<p> <div style="clear:both;"> <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-10415251-52.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20" target="_blank">Charting a course from virtual reality to the White House</a><BR><i>[ Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:00:00 PST ]</i><BR>President Obama's deputy CTO was a leading legal expert on virtual

worlds and tech patent issues before joining the administration.
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Microsoft's server chief talks cloud (Q&A)[ Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:00:00 PST ]Division president Bob Muglia talks about the future of Windows Server and Windows Azure and defends against claims Microsoft has no future in the consumer space.

New tech ventures vie to be Web's next big thing[ Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:27:40 EST ]With more than 2,000 Internet movers and shakers gathering, the LeWeb conference in Paris is an ideal spot for new start-up ventures to ply their wares hoping to attract the investment and attention that will propel them to Twitter of Facebook-style success.

Social media brings bullying to light[ Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:41:40 EST ]Her choppy blue-and-blond hair hiding the fear in her eyes, a 15-year-old voiced her dislike for a hip-hop music group and got punched in the face by a classmate. The whole thing was caught on tape and social media helped police in their investigation.

Can shipping go green?[ Fri, 11 Dec 2009 07:16:55 EST ]In a city where one can hardly see the horizon because of an almost constant cloud of filth and pollution, many Hong Kong residents have long given up on the idea of a clean, green life.

First audiences rave about 3D epic 'Avatar'[ Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:13:51 EST ]James Cameron's feverishly-awaited sci-fi blockbuster "Avatar" has enjoyed its world premiere to strong reviews.

Artificial retina gives blind woman limited vision[ Fri, 11 Dec 2009 04:04:34 EST ]As a thick, gray haze began to descend over the words in her schoolbooks, and eventually the faces of loved ones, Barbara Campbell barely grasped that she was going blind.

Are tech firms afraid of the Middle East?[ Fri, 11 Dec 2009 09:28:18 EST ]The Middle East represents a vast, largely untapped market for Internet businesses, according to industry experts. So what's holding everyone back?

Cyber crime threatens e-commerce[ Sun, 13 Dec 2009 22:25:07 EST ]The past 12 months have been a banner year for cyber crime. And that could be bad news for the future of e-commerce.

Supreme Court takes on messaging case[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:40:36 EST ]When a police officer used his city-issued pager to exchange personal messages, did he have a right to expect privacy?

Koalas dying from AIDS, habitat loss[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:23:13 EST ]On the operating table lies a sick koala. He's just been brought in by a driver who found the animal sitting in the middle of a busy road. Veterinarian Claude Lacasse determines the koala has not been hit by a car but she immediately detects one serious problem facing many of the marsupials: Chlamydia, a disease which can lead to a very slow and painful death for koalas living in the wild.

NASA launches telescope to scan sky[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:28:15 EST ]NASA has launched a new telescope into space to scan the cosmos for undiscovered objects, including asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth.

Hubble spots ‘space jellyfish,’ cosmic blobs[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:20:58 GMT ]An odd array of 30 newly released images from the Hubble Space Telescope reveal planetary systems in the making.

Bacteria survive millennia nibbling on salad[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:35:00 GMT ]Imagine you were trapped in a room for weeks with nothing to eat but a single leaf of lettuce. For microscopic bacteria holed up in ancient buried salt flats in California's Death Valley, that's life.

Amazon Kindle for iPhone goes international[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:34:08 GMT ]Amazon on Monday announced that the iPhone companion app for its Kindle e-book reader is now available in more than 60 additional countries.

Clever octopus builds a mobile home[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:09:24 GMT ]An octopus that uses coconut shells as portable armor is the latest addition to a growing list of animals that use tools.

Sticky science: Why some bats sleep head-up[ Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:19:58 GMT ]A tiny bat that hangs out in Madagascar is an odd sleeper: Unlike other bats that hang upside-down, this one roosts head-up, and now scientists know why.

Super-Earths found around sunlike stars[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:27:30 GMT ]Four newfound planets orbiting two nearby stars add weight to the promise of detecting habitable worlds within the next few years, researchers said today.

Picking a photo printer that's right for you[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:33:38 GMT ]If you're thinking about printing more photos this holiday, and need a new printer, there are three main varieties of printers to consider when you go shopping.

The death of weddings, as seen on YouTube[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:02:49 GMT ]Sure, viral wedding videos and tweeting at the altar may seem a harmless fad, like getting married in the Sea World shark tank … until you see where it’s leading to: "Superman II" reenactments!

Cosmic Log: 50 years of science sagas[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:43:05 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: How would you summarize 50 years of scientific discoveries? And what breakthroughs do you hope for in the next 50 years?

Digital zombies? Virtual world trumps physical[ Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:03:59 GMT ]Study shows we spend more hours staring at screens than doing anything else. But are we losing something profoundly human in all those texts, tweets and chats?

Microsoft investigating charges it stole rival's code[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:29:00 PST ]Company issues statement saying it's looking further into allegations that it used a rival's code and design for a microblogging service in China.

