Stories by Gregg Keizer

Firefox users urge Dell to preinstall the browser

Firefox users are drawing on Dell's user-driven IdeaStorm site to push the computer maker to preinstall the open-source browser.

Security pros warn of 'critical' Winamp bug

Security companies Tuesday warned Winamp users that the music player application has a bug that could give attackers the means to hijack PCs.

Gartner: Hack contests bad for business

A pair of Gartner analysts Tuesday denounced a recent hack challenge that uncovered a still-unpatched QuickTime bug, calling it "a risky endeavor" and urging sponsors to reconsider such public contests.

Apple owns up to MacBook battery problems

Apple last Friday acknowledged that some batteries in its MacBook and MacBook Pro notebooks aren't up to snuff, but said that they posed no safety risk.

Mozilla ramps up Firefox 3 schedule

Mozilla Thursday unveiled new details of its schedule for Firefox 3, the next major upgrade to the popular open-source browser.

Microsoft explains how the ANI bug got baked into Vista

In a postmortem of last month's Windows animated (.ANI) cursor vulnerability, one of Microsoft's security development gurus Friday spelled out how the bug sneaked into Vista.

All-you-can-store online backup for Mac goes beta

A small Utah online backup service that recently signed a deal to back up 300,000 PCs owned by General Electric Co. Thursday announced a US$4.95 per month unlimited plan for Mac owners.

Hack challenge QuickTime bug not on the loose

Organizers of last week's MacBook Pro hack challenge Thursday disputed accounts that the QuickTime exploit that won the US$10,000 prize was nicked from a wireless network and is now in circulation.

Hack contest's QuickTime bug puts all browsers at risk

The QuickTime vulnerability that first surfaced last Friday in a Mac hack challenge is "very serious" and can be exploited through any Java-enabled browser, including Internet Explorer 7 running on both Windows XP and Vista, the company that laid out...

Vista betas, RCs to reboot every 2 hours starting June

Microsoft Tuesday spelled out exactly how users of Windows Vista betas and release candidates can shift to the final code, and warned that beginning June 1, preview-equipped PCs will automatically reboot every two hours.

Mozilla extends Firefox 1.5 support to mid-May

Mozilla Tuesday extended support for its 17-month-old Firefox 1.5.0.x browser until mid-May, citing the need to roll out a patch that will automatically update users to the newer Version 2.0 before it pulls the support plug.

OpenDNS launches free browser shortcuts

OpenDNS, a San Francisco-based company that claims to offer faster Internet speeds to users who redirect traffic through its domain name server "nameservers," Monday began offering free customizable browser address keywords.

Microsoft: No patch yet for DNS Server bug

Microsoft's security team it is still working on a patch for a critical bug in the company's server software.

Dell relents, offers Windows XP as consumer option

Dell on Thursday bowed to pressure from customers and dumped its Vista-only policy for consumer PCs by adding Windows XP as operating option on half-a-dozen machines.

Speculators snap up Virginia Tech-related domains

Speculators have registered Web domains related to the Virginia Tech killings, including URLs such as vatechshooting.com and vtmurders.com. Some are for sale for as much as $US1 million.