Sales Help Narrow Loss for Sotheby's (Reuters) Reuters - International auctioneers Sotheby's\Holdings Inc.  on Tuesday said its third-quarter loss\narrowed slightly on higher sales.


US Consulate Bombing Suspect Arrested in Pakistan Pakistani authorities have arrested the alleged mastermind of a deadly bombing near the US Consulate in Karachi two years ago, but another key member of his network is still on the run, a senior official said today.


Colombia explodes 6,800 land mines as victims look on BOGOTA -- Colombia's armed forces blew up 6,800 stockpiled land mines yesterday as President Alvaro Uribe, Queen Noor of Jordan, and dozens of mine blast victims watched on large screens, launching an effort aimed at ridding the country of the weapons.


Mobile Boohoo for Sohu Chinese net stock Sohu.com (Nasdaq: SOHU) dropped by 10 on Friday after the company announced that its multimedia messaging services with China Mobile Communication had been temporarily suspended for a year. The sanctions were ...


Round Two: US, EU Subsidy Battle Heats Up WASHINGTON, DC / BRUSSELS, Belgium - 10/09/04 - The bell has rung on Round Two in the fight between the US and the European Union on the issue of commercial aircraft production subsidies.


Tendulkar bats, but hopes look slim Sachin Tendulkar, left, has a friendly chat with Shane Warne during yesterday #39;s practice session at Mumbai #39;s Brabourne Stadium.


PIMCO hit with \$50M fund settlement The PIMCO mutual fund group has agreed to pay \$50 million to settle fraud charges involving improper rapid dealing in mutual fund shares, the US Securities and Exchange Commission said Monday.


Microsoft to back customers in infringement cases Nearly all its customers will be indemnified against claims that their use of Microsoft software infringed on any intellectual property claims.


US rate hike seen as Fed meets WASHINGTON: The Federal Open Market Committee, the rate-setting panel for the US Federal Reserve, began its deliberations Wednesday with a rate hike widely expected.


Students for security For the second year, the Department of Homeland Security awarded more than a hundred math, science and engineering students full tuition and a monthly stipend to pursue academics aimed at improving the nation's security. Security Blog


Safin gains first title in two years Marat Safin won his first title in two years, beating Mikhail Youzhny 7-6 (4), 7-5 Sunday in an all-Russian final. Safin, a former US Open champion who has been struggling since an injury-plagued 2003, advanced to No.


Mladin Does the Double Yoshimura Suzukis Mat Mladin swept both races of the Suzuki Superbike Showdown at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, the points tally the best he could hope for heading into the final


Report Shows Universities Curtailing Online Piracy By ALEX VEIGA    LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Despite evidence that sharing music and movies online remains popular, a report issued Tuesday by a committee of entertainment and university leaders says universities have made strides the past year to curtail online piracy.    The report, submitted to Congress by the Joint Committee of the Higher Education and Entertainment Communities, highlights steps taken by the universities to tackle Internet piracy but offers few details of their effectiveness...


Millions of Dell power adapters recalled About 4.4 million AC adapters sold worldwide with Dell notebooks between September 1998 and February 2002 were recalled Friday. Dell sold the adapters with its Latitude, Inspiron and Precision series of computers, as well as separately.


Cancer Dominates N.C. Senate Campaign (AP) AP - A surprise fight over breast cancer threatens to eclipse tobacco and trade as issues in the final week of a down-to-the-wire fight for the North Carolina seat in the U.S. Senate being vacated by Democratic running mate John Edwards.


Viruses keep on growing The volume of worms and viruses is increasing, but the rate of successful attacks has dropped, according to a new report from Symantec.


Juniper adds security software support Juniper Networks is making a big push into SSL security. The company on Monday updated its NetScreen Secure Access SSL VPNsecurity appliance that further integrates it with end-point security software packages. Juniper also announced a new initiative with several companies to provide better security across a network.


Bush author says White House applying pressure over book (AFP) AFP - Writer Kitty Kelley has accused the White House of putting pressure on her and the US media over the new biography on the family of President George W. Bush


Gateway to repurchase stock from America Online Computer maker Gateway Inc. Tuesday said it has agreed to repurchase stock held by America Online Inc. for \$316 million. AOL, which is a unit of media and entertainment company Time Warner


Iraqi Rebels Leave Najaf Shrine, Hand in Weapons (Reuters) Reuters - Shi'ite fighters left the Imam Ali\Mosque in Najaf Friday and began turning in their weapons,\after tens of thousands of pilgrims celebrated a peace\agreement that ended a bloody rebellion.


Motorola in 3-year contract extension with Nextel Motorola said on Thursday it has extended for three years a deal to supply Nextel Communications with telecommunications equipment, allaying fears that Sprint buyout of Nextel would threaten the relationship.


Guidant Shares Up on J J Deal Report  CHICAGO (Reuters) - Shares of medical device maker Guidant  Corp. GDT.N jumped on Tuesday after a report saying the  company was in advanced talks to be acquired by health products  maker Johnson   Johnson JNJ.N for more than \$24 billion.


EU boss considers several changes The embattled new EU Commission chief tells the BBC he might make several changes to his team.


Report: Michael Jackson Not 'Manhandled' LOS ANGELES - The state attorney general's office has concluded that Michael Jackson was not "manhandled" by sheriff's deputies who took him into custody last year on child molestation charges, CBS News reported Sunday.    The findings were contained in a three-page letter Martin A...


Westwood takes lead in South Africa Lee Westwood led the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa Saturday with a score of 5-under-par 211 for three rounds. The British player shot a 1-under 71 for a one-shot lead over Retief Goosen of South Africa.


Marines update core logistics technology The U.S. Marine Corps is replacing aging supply chain systems with Oracle software to better serve combat troops.


Germany #39;s Six Institutes Expect Growth to Slow to 1.5 in 2005 German economic growth will slow next year as foreign demand for goods and services cools and consumers hesitate to increase spending, the country #39;s six leading economic research institutes said.


Curtains for Poe: Da King is dead; long live Da King A MEMBER of the Philippine royal family in the movies moved on to the Great Beyond midnight Monday (December 14), sending his hordes of fans in mourning.


Stocks: Stocks rise as investors bet on profit reports NEW YORK Stocks rose modestly in light trading on Monday as investors awaited the impending tide of third-quarter profit reports, hopeful the news would override worries about record oil prices and a sputtering US economic recovery.


Dell flirting with AMD #39;s 64-bit processors Chief Executive Kevin Rollins from Dell said that the company was considering using AMD #39;s chips for some future server products, maybe in the first half of 2005.


Google Froogle Adds Product Reviews Google Froogle Adds Product Reviews\\Almost at the end of the Holiday online shopping season (unless you're going overnight delivery) Google has broken the mold of their Froogle shopping comparison search engine (not the Jello mold, but the Beta mold) and added 3rd Party product reviews.\\Google said that the product reviews ...


Microsoft focuses on camera connections Software giant announces new tools for plugging digital cameras into PCs.


X Prize sponsors plan other prizes Sponsors of the \$10 million (euro8.13 million) Ansari X Prize, which helped propel a privately built manned rocket into space this week, announced Thursday a plan to offer other prizes to spur innovation in other fields.


Senators Urge Bush to Rethink Iraq Policy (AP) AP - Senators from both parties urged the Bush administration on Sunday to make a realistic assessment of the situation in Iraq and adjust its policies aimed at pacifying the country.


SportsNetwork Game Preview (Sports Network) - Carlos Beltran may be the newest Killer B in Houston #39;s lineup, but right now he is also the most feared hitter on the Astros.


Greenspan: US Banks in Good Shape The top US central banker says the country #39;s banking system has weathered a recession and major corporate bankruptcies, and emerged  quot;strong, vibrant and profitable.


Blockbuster offers \$700m for rival  DALLAS -- Blockbuster Inc. , facing new attacks from big retailers and online operators, has offered \$700 million for rival Hollywood Entertainment Corp. in a bid to combine the two biggest players in the movie-rental industry.


Renegade warlord arrested and brought to the capital following <b>...</b> A renegade Afghan warlord has been arrested and brought to the capital by the central government, just weeks after his troops clashed


UAL Corp. Begins to Seek Bankruptcy Exit Financing United Airlines has begun reaching out to potential lenders for financing to leave bankruptcy, the company said on Friday. The UAL Corp.


Sybase offers free ASE license for Linux Sybase Inc. is trying to lure businesses seeking low-cost open source DBMS alternatives by offering a free production license for its Adaptive Server Enterprise Express Edition on Linux.


Theme park Leave it to the greatest rivalry in sports to nearly turn a lovefest into an alley fight.


Can RealNetworks Play Losses For Gain? NEW YORK - This is how serious the competition for digital music customers has become: RealNetworks will widen its losses in the hope of upgrading users to its premium subscription service.


Wheeling-Pitt raises \$100 million Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corp. closed \$100 million Wednesday from a public stock offering. The steelmaker offered 3.65 million shares of common stock at \$29 per share.


Congressional Republicans to Push Stem-Cell Issue (Reuters) Reuters - California voters' approval of a  #36;3\billion ballot measure this week to fund controversial\stem-cell research gives new life to a similar effort in the\U.S. Congress, moderate Republicans said on Thursday.


Hostage crisis unites French communities The Muslim community in France has supported the government ban on headscarfs, but, asks Hugh Schofield in Paris, was that unity based on fear of a backlash?


This isn #39;t same Lion Heart, trainer says Trainer Patrick Biancone says the Lion Heart who will try to get 1 1/4 miles in Saturday #39;s Travers is not the same Lion Heart who failed to get the same distance in the Kentucky Derby 17 weeks ago.


Home Theater Maker Kaleidescape Hit with Copyright Suit Gartner #39;s research indicates that US consumers have certain expectations as to what fair use really is.  quot;When we #39;ve surveyed teens and adults, we #39;ve found that at least 60 percent of both groups


Thompson out for a month Celtic have confirmed they expect midfielder Alan Thompson to be out for between four and six weeks. The player was carried off during Wednesday night #39;s defeat by AC Milan in the San Siro with a hamstring injury.


AP: Iran Nuke Fuel Program Starts at Mine (AP) AP - Iran's campaign to control the nuclear fuel cycle starts deep under this barren patch of desert, in a mine that engineers expect to start yielding uranium ore in less than two years.


U.N. Demands Iran Halt Uranium Enrichment VIENNA, Austria - For the first time, 35 nations in the U.N. atomic watchdog agency demanded Saturday that Iran freeze all work on uranium enrichment - a technology that can be used for nuclear arms - and said they would judge Tehran's compliance in two months...


