up
services in the United States and reduces its need for customer-support
centers.
AOL will no longer produce and distribute trial discs that often come
unsolicited in mailboxes and magazines. Employees who do those jobs will
likely get pink slips.
Nor will AOL get as many customer-service calls, because live support is
available only to paying subscribers, many of whom will cancel and accept
AOL's offer for free e-mail and software. AOL will likely shed jobs there,
too.
All told, the Time Warner Inc. unit formerly known as America Online
expects to drop as many as 5,000 employees from its payroll, out of a
global work force of 19,000.
Call it the human cost of AOL's bid to boost online advertising and prevent
an erosion of potential eyeballs to rivals like Yahoo Inc., Google Inc. and
Microsoft Corp.
"It sounds like the first shoe's falling," said David Hallerman, a senior
analyst with research company eMarketer Inc. "It's clear that's part of a
large savings that AOL is going to have to go through. The biggest cost in
any business is employees."
AOL currently employs about 5,000 in northern Virginia where the company
has its headquarters. About 3,500 are in Europe and another 4,000 elsewhere
in the United States, mainly in call centers in Oklahoma City, Ogden, Utah,
and Tucson, Ariz., as well as offices in New York and Silicon Valley.
The company did not say where the job cuts will take place, adding that
most of the individual employees likely will be notified in late September
or early October.
The changes are coming not only because AOL plans to stop aggressively
marketing its dial-up service, but also because it will end its practice
of charging high-speed Internet users for access to its content and
services, such as e-mail and parental control software.
Layoffs had been anticipated. In announcing AOL's strategy shift, Time
Warner said it expected to spend $250 million to $350 million through 2007
to implement the changes, about half of that for employee severance.
Time Warner and AOL executives also said they expected to save more than
$1 billion by the end of 2007 by cutting marketing, network and overhead
costs. The cuts were necessary to avoid major hits in AOL's profitability
as millions of AOL subscribers stop paying the company.
The strategy shift announced Wednesday marked AOL's latest efforts to stop
a long, steady decline in Internet subscribers as more Americans get
high-speed service through a cable or phone company. The changes have led
to other job cuts in recent years, including about 1,300 customer-service
positions announced in May.
If AOL's payroll were to drop by the full 5,000, that would amount to 6
percent of Time Warner's overall head count of roughly 87,000. Shares in
Time Warner dropped 2 cents to close at $16.65 on Thursday on the New York
Stock Exchange.
Students Warned About Networking Sites
Incoming college students are hearing the usual warnings this summer about
the dangers of everything from alcohol to credit card debt. But many are
also getting lectured on a new topic - the risks of Internet postings,
particularly on popular social networking sites such as Facebook.
From large public schools such as Western Kentucky to smaller private ones
like Birmingham-Southern and Smith, colleges around the country have
revamped their orientation talks to students and parents to include online
behavior. Others, Susquehanna University and Washington University in St.
Louis among them, have new role-playing skits on the topic that students
will watch and then break into smaller groups to discuss.
Facebook, geared toward college students and boasting 7.5 million
registered users, is a particular focus. But students are also hearing
stories about those who came to regret postings to other online venues,
from party photos on sites such as Webshots.com to comments about
professors in blogs.
"The particular focus is the public nature of this," said Tracy Tyree,
Susquehanna's dean of student life. "That seems to be what surprises
students most. They think of it as part of their own little world, not a
bigger electronic world."
The attention colleges are devoting to the topic is testimony both to the
exploding popularity of online networking on campus, and to the time and
energy administrators have spent dealing with the fallout when students
post things that become more public than they intended.
Northwestern temporarily suspended its women's soccer program last spring
after hazing photos surfaced online, while athletes at Elon University,
Catholic University, Wake Forest and the University of Iowa were also
disciplined or investigated. At least one school, Kent State in Ohio,
temporarily banned athletes from posting profiles on Facebook, and now
allows them to do so only with restricted access.
Non-athletes at numerous schools from North Carolina State to Northern
Kentucky have been busted for alcohol violations based on digital
photographs. Students at Penn State were punished for rushing the field at
a football game. A University of Oklahoma freshman's joke in Facebook about
assassinating President Bush prompted a visit from the Secret Service.
