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Yahoo, eBay form Web advertising alliance — NEW YORK (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc. (NasdaqNM:YHOO - News) and Web auctioneer eBay (NasdaqNM:EBAY - News) on Thursday announced a partnership designed to boost their position against Microsoft Corp. (NasdaqNM:MSFT - News) and Web search leader Google Inc. …
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Yahoo, EBay Announce Web Partnership — Yahoo and eBay, two giants of Internet commerce, announced a "strategic alliance" today clearly aimed at rivals Google and Microsoft in the ongoing war for billions of dollars in market share on the Worldwide Web. — The companies, in a joint statement …

Yahoo!, eBay in Search, Ad Pact — Yahoo! (YHOO:Nasdaq - commentary - research - Cramer's Take) and eBay (EBAY:Nasdaq - commentary - research - Cramer's Take) cut an alliance Thursday to fight the growing threat posed by Google (GOOG:Nasdaq - commentary - research - Cramer's Take).

Microsoft shows off JPEG rival — SEATTLE—If it is up to Microsoft, the omnipresent JPEG image format will be replaced by Windows Media Photo. — The software maker detailed the new image format Wednesday at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference here.
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InsideMicrosoft, Alec Saunders .LOG, Digital Inspiration, M-Dollar, Thomas Hawk's Digital … and JD on EP
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Windows Media Photo Specification — Windows Media Photo is a new file format for continuous-tone still images that surpasses the limitations of existing image formats. Windows Media Photo supports a wide range of features including: — Multiple color formats for display or print

SmackBook Pro … I usually keep two 20" screens side by side on my desk, so I can code on one and test on the other. I find I can work much faster if I can just make a change in Eclipse, and by the time I turn my head to the other screen, the tests have already run.

The Rise of Crowdsourcing … 1. The Professional — Claudia Menashe needed pictures of sick people. A project director at the National Health Museum in Washington, DC, Menashe was putting together a series of interactive kiosks devoted to potential pandemics like the avian flu.
Discussion:
Smalltalk Tidbits …

MPAA accused of hiring a hacker — The Motion Picture Association of America hired a hacker to steal information from a company that the MPAA has accused of helping copyright violators, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday. — The lawsuit (click for PDF), filed in U.S. District Court …

Google to shut down Orkut communities — RIO DE JANEIRO — Google (GOOG) said Wednesday that it has agreed to shut down some communities on its popular Orkut social networking site because the Brazilian government says they advocate violence and human rights violations.

Microsoft lays plans for 'Vistagami' tablets — With the first Origami devices out the door, Microsoft is setting its sights on the next generation of tiny tablet PCs—products known within the company as "Vistagami" devices. — The new minitablets are likely to resemble the first of the ultramobile PCs …

The death of Wikipedia — Wikipedia, the encyclopedia that "anyone can edit," was a nice experiment in the "democratization" of publishing, but it didn't quite work out. Wikipedia is dead. It died the way the pure products of idealism always do, slowly and quietly and largely in secret, through the corrosive process of compromise.

Early Testers Hit Vista Beta 2 Snags — The first testers managing to download Windows Vista 2 bits are reporting in. They say it's not all smooth sailing, and are encountering everything from driver and app compatibility problems, to red-hot laptops. — SEATTLE - A day after Microsoft …

Dell plans to open first store in Dallas — Dell will open its first store this summer, in Dallas, an experiment that could be a turning point in the history of the Round Rock-based computer maker. — The store, at NorthPark Center, will not carry inventory, Dell spokesman Venancio Figueroa said.

Mozilla CEO: Why we're still shunned by corporate IT — Mozilla, maker of the open-source Firefox Web browser and Thunderbird e-mail client, says a reliance on proprietary technologies is still an obstacle for IT directors looking to deploy open source in the enterprise.
Discussion:
Open Sources