Installing Windows XP or any other operating system is easy if you have a USB optical disc drive. But if all you’ve got is a USB flash drive and another computer with a DVD burner, you can still install Windows XP (or many Linux distributions for that matter) on a disc drive-less ultraportable like the HP Mini-Note or the Asus Eee PC. After spending most of Saturday installing Windows XP on my HP Mini-Note I thought I’d share my results with you. Remember, your results may very, so while these are the steps that worked for me, they may not work for you. For example, depending on the version of Windows XP you are using, you may need a different hotfix to install the audio drivers.

There were two resources that were extraordinarily helpful. Bsumpter at MiniNoteUser wrote up an excellent tutorial for installing XP on a Mini-Note, and EeeGuides has a great walkthrough for installing XP on an Eee PC using a flash drive. By combining these methods and a few other, I was able to setup my Mini-Note with a Windows partition, a spare partition for installing Linux, and a large data partition for shared files.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1. 1 USB flash drive, 1GB or larger
2. 1 Windows XP installation disc
3. Assorted files that I’ll describe as we go along.

Preparing the flash drive

First up, we need to prepare the flash drive.

1. Download and unzip this file, which should contain 2 folders: 1 titled Bootsect, and the other USB_prep8.
2. Navigate to the USB_prep8 folder and click on usb_prep8.cmd. This will bring up a Windows console window.
3. Press any key to continue and a PeToUSB window will open.
4. Make sure your flash drive is selected, and click start to format your flash drive.
5. When the format is complete, click OK, but do not close the PeToUSB window or the Windows Console.
6. Open a new console window by typing “cmd” into the run box in the Windows Start Menu.
7. Find your Bootsect folder (if you’re not used to DOS commands, you can type “dir” to list directories and files, type “cd foldername” to navigate to a folder name – called foldername in this example, and if there’s a long folder name you can save time by typing the “cd” and just the first few letters and then hitting the Tab key to fill in the rest of the name).
8. Once you’re in the Bootsect folder, type “bootsect.exe /nt52 g:” if “g” is the letter assigned to your flash drive. If it’s E, then change the letter to e. If it’s Z, make it z. Get it?
9. When this is done, you should see a message letting you know that the bootcode was updated, and you can close this console window (but not the other console window).
10. Close the PeToUSb Window, but make sure not to close the remaining console window yet
11. You should now see a list of 8 options in the console.
12. Select one and find the drive with your Windows installation disc.
13. Select 2 and pick a random drive letter (but not one that’s already on your PC, since this will be a virtual drive used for copying your files).
14. Select 3 and enter the drive letter for your USB flash drive.
15. Select 4 and follow the rest of the on-screen directions and you should be all set.

The process should take about 15-20 minutes. When it’s done, you should have a bootable USB stick that you can use to install Windows XP the same way you would if you had a CD/DVD drive.

A few notes here. First of all, there’s a chance you may get down to step 15 and the program will tell you that it can’t create the virtual drive. This may happen if you’ve already gone through the whole process and are trying to do it again to fix problems. The solution seems to be rebooting your computer and trying again. Or at least that’s what worked for me.

Second, if you use NLite to shrink/slipstream/otherwise modify your Windows XP installation file, make sure you do not remove “manual installation files,” or your USB stick will be pretty much useless.

Installing XP on the Mini-Note

Now it’s time to load Windows XP onto your Mini-Note. If you have a USB CD/DVD drive, you probably skipped all the stuff above, and that’s fine. Most of the following steps should work as well. These instructions should work whether you’re installing Windows XP on a system that came preloaded with SUSE or Windows Vista.