Intel Warning Counters Jobs Data Hopes  LONDON (Reuters) - Speculation that August's U.S. jobs  report could surprise on the upside has lent sagging global  stock markets some support this week and dampened buoyant bond  markets.


Resignations jolt India #39;s Reliance A rift between the Ambani brothers who run India #39;s Reliance conglomerate appeared to spill into the boardroom of power utility Reliance Energy Ltd.


Pakistan holds al-Qaeda suspects Pakistan says 11 alleged militants have been arrested since security forces killed leading al-Qaeda suspect Amjad Farooqi on Sunday.


Ireland tries to get UK hostage #39;s release The Irish government has stepped up its efforts to free the British hostage in Iraq, Ken Bigley, whose mother is from Ireland, by talking to diplomats from Iran and Jordan.


European Leaders in Rome for EU Constitution Signing At an historic ceremony in Rome on Friday, European leaders signed the treaty establishing the EU Constitution. Before it takes effect, however, the document must be ratified by all member states -- a process expected to take about two years.


Livewire: Back to School Means Back to Advergames  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Back to school for many kids means  "back to Internet access" in classes where the best of  filtering software is not foolproof, particularly against  seemingly harmless Web sites used for invasive marketing.


Nine arrested after Australian island riot protesting against the death of a man in custody burnt down a police station, police residence and a courthouse. northeast coast, said Queensland state police minister Judy Spence.


Pakistani Islamists rally against custodial killing, raids on seminaries (AFP) AFP - Thousands of Islamists demonstrated across Pakistan after Friday prayers against the death of a cleric in detention over suspected links to Al Qaeda and against raids on seminaries.


MLB: Chicago White Sox 7, Texas 4 Carl Everett homered and scored two runs Monday to lead the Chicago White Sox to a 7-4 victory over the Texas Rangers. Jason Grilli (1-1) worked in 5 2/3 innings to earn his


Vibrator shuts down Australian airport (AFP) AFP - Hundreds of airline passengers suffered disruption to their travel plans when a major regional airport was shut down for an hour after a humming and vibrating adult sex toy was mistaken for a bomb.


E-vote critics urge changes to system With less than six weeks to go before the Nov. 2 presidential election, voting activists said officials still have time to set up a paper trail as a counterweight to an e-voting system they portrayed as wide open to manipulation.


Vikings #39; McCombs openly lobbying for move -- or maybe he #39;ll cash <b>...</b> His team has a 5-1 record, his franchise quarterback is having an MVP-type season and his fan base is energized by the prospect of a Super Bowl run.


SBC to Use WiFi Network to Extend Cingular Reach (Reuters) Reuters - SBC Communications Inc.  will\use its growing roster of public Wi-Fi access points as a\springboard for Cingular Wireless services, including advanced\phones and voice services using Internet technology.


Wind carries GM pollen record distances Pollen from a genetically modified grass has blown on the wind and pollinated other grasses up to 21 kilometres away, says a new study.


Manmohan pays tributes to RN Goenka Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described media baron Ram Nath Goenka as  quot;one of the pillars of the freedom movement quot;.


Before-the-Bell: JetBlue, Oracle Fall (Reuters) Reuters - Shares of JetBlue Airways Corp.\ fell nearly 8 percent in premarket trading on\Wednesday after warning that the recent hurricanes in Florida\would hurt its earnings.


Lojack makes Canada move with Boomerang buy The Westwood company is spending \$48 million to acquire Boomerang Tracking Inc., a Montreal company that operates a stolen car recovery system in Canada.


Sharon eases conditions to restart peace talks JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has indicated he is dropping a demand that Palestinians crack down on militant groups before he will resume peace talks.


Crude Oil Inventories Following Hurricane Ivan; Gas and Diesel <b>...</b> Last week, in this space, we postulated that we would see a large rebound in crude oil imports and domestic production as the recovery from Hurricane Ivan occurred in earnest, leading to a substantial increase in crude oil inventories.


Could Kinsey's Sex Research Be Done Today? When Alfred Kinsey's sexual-behavior studies were published half a century ago, the United States was shocked. The topic remains so sensitive that some scientists think Kinsey would not have been able to do his work today.


Delta clips its wings in Dallas The links between Delta Air Lines and Dallas reach all the way back to the carrier #39;s first passenger flight. On June 17, 1929, a six-seat Delta  quot;Travelair quot; flew from Dallas to Jackson, Miss.


Sponsor: Cost Savings Through Application Performance Management Try this interactive ROI Assessment tool


Zimbabwe Convicts Accused 'Mercenary' for Weapons  HARARE (Reuters) - A Zimbabwe court Friday convicted a  British man accused of leading a coup plot against the  government of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea on weapons charges,  but acquitted most of the 69 other men held with him.


BA sale of Qantas stake foreshadows alliance shakeup - analysts (AFP) AFP - British Airways (BA) said it would sell its 1.1 billion dollar (770 million US) stake in Australia's Qantas in a move seen as likely to fuel a major realignment of airline alliances.


Campbell's Soupy Results The world's biggest soup maker falls a penny short of earnings expectations.


Suicide attack kills 13 in Baghdad A suicide car bomber killed 13 people today next to the heavily fortified area in central Baghdad housing the interim government and US embassy, and eight US Marines died in combat in western Iraq.


Host riding high before facing US in key World Cup qualifier BOSTON (Ticker) -- The United States men #39;s soccer team faces Panama in a potentially contentious and definitely critical World Cup qualifying match Wednesday night in Panama City.


Villa rocked by Vassell injury Aston Villa have revealed striker Darius Vassell has suffered a broken ankle and will be out of action for an  quot;extended period quot;.


Tech's impact on sport success Sports science has allowed athletes to prepare for this Olympiad using technology beyond their predecessors' wildest dreams.


Bush campaign on defensive amid new questions on prewar Iraq intelligence (AFP) AFP - Already scrambling to make up ground lost after last week's debate, US President George W. Bush's campaign was forced further on the defensive by a report that the White House knew before invading Iraq that key intelligence on the country's alleged nuclear weapons program was questionable.


Japan to Ask U.S. to Remove Some Okinawa Bases -Paper  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan plans to ask the United States to  move some U.S. marine bases from its southernmost prefecture of  Okinawa to a location outside Japan, the daily Yomiuri Shimbun  said on Monday.


EU to pick up half AU #39;s Darfur tab The European Union has announced it will pay for more than half of the African Union #39;s peacekeeping force in Sudan #39;s Darfur region.


Rockets Blast Back Bruce Gradkowski directs six second-half touchdown drives in Toledo's 49-41 victory Tuesday night over Bowling Green, putting the Rockets in the MAC title game.


US Vows No Double Standards Over South Korea #39;s Nuclear Admissions GENEVA, Sept 10 (AFP) - The United States will treat South Korea in the same way as any other country that conducts secret nuclear research if such a case is made by the UN atomic agency, the top US arms official said on Friday.


NASA Awards Contracts for Rescue of Hubble NASA has awarded a \$330.6 million contract to the aerospace company Lockheed Martin to design and build a robot spaceship to carry replacement parts to the Hubble Space Telescope to keep it operating for another five to seven years.


Swipe hype: Debit the small stuff Dana Conneally walked into Starbucks at Faneuil Hall one recent morning in desperate need of a coffee fix. The employee at a local law firm handed his debit card to the Starbucks worker, who swiped it, then handed it back -- no signature or personal identification number required.


Stanley Swaps Doors for Locks Stanley Works tries to keep growth going by focusing on businesses that keep baddies out.


EU Leaders Poised To Offer Entry Talks To Turkey EU leaders were poised on Thursday to set a date to start accession talks with Turkey, as Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Brussels in an optimistic mood for a spate of last-minute diplomacy.


Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinian Girl Israeli troops shot and killed a 7-year-old Palestinian girl on Friday after militants fired mortar rounds at a Gaza Strip settlement, injuring four Israelis, one of them a child, officials said.


With commanding lead, Red Sox look to close deal They are the team of which the Boston Red Sox dare not speak. At least, not yet anyway. The Yankees may be somewhere on their minds, maybe even stuck in their craws.


Bomb Found in Town After Blair Visit (AP) AP - Police defused a time-bomb in a town near Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's villa on the island of Sardinia on Wednesday shortly after British Prime Minister Tony Blair finished a visit there with the Italian leader.


Asia DRAM Report:Samsung Elec To Up DRAM Output Vs Flash SEOUL (Dow Jones)--A precipitous fall in prices for flash-memory chips and anticipated demand for next-generation DDR2 dynamic random access memory chips has spurred Samsung Electronics Co.


How To Get A War-Torn Region To  #39;Shalom #39; A Palestinian farmer told of how his olive grove of 400 trees had been poisoned by Israeli settlers and his son run over and killed by a settler.


Siebel Systems Posts Quarterly Profit  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Business software maker Siebel  Systems Inc. SEBL.O on Wednesday reported a quarterly profit,  after a year-earlier net loss, helped by sales of new software.


Arson against Jews in France condemned French police are investigating an arson-caused fire at a Jewish Social Center that might have killed dozens without the quick response of firefighters.


Oil, gas prices climb Crude oil futures rose yesterday ahead of an extended weekend for traders, even though weekly government data showed rising domestic inventories of crude and distillate fuel, which includes heating oil.


Awaiting Drug Results, Hamilton Is Suspended by His Pro Team US cyclist Tyler Hamilton was suspended from his professional team yesterday and put on notice that his contract would be invalidated if he is found guilty of the drug charges against him.


Suicide Car Bomb in Baghdad; US Pounds Falluja A suicide car bomber killed at least eight people in an attack on a police checkpoint in Baghdad on Friday, after a night of US air strikes around the rebel-held city of Falluja that killed scores.


Foreign leaders commemorate centenary of Deng Xiaoping #39;s birth Top leaders of Armenia, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Moldova have paid homage to late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping on the occasion of his 100th birthday.


News Analysis: Global vote of confidence for euro FRANKFURT When they introduced the euro in 1999, the European countries that gave up their own money knew they wanted a strong, stable currency that would command their citizens #39; confidence and ease the conditions for cross-border commerce.


Tremors Under San Andreas Studied The faint tremors, which were detected beneath the town of Cholame, are similar to those discovered in the past two years in Japan and the Pacific Northwest.


UN probes reports of Rwanda attacks United Nations officials are investigating reports that Hutu extremists have attacked Rwandan villages from bases in eastern Congo.


Oil Falling as Fuel Costs Hit Economy  LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell again on Tuesday, taking  U.S. crude below \$53 a barrel, on signs that high energy costs  are slowing the economic growth that has fueled this year's  sharp increase in world oil consumption.


