Knock us over with a feather. Microsoft's Windows XP will not support Intel-backed USB 2.0, but will support Apple-backed Firewire. Sure, Firewire is a standard (IEEE 1394) and not one of Apple's pet projects, but who woulda thunk it?

Email and donor information for the California Democratic Party were exposed due to a bug in the web server. The bug revealed contact information and credit card numbers of 54 donors.

This chart of Rhythms NetConnections may make you ask the same questions as Andrew Tobias, "Why Does Anyone Listen to Analysts?" A follow-up article included this comment from Toby Gottfried: "Rather than, COMPANY EARNINGS FALL BELOW ANALYST EXPECTATIONS, STOCK DROPS, shouldn't those headlines read, ANALYST ESTIMATES EXCEED COMPANY EARNINGS, ANALYSTS FIRED?" AndrewTobias.com is one of my daily reads, and I also recommend Tobias's book, The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need. Hey, and I'm not getting paid to say any of that. I think he's a very smart and sensible financial advisor.

I attended a Kurt Vonnegut speech last night. Another smart and sensible person. Vonnegut is a self-described Luddite who still uses a typewriter instead of a word processor. He compared the Internet to a pernicious form of LSD. I didn't realize it, but he briefly attended my alma mater and is the honorary president of the American Humanists Association. If you haven't already, read Cat's Cradle or Slaughterhouse Five (available at the usual places).

Security researchers have discovered a flaw in Alcatel cable modems.

Some Nokia phones won't work on high speed wireless networks planned by Sprint and Verizon.

eFront has been kicking web sites off of its free hosting services as its own fortunes dwindle.

The Kyocera QCP-6035 is another attempt at a cell phone/Palm OS hybrid.

A judge has ordered the current owner of sex.com to return the domain to its original owner and pay a US$65 million settlement.

Financials

Motorola posted its first loss in 15 years.

Critical Path fired 450 employees, including their president and other executives.

Ted Turner is considering cutting ties to AOL Time Warner. The media mogul, who is the largest shareholder in the conglomerate, is unsatisfied with his decreasing role in the company.

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