1. Insert your USB flash drive in one of the USB ports on your Mini-Note.
2. Power on your computer and hit F9 to bring up a boot device selection window.
3. Choose your flash drive, or if you’re using a USB optical disc drive, select that instead.
4. Select 2 for a text-based installation.
5. Make sure to delete all of the partitions on the hard drive. While you may have some success creating separate partitions on your hard drive using this method, I did not. If you find yourself with a Hal.dll or bootloader missing error when you’re finished, there’s a good chance it’s because you did not delete all of the partitions. Note that I will be providing instructions in the next section for partitioning your hard drive after installing Windows XP, so you can still create a Linux partition later.
6. Create one large NTFS partition (using the quick option will save you a lot of time)
7. Follow the on-screen directions.
8. At least once during the install process, you will be prompted to reboot your computer. If you try to let it boot from the hard drive, you’ll get an error message. What you need to do is hit F9 again when it reboots and this time select option 1 for a GUI setup.
9. Once you’re done installing XP, you may notice that you are unable to boot into Windows from the hard drive. If you have the USB disk installed, again hit F9, and select the GUI option again. Windows should start. You’ll need to edit the boot.ini file:
1. Type “msconfig” into the run box in the start menu
2. Select the BOOT.INI tab
3. First, try the “Check All Boot Paths,” option. This may solve your problem by finding and removing the incorrect boot settings.
4. You may also need to edit the boot.ini file manually if it doesn’t read something like ‘multi(o)disk(0)rdisk(o)partition(1)\Windows=”Windows XP Pro” /fastdetect’
5. The most likely problem is that wrong partition is selected. It may say (0) or (2) or something like that. The steps below will show you how to backup and edit it.
6. Open your System Properties by right-clicking on My Computer and choosing Properties. Alternately, you could type “sysdm.cpl” into the run box in the start menu
7. Select the Advanced Tab
8. Click the Settings option under Star
tup and Recovery
9. Click the button that says Edit to open up your boot.ini file in Notepad. It’s a good idea to save a backup now by selecting Save As, and saving the file to a place where you won’t forget it.
10. Now you can (somewhat) safely edit the boot.ini file, changing the partition number or other settings to more closely resemble the one I listed above. Save your file, and hopefully you’ll be able to reboot without your USB stick.

Configuring Windows XP

Update: HP has added Windows XP drivers to its support page for the Mini-Note. You should try these official drivers before using the drivers listed below.

Now you should have a working Windows XP desktop, but you’ll find that you can’t connect to the internet via Ethernet or WLAN, you have no sound, and no support for the Fn keys. In order to fix these issues you’re going to need a few files. I’ve wrapped them all up into a ZIP file which you can download.

Once you’ve downloaded this file using another computer, you can copy it to your Mini-Note using a flash drive or SD card. Or if you’d rather just install the Ethernet drive so you can download the full 20MB ZIP file on your Mini-Note, you can find the Broadcom Ethernet Driver here. Once you unzip the files into a folder, you should have everything you need to get Windows XP up and running.

To install the Broadcom driver:

1. Open the device manager by right-clicking on the My Computer dialog, selecting Hardware, and then Device Manager
2. You should notice a bunch of little yellow alert icons. One will say something like Gigabit Ethernet. Honestly I forget exactly what I said, but it was pretty obvious.
3. Right click on the Ethernet icon and select Update Driver.
4. Select the Have Disk option, and navigate to the subfolder labeled win_xp_2k3_32 and choose the b57win32.inf file.

Now you should be able to connect to the internet, activate windows, and download most of the rest of the drivers you need from windows update. You’ll need to select the Custom option in order to get some of these updates. This should provide the drivers for your WLAN, touchpad, and other hardware.

Note that Windows Update didn’t automatically suggest the webcam driver for me. In order to install it, I had to find the webcam in the Device Manager (once all the other drivers, including the audio driver — see below — were installed, it was the only devices with a yellow flag next to it), and select the Install software automatically option. That did the trick.

Next, let’s enable sound. There does not appear to be a working audio driver for XP yet, but I’m holding out hope that HP will post one on its website when the company begins offering Mini-Note computers preloaded with Windows XP. I’m not going to hold my breath though. HP currently sells Mini-Notes preloaded with SUSE Enterprise, but there are no drivers or other support files on the HP web site for this configuration yet. Anyway, what you need to do is install a hotfix that will let you run the Windows Vista audio driver.

1. Run the KB888111.exe patch. If you have Windows XP SP1, you can run the kb888111xpsp1.exe file instead. Note that you should do this before upgrading to Windows XP SP2 or SP3. In fact, when I tried to update my system from SP1 to SP2, I wound up with an unbootable system, so if you have a Windows XP Sp1 install disc, I’d recommend skipping SP2 altogether and jumping straight ahead to SP2. You can either grab a release candidate of SP3, wait a few days for Microsoft to release it officially, or if you look around I’m sure you can find it today.
2. The file called sp38873.exe is the audio driver. Go ahead and click it and it will start to install the Vista audio drivers. Installation will fail because you’re not running Windows Vista, but the installer will create a folder that contains the driver.
3. Find your sound device in the Device Manager. It should still be an unknown device with a big ole yellow flag next to it. Select update driver, choose the have disk option, and navigate to the folder where you unzipped your Vista audio drivers.

