Top Items:

New exploit blows by fully patched Windows XP systems — We saw a new nasty exploit yesterday around 5:00 PM. This is a totally new exploit and is not the same one posted by FrSIRT back on 11/30/05. — We have a number of sites that we have found with this exploit. Different sites download different spyware.
Discussion:
Ed Bott's Windows Expertise, F-Secure, Scobleizer, Geek News Central …, Tech.Life.Blogged and TechBlog
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New Apple products will be ODM by Quanta and Asustek — Apple computer will adopt Intel processor next year. According to the understanding, the ODM order of new Apple notebook has been obtained by Quanta and Asustek. — It will help increasing the total production of first quarter next year for both companies.
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INTERVIEW: FOR AOL/GOOGLE, THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS — I had a good conversation with Marissa Mayer this morning, who had the unfortunate task of clarifying the terms of Google's recent deal with AOL. I say unfortunate for two reasons: one, I did sort of call her out after her post went up …
Discussion:
Niall Kennedy's Weblog
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Why Bloggers Need Google's Help? — The Blog Plagiarism post has resulted in a wide ranging conversation - and well, now I can point to two that make a lot of sense and bring up different issues. Mike over at Techdirt thinks me flipping out is a pointless. Its a battle one cannot win perhaps?
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VH1, iFilm unspooling 'Web Junk' — MTV Networks' VH1 is launching the first programming initiative to result from the company's $49 million purchase of online video aggregator iFilm in October. — "Web Junk 20" is a weekly show based on clips and shorts that will be shown on VH1 and on-demand via VH1's broadband network VSpot.

Geek to Live: Top underrated apps of 2005 — Last week I pointed out 2005's best apps - and most of my choices were pretty obvious. (Flickr and Gmail, anyone?) Today I'd like to shout out a few great desktop and webapps that you may not have heard of or taken the time to try out.

Podcasts: A guy thing? — Chances are, if you've recorded a podcast in the last year, the people listening in were men. — A survey in December by Podtrac, a company that aims to connect podcasters and advertisers, showed that 78 percent of those who have ever listened to a podcast are male.

Winners and Losers 2005 — What were the best and worst tech stories of the year? Our expert separates the good from the bad. In some cases, they're the same. — It was the best of years, it was the worst of years. In fact, 2005 was a lot like any other year, only for some reason it seemed longer than most.

Yahoo! Acquisitions since Overture — I had started a list of Yahoo! acquisitions a little before my recent post about Google purchases, when someone asked earlier this month at Cre8asite Forums about the companies that Yahoo! had bought. While working on this list for Yahoo!, I was sidetracked, and wrote the Google post.

Is Windows Vista too protective? — One of the most intriguing new features in Windows Vista is a major change in the way user accounts work. Windows XP allows accounts to reside in either the Administrators group (where they have full control over the system, including the ability to install …

Most Predictable Stories of 2005 — Technology news can both surprise and dumbfound. Take the announcement that a researcher found a way to fight cancer with carbon nanotubes. Or the still head-scratching news that auction giant eBay paid up to $4.1 billion to acquire Skype, the mostly free internet phone service.
Discussion:
All Points Blog

Yahoo Showing Free CBS Sitcoms — CBS made two of its sitcoms available as free streaming downloads on a Yahoo Web site yesterday, marking the television network's entry into Web-based distribution under a model that differs from what its competitors are doing with their shows.
Discussion:
Somewhat Frank

A brief John Carmack interview — A couple of months ago, I was contacted by the US mobile games publisher, Jamdat, now owned by EA. Their PR person explained that John Carmack had [been contractually obliged] kindly agreed to answer a few emailed questions from selected games writers …

10 Deals the New Year May Bring — Time Warner sells AOL? Yahoo grabs Netflix? SBC connects with BellSouth? They're just some of the possibilities investors should be watching for in 2006 — A powerful wave of mergers and acquisitions surged through the economy in 2005 …
Discussion:
PaidContent.org

Say Hello to Stanley … Sebastian Thrun is sitting in the passenger seat of a 2004 Volkswagen Touareg that's trying to kill him. — The car hurtles down a rutted dirt road at 35 miles per hour somewhere in the Mojave Desert, bucking and swerving, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Discussion:
Smart Mobs