Peres: Israeli Extremists May Try to Kill Sharon (Reuters) Reuters - Opposition leader Shimon Peres said\Tuesday he feared Israeli extremists might try to assassinate\Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the target of growing far-right\fury over a planned withdrawal from Gaza next year.


Tuesday Morning Headache on Monday The company lowers its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings guidance.


No. 13 Maryland 84, No. 25 Memphis 61 Maryland kept stealing the ball, running for layups and hitting shots. Led by John Gilchrist, the No. 13 Terrapins dominated No. 25 Memphis.


NFL 2004: Garcia a good fit for Browns Check out any sporting goods store around town and you #39;ll find them cluttering the clearance racks: brown, white and orange No.


Briefly: Turn your fingerprints into passwords roundup Plus: IBM gives grants to universities...Sun expands pay-as-you go supercomputing...SGI works on Linux performance software.


Beckham Aiming to Play Beyond 2006 World Cup  MADRID (Reuters) - England captain David Beckham has denied  reports that he plans to retire from international soccer after  the 2006 World Cup and says he wants to play for his country as  long as possible.


Fingerprints, photographs begin at U.S. border crossings with Canada, Mexico (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - (AP) - Bridges to Mexico in this traffic-choked city began testing a new immigration security program Monday that requires some U.S. visitors to be fingerprinted and photographed as they cross the border.


Schumacher returns to his favorite stage SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium - Michael Schumacher is back at his favorite race, looking to claim a title demoralized opponents conceded to him months ago: an unprecedented seventh Formula One drivers championship.


quot;Incendiary device quot; on Virgin Blue flight Days after the event, Australian police have confirmed reports that a Sydney airport baggage handler found an  quot;incendiary device quot; in the cargo hold of a Virgin Blue jet.


Rebel cleric orders his men to lay down arms Guns were largely silent in Najaf today for the first time in weeks, after Iraq #39;s top Shiite cleric made a dramatic return to the holy city and swiftly won agreement from a rebel cleric and the government to end three weeks of fighting between his militia


Singapore Shares End Slightly Higher Singapore shares ended slightly higher Friday in a session dominated by Singapore Telecommunications Inc., which fell sharply following news of a placement of its shares by parent Temasek Holdings.


Inquiry into Fannie Mae may hike mortgage cost The rate consumers pay on a 30-year, \$200,000 home loan will likely rise 0.2 of a percentage point - an extra \$9,200 over the course of the loan - as the largest US buyer of mortgages slows growth to meet regulators #39; request to boost capital, said Kevin


Broncos Defeat Chiefs 34-24 (AP) AP - Quentin Griffin might make the Denver Broncos forget Clinton Portis after all. Griffin ran for 156 yards and scored three touchdowns in his first game as Portis' replacement, lifting the Broncos to a 34-24 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night.


NASA boss reaches for stars during San Diego appearance America #39;s new vision to regain a foothold on the moon and launch humans to Mars will require revolutionary technologies and a national tolerance for risk, danger and failure, NASA #39;s chief administrator said yesterday.


Kerr McGee Posts a Drop in Profit  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil and gas producer Kerr-McGee Corp.  KMG.N on Wednesday reported a fall in quarterly profit,  citing a writedown related to a pigment plant and higher  environmental charges.


Paul Martin Pushes For New World Forum Canada's Prime Minister Paul Martin, while attending the APEC Summit in Santiago, Chile, tried to garner support among world leaders for his idea of instantiating a new world forum, a so-called L-20 group of leaders, consisting of the G-8 countries and the leaders of about 12 other emerging economic powers like India, China, Brazil and South Korea.  As The Toronto Star reported, the animated Prime Minister Martin literally had to be yanked away by his own handlers after describing in urgent tones the need for United Nations reform and for a new forum of world leaders that he wants to create. He bemoaned Sudanese being slaughtered while the UN dithers, he interrupted several questions from reporters to elaborate further, and Saturday he waved off an aide who tried cutting off a press conference.


Sun #39;s Linux wins right to be considered in Japan Sun Microsystems has opened a second front for its Linux-based desktop operating system in Asia with a Japanese win of sorts. Sun #39;s Java Desktop System has been picked as one open source OS of preference during


NBA Insider What a disgrace Ron Artest has become. And the worst part is, the Indiana Pacers guard just doesn #39;t get it. Four days after fueling one of the biggest brawls in the history of pro sports, Artest was on national


US allies seek Palestinian solution, wider coalition in terror war (AFP) AFP - The US-led "war on terror" must include a resolution to the Palestinian question and involve a broader coalition, Washington's Asia-Pacific partners warned Saturday on the sidelines of a major summit.


Rival Targets Apple's iTunes Customers (AP) AP - For more than a year, Apple Computers Inc. enjoyed singular success selling songs exclusively to users of its iPod portable music player. Now, it's got rival RealNetworks Inc. trying to lure iTunes customers away.


Britain condemns bomb attack in Kathmandu (AFP) AFP - A visiting British deputy minister condemned the bombing by suspected Maoist rebels of an office block in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu which injured 38 people.


Bloom Will Appeal Latest NCAA Rebuff (AP) AP - Colorado wide receiver Jeremy Bloom decided Wednesday to keep fighting the NCAA for the right to accept commercial ski endorsements while playing college football.


Pakistani Strike on Terror Training Camp Kills 50 Pakistani jets pounded a suspected training facility for foreign militants in a two-hour barrage Thursday in tribal South Waziristan, killing 50 people, senior intelligence and military officials said.


Avis Europe is latest to get stung by IT Avis Europe PLC has dumped a new ERP system based on software from PeopleSoft Inc. before it was even rolled out, citing substantial delays and higher-than-expected costs.


San Francisco hotels continue lockout of unionized workers SAN FRANCISCO Fourteen hotels in San Francisco are ignoring the mayor #39;s call for a cooling-off period and are still locking out unionized workers.


Muslim girls defy French headscarf ban Dozens of Muslim girls have been disobeying the French government #39;s recent ban on wearing headscarves in public schools since the school year began last week.


EU suspends US export sanctions The European Union suspends tariffs on US imports imposed earlier this year during a bitter trade dispute.


Wenger ready to make Petit a Gunner again LONDON (AFP) - Arsenal are on the verge of handing former Highbury favourite Emmanuel Petit a short-term contract as Arsene Wenger bids to shore up the Gunners crumbling defence of their Premiership title.


Microsoft calls iPod users  #39;thieves #39; Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer doesn #39;t think Apple will lead the way to tomorrow #39;s digital home - and describes iPod users as music thieves.


Blast at Thai fireworks factory kills 14 BANGKOK - Fourteen people were killed and five injured yesterday in an explosion at a fireworks factory in Thailand #39;s ancient capital Ayuthya, officials and witnesses said.


Jan. 19 vote set in Coors, Molson deal Shareholders of Golden-based Adolph Coors Co. and Montreal- based Molson Inc. will cast ballots on the companies #39; proposed multibillion-dollar merger Jan. 19, the brewers said.


Telkom Makes  #39;Last Mile #39; Wireless Telkom and Intel announced last night that they are to trial WiMAX broadband wireless networks locally, to give the end-user wireless alternative connections to the telco #39;s network.


Tommy Hilfiger Shares Tumble on Probe  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of Tommy Hilfiger Corp. TOM.N  fell as much as 26 percent on Monday after a federal grand jury  subpoenaed documents on commissions paid to a foreign  subsidiary of the clothing maker.


BlackBerry can be bitten by DoS attacks Smart phones using older RIM software are open to remote rebooting, but the flaw's not as bad as first reported.


But seriously folks Then there are those weeks when nothing on the menu appeals to you, for whatever reason. Maybe it's too many games between bad teams (Tampa Bay at New Orleans, Arizona at San Francisco) or too many games that involve teams that can't seem to get out of their own way (Carolina, Oakland, St. Louis, Washington come to mind), but you ...


With anti-terror pledge Indonesian challenger set to win presidential election (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - A former general who has pledged to get tough on terrorism and fix the economy was headed for a landslide win over incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri in Indonesia's landmark elections Monday, according to a nationwide sampling of votes.


News: US Secret Service busts 28 ID fraudsters A US-led operation targeting ID fraud crooks has led to the arrest of 28 people across seven countries this week.\


Symbian Says Skulls May Not Be Malware Symbian Ltd., the London-based maker of the Symbian operating system used on high-end smart phones from a variety of manufacturers, says reports of malware may be premature.


Linux To Ring Up \$35 Billion By 2008 For a theoretically free operating system, Linux is -- and will continue to be -- a cash cow, a research firm said Wednesday as it predicted the OS will bring in more than \$35 billion in revenues by 2008.


Hourihan finally getting her shot in goal When Northeastern University women's hockey goalie Marisa Hourihan skated off with a 3-0 victory over Quinnipiac University on Oct. 30, the Hanover native felt she was back where she belonged.


GTA San Andreas Leaked By Pirates Rockstar #39;s PS2 title Grand Theft Auto San Andreas has become the latest high-profile game to be leaked onto the Internet significantly ahead of its release date.


Hoosiers hire Hoeppner (tops) BLOOMINGTON, Ind. Indiana has named native son Terry Hoeppner (HEHP #39;-nur) football coach. He #39;s been at Miami of Ohio for six seasons and will coach the 8-and-4 Redhawks in the Independence Bowl against Iowa State on December 28th.


Singh plans new regime to stay on top While Tiger Woods was getting married beside the waters of the Caribbean, beside the slightly chillier waters of the North Sea here the two best golfers in the world will be contesting the Dunhill Links Championship.


Ferrari first and last in qualifying Rubens Barrichello put Ferrari on pole position for race of the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix on September 25 while his teammate Michael Schumacher has to start from the back of the grid after a spin-off in Saturday #39;s qualifying.


Oil Holds Big Gains on U.S. Fuel Concerns  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices held Wednesday's 6 percent  gains on Thursday on fears over U.S. fuel supplies ahead of the  northern winter.


Cycling: Hamilton wins time trial VOULIAGMENI Tyler Hamilton of the United States won the men #39;s time trial gold medal Wednesday, beating defending champion Viatcheslav Ekimov of Russia and another American, Bobby Julich.


Milosevic denounces  #39;mutilation of justice #39; The former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic today told the war crimes tribunal in The Hague that the charges against him were  quot;a mutilation of justice quot;.


Langer expects  #39;the worst #39; Hal Sutton, at his press conference yesterday afternoon, was asked if his desperation to regain the Ryder Cup might encourage a repeat of the bad behaviour at Brookline in 1999.