Keep in mind that this audio driver is not designed to run on Windows. And every time you boot your computer, a pop up window will alert you to this fact. Here’s how to disable this pop up:

1. Type “msconfig” into the run box in the start menu.
2. Select the startup tab.
3. Uncheck the box next to smax4pnp.
4. Click OK and reboot your computer.

Finally, you can install the HP QuickLuanch buttons to add support for the Fn keys. All you have to do here is click the file called HP buttons SP32280.exe and ignore any messages that pop up during this installation.

Now everything should work properly. You’ll probably want to adjust your display settings to use large or extra large fonts and large icons. The HP QuickLaunch utility also includes a Desktop Zoom utility which may help make your Mini-Note display a bit easier to see. But this computer has got a super-sharp display, so you may find that you need to tweak the default font sizes in other applications including Firefox if you want to be able to read your screen without squinting.

Using Parted Magic to create new partitions for Linux or other operating systems

While I tend to use Windows XP on a day to day basis, I wanted to make this a dual boot system so I can install Linux on a separate partition. Most Linux distributions aren’t very particular about where they’re installed. You can put them on a second or third partition, or even on an SD card in your card reader. But Windows likes to have the first partition all to itself. So while you may be able to use the Windows installer to set up partitions on the hard drive, I had more success installing Windows XP first, and then using Parted Magic to resize the Windows partition and create additional partitions.

The best time to do this is right after you install Windows. Your main partition will be fairly clean which will make the resizing operation go much more quickly. We’re talking about the difference between a minute or two and a half hour or more. You’ll also save yourself a lot of pain and heartache if something goes wrong and you wind up wiping your Windows partition, because you won’t have spent days loading and configuring all of your favorite programs yet.

I’m going to assume you’re still using a USB flash drive, but you can also use Parted Magic from a CD-ROM. Detailed instructions for setting up either a flash drive or a CD-ROM are available from the Parted Magic homepage. The main difference is that if you’re using a flash drive, you need to use SYSLINUX to make it bootable.

Once you’ve got your installation media:

1. Reboot your Mini-Note with the flash drive or CD-ROM plugged into a USB port.
2. Hit F9 and choose the device you want to boot from.
3. From the boot menu, make sure to selection option 4: Failsafe Settings
4. W
ait a few minutes until you’re presented with a command prompt that says “root@PartedMagic:~#”
5. Type “menu”
6. Choose Xvesa (if you had tried almost anything other than option 4 in step 3, the system would try to boot using Xorg and your display would look all funny/unusable)
7. You should now see a graphical user interface that looks a bit like this:
8. Click the little blue icon on the bottom of the screen that says “VisParted.” This will bring up a partition manager
9. Your primary hard drive should be listed as /dev/sda. But if it’s not, it shouldn’t be too hard to find since you probably only have one 120GB hard drive connected to your PC. Note that VisParted will say your hard drive is actually closer to 112GB.
10. There should be one large partition labeled as /dev/sda1. You can right click on this and choose the resize/move option and then resize the partition either by dragging the edges or entering a value into the “new size” box.
11. Once your Windows partition is shrunk, you an either leave the rest of your hard drive unpartitioned for future use, create an ext2, ext3 or other partition for Linux, or do something else altogether.
12. Click the Apply button to execute.
13. When Parted Magic is done working its magic, you can reboot your system by clicking on the shutdown menu at the bottom right side of your screen. If everything went properly, you should still be able to boot into Windows, but you’ll find that your Windows partition is smaller.

Personally, I decided to make a 25GB Windows XP partition for files and settings, a 15GB ext2 partition for installing Ubuntu or other operating systems, and I made a third NTFS partition for storing data that will be accessible no matter which OS I use.

Even if just for an excess of caution, some security experts advise BlackBerry users to change their passwords from time to time.

Before some of you utter a collective "why is Russ writing about something so simple," let me tell you why I have chosen to do so.

That's because the BlackBerry Technical Knowledge Center -probably via internal memos from Tech Support- has decided this question is common enough to work up and post a new document describing how you should do this.

Essentially, you have two choices:

Your first alternative is type an incorrect password ten times. The data on the BlackBerry device will be erased and the password will be reset. After your BlackBerry is resent, you'll see a prompt for a new password.

The document notes that During the process of typing an incorrect password ten times, you may be prompted to type blackberry a few times.