"I think they don't realize that others have" so much access, said Aaron
Laushway, associate dean of students at the University of Virginia, which
first incorporated the topic into orientation a year ago.
Many colleges tell students they won't actively patrol online profiles to
look for evidence of wrongdoing - but they are obliged to respond to
complaints (at Susquehanna, Tyree says, rival fraternities like to rat each
other out by pointing out photos involving alcohol to administrators).
The real concern, they are trying to persuade students, is the unintended
off-campus audience.
Unlike MySpace - a social site that many incoming freshman are already
familiar with - Facebook users generally need a ".edu" e-mail address and
can view complete profiles only of users at their colleges unless
identified as a "friend" by the profile's owner. So most students feel
confident they are addressing an audience of peers. Maybe they shouldn't
be so sure.
Police are increasingly monitoring the sites. And it's not hard for
prospective employers to get a ".edu" e-mail address from an alumnus or an
intern, and recruiters are increasingly trolling the Internet to scope out
prospective hires.
"They may be looking at these sites wondering if there's a personality fit
with their company culture," said Tim Luzader, director of Purdue's center
for career opportunities. A recent survey there found that a third of
employers recruiting there ran job applicants' names through search
engines, and 12 percent said they looked at social networking sites.
News reports of online stalkers warn there are potential personal safety
issues, too. Tara Redmon, who oversees the orientation program and
transition program at Western Kentucky, said one inspiration for adding
the topic this year was talking to a student who had put her dorm address
and room number on a posted profile, never considering the risk.
College administrators say they can't - and wouldn't want to - keep
students off sites such as Facebook. Many welcome the kind of
community-building the sites facilitate, and they recognize they have
become an important, and usually harmless, venue for the kind of identity
formation and presentation that's an important part of the college
experience.
The sites actually help with one of the major goals of orientation:
bonding. At Birmingham-Southern, dozens of members of the incoming class
of about 350 had already formed a Class of 2010 Facebook group long before
the start of school.
"That's great," said Renie Moss, the school's dean of students. "That's
what should be happening, forming that camaraderie. But we're hoping to
just maybe give the students a moment to pause and make sure they put out
something they can be proud of."
Wi-Fi Cards Expose Laptops to Hackers
Security researchers have sounded the alarm for wireless Internet users,
warning them that their laptop computers are vulnerable to attack by
hackers. The flaws could allow thieves to gain access to passwords, bank
accounts, and other private information even when the system is not
connected to the Internet.
According to David Maynor, senior researcher at network security firm,
SecureWorks, and fellow researcher Jon "Johnny Cache" Ellch, the problem
is with the software built into wireless-networking hardware that allows
it to communicate with a computer's operating system. A criminal exploiting
the flaw could send malicios code to an unprotected laptop and gain
complete control over it via its Wi-Fi card.
The two presented a video demonstration of how the vulnerability could be
exploited on a MacBook by taking advantage of software flaws specific to
Apple's OS X operating system, during the opening day of the Black Hat
security conference in Las Vega. But, they added, similar flaws exist in
Microsoft Windows and the Linux open-source operating system, as well, so
the majority of all computers, including desktops, are also susceptible.
"The problem itself isn't really an Apple problem," Maynor told the
Associated Press. "This is a systemic problem across the industry."
To launch an attack exploiting the Wi-Fi driver flaws, a hacker would need
to be within the range of a Wi-Fi signal - normally about 100 feet. That
distance, however, is subject to change as wireless technologies
significantly extend the reach of a WiFi signal. That could increase the
threat from hackers.
Maynor and Ellch refused to provide specific details or conduct a live
demonstration of their research for fear it would fall into criminal hands.
But, Maynor did say they were able to remotely identify the wireless driver
running on a specific computer and drop a "root kit," i.e., hacker
software, into the MacBook, which allowed them to create, read, and delete
files on the computer.
The test was conducted using third-party wireless hardware rather than the
original wireless equipment Apple ships with the laptop. The duo refused to
identify the make or model of the wireless device so as not to give
potential hackers a heads-up. But, Maynor said, the flaws are so common
that he would have little trouble finding a vulnerable computer at any
Internet caf.
According to Maynor, the main problem is that wireless cards are controlled
by a mix of several hardware and software developers. These developers are
often under a lot of pressure to quickly get their products to market, and
do not invest enough time in perfecting their software.