Dodgers Leave the Bay with NLW Lead In a game that mirrored the 115-year history of the bitter rivalry, the Dodgers outlasted the Giants 7-4 to win a rare September series in San Francisco.


Yahoo boosts music portal (SiliconValley.com) SiliconValley.com - Yahoo, seeking to add e-commerce to its Internet music portal, will pay  #36;160 million in cash to acquire Musicmatch, a critically acclaimed but little known music jukebox and download service.


#39;Rollup #39; replaces SP5 for Windows 2000 Microsoft said it will deliver an  quot;update rollup quot; for Windows 2000 in mid-2005, rather than a final service pack for the operating system.


Fergie Roo-ing Wayne #39;s debut THIS was not the plan Sir Alex Ferguson had in mind for suppressing Wayne Rooney fever. The Manchester United boss has no doubt been wincing at the Rooney hysteria following his sensational debut hat-trick against Fenerbahce.


Winn-Dixie: Paper or Drastic? The Southeastern grocer sinks to a new low as it bows out of the S P 500.


EU Transport Commissioner Lauds Alitalia Restructuring Deal The European Union #39;s transport commissioner has praised the restructuring deal reached between Italy #39;s flagship air carrier, Alitalia, and unions representing cabin crews.


Hamas vows to keep up armed struggle Palestinian militant group Hamas vowed Tuesday to keep up its armed resistance against Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza.


\$8.8m Oracle bid nears judgment day Two major PeopleSoft Inc. shareholders yesterday indicated they would split their votes on whether to accept Oracle Corp's \$8.8 billion hostile takeover bid.


Bucs' Galloway Will Miss Four to Six Weeks TAMPA, Fla. - Tampa Bay's sputtering offense suffered a major blow Monday when the team learned receiver Joey Galloway will miss four to six weeks after aggravating a groin injury...


English newspapers make beeline for Beckham #39;s jugular Only in England could David Beckham be not so much in hot water but a bubbling volcano for admitting he deliberately got himself cautioned during England #39;s 2-0 win against Wales last Saturday.


Google IPO faces Playboy slip-up The bidding gets underway for Google's public offering, despite last-minute worries over an interview with its bosses in Playboy magazine.


Kaif recalled to bolster Indian batting India have recalled one-day specialist Mohammad Kaif in a bid to beef up their batting order for the second test against Australia starting on Thursday.


Federal employees get special treatment on car usage, say documents (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - MONTREAL (CP) - Nearly 460,000 Canadians on the federal payroll are eligible to be reimbursed tax-free for using their cars on government business, according to documents obtained by The Canadian Press.


First title for Scot tipped to be new Tim ANDREW MURRAY walked off the Arthur Ashe court at Flushing Meadow yesterday after winning the US Open boys #39; title ... and vowed to return to win the senior version.


Reports Suggest Economy Is Warming Up Industrial production and new home construction rose sharply last month, suggesting that the economy is overcoming high energy prices and rebounding from the summer slump.


Mashburn out for the entire 2004-05 NBA season Former All-Star forward Jamal Mashburn will miss the entire 2004-05 NBA season because of a knee injury that could end his career.


Ministry proposes 2,400 yen per ton carbon tax plan The Environment Ministry unveiled a carbon tax Friday to discourage use of fossil fuels and promote the use of energy-saving appliances so Japan can meet its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol.


Two men banned from Pistons #39; games Two men have been banned from events at The Palace for what the Detroit Pistons say is their involvement in last month #39;s NBA brawl.


Brazil Tribe Has Great Excuse for Poor Math Skills Some people have a great excuse for being bad at math -- their language lacks the words for most numbers, US-based researchers reported on Thursday.


R amp;SA transfers 1,000 jobs to India One of the country #39;s biggest insurance firms, Royal  amp; SunAlliance, is to transfer more than 1,000 jobs to Bangalore in India.


Microsoft launches desktop rival to Google The battle for search-technology supremacy extended to new front today when Microsoft launched a tool for finding files stored on personal computers.


The Hardest-Working Woman in the TV Biz Does Heather Locklear ever age? Or get less-than-stellar ratings? Can the old formula still work in "LAX," her new NBC series?


Bombardier axes 2,000; another 1,200 jobs at risk 1,440 of them in Montreal -- as it slows the production rate of its 50-seat Canadair regional jet to face the realities of the struggling US airline industry.


135 arrested in telemarketing-fraud investigation An international investigation has netted 135 arrests in connection with illegal telemarketing operations, many of which targeted  quot;the elderly, the needy and the vulnerable, quot; Attorney General John Ashcroft said yesterday.


Indian researcher designs revolutionary low cost PC for the poor Aug 17 - Professor Raj Reddy, an Indian researcher in artificial intelligence and a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Has designed a wirelessly networked personal computer worth just 250 US dollars intended for the four billion people around the ...


Where #39;s the Music? All Nick Freer wants is his digital music, and he #39;s even willing to pay for it. When the Hong Kong-based client-services director bought an iPod, it came with software to link with iTunes, Apple Computer #39;s


PeopleSoft v. Oracle: Game Over? (washingtonpost.com) washingtonpost.com - Talk about a great day for Oracle Corp. founder Larry Ellison.


Annan calls for urgent action over Sudan United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has opened a special session of the Security Council in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. It is the first time in 14 years that the UN Security Council has met outside New York.


Mystery blast in Baghdad A blast tore through a crowded Baghdad market close to a police station yesterday and witnesses said at least 39 people were killed.


Baghdad Needs 10,000 More Policemen - U.S. General  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. general in charge of Baghdad  said Tuesday it would be at least another eight months before  the Iraqi capital had enough police, contradicting previous  U.S. claims that numbers were sufficient.  Maj. Gen. Pete Chiarelli, whose 1st Cavalry Division is  responsible for security in Baghdad and its suburbs -- an area  of about six million people -- said there were currently about  15,000 people working for the capital's force.


Carbon to Blame for Pollution Heart Damage -Study (Reuters) Reuters - Air pollution clearly causes\immediate damage to the heart, including heart attacks, but its\short-term effects on asthma and other respiratory symptoms are\harder to document, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday.


Tyler Hamilton fired by cycling team, which is barred from pro <b>...</b> Olympic gold medalist Tyler Hamilton was fired by his cycling team two months after testing positive for blood doping. The Swiss-based International Cycling Union, or UCI, said Tuesday


Sportsview: Manning Still Needs Ring (AP) AP - Peyton Manning had barely made it to the locker room, and already the talking heads on the network NFL shows were debating his place in history.


EU foreign policy chief holds contacts with Hamas The European Union foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, has recently held a secret meeting with representatives of Palestinian movement, Hamas, it was revealed on Thursday.


Panthers' Peppers Out to Boost Sacks (AP) AP - Numbers don't define Julius Peppers. He simply won't let them. Yet they follow him, and to everyone outside of the Carolina Panthers, they seem to measure his success. A lot of sacks means a good season, a mediocre number equals a down year.


Bush Web Site Bars Overseas Visitors The Bush-Cheney reelection campaign has barred people outside the United States from viewing its Web site following an electronic attack that took down the campaign's Internet address for six hours last week, according\to computer security experts. -washingtonpost.com


Captain picks effort apart Europe 6 1/2, US 1 1/2.  quot;Well, we made some history today, quot; said Hal Sutton, the man who presided over the worst first day ever experienced by an American Ryder Cup team.


Guantanamo alert for terror hearings GUANTANAMO BAY US NAVAL BASE: US military authorities yesterday defended the special trials for war on terror detainees that start this week as they stepped up security at the Guantanamo Bay base in Cuba for the hearings.


EU ready to approve Alitalia #39;s rescue plan BRUSSELS A four-year plan to rescue Alitalia will get the approval of the European Commission, as long as it does not bank on any new money from the Italian government, the commission said Tuesday.


Taking on Sadr City in a Pickup Truck The convoy stopped in a single-file line: a half-dozen US armored military vehicles and one gray Nissan pickup truck, all of them idling in a dirt lot in the insurgent-controlled slum called Sadr City.


U.S. Treasury Debt Narrowly Mixed  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury debt was narrowly mixed  on Monday as investors proved reluctant to make any major bets  ahead of key events this week including a speech from Fed  Chairman Alan Greenspan and the crucial September jobs report.


Honda sales hit record but strong yen limits profit growth TOKYO (AFP) - Japan #39;s third-ranked automaker Honda Motor said sales hit a record high in the six months to September but the profit performance was undercut by a stronger yen while record oil prices are a problem going forward, especially in the key US


Abducted Aid Worker in Iraq Begs for Life (AP) AP - Trembling, haggard and weeping into a tissue, Margaret Hassan, the kidnapped British aid worker who has spent nearly half her life delivering food and medicine in Iraq, begged Britain on Friday to help save her by withdrawing its troops, saying these "might be my last hours."


No. 17 LSU 26, Alabama 10 LSU defensive end Marcus Spears and linebacker Cameron Vaughn combined for the go-ahead touchdown to help the No. 17 Tigers beat Alabama 26-10 on Saturday night.


On parade route, cash registers brace for workout Saturdays at Jack #39;s Drum Shop on Boylston Street are usually the slowest. But with the Red Sox victory parade passing by this morning, the shop will


Ancient bear made early migration Brown bears migrated south through North America much earlier than first thought, new research suggests.


How Consultants Can Retire on Your Pension Nowhere are the conflicts of interest for financial services conglomerates more potentially lucrative - and more obscure - than in the management of pension assets.


Buttle, Sandhu sit second and third after Grand Prix Finals short <b>...</b> BEIJING (CP) - Canadians Jeff Buttle and Emanuel Sandhu had a good start Friday at the Grand Prix figure skating finals, placing second and third behind Russian Evgeni Plushenko in the men #39;s short program.


IETF deals setback to Microsoft antispam effort SEPTEMBER 14, 2004 (IDG NEWS SERVICE) - An antispam technology proposed by Microsoft Corp. as a standard way of identifying the senders of e-mail messages suffered a blow last week when a group within the


Clarke wins Taiheiyo Masters Northern Ireland #39;s Darren Clarke fired a 4-under 68 Sunday to win the Japan Golf Tour #39;s Taiheiyo Masters. The European Ryder Cup star started the day with a four-stroke lead and widened


Safin gets free ride TOP-seeded Marat Safin advanced to the second round of the St Petersburg Open today when Austrian Alexander Peya retired with an injured ankle.