But what if you don't want to go through that error-and-trial process to change your BlackBerry password? You have an alternative.

The document advises:

1. On the Home screen, click Options > Security Options > General Settings. Note: If you are running BlackBerry Device Software 4.0 Service Pack 2 or earlier, click Options > Security.
2. Display the menu and select Change Password.
3. Complete the on-screen instructions.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota (CNN) -- Abayte Ahmed and her husband learned of their son's death in the most heinous fashion. A family acquaintance called and told them to click on an Internet site. There on the screen were photographs of their 20-year-old son -- the boy with the movie-star looks -- shot through the head thousands of miles away in Somalia.

"He must have been somewhat disillusioned and indoctrinated, because he didn't have any clue about Somalia at all," his mother said, fighting back tears and barely able to speak about her eldest son.

Jamal Bana had been missing for months from his Minneapolis home. His family is still grappling with the circumstances surrounding his death in a land they had fled -- an African nation wracked by chaos and violence.

The FBI said Bana's death is part of a sweeping federal investigation into a recruiting effort in the United States by a Somali terrorist group called Al-Shabaab, which has ties to al Qaeda. More than a dozen young men of Somali descent have disappeared from the Minneapolis area in recent months. At least three, including Bana, have ended up dead in Somalia, community leaders say. Watch the harrowing saga of Jamal Bana »

Bana was the kind of son a modest immigrant family pins its hopes on. He was the eldest of seven and studying engineering at local colleges. But last fall, his family said, he disappeared without any warning. A few days later, the phone rang. All that could be heard was a quick sentence. "I'm in Somalia," his mother quoted him as saying. He then hung up.

Communication from then on was scarce. In calls or text messages, the family said, Bana was guarded, as though someone was watching or listening to him.

On July 11, the family received the call telling them to look on the Internet. Bana's father broke down in tears when he saw the photos. One image was a close-up of his son's face, a bullet wound on one side of his head. Another showed the body being carried through the streets of Mogadishu on a stretcher.

His parents said they believe their son was brainwashed and recruited to fight in the civil war between Somalia's unstable transitional government and Al-Shabaab. Al-Shabaab remains entrenched in northeast Somalia and in sections south of Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, after fighting that has uprooted more than 200,000 people since early May, according to the United Nations.

The question immigrants in the United States want answered is: How have their youth ended up so far away?

One of the missing youth, Shirwa Ahmed, 27, blew up himself and 29 others last fall in Somalia in what is believed to be the first suicide bombing carried out by a naturalized U.S. citizen. Ahmed had traveled from Minneapolis. The attack raised red flags throughout the U.S. intelligence community and sparked an investigation by the FBI.

Just weeks ago, community activist Abdirizak Bihi lost his 17-year-old nephew, Burhan Hassan, in Somalia. Asked if his nephew had been kidnapped from Minneapolis, Bihi said, "They kidnap them in the sense of mental kidnapping, not physically. But they play a male role of mentor."

Bihi and community leader Omar Jamal said they hold one place at least loosely responsible: the Abubakar as-Saddique Islamic Center, the largest mosque in Minneapolis.

"All these kids missing, they all have one thing in common: They all participated in youth programs in that mosque," said Jamal.

Jamal and Bihi said leaders of the mosque, at the very least, allowed people to come around their facility and recruit young men to fight in Somalia -- a charge the head imam denies. CNN was not allowed inside the mosque, but was granted an interview with the imam at a different location.

"This is the baseless accusation really," said Sheikh Abdirahman Sheikh Omar Ahmed. "The mosque -- the mission of the mosque -- is to worship. And people come to worship and go. We don't have any control over what comes through everybody's mind or ideology."

Sheikh Ahmed said at least two of the young men who died in Somalia did worship at his mosque. But he said no recruiters came around the mosque to pull them away, and said his mosque does not support Al-Shabaab. He added that he has encouraged local families to keep their young sons from going to Somalia.

Federal authorities recently made their first arrests in the case, charging two Minnesota men, Salah Osman Ahmed and Abdifatah Yusuf Isse, with one count each of providing material support to terrorists and conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim or injure people overseas, according to the indictment.

CNN could not reach Salah Osman Ahmed's attorney for comment. Published reports indicate he planned to plead not guilty. Isse has pleaded guilty and is cooperating with federal authorities, officials said. In court papers obtained by CNN, Isse's attorney said, "Mr. Isse will not be the last defendant indicted."