The pair decided to go ahead with the demonstration because of the danger
it presents to wireless users, particularly as a connection to the Internet
is not necessary for intruders to exploit the flaw. Wireless cards, unless
disabled, constantly broadcast their signal to any network in the vicinity
and most are configured to automatically connect to any available network.
So, any computer with an active wireless card is at risk.
"We want to educate developers and hardware makers about this threat before
it becomes a wide-scale issue," Maynor said. "We're not talking about
something that people don't know about, but a lot of people don't know the
severity."
Microsoft Invites Hackers To Test Vista
After suffering embarrassing security exploits over the past several years,
Microsoft Corp. is trying a new tactic: inviting some of the world's
best-known computer experts to try to poke holes in Vista, the next
generation of its Windows operating system.
Microsoft made a test version of Vista available to about 3,000 security
professionals Thursday as it detailed the steps it has taken to fortify the
product against attacks that can compromise bank account numbers and other
sensitive information.
"You need to touch it, feel it," Andrew Cushman, Microsoft's director of
security outreach, said during a talk at the Black Hat computer-security
conference. "We're here to show our work."
Microsoft has faced blistering criticism for security holes that have led
to network outages and business disruptions for its customers. After being
accused for not putting enough resources into shoring up its products, the
software maker is trying to convince outsiders that it has changed.
"They're going directly to the bear in the bear's lair," says Jon Callas,
the chief technology officer at PGP Corp., which makes encryption software
and other security products. "They are going to people who don't like them,
say nasty things and have the incentive to find the things that are wrong."
Due early next year, Vista is the first product to be designed from scratch
under a Microsoft program dubbed secure development life cycle, which
represents a sea change in the company's approach to bringing out new
products. Instead of placing the addition of compelling new features at the
top of engineers' priority list, Microsoft now requires them to first
consider how code might be misused.
A security team with oversight of every Microsoft product - from its Xbox
video game console to its Word program for creating documents - has broad
authority to block shipments until they pass security tests. The company
also hosts two internal conferences a year so some of the world's top
security experts can share the latest research on computer attacks.
Cushman said the presentations have already paid off. One talk, delivered
in March by a security expert named Johnny Long, detailed a new way to
identify security holes using Google. Shortly after the talk, a Microsoft
manager applied the technique and discovered a customer was at risk because
it hadn't properly set up a computer that was running SQL, a database
program that competes with business programs sold by Oracle Corp.
But internal conferences are one matter. Taking Vista to Black Hat, where
some of the world's foremost security gurus annually make sport of ripping
through programming code to find bugs, is another.
"The fact that they're releasing it here is probably a bold statement,"
said Mike Janosko, a security expert with Ernst & Young who has been
reviewing Vista for several months.
Women Bloggers Gather in Silicon Valley
Hundreds of women gathered in Silicon Valley on Friday for the second
annual BlogHer conference, which is offering sessions on building blogs,
driving traffic, and attracting advertisers; and keynote speeches from some
of the most successful women bloggers, such as Arianna Huffington, founder
of the Huffington Post.
The sold-out conference, which has attracted more than double the 300
attendees of last year's gathering, is being held in San Jose, Calif. The
theme is "How is your blog changing your world?"
The ad-supported BlogHer site boasts 20 topic categories, 60 contributing
editors and 4,100 bloggers. The mission of the site is to create
"opportunities for women bloggers to pursue exposure, education and
community." Co-founder and journalist Lisa Stone is the originator of the
site. Marketing executive Elisa Camahort and media strategist Jory Des
Jardins are the other founders.
In a recent study, the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that 8
percent of U.S. Internet users, or about 12 million adults, keep blogs. The
number is about evenly split between men and woman.
Bill to Ban Social Sites in Schools Moves to Senate
MySpace, Friendster, Facebook, Bebo and other social networking sites would
be banned from schools and libraries in the U.S., if a bill approved by the
U.S. House of Representatives becomes law.
Called the Deleting Online Predators Act or DOPA, the bill passed the House
last week in a overwhelming vote of 416-15. Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick
(R-PA), who introduced the legislation, has said that many social
networking sites are "hunting grounds" for child predators. The bill now
goes to the Senate within the next month, where it is expected to pass, and
then to President Bush for his expected signature.
