OSOpinion: “Overwriting a copy of Windows with the same CD — or even a copy borrowed from a friend — is something Microsoft would love dearly to collect a copyright fee for. Yet Microsoft products are so decrepit and unreliable, it is almost guaranteed that reinstallations will be necessary; if not to preserve the product, then certainly to restore its original performance by producing a clean Registry and an untangled file structure. Should Microsoft’s waiver of warranty in its shrinkwrap license or its online license allow it the right to charge you for the “right” to repair what you have paid for already? I say NO. A copy is not a copy, if it does not result in an additional copy.” –Kelly McNeill

Today the guys at Slashdot are blustering about what they call Mozilla Milestone 4,734,018 – oh, and an interview with Mitchell Baker of mozilla.org.

OSOpinion: “There’s nothing that makes me more proud to see Americans willing to stand up for justice. However there’s nothing more disheartening than pseudo-intellectual, self-righteous socialist hypocrites suggesting that vandalism and arson against the high-tech entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley is warranted to make up for the inequity of their good fortune.” –Kelly mcNeill

The US Senate voted 95-0 to ban the on-line sale of alcohol, reports Wired.

Australian IT reports on Sun CEO Scott McNealy’s comments to the Australian Government about the problem of brain drain.

Info World is reporting that the FCC has opened an additional 50MHz of bandwidth to wireless devices, and is considering opening a second set of 50MHz.

LinuxPR is reporting that VA Linux is preinstalling Debian GNU/Linux on their 2U servers. (Full disclosure: VA Linux owns NewsForge.)

A Federal court Judge in the US has approved an Indianapolis law that will prevent minors from playing violent or sexually explicit games without parental approval. The story at MSNBC.

ZDNet reports that Sony has launched its second generation of robotic pet, the ERS-210, successor to the Aibo.

Copmuter News Daily discusses the advent of the Chief Privacy Officer, a relatively new post in corporations that has been adopted by several companies recently.