A local attorney involved in the case said at least seven Somali-Americans have been questioned by a grand jury. An FBI official said the bureau cannot rule out the possibility that some of the young men involved could be trained to carry out terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.

Meanwhile, CNN has learned more about how Shirwa Ahmed and Burhan Hassan made their way overseas. A travel agent in Minneapolis, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the two men paid about $1,800 in cash for tickets to Nairobi, Kenya, or to Dubai, U.A.E. The travel agent said he thinks the two men then made their way to Mogadishu from those cities on a Somali carrier.

For Bana's family, it's all too much to bear. Omar Boley is a close friend who grew up in the same tribe as Bana's family. He said Bana's mother is having difficulty coping with everything that has happened in recent months.

"She doesn't want to hear the story again," he said. "She told me, 'Whenever I see someone talking about my son, I feel bad. I can't sleep. I feel sick. So this happened, nothing I can do. We pray for him.' That's what she said, and that's what I believe."

Melly Goeslow akan menggelar konser perdananya pada Rabu, 19 Agustus 2009 di Tennis Indoor Senayan, Jakarta. Konser yang dipromotori oleh KD Production ini bertemakan GLOW, dengan makna cemerlang, punya karunia.

Rencananya, konser GLOW ini akan menampilkan juga Tora Sudiro, Kevin MS, ELLO dan pastinya para artis Bukan Bintang Biasa (BBB). Nah, dari pada ketinggalan, buruan beli tiketnya di sini!

Tiket:
Festival Rp 175.000
Kelas 1 Rp 500.000
VIP Rp 1.000.000

Los Angeles - Badan liga utama Amerika Serikat (MLS) memutuskan untuk memberi denda kepada
David Beckham. Hal itu terkait dengan insiden yang melibatkan pemain asal
Inggris itu dengan salah seorang fans, beberapa waktu lalu.

Beckham yang tengah menjalani masa kepulangannya di LA Galaxy, mendapat sambutan yang tidak mengenakkan dari pendukung. Hal itu membuatya sempat bersitegang dengan salah seorang fans dalam laga melawan AC Milan beberapa saat silam.

Saat itu Beckham terlihat berkonfrontasi di pinggir lapangan. Gelandang 34 tahun itu sempat membela diri dengan mengatakan kalau dirinya hanya ingin menyalami fans yang menyorakinya.

Namun pihak MLS rupanya tidak percaya dengan alibi yang dikemukakan Beckham.
Mereka pun menjatuhkan denda sebesar 1000 dolar (sekitar RP .10 juta) kepada
mantan pemain Real Madrid itu.

"Kami mendukung pemain kami yang berinteraksi dengan pendukung, baik itu di
klinik, acara-acara sosial maupun saat menyapa mereka ketika mencetak gol," ujar komisioner MLS, Don Garber seperti diwartakan Reuters.

"Namun pemain kami seharusnya tidak boleh terlibat dalam suatu kejadian yang
dapat diinpretasikan tentang adanya ketegangan dengan pendukung di pinggir lapangan, apapun alasannya."

Jakarta - Ketua Komisi Pemilihan Umum (KPU) Abdul Hafiz Anshary menganggap DPT pilpres tetap sah sekalipun ramai digugat capres. Tanda tangan capres dalam sebagai persetujuan penetapan hasil pilpres menurutnya tidak penting.

"Tanda tangan atau tidak ya tidak menjadi masalah. Enak saja nanti kalau tidak ditandatangani jadi batal," ujar Hafiz.

Hal ini disampaikan Hafiz di sela-sela rapat koordinasi membahas masalah gugatan DPT antara KPU dengan KPU Provinsi, di Gedung KPU, Jl Imam Bonjol, Jakarta Pusat, Jumat (24/7/2009).

Menurut Hafiz saat capres tertentu memintanya merevisi DPT, KPU sudah melakukan. Hafiz menyayangkan setelah direvisi justru dipermasalahkan lagi.

"Ada kontradiksi di satu sisi memasukkan DPT dimasalahkan, tidak dimasukkan juga masalah," keluh Hafiz.

Untuk menanggapi gugatan di MK, Hafiz menyusun persiapan. KPU daerah dimintanya mengumpulkan formulir C1 sebagai bukti rekapitulasi TPS.

"Antisipasi gugatan DPT, kita clearkan DPT. Teman-teman daerah punya data DPT TPS supaya diamankan," kata Hafiz.