Crude oil futures flat; Saudis look to raise capacity LONDON (CBS.MW) -- The benchmark New York crude contract was little changed at \$49.44 a barrel early Monday after the Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Nuaimi said the country will raise production capacity to 12.5 million barrels per day within a few years from


Keep track of hometown heroes: ATHENS, GREECE - The tattoo on Maurice Greene #39;s biceps reads GOAT That stands for Greatest Of All Time. It was 22-year-old Justin Gatlin who blazed to victory in the heavyweight event of the Olympic Games, winning


Seattle #39;s Suzuki declines to accept top Japan government honour Hitting hero Ichiro Suzuki declined to accept a prestigious award from the Japanese government for a second time. Tokyo wanted to salute Suzuki #39;s achievement for producing the most hits in a season


Once again, Warnes bowling the wrong line Who would have believed it? That Shane Warne would act like a dumb blond and forget that he had a role to play in Australias Bangalore victory.


NASA prepares for future risk As NASA readies the space shuttle fleet to fly again, the agency #39;s risk management teams are also paying attention to risk issues that affect the International Space Station.


Qualcomm to Review Accounting Practices Qualcomm plans to study whether to change its accounting practices to reflect the growing size and volatility of the mobile communications market.


Red Hat hit by security-update email scam Red Hat is warning users that an email purporting to be a security update may contain malicious code. The email - which began appearing last Friday - uses a securityredhat.


Abandoning Computer Programs for Hands-On Rock In the studio, M83 relies largely on keyboards. But when M83 came to the Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday it looked more like a rock band.


Oil Hits \$53 on Winter Worries, Nigeria Oil prices scaled new heights at \$53 for U.S. crude Thursday on concerns over tight winter heating fuel supplies and an unexpected strike at Nigerian oil terminals.


Pyongyang threatens nuclear fire for Japan North Korea threatened yesterday to turn Japan into a  quot;nuclear sea of fire quot; if it comes under attack from the United States.


Ex-Soldiers Agree to Leave Aristide Estate Brazilian peacekeepers forced their way into a compound seized by former soldiers who ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and said they had reached an agreement for the rebels to leave the premises unarmed.


HSBC bank to go carbon neutral HSBC is the first big bank to commit to going carbon neutral as it seeks to reduce its environmental impact. Starting in 2005, it will plant trees, reduce energy use, buy green electricity and trade carbon credits to cut carbon dioxode flows.


Microsoft Readies Business-Intelligence Charge Microsoft on Wednesday unveiled new and reworked business-intelligence tools that provide capabilities ranging from self-service report building for non-techs to mining information from data flows outside of a database.


French court issues arrest warrant for Italian ex-revolutionary PARIS : The Paris appeals court issued a warrant for the arrest of Cesare Battisti, an Italian ex-revolutionary fighting extradition from France to face jail for murder who missed a recent check-in with police.


Dollar Crumbles to Record Low Vs Euro  TOKYO (Reuters) - The dollar sank to a record low against  the euro on Thursday and stood near a 12-year low versus the  pound after a round of robust U.S. economic data failed to  dispel souring sentiment on the U.S. currency.


Eagle soars above others It was a rough September for many retailers battered by hurricanes on one side and rising fuel prices on the other, but American Eagle Outfitters Inc.


Reports criticize DHS for lack of progress on IT AUGUST 20, 2004 (COMPUTERWORLD) - As the debate about adding a national intelligence director proceeds, two government reports are shedding new light on an existing dilemma: If DHS CIO Steven Cooper can #39;t wrestle the agency #39;s sprawling bureaucracy into ...


Enter a Category Red Sox fans never had the chance to boo Grady Little for letting Pedro Martinez start the eighth inning against the Yankees in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS.


Soderling beats compatriot Johansson to advance to semis Robin Soderling of Sweden beat fourth-seeded countryman Joachim Johansson 6-3, 6-4 in a quarterfinal match Friday at the Lyon Open.


Minor earthquake at Mount St. Helens A minor 3.1 magnitude earthquake split the lava dome in the crater of Mount St. Helens on Saturday, continuing a series of minor earthquakes rattling the site since October, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.


In Greece, an Inside Track for Some Costas #39; nerves are on edge. It #39;s 10:45 am, and he can #39;t get his usual frappe, a coffee-and-milk concoction that #39;s one of Greece #39;s most popular picker-uppers. Twenty-five-year-old Costas is working at the cafe in the Olympic Village international zone for ...


Google Desktop Search versus Microsoft Windows Search Google Desktop Search versus Microsoft Windows Search\\Google Desktop Search Software can't find your lost keys or tell you where you left the Tivo remote control, or that your glasses are on top of your head, where you left them. But the beta software from Google Labs is nothing short of ...


Conferees Ban Lease of Boeing Tankers  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House and Senate conferees agreed  late on Thursday to ban the leasing of aerial refueling  aircraft as part of a final deal on a \$422 billion defense  authorization bill, killing a proposed \$23.5 billion Air Force  deal with Boeing Co. BA.N, congressional sources said.


Adobe Profit Up, Shares Fall on Outlook (Reuters) Reuters - Software maker Adobe Systems\Inc. on Thursday posted a quarterly profit that rose\more than one-third from a year ago, but shares fell 3 percent\after the maker of Photoshop and Acrobat software did not raise\forecasts for fiscal 2005.


Britain moving troops nearer to insurgents LONDON -- Responding to a US request, Britain agreed yesterday to transfer 850 troops from relatively calm southern Iraq into a stronghold of the Iraqi insurgency near Baghdad.


Microsoft IE losing out to Firefox? London: Microsoft #39;s Internet Explorer(IE)is facing some stiff competition from Firefox as web analysts have revealed that the proportion of surfers using Microsoft #39;s Internet Explorer (IE) has dropped to below 90 percent.


Peru TV staff quit in Toledo row Peruvian TV journalists resign after claims of electoral fraud sparked an angry outburst by President Toledo.


ConocoPhillips to make \$2 billion equity investment in Lukoil Houston-based oil company ConocoPhillips and Russia #39;s largest oil producer, Lukoil, jointly announced Wednesday in Moscow that ConocoPhillips will become a strategic equity investor in Lukoil.


Nigerian Protection Force Arrives in Darfur  EL-FASHER, Sudan (Reuters) - An elite contingent of 50  Nigerian soldiers arrived in Darfur on Thursday aboard a U.S.  military plane, the first of 3,000 extra African Union troops  deployed to monitor a shaky cease-fire in Sudan's western  region.


Plenty of options for Washington The No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners would like the poll voters out there to understand just how difficult a task they accomplished Saturday.


Australia, Indonesia consider defense pact Australia is considering a security pact with Indonesia if incoming president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono agrees, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Monday.


Russia launches manned space mission to ISS MOSCOW. Oct 14 (Interfax) - A Soyuz TMA-5 spaceship carrying a new crew to the International Space Station (ISS) was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome with a Soyuz-FG rocket at 7:06 am on Thursday, an


Two exclusive tournaments, only one that counts The World Match Play Championship in England, which starts Thursday at Wentworth, has a roll call of champions that rivals any tournament.


Vodafone Throws Down 3G Gauntlet Forget sticking a toe in the water, Vodafone #39;s done a cannonball -- unveiling 10 handsets it #39;s got lined up for the November launch of its 3G consumer services in the UK.


Robinson issues Springbok warning New England captain Jason Robinson played down his hat-trick of tries in the 70-0 rout of minnows Canada at Twickenham on Saturday, and warned the world champions would have to up their game at home to South Africa next week.


Money from China's boom makes way into U.S. economy (SiliconValley.com) SiliconValley.com - China's role in the international economy took a big step forward this week when a plucky computer maker named Lenovo bought a majority stake in IBM's personal computer business.


Siege bodes ill for Putin Rescue a catastrophe for leader and <b>...</b> WHEN it came, the end of the siege at School No1 in the small north Ossetian town of Beslan was the worst possible outcome. It was protracted, chaotic and bloody and a catastrophe not just for the families


Cycling: Menchov wins fifth stage in Spain MORELLA, Spain : Russia #39;s Denis Menchov won the fifth stage of the Tour of Spain, a 186.5km run between Zaragoza and here. The overall race lead was claimed by Spaniard Manuel Beltran from his US Postal teammate Benoit Joachim.


Microsoft pushes out seven critical security fixes Microsoft Corp. on Tuesday released 10 software security patches for its products, including seven it deemed critical and that could allow remote attackers to take control of systems running the company's software.


NY, NY: Randolph takes over hometown team Willie Randolph hung up the phone and gave his wife a big hug. After falling short nearly a dozen times, he finally was a major league manager.


Emerson Pushes Boundaries Of IT You usually don #39;t hear executives at Oracle talk about taking outside advice. But the hard-charging company has solicited some feedback on a new round of products from an unlikely source--Emerson


Stocks Seen Flat as Oil Hits New Highs  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks looked set to open flat on  Monday, with high oil prices expected to take center stage amid  light trading volume on the Columbus Day holiday.


SA #39;s Hall seeks to pin down win South Africa all-rounder Andrew Hall warned India they should be under no illusions that the tourists are fully focused on a positive result in Kanpur.


DC's Team Will Be the Nationals  Major League Baseball's Washington, D.C. franchise finally  got a name Monday, nearly two months after the team relocated  from Montreal. Team officials, including president Tony  Tavares, also unveiled a color scheme for the team, which is  red, white and blue.


Percival Joins Tigers  DETROIT (Sports Network) - The Detroit Tigers have signed  free-agent closer Troy Percival. According to a source, the  deal is for two years and worth \$12 million.


Flash Floods in Northeastern India Kill at Least 26 Indian officials say at least 26 people have drowned in flooding in the northeastern state of Assam. The officials say the deaths occurred in the state #39;s western Goalpara district near the border with Bangladesh.


High court hears case on interstate wine shipments State laws barring people from buying wine directly from out-of-state suppliers should be struck down as unconstitutional, the Supreme Court was told Tuesday as it


Climate change already affecting the global environment, two <b>...</b> Global warming has had little noticeable impact in Washington, DC Politicians in the nation #39;s capital have been reluctant to set limits on the carbon dioxide


Norway and US share Nobel prize Finn Kydland and Edward Prescott have won the Nobel prize for economics for their work in showing how business cycles affect international trade.


Kite leads at Schwab Cup Championship SONOMA, California (Ticker) - Tom Kite kept alive his slim hopes for the Charles Schwab Cup. Kite fired an 8-under-par 64 at the Sonoma Golf Club to take the lead after Thursday #39;s opening round of the \$1 million Charles Schwab Cup Championship.


IMF says talks with Argentina to follow debt swap The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday it expects to resume formal loan talks with Argentina following the completion of the country #39;s delayed debt exchange deal with private creditors.