Best Buy, Samsung, others named in GPL suit[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:46:00 PST ]Case filed Monday in New York by the Software Freedom Law Center alleges 14 electronics retailers sold products containing BusyBox software in violation of license.

Blippy launches the Twitter of personal finance[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:04:00 PST ]There's more to this service than sharing spending data with friends, thank goodness.

Adobe investigating Reader, Acrobat exploit reports [ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:45:00 PST ]Adobe partners warn the company of an exploit in the wild targeting a vulnerability in Reader and Acrobat 9.2.

High volume of Mac sales may account for iMac delay[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:15:00 PST ]While the speculation is that graphics issues have forced Apple to delay shipments of its 27-inch iMacs, new data from NPD suggests high sales volumes could be to blame.

Does Twitter mean business with 'Contributors' test?[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:50:00 PST ]Twitter is launching a small test of a new business-oriented feature called "Contributors." Might this signal the impending launch of Twitter business accounts?

MySpace eyes Flixster for acquisition[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:06:01 PST ]After snapping up music start-ups Imeem and iLike, MySpace has apparently turned its attentions toward Flixster, a popular social-networking site for movies.

New technology makes for more accurate guns[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:32:00 PST ]A new device called Opti-sight, developed by a professor at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, will supposedly help your aim be more deadly.

Microsoft pulls China blog site amid code-theft charges[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:14:00 PST ]The software maker says it is still investigating allegations that MSN China's Juku microblogging site improperly uses code from a rival service.

Inside the Google phone: A 'snappy' chip[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:11:00 PST ]The Google phone will be the first non-Windows smartphone to use the screamingly fast Qualcomm Snapdragon.

NYT: U.S., Russia open talks on cyberwar limits[ Sun, 13 Dec 2009 02:55:54 GMT ]NYT: The United States has begun talks with Russia and a United Nations arms control committee about strengthening Internet security and limiting military use of cyberspace.

The decade in personal technology[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:33:38 GMT ]We cuddled up with our home DVRs, went out with our iPods, smartphones and wireless laptops and “friended” each other on Facebook.

Court reviews employer access to worker texts[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:47:18 GMT ]The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it will decide how much privacy workers have when they send text messages from company accounts.

DNA shows pandas may lack meat taste buds[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:10:41 GMT ]Genome mapping showing that pandas may prefer a bamboo-based diet because they can't taste meat could unlock secrets to ensuring the survival of the endangered species.

NASA launches sky-mapping telescope[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:14:06 GMT ]NASA on Monday launched a space telescope designed to scan the sky in search of never-before-seen asteroids, comets, stars and galaxies.

Hubble spots ‘space jellyfish,’ cosmic blobs[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:20:58 GMT ]An odd array of 30 newly released images from the Hubble Space Telescope reveal planetary systems in the making.

Clever octopus builds a mobile home[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:09:24 GMT ]An octopus that uses coconut shells as portable armor is the latest addition to a growing list of animals that use tools.

Super-Earths found around sunlike stars[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:27:30 GMT ]Four newfound planets orbiting two nearby stars add weight to the promise of detecting habitable worlds within the next few years, researchers said today.

Picking a photo printer that's right for you[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:33:38 GMT ]If you're thinking about printing more photos this holiday, and need a new printer, there are three main varieties of printers to consider when you go shopping.

The death of weddings, as seen on YouTube[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:02:49 GMT ]Sure, viral wedding videos and tweeting at the altar may seem a harmless fad, like getting married in the Sea World shark tank … until you see where it’s leading to: "Superman II" reenactments!

DOE's Chu kicks off green-tech transfer fund[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:53:00 PST ]As part of climate negotiations in Copenhagen, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announces program to accelerate use of solar-powered LED lighting in poor countries.

Priceline shrinks from marketing scandal[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:34:00 PST ]Travel site has ended relationship with Affinion, one of the marketing firms accused of misleading consumers into signing up for monthly fees.

Oracle pledges to play well with MySQL[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:41:53 PST ]Following talks with European regulators regarding its planned Sun takeover, Oracle makes 10 commitments to help keep MySQL a competitive database product.

Microsoft fixes Office 2003 bug with patch[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:52:00 PST ]The software maker has posted a software download that resolves an issue that was keeping users from being able to access some rights-managed files.

Vintage AOL: Adventures in Digital Age archaeology[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 09:40:00 PST ]What do you find when you haven't opened a drawer in almost a decade? Of course there's at least one "Try AOL free!" disc in there.

Facebook is the new Compuserve[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 09:56:55 PST ]Facebook is useful in its ability to help create conversations, but it's potentially dangerous in the stranglehold it maintains on those conversations, just like Compuserve of old.

Scam probe casts harsh light on Web retail[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:08:00 PST ]roundup The sheer number of online retailers accused of betraying customer trust has churned up an unprecedented scandal for the e-commerce sector.

For sale: Your robot clone[ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:43:00 PST ]Japan's Kokoro is offering absurdly vain people the chance to order their own android clone for just $225,000 apiece. Only two bots available, so act now!