Google redesigns home page

Google said the move was designed to remove distractions for those web users "intent on searching". The "fade in" effect initially presents users with the Google logo and a large search box, complete with the Search and I'm Feeling Lucky buttons. A flashing cursor is already inside the search box, meaning people can type directly in to the search field. However, if the user moves their mouse, the rest of the page fades in to focus. The usual array of hyperlinks – directing users through to an image search, Google's news and shopping channels and its iGoogle portal – still appear at the top of the page, while below the search box, links to advertising programs and business solutions appear. Marissa Mayer, vice president of search products and user experience at Google, said web users appreciated Google's "clean, minimalist approach". "For the vast majority of people who come to the Google homepage, they are coming in order to search," she wrote in a blog post. "For those users who are interested in using a different application like Gmail, Google Image Search or our advertising programs, the additional links on the homepage only reveal themselves when the user moves the mouse.

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/6717954/Google-redesigns-home-page.html

Google Restricts Free Reading on Pay News Sites

Amid criticism from media companies that it unfairly profits from news content, Google is closing a loophole that allowed some motivated newshounds to read large numbers of articles on subscription-based sites without paying for them. The company’s “First Click Free” program, which publishers of pay sites can choose to participate in, is designed to allow readers to get a taste of a site’s content. For example, someone who finds a Wall Street Journal article through Google News can read it free, but if the reader tries to reach other articles from that page, he or she is asked to buy a subscription. A well-known loophole has allowed readers to return to Google News and get access to more Journal articles. In many cases, a search for the article’s headline on Google News produces a link to a free version. In a change that Google announced in a blog post on Tuesday, the company will allow publishers to limit nonsubscribers to five free articles a day.

Source: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/02/google-restricts-free-reading-on-pay-news-sites/?ref=technology

Action Replay maker sues Microsoft for Xbox 360 'predatory technological barriers'

Microsoft's Xbox 360 is no longer compatible with the first -- and only -- third party memory card, Datel's Max Memory, after the distribution of a Dashboard software update. In response, Datel has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft. "Microsoft has taken steps to render inoperable the competing Datel memory card for no visible purpose other than to have that market entirely to themselves," said Marty Glick, the senior attorney representing Datel. "They accomplished their recent update by making a system change that will not recognize or allow operation of a memory card with greater capacity than their own. We believe that with the power Microsoft enjoys in the market for Xbox accessories this conduct is unlawful." Datel has made a name for itself by selling "over the counter" device hacks for most of the major video game consoles of the last 20 years, most notably the popular Action Replay system which lets users manipulate game software to enable cheats. Datel has landed in court over its products many times over the years, both for the Action Replay brand, and for the Game Shark brand which was originally based on Datel's Action Replay licenses. In 1992 Datel went to court with Sega, and in 1999 with Sony. This year, Sony sued Datel again for the PSP Lite Blue battery which enabled "service mode" in the PlayStation Portable.

Source: http://www.betanews.com/article/Action-Replay-maker-sues-Microsoft-for-Xbox-360-predatory-technological-barriers/1259084720