The Feds Go After Illegal Games

So, you know I am not a gamer… but my son, Benjamin, is the Gamemaster! So, he would be more interested in this story than I would… not because he uses illegal games… all his are fully legal (I should know… my wife, Belinda or I buy them for him!) But, he does stay on top of what is going on in the gaming world.

US Gov’t Cracks Down On Pirated Games

“The US Government said Wednesday that it had executed 32 search warrants in 16 states as part of a crackdown on devices and chips which allow pirated games to be played on gaming consoles. Government officials say the targets of the raids were company’s that produce devices to circumvent copyright protections on Sony’s PlayStation 2, Microsoft’s Xbox and Xbox 360, and Nintendo’s Wii, among others. The industry claims these chips cause billions of dollars in lost revenue each year. The raids were the largest of their kind to to date, and were the result of investigations by the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office in Cleveland, Ohio. ICE says that in 2006, seizures of pirated works increased by 83 percent. ‘Illicit devices like the ones targeted today are created with one purpose in mind, subverting copyright protections,’ ICE Homeland Security assistant secretary Julie Myers said. ‘These crimes cost legitimate businesses billions of dollars annually and facilitate multiple other layers of criminality, such as smuggling, software piracy and money laundering.'”

Would You Use an Ad-Supported Microsoft Works?

I sure hope not! Microsoft Works is terrible in the first place… computer companies already tend to give it away with cheap systems, and if I see it, I delete it. Now, M$ wants to give it away, but with built-in advertisements! You HAVE GOT to be kidding!

Microsoft Works Goes Free, Ad-Supported

“Microsoft Corp. will test a free, advertising-supported version of Works, an already inexpensive package of word processing, spreadsheet and other programs, but would not say whether it is exploring a similar Web-based suite. The company said Wednesday that a limited number of computer makers will pre-install Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT – news – people ) Works 9 SE on new PCs in certain markets, and that the test of the business model will last about a year. Microsoft’s announcement comes a week after its top executives sketched out a strategy for supplementing traditional packaged software revenue with subscriptions and Web-based services, during a day of meetings with financial analysts at its Redmond, Wash., headquarters.”

Mac Users Will Have to Wait for Microsoft Office 2008

But… do they care? OK, OK, some do… I guess I am letting my Evil Empire detector buzz too much! But, there’s always OpenOffice!

Mac Users Left in Office 2008 Waiting Room

“Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Latest News about Microsoft announced on Thursday its anticipated retail release date of the latest Office suite for the Macintosh Latest News about Macintosh will be delayed until January. Quality checks in June and July turned up problems that could not be resolved before the previous release target set for this fall, according to a posting to the Office for Mac Team Blog by Craig Eisler, general manager of Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit. Achieving the right quality level is “super important” to the company and the team, he wrote. Such slips are common in the software world, Laura DiDio, research fellow with Yankee Group, told MacNewsWorld. ‘This doesn’t cause me to raise an eyebrow.'”

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