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Microsoft

Microsoft Fined In India For Using "Money Power" Against Pirates 204

bhagwad writes "The Delhi High Court has found Microsoft guilty of using money and influence to make it expensive to defend against piracy cases. According to the judge, 'When the constitution of India provides equality before law, this equality has to be all pervasive and cannot be allowed to be diluted because of money power or lobbying power.' Furthermore, the judge said that Microsoft had to deposit a certain amount of money beforehand, and, if they lost the case, the money would go to the defendants for their legal and travel expenses. For icing on the cake, the court also appointed a commissioner to probe the matter further and ordered Microsoft to pay the costs. In an age where muscled corporations harass the ordinary person through expensive litigation, it's highly pleasurable to see them rapped for it by a judge."
GNU is Not Unix

MS Pulls Windows 7 Tool After GPL Violation Claim 186

Sam notes an Ars story on Microsoft pulling the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool from the Microsoft Store website after a report indicating that the tool incorporated open source code in a way that violated the GNU's General Public License. Whether the software giant is actually violating the GPL, a widely used (including by the Linux kernel) free software license, is not confirmed. "We are currently taking down the Windows USB/DVD Tool from the Microsoft Store site until our review of the tool is complete," a Microsoft spokesperson told Ars. The fact the company pulled the tool doesn't bode well, so we'll have to watch closely to see what the company puts back on its servers.
Microsoft

Submission + - Microsoft banned from selling Word (computerworld.com) 3

priyank_bolia writes: "It sounds like a joke. But, it's real and it's anything but a joke for Microsoft. Judge Leonard Davis, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, has issued an injunction (PDF link) that "prohibits Microsoft from selling or importing to the United States any Microsoft Word products that have the capability of opening .XML, .DOCX or DOCM files (XML files) containing custom XML.""
Databases

Oracle Beware — Google Tests Cloud-Based Database 123

narramissic writes "On Tuesday, the same day Google held a press event to launch its Google Apps Sync for Microsoft Outlook, the company quietly announced in its research team blog a new online database called Fusion Tables. Under the hood of Fusion Tables is data-spaces technology, which would 'allow Google to add to the conventional two-dimensional database tables a third coordinate with elements like product reviews, blog posts, Twitter messages and the like, as well as a fourth dimension of real-time updates,' according to Stephen E. Arnold, a technology and financial analyst. 'So now we have an n-cube, a four-dimensional space, and in that space we can now do new kinds of queries which create new kinds of products and new market opportunities,' said Arnold, whose research about this topic includes a study done for IDC last August. 'If you're IBM, Microsoft and Oracle, your worst nightmare is now visible.'"
Transportation

Submission + - SPAM: Tata OneCat compressed air car by 2009 1

talkingclipboard writes: "Tata Motors plans to launch the OneCat, a car running on compressed air by 2009. The car is expected to be a five-seater with a glass fiber body, which would weigh just 350 kg and cost just about Rs 2 lakh. The project is backed for an undisclosed sum by Tata, which says it may also use the technology for power generation. A BBC report has pointed out that Tata's backing makes the idea much more marketable and that the Indian company will be putting finishing touches to the engine."
Link to Original Source

Comment Re:very cheap + little material =unsafe (Score 1) 242

Ignorance + No Facts + wrong attitude towards citizens of other country = people like you.
Tata is one of the world's most trusted brand ahead of Microsoft, Google, Intel. I could say the same for these american companies, as you said for Tata. Regarding Nano, its one of the most safest car, certified by tens of agencies and reviewed worldwide.
Tata Motors will offer a version of the Nano with these safety-features, including an airbag system in its electric version[citation needed]. The Nano has an all sheet-metal body made from Japanese and Korean steel, with safety features such as crumple zones, intrusion-resistant doors, seat-belts, strong seats and anchorages, and the rear tailgate glass bonded to the body. Tires are tubeless.
Microsoft

Submission + - India Rejects Microsoft's OOXML Format (efytimes.com) 2

priyank_bolia writes: "Thursday, March 20, 2008: The BIS LITD 15 Committee has rejected Microsoft's document format OOXML. According to sources, out of 19 members, five of them did not attend the meeting, one of them abstained, five voted in favour of OOXML and the rest voted against. The meeting took place today in Delhi at the BIS office.
Microsoft has released a statement which says, "While we are disappointed with the decision of the BIS LITD 15 committee, we are very encouraged by the support of IT industry players like NASSCOM, TCS, Wipro and Infosys who voted in favour of Open XML becoming an ISO standard. Further, the Indian Government, industry stalwarts and trade bodies have supported multiple standards and technology neutrality. We will therefore continue to work with the Government to address any concerns they may have; and to achieve its stated goal of technology neutrality. We are committed to working towards what is best for the Indian IT industry.""

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