Corporate loosers of the week award : Apparently Intel and Microsoft share the same levels of arrogance, stupidity, and detachment from reality. You're probably aware by now of Intel's plans for including a 'user-tracking' ID in every PIII chip.¹ (In fact it already exists in batches of PII and Celeron chips TOTALLY unannounced.²) Customers dissaprove but Intel hasnt changed its plans. What you may not know is that Microsoft has already been compromising your privacy for some time. May 31, 1995 Washinton Post reported that Windows was sending the names of files found on the user's hard drive back to Microsoft. Ancient history? This month it was shown that Win98 collects a unique hardware profile (GUID) and sends it to Microsoft without consent.³ And now Microsoft admits that MS Word as well as other MS products embed this info in the headers of every MS document.ª Still not enough to get you creeped out over Microsoft? The company has been steadily aquiring companies like Firefly Network that specialize in gathering personal data (ie. Expedia travel, Hotmail, Link Exchange, Experian credit reporting, etc). Microsoft seems obsessed with knowing everything about you. Their newest software makes it _compulsory_ to register yourself after 50 uses.^ And MS has sponsored research on "causing PCs to emit identifying signals which can be interpreted by equipment in a truck parked nearby." º That's some freaky stuff. If you're read this far, please also read the sources this information comes from (listed below) - I think it's essential reading. I used to think MS were just a big company with constant HUGE security flaws~ and very very bad PR. Recently they just seem more like Big Brother. Their anti-privacy stance is infuriating customers to new levels. Will MS dominate the OS market forever? Microsoft have never forgotten how they gained advantage becuase IBM failed to see little startups as a threat. MS was determined to not do the same and has acquired almost everything that moves. But their downfall will come because of two main things. First, everyone hates Microsoft and people are now at the point that they are actively looking for alternatives. Second, it's becoming clearer to most people that Microsoft lacks innovation and quality. Compared to Linux or Beos alternatives, MS Windows is already a looser. sources :

(¹) http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/p3/0,6424,2216772,00.html
(²) http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,33591,00.html
(³) http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2221975,00.html
(ª) http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/18331.html
(º) http://www.junkbusters.com/ht/en/new.html#MSFT
(^) http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/18280.html
(~) http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/13426.html
additional reading:
http://www.vcnet.com/bms/
http://www.junkbusters.com
http://www.bigbrotherinside.com/

Alternative products :
http://www.be.com
http://www.amd.com

Radium