Google has launched a beta site service for open source software, called Google Code Project Hosting, available at http://code.google.com/hosting. Announced late last week at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in Portland, Oregon and sporting a tagline of "Release Early, Release Often," Google Code provides space for developers and users to exchange open source software and collaboratively work on projects.

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On its FAQ page, Google describes the service as a site for "external developers interested in Google-related development. It's where we'll publish free source code and lists of our API services." Although the initial emphasis is on Google-related software, other kinds of open source sharing are anticipated by that community.

Stripped-Down Google

The home page is typical stripped-down Google, shielding a database that searches and stores registered users' software. The results page resembles a basic Google search results page. Google has said its search software will rank projects by activity and participants, and that dormant projects will eventually be removed from its repository. Tools for browsing source code, issue tracking and administering projects are available.

Any efforts to use the service for storing inappropriate materials -- such as MP3s or pilfered passwords -- will be filtered and removed, the company said.

Greg Stein, a technical lead at Google, has said that the company does not intend to compete with such old-line open source exchanges as SourceForge.net, run by VA Software, or Tigris.org. SourceForge alone said it has more than 150,000 projects, while Google's Project Hosting has begun with four.

"Going After Microsoft"

For its part, SourceForge has said that it is in the midst of a major site overhaul to improve searching and other features, and that Google's new service only validates the open source community. Google Code and SourceForge have said they are working to create a database of common project code names, so as to avoid possible duplication and confusion.

Laura DiDio, an analyst with Yankee Group, said that this open source service helps Google as well as users.

"Google's going after Microsoft at every turn," she said, noting that the more Google promotes open source, the more it helps create alternatives to the software giant from Redmond.

"For the open-source user," she said, "it has the potential to become very useful," while becoming yet another Google project that "helps their halo" of providing services to the community.

Google has been a strong supporter of open source software and attitude. For example, it promotes the use of the Firefox browser, uses MySQL in-house, and makes its APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) freely available so that "mash-ups"--such as data overlaid onto Google Earth maps--can be generated.

The phones can be used at open Wi-Fi access points that do not require browser authentication, and come preloaded with Skype software, Skype said Thursday.

The move is designed to give Skype users the mobility of a cell phone, but retain the ability to use the eBay-owned telephony company's free or inexpensive calling rates, Skype said. There is no difference in fees for calls made from Wi-Fi phones than for those made from PCs.

Belkin, Accton Technology's Edge-Core, Netgear and Standard Microsystems are all introducing the handsets to support the new service. The phones will hit the market in the third quarter, Skype said, and will be sold directly from the Skype online store. Edge-Core's phone, which features and a color LCD screen, carries a suggested retail price of $251), excluding value-added tax (VAT). Netgear's phone is displayed on the Skype store, listed as "coming soon" and priced at $258, inclusive of VAT.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.

We've all seen those incessant pop up ads that claim that our PCs are infected with spyware and we need to purchase product "X" to clean our machine. What happens if that product doesn't work and in fact is a fraud itself?

Microsoft is taking legal action against one such company alleging that Secure Computer LLC, "used deceptive pop-up ads to warn users that their computers were at risk and could contain spyware."

Nancy Anderson, deputy general counsel for Microsoft explained that at the heart of the case is the allegation that Secure Computer LLC was misleading people into thinking that if they paid for $49.95 they would get a product that would do something.

"The product did not do what it was purported to do," Anderson told internetnews.com. "They raised false alarms with people and the risks they had, they misrepresented who they were by suggesting they were from Microsoft."

"There was a web of deception that they preyed upon consumers with."

Microsoft filed the lawsuit in the state of Washington, which itself is also taking legal action against Secure Computer. The action by the attorney general of Washington State and Microsoft is the first under the recently-enacted Washington Computer Spyware Act.

Under the act, computer software is not allowed to transmit or collect information about a user's computer without the permission of the user. It also prohibits the misrepresentation of software that claims to be required for security or privacy that really isn't.

Secure Computer LLC is a New York State-based company but Anderson noted that it makes sense to bring the action in Washington State for a number of reasons. Microsoft wanted to take advantage of the Washington Spyware law, and, among others, Microsoft is alleging harm to Washington consumers. The kinds of deceptive practices outlined by Microsoft's action are also protected under state consumer protection laws that every state has as well.

It's not entirely clear at this point the total magnitude of the alleged damages wrought by Secure Computer LLC. Anderson explained that the magnitude will be developed during the course of litigation.

