by Arie Slob

Dear Windows-Help.NET subscriber, Yes, it's that time of the year again! I know that not all of you "celebrate" Christmas, but most do, so from here I want to wish you happy Holidays and all the best for 1999! (and try to spend some time with the family instead of your PC!) This Newsletter will not be published next week - as even I am going to try and spend some time with my family - the next issue should be out in the week of January 2-5, 1999. Microsoft announced this week it will appeal the preliminary injunction which forced it to comply with Sun Microsystems' version of the Java programming language, although Microsoft already moved to comply. More information can be found in the Newsletter of 12 December 1998. On the other front, the judge presiding over the Microsoft antitrust trial said earlier this week that the proposed merger of America Online and Netscape Communications "could have an immediate effect on the definition of the market." Microsoft was quick to seize the moment. Mark Murray, a Microsoft spokesman had this to say: "We believe the AOL-Netscape-Sun deal demonstrates that competition is alive and well in this industry and that the government's attempts to regulate this industry are always five steps behind. All three companies sent representatives to testify that they could not compete against Microsoft but now they are joining forces." The trial now stands in recess until the 4th of January, when the government is expected to call William Harris, chief executive of Intuit (Quicken), as a witness. Last week I wrote about the Windows 98 Year 2000 (Y2K) update. Since then I've noticed that many people have problems downloading this update. In fact, I was unable to do so myself, until I followed some steps I have since outlined in an article on the Windows 98 Tips & Tricks site: Make sure that you are not running any programs when you access the Windows Update site. Press [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [Del]. This will bring up a Close Program box. You should only have Explorer and Systray running (if you are connected to the Internet, you also have Rnaapp running). Stop all other tasks by pressing the End Task button. I also removed any references to failed installations from the WULog.txt file, which is located in the \Windows folder. For people who receive all kinds of errors while trying to access the Windows Update Site, try some solutions from another document on the Windows 98 Tips & Tricks site.

Seasonal Screensavers, Music, and More
Computing Central has your favorite screensavers for the holiday season, fun files and games, and even music to make the season merrier!

Iomega Releases 250MB Zip
Iomega this week released a 250MB version of the popular ZIP drive. Existing 100MB Zip disk users who want to use the 250MB disks will have to go out and buy a new drive however - the 250MB disk is not compatible with the 100MB drive. The 250MB drive can read/write 100MB disks.

Clarion Launches AutoPC
Clarion launched the AutoPC, powered by Microsoft Windows CE, with voice technology for drivers to control features and services which include: a customizable high-end digital audio system including AM/FM tuner and CD player, personal contact information, navigation system, and the capability to synch up with a Windows CE-based Handheld PC or Palm-size PC.

MSNBC News Alert
Windows users: Stay on top of the world with this tool from MSNBC. It alerts you with a flashing icon on your toolbar whenever there's breaking news. The download size is less than 51KB, so it should take well under a minute on a 28.8 modem.

News Alert brings you breaking news from MSNBC, the latest technology updates from ZDNN Tech News, and stock alerts from MSN Investor. You can customize News Alert to get the information you're interested in. For more details, visit the News Alert help page.

Industry related news headlines