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San Francisco - When Microsoft stopped selling new licenses to Windows XP on June 30, it gave users and PC makers a "downgrade" loophole so that those who wanted XP could still get it, even though they still had to buy a Vista license.

According to data from the exo.performance.network, 35 percent of Vista-equipped PCs have been downgraded to Windows XP. "That’s way out of proportion for even the dramatically unpopular Windows Vista," says Randall C. Kennedy, an InfoWorld contributing editor, whose company Devil Mountain Software developed the Windows Sentinel tool and analyzes the exo.performance.network data. (More than 3,000 PCs are monitored worldwide using the tool, in both the free InfoWorld Windows Sentinel version and in the more extensive version provided to Devil Mountain clients.)

Read more @ Yahoo! news

BERLIN (AFP) - T-Mobile said Monday it plans to launch a mobile phone powered by Google’s Android software, making it the first operator to do so and posing a direct threat to Apple’s popular iPhone.

A spokesman for Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile’s German parent, declined to comment on the launch date for the device which is made by mobile phone maker HTC.

According to a report in the New York Times, the phone will hit the stores in the United States before Christmas, perhaps as early as October.

The new device will have a touch screen like the iPhone and other smartphones that use software from firms like Palm, Microsoft and Nokia to allow users to access the Internet.

Read more @ Yahoo! news

PARIS (Reuters) - A European court has asked Britain to delay sending a computer expert to face trial in the United States until it can review his request to block his extradition.

The European Court of Human Rights said on Wednesday it needed to examine Gary McKinnon’s complaint that he could face inhumane prison conditions if convicted in the United States.

"The applicant should not be extradited to the United States before midnight on 29 August," so the court can examine his request at its next meeting on August 28, it said in a statement.

McKinnon lost his appeal last month to Britain’s highest court to block extradition to face charges over what U.S. prosecutors call "the biggest military hack of all time."

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What’s your next step if your company’s high-definition DVD format lost the war? If you’re Toshiba, you come out with a new DVD player that converts to high-def.

Toshiba America announced Monday its XD-E500 player with XDE technology — that is, "eXtended Detail Enhancement." The company said the E500 is "more than just DVD up-conversion." It provides conversion from 480i/p to 720p, 1080i or 1080p, as well as selectable picture-enhancement modes so that a user can get more details, more colors, and better contrast. (720p, progressive, and 1080i, interlaced, are HD video modes.)

‘A Whole New Way’

Louis Masses, director of product planning at Toshiba, said XDE lets consumers "experience their existing DVD library and the tens of thousands of DVD titles in a whole new way" as part of a "high-quality experience at an affordable price" of $149.99. The XD-E500 does not play HD DVD or Blu-Ray high-definition discs, and the converted difference is best seen on a HDTV or monitor.

Read more @ Yahoo! news

If there is too much of Google in Google’s search results for your taste, you could always try Google Minus Google.

Let me explain.

Last week, I wrote about renewed concerns among some media companies that Google was stepping on their turf. Those concerns surfaced anew following Google’s roll out of Knol, a Wikipedia-like content site, in which experts contribute articles on various topics. Some of Knol’s pages ranked surprisingly high in Google’s search results.

Beyond the “Is Google a Media Company?” headline, the story explored other questions raised by some media types. Most pointedly, some asked what would happen when Google-owned sites like Knol, YouTube and Blogger account for an increasingly large number of the top search results. The answer: Google’s professed friendship with media companies — and perhaps the very objectivity of its search engine — could be called into question. Incidentally, others raised the question as well.

Read more @ nytimes.com

David Katz is heading into a Web site battle against Internet sports powerhouses like the ones run by ESPN, Yahoo, Fox Sports, Major League Baseball and AOL.

At least he knows the enemy.

By the time Mr. Katz left Yahoo at the end of 2006 as the head of sports, entertainment and studios, he had guided its sports site into a rivalry with espn.com that still has them trading the monthly lead in unique visitors in their category.

Mr. Katz, 36, believes that his Web site, sportsfanlive.com, which will be formally released this week, will find a substantial following with his versions of customized content, social networking and fantasy games. He believes his competitors have grown overly stodgy and too congested for fans to wade through.

Read more @ nytimes.com

Last week, we told you that Taiwan-based HTC, one of the largest mobile device makers in the world, was readying the first smart phone to use Google’s Android operating system.

Well, on Monday the Federal Communications Commission approved the device for use in the United States.

The F.C.C. posted certification documentation on its Web site. The documents confirm is the name of the new phone: Dream. Most important, though: with the smartphone’s certification behind it, it is possible for T-Mobile, the nation’s No. 4 wireless carrier, to go ahead with plans to debut the phone next month and begin selling it ahead of the Christmas shopping season.

The new phone is an important step in Google’s plans to expand the company’s presence beyond the personal computer and into the mobile universe. Google executives have been vocal about how the mobile Web is key to the company’s plans for growth, as well as expanding the market for its products to a global audience.

Read more @ nytimes.com