Bank of Montreal to expand Harris Bank of Montreal, Canada #39;s fifth largest bank, said Wednesday it plans to buy privately held Mercantile Bancorp Inc., as well as the stock of Lake Commercial Corp.


Main Points of Gaza Disengagement Plan (AP) AP - The main points of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Gaza withdrawal plan:


Artest says he wanted time off for family Ron Artest says he wanted time off from basketball to spend more time with his family and to heal his banged-up body, not to promote a new rap album, according to a broadcast report.


Southern Co. Quarterly Profit Rises  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Southern Co. SO.N, which supplies  power to the U.S. Southeast, said Thursday its third-quarter  earnings rose slightly, as increased energy use in the  industrial sector and more customers outweighed mild weather  and hurricane damage.


Appleby Takes Halfway Lead in Sun City  SUN CITY, South Africa (Reuters) - Australia's Stuart  Appleby carded a second round 69 to move to five-under par 139  and a one-stroke lead at the Sun City Golf Challenge on Friday.


US senator calls on Annan to quit Republican Senator Norm Coleman calls on UN head Kofi Annan to quit over the oil-for-food scandal.


U.S. and Russia Still Dominate Arms Market, but World Total Falls The value of all weapons deals worldwide was more than \$25.6 billion in 2003, the third consecutive year of decline.


About 100 beached whales and dolphins have died on Australian <b>...</b> HOBART, Australia Wildlife officers are trying to save about 50 whales and dolphins near the coast of a southern Australian island.


Zo seeks another comeback with Nets East Rutherford, NJ (Sports Network) - Retired NBA center and seven-time All- Star Alonzo Mourning is going to give his playing career one more shot.


Some Executives Can #39;t Take a Hint CQ quot; gt; Walt Disney Company shareholders might have done a double take when their chief executive, Michael D. Eisner, testified in court last week about the brief tenure of his friend, Michael S. Ovitz, as company president.


Japan eyes troops pullout from Iraq next December Japanese Defense Agency Director General Yoshinori Ono said Sunday that late 2005 is a possible target date for Japanese troops to withdraw from Iraq.


Luxury carmakers rev up profits STUTTGART - Despite signs of a global economic slowdown, two of Germany #39;s leading luxury carmakers - Porsche AG and BMW AG - have said they are off to a strong start to their new business years.


UEFA Cup: Villarreal downs Middlesbrough 2-0 Antonio Guayre #39; #39; Betancor and Javi Venta scored in each half to earn Villarreal a 2-0 win over Middlesbrough in UEFA Cup Group E on Thursday.


Auburn gets closer to top of BCS By wire services. Auburn moved into third in the BCS standings released Monday while Southern Cal and Oklahoma held on to the top spots.


Red Sox will appear on Wheaties box The Boston Red Sox will be the first World Series winner featured on a Wheaties box since the 1999 New York Yankees. The special edition package will picture David Ortiz on the front of the box, along with


Players, Owners Reject Plans to End NHL Lockout Hopes of saving the National Hockey League season all but vanished Tuesday when players and team owners rejected proposals to end the labor dispute.


Syrian President Shuffles His Cabinet (AP) AP - President Bashar Assad shuffled his Cabinet on Monday, just weeks after the United States and the United Nations challenged Syria over its military presence in Lebanon and the security situation along its border with Iraq.


Company to shut Japan trust unit in light of scandal TOKYO -- Citigroup Inc. said yesterday it will close its trust banking unit in Japan within a year, after Japanese authorities ordered the US financial services giant to suspend its private banking business there.


Cyber criminals step up the pace The last 12 months have seen a huge rise in the number of so-called phishing attacks, say security experts.


Linux Core Consortium To Build Common Code Linux vendors from Europe, Asia, and North and South America have teamed up to create a common core implementation of the Linux Standard Base (LSB) 2.0.


US runners display dashing look on oval: Williams finds silver <b>...</b> Lauryn Williams #39; magical summer began with her winning the NCAA 100-meter championship in June in Austin, Texas. It continued at the US Trials in July, where


Sharp jump in hepatitis E cases in Darfur: WHO (AFP) AFP - A deadly outbreak of hepatitis E in Sudan's Darfur region has spread rapidly, with the number of cases almost tripling in less than a month, the World Health Organization said.


Scana Third-Quarter Profit Falls  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. power company Scana Corp SCG.N  on Friday said quarterly profit fell, on litigation costs and a  writedown related to an investment in a telecommunications  business.


Red Sox-Yanks an instant classic Heroics and heartbreaks, diving catches and basepath blunders, hot bats and bizarre slumps, rainy days and endless nights. Already an instant classic, a short story transformed into a great American League


Sharapova repeats as Japan Open champion CBC SPORTS ONLINE - Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova retained her Japan Open title with an easy victory over American Mashona Washington in Saturday #39;s final.


Rebels withdraw blockade of Kathmandu Nepalese rebels said today they were removing a blockade of the capital that had cut Kathmandu off from the rest of the country for a week.


Fed Reports Continuing Economic Growth (AP) AP - The U.S. economy continued to grow in the early fall despite being buffeted by rising energy costs and hurricanes, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday, providing its last snapshot of business conditions before Election Day.


When War Games Meet Video Games A Department of Defense group tests a new battle simulator to see what it can learn about urban combat. But this ain't no SimCity. By Amit Asaravala.


Nets: Mourning looks strong in comback The few who came to watch embraced the significance of the evening, so even as Alonzo Mourning sat down for the final time with 7:50 left in the fourth quarter, they showed their gratitude


Airespace wins IBM deal for Wi-Fi service Airespace, a Silicon Valley start-up that sells telecommunications gear, has won a partnership with IBM that #39;s intended to help the smaller company grab a piece of the growing market for Wi-Fi services, the two companies told Reuters Wednesday.


Presidential candidate arrested A PALESTINIAN presidential candidate was arrested by Israeli authorities for allegedly attacking a border guard at a roadblock near Jerusalem, his party said.


Halliburton hit THE US army will withhold payment on 15 per cent of future invoices from Halliburton, the logistics support group which is feeding and housing its troops in Iraq and Kuwait.


Magazine offers reward for return of paintings OSLO -- The weekly magazine Se og Hoer offered a \$14,800 reward yesterday for information leading to the return of two priceless Edvard Munch masterpieces stolen from an Oslo museum over the weekend. The city-owned Munch Museum reopened yesterday, two days after three masked robbers, including at least one with a pistol, snatched ''The Scream quot; and ''Madonna quot; and fled in ...


With Russia's Nod, Treaty on Emissions Clears Last Hurdle Russia's cabinet endorsed the long-delayed Kyoto Protocol on global warming and sent it to Parliament.


"Faces of Africa" Photographers on Their 30-Year Endeavor Photographers Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher discuss their experiences from over 30 years in Africa capturing and recording faces and customs. <i>With photo galleries.</i>


Researchers Turn to Adult Stem Cells Biotech firms face skepticism as they try to show that their research can work as medicine and as a business. -The Washington Post


Pair accused of cracking software Two men accused of putting copied computer programmes on the internet saw themselves as "latter-day Robin Hoods", a court hears.


UK #39;s ARM to buy Artisan of US British semiconductor designer ARM Holdings said Monday it has agreed to buy US technology firm Artisan Components for \$913 million in cash and stock to boost its product range and reach more customers.


Cisco Set To Open Japanese R amp;D Center Cisco Systems will open a research  amp; development (R amp;D) center in Tokyo that will focus on IP-based technologies including IPv6, multicast and wireless for both its mainstream routers and its IOS and IOS XR software.


Federer crushes Hewitt and sets new record FULLSTRETCH: Roger Federer of Switzerland returns a shot in the first set against Lleyton Hewitt in their Tennis Masters Cup finals match on Sunday.


Dougherty puts clubbing first Nick Dougherty was once a Walker Cup star and, on leaving the unpaid ranks, proved a very promising young professional. Now the Ryder Cup beckons, and why not, given that he shared the Walker Cup experience with Luke Donald?


What #39;s next in Iranian nuclear saga? US and European officials couldn #39;t agree on how to deal with Iran Wednesday at an IAEA meeting in Vienna. By Scott Peterson. MOSCOW - Divided US and European officials stalled a meeting of the UN #39;s atomic


EA game  #39;Madden #39; tops 1.3 million first week  quot;Madden NFL 2005, quot; the latest version of Electronic Arts #39; pro football video game franchise, sold more than 1.3 million copies in its first week of release, the company said Thursday, citing internal figures.


Nikkei Reverses Opening Gains (Reuters) Reuters - Tokyo's Nikkei average reversed opening\gains to fall 0.69 percent by midsession on Wednesday as early\buying on exporters, inspired by gains on Wall Street after an\increase in U.S. interest rates, ran out of steam.


Bomb Threat Plane Given All-Clear The Greek airliner forced to make an emergency landing at Stansted airport following a bomb threat has been given the all-clear by police today.


SMIC to challenge latest TSMC infringement claims Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) said Wednesday it will defend itself against the latest allegations of patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation


Pacers, O'Neal Edge Out Knicks 103-97 (AP) AP - Once again, the ailing and short-handed Indiana Pacers built a big lead. This time, they were able to hold off New York's furious comeback. Jermaine O'Neal had 33 points and 12 rebounds, Ron Artest marked his 25th birthday with 22 points and Stephen Jackson added 19 as the Pacers fought off fatigue and beat the Knicks 103-97 Saturday night.


Reviewing iMac G5 In the Boston Globe, John P. Mello Jr. writes,  #147;Slim. Sleek. Streamlined. Stylish. Chic. Those aren #146;t adjectives normally associated with a desktop computer  #151; unless it #146;s an Apple iMac. #148; Nov 08


Officials monitor possible locust threat around-the-clock-Jordan Jordan has so far not been affected by the swarms of desert locusts that plagued Egypt on Wednesday with authorities here saying they are ready to deal with any emergency.


first profit since merger Corus, Britain #39;s biggest steelmaker, yesterday reported its first profits since the merger of British Steel and Dutch rival Hoogovens five years ago.


#39;Testosterone oozed from the screen #39; Forget those chariots, this was Rowing Boats Of Fire. The heart-stopping, edge-of-the-seat, photo finish victory for the men #39;s coxless four was without a doubt one of the Great British Sporting Moments.


Mascots for Turin Winter Olympics Unveiled (AP) AP - Cartoon characters named Neve and Gliz, representing a ball of snow and a block of ice, are the mascots for the 2006 Turin Olympics.