"We believe that it preyed on thousands of consumer and bilked consumer in the aggregate of thousands if not millions of dollars," Anderson added. "There is a magnitude issue in addition as we had consumers of Microsoft who complained to us that they had been defrauded for spending good money on bad stuff."

The fight against spyware and those who prey on fear of spyware will continue at Microsoft.

"We continue to focus our investigative and technical resources against this problem," Anderson said. "So for sure you will see more of this."

NEW YORK - In the year 2009, on the 25th of April, a man named Greg is supposed to get an e-mail. The e-mail will remind Greg that he is his best friend and worst enemy, that he once dated a woman named Michelle, and that he planned to major in computer science.

"More importantly," the e-mail says, "are you wearing women's clothing?"

The e-mail was sent by none other than Greg himself — through a Web site called FutureMe.org.

The site is one of a handful that let people send e-mails to themselves and others years in the future. They are technology's answer to time capsules, trading on people's sense of curiosity, accountability and nostalgia.

"Messages into the future is something that people have always sought to do," said Paul Saffo, director of the Institute for the Future. "In a way, it's a statement of optimism."

Matt Sly, 29, came up with the concept for FutureMe.org about four years ago. He was inspired one day after recalling how during his education he had been given assignments to write letters to himself.

Sly, who partnered with 31-year-old Jay Patrikios of San Francisco on the project, said the site has made maybe $58 through donations. He is adamant that FutureMe.org is not a reminder service and that users should think long-term.

The site lets people send messages 30 years from now, though Sly's numbers show most users schedule their e-mails to be sent within three years.

"We want people to think about their future and what their goals and dreams and hopes and fears are," he said. "We're trying to facilitate some serious existential pondering."

He said a large number of the messages sent do one of two basic things: tell the future person what the past person was doing at the time, and ask the future person if he or she had met the aspirations of the past person.

"The tone of the past person is not always friendly," said Sly, now a Yale University graduate student. "It's often like 'Get off your lazy butt.'"

Recently, Forbes.com jumped on the idea, offering an "e-mail time capsule" promotion. More than 140,000 letters were collected over about six weeks. Nearly 20 percent of the messages sent are supposed to land in the sender's inbox in 20 years; others requested shorter time frames. Forbes.com is partnering with Yahoo! and Codefix Consulting on the project.

"A lot of people have kind of been freaked out by it," said David Ewalt, a Forbes.com writer who worked on the project. "It really makes you stop and think about your life in a way that you usually don't."

Another type of future message service can be found at sites such as myLastEmail.com or LastWishes.com, which promise to send messages to loved ones (or less-than-loved ones) after you die.

Paul Hudson, co-founder of the International Time Capsule Society, said e-mail time capsules were new to him.

"Part of the value of time capsules are that they are thought processes in the present," said Hudson, a historian who teaches at Georgia Perimeter College. "You define yourself when you do a time capsule. It might be a good exercise in introspection."

But sometimes the past is best left behind, said Saffo, who personally finds the whole thing "sad and really weird."

"The lesson about all these things, it's the lesson from time capsules, is you have to be careful lest you set yourself up for enormous embarrassment in two decades," Saffo said. "Do you really want to be reminded that you thought ABBA was cool?"

Service providers try to make the delivery process fail-safe through partnerships or back up software, and they urge people to hang on to their e-mail address, but there's no ironclad guarantee that the message will ever arrive.

Technology changes. Companies go out of business. Spam filters might get in the way.

Still, that hasn't deterred a sizable number of people from signing up.

On FutureMe.org, where more than 112,000 messages have been written, many writers are confident enough to make their e-mails — though not necessarily their names — public.

"I hope that I've learned to take responsibility for my actions — to not be passive aggressive and to not avoid things that are scary for me," one wrote. "I hope I've changed a little."

"Are you missing an eye? If so, I apologize." wrote another.

And, of course, the cautious optimist: "Hell, I hope you're still alive."

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On the Net:

Time Warner Inc. ended talks with Microsoft Corp. Friday and entered into exclusive negotiations with Google Inc. over a $1 billion investment and a broader advertising partnership with America Online, executives close to the talks said.

Shutting out Microsoft sets the stage for a high-profile agreement between two titans of the Internet. Under the deal, expected to be announced as early as next week, Google would get a 5 percent stake in AOL, implying a $20 billion value for the unit, said one official with direct knowledge of Time Warner's negotiating position.

