Top Items:

Goodbye Pownce, Hello Six Apart — We have some very big news today at Pownce. We will be closing the service and Mike and I, along with the Pownce technology, have joined Six Apart, the company behind such great blogging software as Movable Type, TypePad and Vox.
RELATED:


Six Apart acquires and shuts down Pownce — Blogging company Six Apart has acquired micro-blogging startup Pownce for undisclosed financial terms. It looks like one of those acquisitions where the buyer was more interested in the people than the product — the Pownce service will shut down in two weeks.

Welcome Pownce team! — I am pleased to announce that today we are welcoming the Pownce team and technology to Six Apart. Pownce launched in June of 2007 and opened to the public earlier this year, but, as mentioned on the Pownce blog, Pownce.com will be closing in the next few weeks.

Bittorrent declares war on VoIP, gamers — The next internet meltdown — Gamers, VoIP and video conference users beware. The leading BitTorrent software authors have declared war on you - and any users wanting to wring high performance out of their networks.
RELATED:

You asked for it: instant cashback! — When we asked users about the improvements they'd like us make to Live Search cashback, many said they want to receive cashback instantly instead of waiting for 60 days. Well, I'm happy to announce that we've just released the Instant cashback feature with eBay.
Discussion:
PC World, Microsoft Pri0, Bruce Clay, Inc. Blog, LiveSide, Search Engine Land and TechFlash
RELATED:


Apple: Mac users should run multiple anti-virus — One of Apple's better Mac vs PC ads features a strong message that Windows computers are a magnet for viruses (malware) but Macs are automatically protected. As PC “ah-choos” his way through an infection, Mac offers a tissue and smugly infers …
RELATED:

Apple now “encourages” antivirus use for Mac OS X
Discussion:
CNET News


gOS Cloud - From zero to web browser in just a few seconds — gOS is a Linux distribution based on Ubuntu that's designed to make it easy to interface with web-based applications like Gmail, YouTube, and Meebo. It uses the slightly OS X-like Enlightenment desktop environment …
Discussion:
jkOnTheRun, Webware.com, SitePoint, LinuxWorld.com, SlashGear, Liliputing, LAPTOP Magazine and Electronista
RELATED:


Apple offers free licensing for Mini DisplayPort spec — When Apple recently introduced its revamped notebook line, it also introduced the world to the Mini DisplayPort. It turns out that the company is offering no-fee licenses to anyone interested in developing products that use the Mini DisplayPort specification.
RELATED:

High-quality unboxing photos of Apple's LED Cinema Display
Discussion:
CrunchGear


FCC Head Pushes Free Web Plan — Outgoing Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin is pushing for action in December on a plan to offer free, pornography-free wireless Internet service to all Americans, despite objections from the wireless industry and some consumer groups.


Amazon SimpleDB Grows Up — The private beta test of Amazon SimpleDB has gone really well. We've learned a lot during the beta and have fine-tuned the feature set in order to make sure that we are meeting the needs of current and future users. — Before I delve into the details, let me get one important fact out of the way.
Discussion:
PC World
RELATED:

Amazon's database service enters public testing
Discussion:
The Register

Blockbuster, Microsoft team up on mobile services — asmith@dallasnews.com — Blockbuster Inc. caught up to the competition last week by introducing a set-top box that brings rentals from the Internet to the television. — Now, the Dallas-based company hopes to pass the pack by teaming …
Discussion:
ReadWriteWeb, Microsoft Pri0, VentureBeat, Unwired View, Obsessable, BetaNews, Microsoft Subnet's blog, Beyond Binary and wmpoweruser.com


The Simpsons mocks (m)Apple — Few have been spared the satire of Matt Groening's long running animated sitcom. Last night, The Simpsons took on Apple, or uh, Mapple for a full 6 minutes of lampoonery — a pretty harsh ride at a two-joke per minute pace. It all starts when the Springfield mall gets …
Discussion:
TechFlash, VentureBeat, Global Nerdy, TECH.BLORGE.com, CNET News, The iPhone Blog, Gadget Lab and Mashable!
RELATED:


Mac Internet share hits record 8.87%; Windows drops below 90% — Apple's (AAPL) slice of the Internet pie grew measurably in November as both the Mac and the iPhone hit record numbers in a Net Applications Web survey issued overnight Monday and updated Monday morning.
Discussion:
Electronista, Computerworld, PC World, eWeek, Between the Lines, Maximum PC all, SitePoint, MacBlogz, Insanely Great Mac and Macsimum News


FCC leaks tiny VAIO with WWAN — Sony's first netbook? — They might not like it, but Sony looks ripe to enter the netbook market in the US. Unveiled today is the backside of this tiny “notebook PC” as described by the FCC under the model numbers PCG-1P1L and PCG-1P2L (PCG synonymous with Sony's VAIO laptop brand).
Discussion:
LAPTOP Magazine, Liliputing, SlashGear, Boy Genius Report, CrunchGear, jkOnTheRun, Sony Insider and Electronista

MySpace CEO cautiously optimistic on 2009 — NEW YORK (Reuters) - MySpace, the online social network owned by News Corp (NWSa.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), can grow advertising revenue in 2009, its chief executive said on Monday, even as the economic crisis erodes big media companies' bottom lines.


Reviving F—ed Company — Now that we can officially say we're in a recession, it makes sense that there's a resurgence of sites devoted to floundering companies. — We have to bleep out some names, but they include LayoffBlog.com, Screwdd F—edStartups, It Died, Timely Demise and web2.0f …

Apple a ‘bright spot’ during lackluster Black Friday kick-off — Although this year's holiday shopping season is expected to present challenges for many consumer-oriented hardware companies, Apple is already showing signs of bucking the trend with Black Friday Mac sales reported to be better than expected.
Discussion:
VentureBeat, Associated Press, CNET News, All Things Digital, NEWSFACTOR, Ars Technica, Alley Insider, Infinite Loop and Macsimum News

Legal challenge mounts against Baidu's online business model — Baidu, China's largest internet search engine, looks set to face a wave of legal challenges as a group of lawyers is organising a mass complaint against the company's business practices. — Led by Li Changqing …


Blockbuster OnDemand Unboxing & Setup — So much for a day of vacation recovery... UPS just arrived with the new Blockbuster OnDemand movie rental box, by 2Wire. If you recall, $99 gets you the box and 25 video rental credits. Once those have been consumed, content begins at $1.99 a pop.

Open Source: The Model Is Broken — The open-source business model that relies solely on support and service revenue streams is failing to meet the expectations of investors — For anyone who hasn't been paying attention to the software industry lately, I have some bad news.


This iPhone is “Touchier” Than Most — As wonderful as the iPhone is, it leaves out anyone visually impaired. This Silicon Touch iPhone case works in tandem with an app to allow special accessibility functions like text to speech and moon type tactile feedback.
Discussion:
Gizmodo, Unwired View, textually.org, SlashGear, Mobilewhack.com, CrunchGear, PMP Today and dailymobile.se

Nokia's touchiest week — We've arrived in Barcelona, Spain for Nokia World, a week where Nokia talks to its top customers. — When we got here a Nokia executive met me and bragged that the Internet has no clue what they will announce this week. I asked “what about the touch screen cell phone that I've seen rumors about?”

A Microsoft Veteran Embraces Open Source — Keith Curtis has just written a book about the future of software. — That in itself isn't unique. More unusual is that Mr. Curtis, an 11-year veteran of Microsoft, the world's largest software company, believes deeply that open source is the future of software.
Discussion:
Microsoft Pri0