June 27, 2002

Online bookseller Amazon.com Inc. launched a Canadian version of its site on Tuesday. The new site, Amazon.ca, lists all prices in Canadian dollars and offers local shipping from Canada Post.  The local big box bookstores are upset and are trying to get the fedual government to help them stop this, but I predict they are going to lose. If Indigo Books & Music chief executive Heather Reisman feels she can't compete in the market, then she will use the government.  My advice to Ms. Reisman is get a better website!  Fact is I buy from Amazon now, because of the selection, and convenience. I pay more for shipping and in US funds. Here is a free tip, offer same day delivery where you can.  Use a courier, charge extra...give the consumer more of what they want, and they will buy from you. 9:48:05 PM

Found on Voice from the Commonwealth, an excellent rebuttal of Desmond Tutu's anti-Israel/Judaism rant. Apartheid was a racial policy that distinguished all blacks and "browns" from those of European descent and limited their rights. Israel has 1.25 million citizens who are Jews originating in Middle Eastern, Asian and African nations, and another million who are Muslim and Christian of Arab ancestry, fully 37.5 percent of the population in Israel. They enjoy full and equal rights regardless of ethnicity or religious belief. Ninety-five percent of the population is literate and life expectancy is nearly 79 years. 2:44:49 PM

Microsoft disclosed Wednesday that it has found three security flaws — one critical — in its popular Internet audio and video software.  The flaws were found in Windows Media Player versions 6.4, 7.1 and in its newest Windows XP operating system. The most serious flaw can allow an attacker access to the user's system with the ability to add, change or delete data and perform other functions.  The company has posted on its Web site a software "patch" for users to download. 12:40:27 PM

World Cup pandemonium broke out Thursday in South Korea after a major radio station broadcast that Germany had been disqualified from the World Cup final against Brazil and South Korea would play instead.  Shoppers in department stores cheered and World Cup organizers were flooded with phone calls after TV actress Choi Hwa-Jung wrongly announced that Germany had been disqualified after a player failed a drug test. But the raptures soon turned to anger. 12:38:57 PM

The corruption of the U.N. is so accepted, that when Israel asks them, in their role as administrators of the refugee camps, to help stop the suicide attacks, it is seen as a "clear bid to embarrass " an institution Israel has long seen as biased" [ Occam's Toothbrush ] 11:42:24 AM

Court rejects appeal in eBay fraud suit. A California appeals court affirms a previous court ruling that the online auction site can't be held liable for the sale of fake sports memorabilia on its site. [CNET News.com] 10:12:44 AM

Your inbox is awash in spam, your boss is chuckling over your credit report, and you've got a sneaking suspicion that Uncle Sam counts how many Löwenbräu you chug. Yes, your privacy's shot to hell, and you're tempted to shrug and settle for an open source life. But privacy isn't like virginity, forever lost after the first trespass. With some work, "reprivatization" is possible. Use this three-tiered guide to pick a level of solitude. But be warned: Going all the way off the grid is more Ted Kaczynski than Howard Hughes. [ Wired.com ] 8:06:36 AM

TechNews.com. WorldCom Inc. said last night it had improperly accounted for $3.8 billion in expenses and would restate its financial results for the last five quarters. The company fired a top financial officer and accepted the resignation of another, and sources said the Justice Department had begun a criminal investigation. [Daypop Top News Stories] 6:56:33 AM