Google, which operates the Internet's dominant search tools, also agreed to highlight AOL's Web properties as sponsored links and integrate AOL's video clips in its fledgling Google Video service. In exchange, AOL will continue providing Google's search engine to its subscribers.

Officials described the negotiations on condition of anonymity because no agreement has yet been formalized. The deal could be finalized next week, when Time Warner's board meets in New York.

The deal shows that Google is willing to pay to preserve its lucrative relationship with AOL and prevent Microsoft from becoming a bigger provider of Internet search tools. A deal between Microsoft and AOL would have made Microsoft's own advertising network more attractive.

The struggle over AOL reflects the larger competitive landscape between rivals Google and Microsoft, said Internet analyst Scott Kessler of Standard and Poor's.

The proposed agreement with Google gives AOL more flexibility to sell Google search ads, and have them appear only on AOL sites. The online service currently directs advertisers to Google and cannot limit search ads to its own sites.

AOL is Google's biggest customer, accounting for about $420 million, or about 10 percent, of Google's revenue during the first nine months of this year, according to regulatory filings.

Most of the $420 million came from the ads Google distributes on AOL's Web site. The two companies first began working together in 2002 when Google wrestled away AOL from another online advertising network currently owned by Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news)

Microsoft, which increasingly views Google as a fierce rival, has been negotiating with Time Warner since early this year but did not propose any cash investment in AOL, officials said.

Time Warner has been considering options for ramping up AOL's business against a backdrop of criticism from financier Carl Icahn, who is demanding that the company take drastic steps to improve its long-lagging share price, including a massive share buyback.

AOL is shifting its business model from selling dialup Internet access to selling online advertising, which is booming. Google, Microsoft and earlier Yahoo Inc. all expressed interest in some kind of partnership with or stake in AOL to harness its large reach among Internet users.

Microsoft and The Associated Press last month announced plans for an advertising-supported online video news network early in 2006. Microsoft will supply the technology, video player and advertising support to the network, while AP's broadcast division will provide the video, which will feature about 50 different stories per day.

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AP Business Writer Michael Liedtke in San Francisco contributed to this story.

Microsoft has filed 10 lawsuits against both individuals and companies, alleging that they are pirating software and are selling not-for-resale applications to unsuspecting purchasers.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft said the seven lawsuits filed against nine individuals from California, Maryland, New York, Texas, and Virginia were initiated as a result of the breach of an agreement under which the individuals obtained software through the Microsoft Action Pack Subscriptions (MAPS).

The MAPS initiative is a program that provides eligible partners with discounted Microsoft software packages for product evaluation and internal use.

Respecting Rules

"This is the first occasion where Microsoft has filed MAPS-related lawsuits," Microsoft attorney Matt Lundy said. "Microsoft is determined to protect its legitimate business partners from people who do not respect the rules."

The MAPS lawsuits allege egregious abuse of the MAPS program by individuals who have repeatedly and knowingly broken the terms of the agreement, Microsoft said. "Some of those named in the suits have allegedly attempted to sell software from their subscriptions to consumers through online auction sites," the company said in a statement.

The individuals named in the MAPS lawsuits are Catherine Will and Philip Parana, of Buffalo, N.Y.; James Baker of San Diego, Calif.; Kenneth Ham of College Station, Texas; Benjamin Hesson of Leesburg, Va.; Charles Klosek of Glenn Dale, Md.; Jimmy Huh of Encinitas, Calif.; Eric Mitchell of Santa Ana, Calif.; and Lang Ngo of San Francisco, Calif.

System Builders

Microsoft also filed three lawsuits against three companies in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, alleging counterfeit-software abuses. Those companies are Auction Hut of Toledo, Ohio; Comp-Discounts Software of Boca Raton, Fla.; and Computer Techs of Grove City, Pa.

"These companies were involved in our systems builders program," Lundy said.

"Microsoft has been in the forefront of placing bounties on hackers and in filing lawsuits against software pirates," said Yankee Group analyst Laura DiDio, who pointed out that after Microsoft started bringing hackers to court and they actually served jail time, instead of community service, hackers began to realize the legal penalties they faced.

"In the same way, software-piracy lawsuits give a clear message to people tempted to commit software piracy," she said.

DiDio also indicated that she applauded Microsoft's determination to prosecute alleged software pirates. "Like all big software vendors, Microsoft loses a lot of revenue through piracy," she said. "Microsoft just has to go to court to take action against piracy."