Filibuster Threatened over Corporate Tax Changes Description: The Senate on Friday scrambled to finish work on the biggest revision of corporate tax codes Congress has considered since 1986.


Messina held by Palermo Heavy rain made for difficult playing conditions and it was not until the latter stages that the teams went close to breaking the deadlock but on both occasions they struck the woodwork.


Yahoo buys email search co Revenues were \$907 million for the third quarter of 2004, a 154 increase compared to \$357 million for the same period of 2003, it says.


Click Fraud Threatens Web Someone could make the argument that watchdogs have better things to do. But click fraud -- endlessly clicking on ads to generate cash or hurt a competitor -- is a serious threat to the web business, and no one's doing much about it. Commentary by Adam L. Penenberg.


MS, Apple pitch music at mobile phone makers Opinion Microsoft has begun to try and win over the hearts, minds and hardware of mobile phone vendors in a bid to dominate the emerging market for music downloads on handsets.


Oil Up on Winter Worries, Norway Outage  LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose Monday as a gas leak  closed a large Norwegian North Sea oil field and the threat of  a colder-than-normal U.S. winter fueled worries about low  heating oil stocks.


Intellectual property rights still a problem US companies in China said yesterday that Beijing had made dramatic progress in ratifying the commitments it made when it joined the World Trade Organisation three years ago.


Shopping Search Week 2004! Shopping has emerged as one of the most important vertical categories in the specialized search arena, for searchers, advertisers and merchants alike.  This week we take a look at what's new and improved in shopping and product comparison search engines.


Interbrew pumps 19.9 pct rise in first-half profit, holds targets (AFP) AFP - Interbrew said its first-half profit rose 19.9 percent and maintained its 2004 full-year targets, saying the diversity of its beer brands around the world helped smooth out bumpy markets.


Ready or Not (and Maybe Not), Electronic Voting Goes National Voters will be asked to cast their ballots on machines whose accuracy and security against fraud have yet to be tested on such a grand scale.


Update 10: Oil Prices Fall on Boost in Crude Supplies Oil futures prices plunged by more than \$2 a barrel Thursday, continuing a selloff that began last week amid rising US supplies of crude and expectations of a surge in heating oil production before winter arrives.


Tennis / Close but no cigar as Ram tests Youzhny Andy Ram came close to pulling off the biggest upset of his singles career when he stretched No. 4 seed Mikhail Youzhny of Russia, 2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-4) in the first round of the \$1 million St.


U.S. Men End 40-Year Rowing Drought  ATHENS (Reuters) - The United States stormed to their first  Olympic men's eights title in 40 years on Sunday.


Bosch to hire 600 software engineers in India by next year (AFP) AFP - German maker of car parts and electrical household goods Robert Bosch said it will hire 600 software professionals by next year at its Indian software and engineering centre.


RealNetworks signs up Red Flag Linux Digital media company signs up a new Linux partner to distribute its audio and video player.


PeopleSoft Stock Nears Peak on Reports (Reuters) Reuters - Shares of PeopleSoft Inc.\ traded near a one-year high on Thursday after analysts\raised their earnings outlooks for the business software maker,\which continues to fight a  #36;9.2 billion hostile takeover bid by\Oracle Corp. .


Trojans seeking top of the heap One game into Bridgewater-Raynham's league schedule, the Trojans' season appeared to be over. After losing to Marshfield to open Old Colony League play Oct. 30, the Trojans figured their chances at surviving beyond Thanksgiving were as good as a turkey's. With only four teams in the league, Marshfield seemed a safe bet to garner its playoff berth.


Yukos fined \$1.34bn for failure to pay tax LONDON, October 11 (newratings.com) - Embattled Russian oil giant, Yukos Oil (YUSA.FSE), has been ordered to pay \$1.34 billion in fines and penalties for failing to pay its tax liabilities for 2001 on time.


Report Sounds Alarm on Pace of Arctic Climate Change The most comprehensive international assessment of Arctic climate change has concluded that Earth #39;s upper latitudes are experiencing unprecedented increases in temperature


Iraq Injury Count Rose About 1,100 U.S. soldiers and Marines were wounded during August, by far the highest combat toll for any month since war began.


AOL Rings Up New Shopping Service (Reuters) Reuters - America Online, the world's largest\Internet service provider on Monday launched an overhauled\online shopping center it hopes will help it keep pace with\competitive offerings by Yahoo Inc., Google Inc.\ and Shopping.com, executives said.


Mortgage rates going up Fresh signs of strength in the economy have caused mortgage rates to rise. Mortgage company Freddie Mac says the average for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is now 5.81 percent, up sharply from 5.72 in last week #39;s survey.


Hackers Plot Denial-of-Service Attack Against Symantec A new variant of the MyDoom virus is designed to launch a denial-of-service attack against antivirus software maker Symantec, according to security firm Sophos.


Lehmann in the blunder zone THE calamity-prone Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann will be the centre of more derision from Gunners fans after his two horrendous blunders cost the English giants an important win in a 2-2 draw with Panathinaikos in Athens.


Els Takes 2-Shot Lead at American Express THOMASTOWN, Ireland - His post-majors funk behind him, Ernie Els was back in his element Friday. Playing some of his best golf in the worst conditions, Els breezed through a wacky day of weather at the American Express Championship by starting with four straight birdies and finishing with an 8-under 64, giving him a two-shot lead and hope that he still has a lot to play for this year...


US Markets Shrug Off Iraq, Terrorism News (Reuters) Reuters - As recently as early summer, the shock\waves from a roadside bomb or mortar attack against American\forces in Iraq would ripple through U.S. markets.


US air strikes 'target Sadr City' US forces are reported to have launched overnight air attacks in Baghdad's Sadr City suburb.


Chirac meets Blair under shadow of Iraq As a sign of their continuing co-operation, the leaders of Britain and France are scheduled to hold a meeting in London on 18 November.


Black armbands for Clough, tears for Liverpool fans In the afternoon, Brian Clough, unquestionably one of the greats and unarguably one of the most controversial of football men, died of cancer.


IBM laptop features fingerprint scanner IBM announced on Monday the launch of a new line of ThinkPad notebooks designed to provide an extra layer of data protection through advanced fingerprint technology.


Genentech gets a subpoena Genentech Inc. , the world's second-biggest biotechnology company, received a subpoena from the US attorney's office in Philadelphia as part of a criminal and civil probe into marketing of Rituxan, its top-selling drug.


Germany, France support Turkish invitation to EU membership talks BERLIN : Germany and France both support inviting to European Union membership talks at a summit in December in Brussels, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said.


Cendant in talks to buy Orbitz for \$1 billion Cendant Corporation, the travel and property services company that owns Avis and Budget, is in talks to acquire Orbitz.com, an online travel company, in a deal valued at around \$1 billion.


NBA China or Chinese NBA? Yao Ming and his Houston Rockets entertained Chinese basketball fans with two real NBA games this weekend, though they were just two pre-season games against the Sacramento Kings.


Micron Technology Posts Profit  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Micron Technology Inc. MU.N,  the No. 3 computer memory chip maker, on Wednesday reported a  quarterly profit on stronger pricing, reversing a year-earlier  loss.


Drugs in sport: Jones denies fresh Conte claims over injecting <b>...</b> Marion Jones denied the allegations that emerged yesterday from Victor Conte, the man at the centre of the Balco doping scandal, who claimed that he had witnessed her injecting performance-enhancing drugs he supplied.


Nothing like a perfect finish for Mia ATHENS, Greece -- She had bruises on her legs, scars on her arms and the weary look of a future soccer mom. Mia Hamm ached more Thursday night than even her husband, the shortstop with the perpetual nagging pains.


Microsoft release new search engine preview Microsoft have let the public use a beta of their tool for some months while testing continues. The last few days have seen a new release of the beta which seems to be getting closer to bringing back consistently sensible results.


Bryant carries Lakers past Clippers Playing another aggressive game, Bryant scored 25 points as the Los Angeles Lakers posted a 113-102 preseason victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.


Home Computer Users Wearing Security Blinders Most consumers have no firewall protection, their antivirus software is outdated, and dozens of spyware programs secretly run on their computers, America Online and the National Cyber Security Alliance found.


Owls Use Dung to  quot;Fish quot; for Beetles Levey, who is the lead author of the study, added that the finding is particularly noteworthy because it demonstrates that tool use can substantially benefit a wild animal.


UPDATE 1-Ontario fund buying Alliance Laundry for \$450 mln Alliance Laundry Holdings, a commercial laundry equipment manufacturer, on Wednesday said its private equity owners agreed to sell the company to Teachers #39; Private Capital for about \$450 million.


Photos from MacExpo 2004 With over 100 exhibitors  #151; including Apple, Adobe, Bose, Epson, HP, Microsoft, Quark and Sony  #151; and more than 20,000 visitors expected during the three-day event  #151; this year #146;s London MacExpo is shaping up as the biggest and best ever staged. Nov 18


HP drops plans to put Compaq technology into HP-UX Hewlett-Packard(HP) has abandoned plans to integrate a number of advanced technologies it acquired in its 2002 purchase of Compaq into its flagship HP-UX operating system. The Palo Alto, California, computer maker has instead decided to partner with Veritas Software to bring new file system and clustering capabilities to its Unix software, the two companies announced Thursday.


Djorkaeff in Blackburn Talks Youri Djorkaeff is in talks with Blackburn, according to the Frenchman #39;s agent. The 36-year-old has been at Ewood Park discussing a move, but nothing has yet been agreed and it is understood that no medical has taken place yet.


Magical day for Meehan It was a day to seek refuge on the Rowley Mile here yesterday, not only from the showers but also from the results. There was a 22-1 winner in the first race of the Cambridgeshire meeting, and the 11-1 chance Nights Cross took the second.


Saddam Trial Hampered by Violence in Iraq (AP) AP - Putting Saddam Hussein on trial for war crimes is turning out to be a trial in itself, as escalating violence across Iraq makes preparations harder and riskier.


Gun battle erupts in Kashmir city Militants attack a stadium in Srinagar hours before the Indian prime minister is due to address a rally.


Crawford is Golden as the Crowd Boos  ATHENS (Reuters) - Shawn Crawford denied fellow American  Justin Gatlin a sprint double as he set up a United States  clean sweep in the Olympic men's 200 meters Thursday.


Tech Stocks Edge Higher, Lifted by Dell  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose slightly on Friday,  boosted by computer maker Dell Inc. DELL.O, but gains were  small as Wall Street took a breather after Thursday's rally.


Australia's Oct. 9 Election Marathon Begins (Reuters) Reuters - Australian politicians set\off on a marathon campaign Monday for an election that will\focus on the way forward for one of the world's strongest\economies, the credibility of candidates and support for the\Iraq war.


