Windows source code leak

Microsoft has confirmed that portions of the source code for two versions of Windows have been leaked onto the Internet. Reuters reports that the breach could give hackers intelligence about how to exploit flaws in its software.

Microsoft spokesman Tom Pilla said incomplete portions of Windows 2000 and NT 4.0 source code were illegally made available on the Internet. Pilla said Microsoft did not yet know how much, but said the company was investigating.

AP reports that online search engine Google has banned advertisements placed by an environmental group. The ads criticise the way in which a major cruise line, the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, "pollutes the oceans by improper sewage treatment procedures".

Both Google and Royal Caribbean denied there was any pressure applied to remove the ad. Google`s policy prohibits ads criticising other groups or companies, said a spokesman.

Reuters reports that the world`s largest computer maker, IBM, and Cisco Systems have announced they would tailor their security technology for computers and communications networks to work better together and make it easier for users to protect their data and beat viruses.

The companies said the agreement is part of a long-term alliance which last year led to IBM modifying its data storage software so that it would work better with Cisco storage switches.

Just in time for Valentine`s Day, Love Detector provides a convenient readout of the emotional temperature of a conversation on a scale from five (hot) to minus one (much less hot), reports AP.

Connect your phone to a Windows PC running the $49.95 Love Detector, and the program will rate the amount of love in the voice of whomever you talk to.

The program runs 8 000 mathematical formulae to divine 16 emotional parameters. The reporter tested it surreptitiously on some people on the phone, and it "sure didn`t give any false positives".

V Entertainment, the manufacturer, says the detector is 96% accurate and works in any language and culture.