Hari ini Hafiz bahkan menggelar rapat khusus dengan KPU Provinsi untuk menyusun strategi. "Itu kami bahas, nanti kami koordinasikan dengan Biro Hukum," jelasnya.

The software maker sent the final code for its next computer operating system to manufacturers Wednesday, and said it's still on track for an Oct. 22 launch. (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

Mike Angiulo, a general manager in the Windows group, said in an interview that getting up and running on a Windows computer will be "a lot smoother" than it was when Windows Vista launched in 2007.

At the time, Microsoft boasted about the number of programs and devices that would work with Vista, but many PC users found their existing software, printers, scanners, cameras and other hardware didn't function after the switch.

Microsoft said one reason Windows 7 should be an easier launch is that at its core, the new version is a lot like Vista. If a company updated a product to work with Vista in the last few years, it should also work with Windows 7.

Windows 7 has also progressed in an orderly way, which means outside companies have had more time to make sure their products will work. Vista was plagued by changes to Microsoft's plans, leaving partner companies scrambling to keep up.

The new operating system will launch into a much tougher climate than Vista did. PC shipments are expected to fall this year for the first time since 2001, as the economic crisis has forced businesses to slash technology spending. Microsoft built in a way for companies to run older, Windows XP programs in Windows 7, in an attempt to avoid losing those corporate customers that skipped Vista altogether because critical software wasn't compatible.

Companies that have long-term agreements to buy Microsoft software in bulk will be able to download and start installing Windows 7 in a few weeks, Microsoft said.

Then starting Oct. 22, Windows 7 will come on new PCs, and will be available for people to buy separately and install on their existing machines.

Microsoft’s big day draws ever closer, with the company saying Wednesday that it has put Windows 7 and a new version of its server operating system in the hands of computer makers. In Microsoft parlance, this is known as R.T.M., or release to manufacturing, and it is the last big step before Windows 7 actually reaches users in late October.

If you can remember back to the release of Windows 95, there were stories about people without computers waiting in line to buy the software. They’d heard all the hype, and thought they needed a piece of the action -– even if they didn’t really know what Windows 95 was.

Such events are unlikely to play out this time around, as Microsoft embraces humility over hype. Windows 7 is the replacement to the much-reviled Windows Vista, the current version of Microsoft’s operating system.

“We are not trying to underpromise or overpromise -– or be early or late,” said Mike Angiulo, the general manager of Windows. “We have hit each engineering milestone and been predictable and reliable with our partners.”

So, in this case, R.T.M. seems to stand for released to modesty.

Even the excitable Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, has toned down the Windows 7 cheerleading. Speaking at a conference last week, Mr. Ballmer equivocated about Window 7’s ability to spark a much-hoped-for wave of computer upgrades.

“Hopefully, Windows 7 will be part of a catalyst,” he said. “Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t.”

This subdued talk stems from the large helping of humble pie served to Microsoft with the release of Windows Vista, a bloated software package that drove consumers and businesses mad because of its erratic support for other software and devices.

Microsoft says that Windows 7 should make up for these past mistakes while booting up 20 percent to 40 percent faster than Vista and running faster over all, even on existing, older hardware.

“This is the first time we haven’t doubled the system requirements with a new release,” Mr. Angiulo said.

Microsoft insists that it used tons of research rather than a quest for flashiness as the driving force behind picking features for Windows 7. About 10 million testers sent information back to Microsoft on how they use Windows, giving it 400 million sessions to study.

“Instead of guessing what people want, we really know what they want,” Mr. Angiulo said.

Windows 7 has a lot of work to do for Microsoft and the entire PC food chain.

According to a new study from Forrester Research, the eight-year-old predecessor to Vista, Windows XP, remains on 86 percent of corporate PCs.

PC makers like Dell and Hewlett-Packard expect that businesses will finally give in and upgrade their machines to Windows 7 next year.

Beckham was a major success in last season's spell at Milan

AC Milan are eager for England midfielder David Beckham to repeat his loan spell at the club this season.

Beckham, who plays for LA Galaxy in the United States, spent five months on loan with Milan last season at the end of the Major League Soccer campaign.

"The most likely hypothesis is that Beckham plays for us from January until the end of the season," said Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani.

"Then he returns to America without all the fuss that happened last March."

But Galliani dismissed speculation that the Italian giants would try to buy Beckham, who has suffered a negative response from some Galaxy fans on his return to LA.

A price in the region of £11.2m has been mentioned for Beckham, but Milan said "insurmountable financial obstacles" would restrict their involvement with him to another loan deal.