DOPA would instruct the FCC to ban commercial sites with personal profiles,
personal journals and direct communication between users. Some estimates
indicate that the number of sites fitting this description could easily be
in the hundreds, possibly more.
Critics, such as the American Library Association (ALA), have noted that
DOPA lacks specific language indicating exactly which sites should be
banned, leaving it up to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to
create the definition. Some users of social networking sites, such as a
group at MySpace.com, have set up online petitition drives against the
measure.
The bill affects institutions that obtain Net access through the reduced
E-Rate plan sponsored by the federal government. This covers most public
schools and, according to the ALA, about two-thirds of public libraries in
the U.S.
If the bill becomes law, these institutions would have to set up filters
to block social networking sites that are prone to "unlawful sexual
advances." Children could be allowed to view these sites, but only under
adult supervision. Many schools in the U.S. and other countries, such as
the United Kingdom, already prohibit logging onto these sites from their
computers.
Jennifer Simpson, an analyst with Yankee Group, said that if this bill
becomes law, it could put a strain on schools and libraries, but probably
will not greatly affect the sites. "A lot of the communication with social
networking sites is already taking place at home," she said. "Access lost
in one area will move to another."
She also pointed out that the growing use of wireless communications on
mobile devices could soon neutralize the law's intent. "Access will become
more pervasive," she said, "with students connected anytime, any place."
"The onus will always be on the parents and guardians, explaining to kids
how the social network sites can be used in a safe manner," she said.
The FBI has reportedly estimated that 20% of all children in the U.S. using
the Internet have been sexually approached online, and that there are as
many as 50,000 sexual predators online looking for contacts with children.
Niche Competitors Crowd Into MySpace
Is MySpace losing its cool? Margaret Marks, 17, thinks so.
The Birmingham, Ala., high school senior was an avid user of the No. 1
social networking website for two years.
"But I never use it anymore, because most people my age now use Facebook,"
she says. "I can talk to people I haven't spoken to in years, and you can
join college networks and meet people. MySpace is good for looking at bands
and music, but for your own website, Facebook is much better."
As the social networking phenomenon continues to grow, competitors are
snapping at MySpace's heels - er, portal. Facebook, Xanga, Wayn, vMix and
others are salivating over MySpace's 95 million users and recent crowning
by tracking service Hitwise as the Internet's most visited domain,
surpassing longtime champ Yahoo Mail.
By some accounts, there are more than 200 sites, many aimed at niches.
Facebook focuses on high school and college students, while vMix chases the
camera-phone crowd with tools for elaborate video and slide shows. "The
12-34 demo wants to create and control their (media) experiences," says
vMix's Terry Ash. "They want to flirt, they want attention, and they want
to be noticed."
Like MySpace, these sites let people join for free and create their own
Web pages, complete with profiles, photos, blogs and messaging
capabilities. They also let you add friends to your site.
Social networking sites have not been without their problems, from sexual
predators to reports that cyber criminals may be targeting MySpace users.
To deter predators, the House late Monday overwhelmingly passed a bill that
would keep libraries and schools from allowing children to access social
networking sites, as well as chat rooms. It now goes to the Senate.
Social networking sites remain immensely appealing to the young - and
increasingly so to advertisers. This year, marketers will spend about $280
million to advertise on MySpace and its competitors, according to
eMarketer's latest forecasts. By 2010, that figure could grow to $1.8
billion.
Toppling MySpace could be an uphill battle. According to Hitwise, in the
week ending July 22, MySpace captured more than 81% of visits to online
social networking sites, or about 52 million unique visitors, while
Facebook was a distant No. 2 with 7.7%.
Bridget Savant, 19, a college student in San Diego, says she briefly
switched to Facebook but is back with MySpace. She says it's great for
checking out potential dates. "It's like full access to someone's room and
cellphone."
History Without Books Gets A Test in California Schools
School children fond of chanting "No more pencils, no more books" may
finally have their wish.
What began as a long-shot attempt last year by Pearson Plc to sell
California educators digital materials to teach social studies has become
reality in what could be the first large-scale step to eliminate books from
classrooms.
Pearson, the world's biggest publisher of educational materials, disclosed
on Monday with its half-year results that about half the state's
elementary school students will learn about the American Revolutionary War
and Thomas Jefferson using an interactive computer program.