I hope to return to play for Milan David Beckham

"There's no possibility for him to come sooner," said Galliani.

"David knows that the doors of (the club's training ground) Milanello are always open for him, his lawyers also know that.

"I hope he returns in January, but before then he won't because that's when the market reopens even though he finishes there at the end of November.

"There are insurmountable financial obstacles. Before January there's no possibility."

Beckham said he had been told by England boss Fabio Capello that he needed to be playing in one of the top leagues in Europe in order to stay in his plans for next year's World Cup in South Africa, should England qualify.

And the former England captain said he would be delighted to play in Serie A again.

"I hope to return to play for Milan," he told the AC Milan website.

"They have remained in my heart and honestly I am confident I will greet them again in November.

"It's really pleasing to see that I have left good memories."

Milan coach Leonardo has also expressed his hope that Beckham will be able to play for his side later in the season.

Beckham has also been linked with Premier League sides Tottenham and Chelsea, who are now managed by former Milan boss Carlo Ancelotti.

606: DEBATE I admire Beckham for wanting to be at his best for as long as he can, so good luck to him at Milan RICHSAZ

The possibility of Beckham leaving LA Galaxy prematurely has been raised after he was booed by sections of the crowd in his first home game for them since his spell with Milan.

He was jeered during Sunday's friendly - against Milan - and even confronted one particularly vociferous spectator.

"The majority of fans have been great," said Beckham, who had upset Galaxy fans with previous comments that he would have preferred to stay at Milan than return to the MLS.

"It was only one or two that, you know, it was to be expected.

"Sometimes it goes beyond it. I tried to shake one of the guy's hands but he didn't want any of it. That's the way it is."

It marked the end of a turbulent week for Beckham since his return to the United States, who also had to placate team-mates following comments by Galaxy captain Landon Donovan.

Sales of iPhones grew seven times in the quarter

A young Chinese worker suspected of stealing a prototype for the fourth generation iPhone has committed suicide.

Sun Danyong worked for Foxconn, one of Apple's largest manufacturers.

The Taiwanese firm has begun an investigation following claims made by the worker's former classmates that he had been beaten by security staff.

Apple says it is saddened by the death and is waiting for the results of the investigation.

Sun Danyong was 25. He threw himself off a 12-storey building last week.

He worked for Foxconn in the southern city of Shenzhen and was responsible for shipping 16 iPhone prototypes to Apple.

One went missing. Sun reported the loss, and the company launched an investigation.

Three days later the worker jumped to his death.

Sun's former classmates have told Chinese newspapers that during that investigation he was beaten, his house was searched and he was locked up in a room alone.

They say he described the experience in an online chat with them as one of the most humiliating experiences of his life.

Foxconn says it has suspended its chief of security.

The firm and the local public security bureau are investigating the allegations.

Foxconn has expressed its condolences to the worker's family and set up extra counselling services for its employees.

The firm is Taiwanese. It has faced allegations in the past that it treats its employees badly, claims it has always vigorously denied.

The firm was also cleared at the time by Apple of any serious abuses.

The longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century is casting its shadow over India and China on a path which is plunging hundreds of millions of people into temporary darkness.

The total eclipse will be visible in a roughly 250 kilometre-wide corridor, according to the US space agency NASA, as it travels half the globe and passes through the world's two most populous nations.

The eclipse began at 5:28am (local time) in India and will last up to a maximum of six minutes and 39 seconds when it hits the Pacific Ocean, according to NASA.

Eclipses allow earth-bound scientists a rare glimpse at the sun's corona, the gases surrounding the sun.

Starting on India's west coast, north of financial capital Mumbai, it took in the ancient Hindu holy city of Varanasi on the Ganges river.

Tens of thousands of people snaked through the narrow lanes of Varanasi and gathered for a dip in the Ganges, an act considered to lead to salvation from the cycle of life and death.

Amid chanting of Hindu hymns, men, women and children waded into the river with folded hands and prayed to the sun as it emerged in an overcast sky.

"We have come here because our elders told us this is the best time to improve our after-life," said Bhailal Sharma, a villager from central India, who came to Varanasi with a group of about 100 people.

The eclipse was due to sweep through Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and China's financial hub Shanghai, before heading to the Pacific.

"In the 21st century this is the longest," said Harish Bhatt, dean at the Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Astrophysics.

"This is indeed quite an important event for scientific experiments. Its long duration provides you an opportunity to make very complicated, complex experiments."

Scientists in China will be snapping two-dimensional images of the sun's corona, up to 2 million degrees celsius hot, at roughly one image per second, Mr Bhatt said.

Mixed blessing

The eclipse is seen as a mixed blessing for millions of Indians. Crowds across the country will bathe in holy rivers and ponds for good fortune as they consider the solar blackout auspicious.

But according to astrologers' predictions, the eclipse spells bad luck for others and expectant mothers have asked doctors to advance or postpone births, fearing complications or a miserable future for their children.

Parents in several schools in India's capital, New Delhi, said they would not send their children to class as the eclipse coincides with breakfast. According to Hindu custom, it is inauspicious to prepare food during an eclipse.

In ancient Chinese culture, an eclipse was a bad omen and linked to natural disasters or deaths in the imperial family. Chinese officials and state media have been at pains to reassure the public that city services will run normally.

But in modern China, people who want to see the astronomical rarity may have to escape thick pollution caused by the rapid industrial growth, which smudges the horizon, even on clear days.

"The majority of people decided to go to Tongning, in Anhui, because they're worried about the serious air pollution from industrial areas in Shanghai," said Bill Yeung, the president of the Hong Kong Astronomical Society, who organised a trip by 120 eclipse watchers from Hong Kong.

Tongning has an 80 per cent chance of clear skies, while Shanghai's is only 10 per cent, he said.

The news of the latest Jakarta blasts broke first on Twitter, with tweets spreading the news before media outlets reported on it.

Daniel Tumiwa registered the first tweet on the explosions: "Bom @ marriot and ritz Carlton kuningan jakarta."

He quickly followed up with more details.

"2 boms go off at marriot hotel ad ritz carlton jakarta.

"2 boms go off inside Ritz Carlton and Marriott coffee shops! Not kidding. Am here.

"Left location. Shocked. Lots of blood. Breakfast meetings at coffee shops while bombs went off.

"Thanks for all the concern. Back home. Safe. Shocked. Blood...smoke...glass...everywhere...prayers to the victims...."

Users were also quick to post photos of the decimated hotels, which were quickly picked up by online outlets including the ABC.

The Marriott hotel group also used its Twitter profile to extend their sympathies to the victims and update on the unfolding tragedy:

"To all who have tweeted, we are gathering info and will have more as we learn details from Jakarta."

"We are monitoring the situation, working closely w/authorities to ensure that our guests and associates are moved to safety

"Our deepest sympathies go out to the victims and their families.

"Police responded immediately, sealed off the area. Guests @ both hotels have been evacuated & have been moved to a secure location."

The blast highlights Twitter's ability to spread stories faster than regular news services.

This is not the first time Twitter has spread news of a terrorist attack, with Indian users taking to the service during the Mumbai hotel attacks.

By Miguel Helft on TNYT

On the 40th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s historic walk on the moon, Google is offering Internet users a virtual trip to the moon. On Monday, the company unveiled Moon in Google Earth, which allows anyone to embark on Moon versions of the kinds of 3-D flyovers that Google Earth users are familiar with. Like the flyovers of our planet in Google Earth, the moon visits are enhanced with all sorts of content, including narrated tours, photos and videos.

“This tool will make it easier for millions of people to learn about space, our moon and some of the most significant and dazzling discoveries humanity has accomplished together,” Anousheh Ansari, a trustee of the X Prize Foundation and the first female “space tourist,” wrote on a Google Blog. “Moon in Google Earth enables you to explore lunar imagery as well as informational content about the Apollo landing sites, panoramic images shot by the Apollo astronauts, narrated tours and much more.”

The blog post includes a video with some of the highlights of Moon in Google Earth. A more detailed blog post goes further into some of the details. Google Earth already allows people to explore the galaxy and Mars.

Moon in Google Earth is the fruit of a broad collaboration between Google and NASA, formally known as a Space Act Agreement, which the two organizations signed in 2005. The agreement calls for wide-ranging cooperation in certain technology projects and for Google to develop up to a million square feet of office space at NASA Research Park at Moffett Field, next to the Google campus.

As the relationship between Google and NASA grew close, the agency also signed an unusual agreement giving Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and its C.E.O., Eric Schmidt, landing rights at Moffett Field for their growing fleet of private planes, which include a fighter jet.

The anniversary of the moon walk has become the occasion for others to bring the history of the Apollo missions to cyberspace.