The company also said its success in California, where about 1.5 million
students aged 5-11 will use the program in classrooms this year, has led
it to plan the same approach in additional states and with more subjects.
"Digital development costs us less and takes less time," Pearson Chief
Executive Marjorie Scardino said. "We're speeding up how we're rolling out
those kinds of programs."
London-based Pearson estimated it cost about half as much to develop as a
textbook with supplemental materials, and added that it had about a 41
percent market share.
"We're experimenting with the program and the price," Chief Financial
Officer Robin Freestone said, adding that Pearson gave California a
discount compared with a book-based proposal. "It's a major breakthrough,
though. We managed to launch something for schools that didn't need a
book."
The company said the California contract was valued at about $70 million,
leaving some analysts guarded in their optimism about Pearson finding
broader scale for digital curricula. While they saw some advantages for
Pearson, they also found little that was technologically dazzling in the
materials.
"All of their competitors are going to have to answer to this now," said
one media analyst, who asked not to be named because of bank rules
restricting public comments.
"Pearson have got the first-mover advantage, but I doubt there's any
technical advantage. It can probably be replicated fairly easily."
Pearson's 2005 sales derived from schools, its biggest division, were about
1.3 billion pounds ($2.43 billion).
The California social studies contract was a longshot for Pearson, which
had not even been planning to bid because of the strict guidelines the
state puts on submissions for the subject.
"We didn't think we could find a return," Scardino said.
Instead, it opted to cull existing materials into a digital offering that
included online homework assignments. It sent state officials a laptop
computer instead of a pile of books in April 2005, and won state approval
in November.
"Most schools have a big fat textbook on the table that doesn't really
entice students any more," Scardino said.
Pearson's multimedia product, created by its Scott Foresman unit, enables
teachers to tailor lessons to individual students, includes video clips
and is able to read aloud all of the lessons in English and Spanish.
"History and social science comes to life with exciting text, vibrant media
clips and activities," said Cheryl McConaughey, assistant superintendent at
the Lamont School District near Bakersfield, California, in a statement
supplied by Pearson. It was the first district to buy the materials.
"Our teachers are thrilled with virtually all aspects of the program."
Boomer's Social Web Site Comes With Death Alerts
A social networking Web site for Americans aged 50-plus went live on
Monday - complete with an online obituary database that sends out alerts
when someone you may know dies and that plans to set up a do-it-yourself
funeral service.
The founder of Internet job site Monster.com, Jeff Taylor, launched
Eons.com, a similar site to the popular online teen hang-outs MySpace or
Facebook for the
50-plus crowd.
Instead of career and school sections, Eons.com has interactive games to
build brain strength, news on entertainment and hobbies for older people,
a personalized longevity calculator and tips to live longer.
It also has a nationwide database of obituaries dating back to the 1930s to
which people can add photos and comments.
"The death business is growing," Taylor told Reuters, offering figures
showing the number of deaths in the United States rose to 2.4 million in
2005 from 2.2 million in 2000, and was projected to rise to 4.1 million by
2040.
In addition to adding photos and videos to obituaries, members of Eons.com
can sign up to receive an alert when someone from a particular area dies or
in response to pre-defined keywords such as a company or school name.
This is similar to e-mail services offered by various other Web sites that
alert people when a friend or colleague signs onto a certain site.
"Many people no longer live where they grew up so the idea of a rich story
about someone's life in a local newspaper is often lost," said Taylor, who
sees online obituaries replacing the traditional death announcements in
newspapers.
He said baby boomers, the 77 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964,
also wanted to have a greater input into their own funerals. This prompted
Eons.com to look into a service where people could plan for their favorite
songs to be played at their funeral and where friends and family can go
afterward for food and drink.
But Taylor, who quit Monster.com last year, said Eons.com's main focus was
not death but celebrating turning the Big 5-0 and living the grandest life
possible.
Taylor, who is only 45, said he saw the need for Eons.com, for about 44
million of the 86 million Americans aged over 50 are online, but only a few
use social networking sites.
This is also a wealthy group, controlling about 67 percent of the nation's
wealth - and with plenty of time ahead.
"We now live about 20 years longer than our grandparents," said Taylor.
"These are people who want to spend money to save time rather then spend
their time trying to save money."
=~=~=~=
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