China 'blocks Google news site' China has been accused of blocking access to Google News by the media watchdog, Reporters Without Borders.


Consumer Confidence Falls Again US consumer confidence edged lower again in September after falling in August, as persistent worries about the job market weighed on sentiment, a report on Tuesday said.


Nomar Re-Signs, Pedro Offered Arbitration (AP) AP - Nomar Garciaparra stayed with the Chicago Cubs, and the Boston Red Sox made arbitration offers to Pedro Martinez and several other World Series stars Tuesday, the first big deadline of the offseason for teams and free agents.


House OKs bill imposing prison time for  #39;spyware #39; WASHINGTON - The House on Thursday passed the second bill in three days that would outlaw  quot;spyware, quot; irritating software that quietly monitors the activities of Internet users.


CommScope Says Costs Rise, Sales to Fall  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Communications cable maker CommScope  Inc. CTV.N on Monday projected higher fourth-quarter costs  and lower sales at an Omaha manufacturing subsidiary, losing  nearly a quarter of its stock market value in after-market  trading.


Van Nistelrooy fires Dutch GOALS in either half from Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy lifted the Dutch in this World Cup qualifier today. Marco van Basten #39;s blundering side got off to a slow start and were put to the test


Ban for former Ahold executives Dutch food retailer Ahold and three former top executives have agreed to settle fraud charges related to \$1bn overstatement of profits.


For labor markets, definition of 'normal' is changing It has become a monthly ritual. The government issues its jobs report, the numbers are disappointing, and the excuses begin. Employers are not hiring because of the high price of oil, fear of terrorism, uncertainty about the election, and because the dog ate their homework. (I made that last one up.)


Quake Activity Rises at Mount St. Helens (AP) AP - Earthquake activity has increased at Mount St. Helens, but scientists said Saturday there was no reason to raise the volcano's alert level.


Hungary PM Set for Victory Over Citizenship Vote  BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's new prime minister looked to  have scored a major victory on Sunday when the opposition  failed to garner enough votes to pass a referendum giving  citizenship to millions of Hungarians abroad.


THE MYTH OF THE  #39;MISSING EXPLOSIVES #39;: A SHAMELESS LIE SHOULD the United Na tions decide who be comes our president? Sen. John Kerry wouldn #39;t mind. He #39;s shamelessly promoting the lies that the UN #39;s International Atomic Energy Agency is telling about Iraq.


In Georgia, transformation isn't fast enough for some TBILISI, Georgia -- The old white Zhiguli fairly flew down the highway, skimming precariously over the potholes as Garri Nersesov clutched the wheel and declared victory in the war on corruption.


Yanks Widen Lead Over BoSox to Four Games (AP) AP - Mike Mussina pitched three-hit ball for eight innings and struck out a season-high 11, leading the New York Yankees over the Kansas City Royals 4-0 Tuesday night.


Israeli cabinet approves compensation for Gaza settlers JERUSALEM, Oct 24 (AFP) - The Israeli cabinet approved Sunday a compensation package for settlers who are set to be uprooted from their homes on the eve of a crunch debate on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon #39;s plan to pull out of the Gaza Strip.


State of the Search Marketing Industry 2004 Jupiter Research and SEMPO (the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization) have released results of separate surveys providing one of the most detailed looks yet at current practices and advertiser spending in the search marketing industry.


Sony to start marketing mini PS2 in November and PSP in 1Q <b>...</b> Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) unveiled a slimmer and more lightweight version of its PS2 game console in Taipei last Friday, and the company will begin shipping the product in Taiwan on November 3. The


Australia beats Japan 1-0, plays for gold Brendan Kingman #39;s sixth-inning single sent Australia to a 1-0 victory Tuesday over stunned Japan, putting the Aussies in the gold medal game.


China returns N Korea refugees China repatriates up to 70 North Koreans caught in Beijing while allegedly preparing to seek asylum.


Kittles Joins Kidd, Mourning in Feeling High And Dry LOS ANGELES - Jason Kidd and Alonzo Mourning are disgusted and desperately want out of New Jersey, but nobody is hurt more by the Nets #39; sorry situation than Kerry Kittles.


Office Depot Chairman, CEO Nelson Resigns  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Office Depot Inc. ODP.N, the No. 2  U.S. office supply chain, on Monday said Chairman and Chief  Executive Officer Bruce Nelson has resigned and a search for  his successor is underway.


LSU Coach Saban Talking With Dolphins (AP) AP - LSU coach Nick Saban has talked to the Miami Dolphins about their vacant head coaching position.


Public to get virtual access to 7 million books Harvard, Oxford and others also will go online in the first deal of its kind. By Nick Bunkley / The Detroit News. By the end of the decade, anyone around the world will have instant access to 7 million volumes


Australian Media Giant Posts Earnings Jump Australian media empire Publishing  amp; Broadcasting Ltd. reported Thursday a 75 percent jump in earnings for the fiscal year ending June 30, thanks to a strong economy and a rebound in advertising revenue.


Suzuki breaks singles record CBC SPORTS ONLINE - Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki is the new single-season singles king of Major League Baseball. Suzuki broke the 77-year-old record with his 199th single of the year.


Blair comes out fighting Tony Blair today urged Labour to unite behind a radical third-term agenda as he sought to heal party wounds over Iraq. The Prime Minister said that he realized the war in Iraq had divided


IBM, AMD, Sony boost chip speeds by 24 Chip-making technique to fuel AMD64, PowerPC, 'Cell' production


Australian Air Force to be armed with stealth cruise missiles Australia will equip its Air Force with stealth cruise missiles to maintain military superiority over its neighbours, the Government announced yesterday.


Bid to save Ivorian disarmament Ivory Coast's political rivals are to meet to try to save the disarmament process, which is supposed to start on Friday.


Icelandic firm buys fashion chain Icelandic investment group Baugur extends its presence on the UK High Street with the purchase of budget fashion chain Mk One.


Montreal Expos to Become the Nationals With Move to Washington The Expos would become the Nationals with a move to Washington next season and wear red, white and blue uniforms, Major League Baseball and team officials said during a press conference.


Blair Heart Op Sparks Succession Debate  LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Tony Blair went into hospital  on Friday for heart treatment -- but first sought to quell  speculation over his future by pledging to serve a full third  term if re-elected.


Virgin launches new digital music service Virgin Group announced on Monday that it has launched a new online music store that will offer music downloads for the regular price of \$0.


Tributes for Arafat Focus on Efforts for Palestinian State From the Vatican to the Palestinian refugee camps of Jordan, tributes poured in today for Yasir Arafat, a man regarded as an international leader by many and a terrorist by others.


Diageo earns 2.26 bln dlrs from sale of General Mills shares LONDON : Drinks giant Diageo said it had raised 2.26 billion dollars (1.84 billion euros) from the sale of 49.9 million shares in US food company General Mills Inc.


Flight attendants union OKs strike The board of the country #39;s largest flight attendants union authorized a national strike Tuesday after its president said the airline industry is using the bankruptcy process to threaten workers #39; livelihoods.


Bomb Blasts in Northeast India Kill 10, Wound 35 (Reuters) Reuters - A series of bomb blasts killed\nine people and wounded 35 in northeastern India on Saturday in\the deadliest attack since a cease-fire with the main\separatist group in Nagaland began seven years ago.


Reclusive Russian May Have Made Maths Breakthrough A reclusive Russian may have solved one of the world #39;s toughest mathematics problems and stands to win \$1 million -- but he doesn #39;t appear to care.


iTunes Music Store Downloads Top 200 Million Songs CUPERTINO, Calif., Dec. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today announced that music fans have purchased and downloaded more than 200 million songs from the iTunes(R) Music Store.


PeopleSoft sees the departure of another exec Within two weeks of the firing of chief executive officer Craig Conway, business applications supplier PeopleSoft has seen the departure of another top executive, Ram Gupta, senior vice-president of products and technology.


Report: China to Release Jailed Dissident (AP) AP - China plans to release a prominent imprisoned dissident this week, cutting short his sentence in an apparent "conciliatory gesture" by the government of President Hu Jintao, a human rights group said Tuesday.


Owens Has Last Laugh on Ravens as Eagles Improve to 7-0 Terrell Owens scored a touchdown and David Akers kicked three field goals to lead the Philadelphia Eagles to their fifth straight win, 15-10 over the Baltimore Ravens in National Football League play Sunday.


Nigerian Woman Appeals Stoning Sentence Eighteen year-old Hajara Ibrahim waits at the court waiting room while a police officers stands guard in Dass, 40 km (25 miles) south of the state capital Bauchi Nigeria, Wednesday Oct. 27, 2004.


French FM holds talks with Kadhafi to pave way for Chirac visit to Libya (AFP) AFP - French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier left Tripoli overnight following talks with Moamer Kadhafi to pave the way for a visit here by French President Jacques Chirac, in another sign of the rapid reintegration of former pariah state Libya into the international fold.


Athletics: Korzeniowski takes final walk into record books ATHENS Robert Korzeniowski #39;s long road came to an end on Friday with an unprecedented third consecutive Olympic 50-kilometer race walk title.


French Ruling Party Head Sarkozy Resigning as Finance Minister French Finance Minister Nicolas Sarkozy is resigning when he meets today with Prime Minister Jean- Pierre Raffarin, freeing him to use his new position as head of the ruling party to prepare for the 2007 presidential elections.


Iran and Europe trying to save Iranian nuclear fuel suspension <b>...</b> VIENNA (AFP) - Iran and Europe continued efforts to see whether Tehran could unconditionally respect a commitment to freeze any nuclear fuel cycle work that could be diverted to produce atomic weapons.


Talk Is Cheap When Using Internet Long-Distance VOIP has been hailed for years in the telecom industry as the next big thing, but problems with sound quality have prevented it from gaining widespread acceptance. Now VOIP, which has been available since the mid-1990s, is poised to fulfill its promise.


UnitedHealth to Buy Definity Health  CHICAGO (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group Inc. UNH.N on  Monday said it would buy Definity Health Corp. for \$300  million, as the No. 1 U.S. health insurer seeks to offer more  health savings accounts, which give consumers incentives to  rein in health costs.


East China factory workers protest rising prices, low pensions (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - SHANGHAI (AP) - Thousands of retired textile factory workers in an eastern Chinese industrial centre blocked traffic in a weekend protest over the failure of their pensions to keep pace with rising prices, officials and labour advocates said Monday.


Apollo's Apple Learning institutions have cooled off lately, but Apollo Group remains upbeat about the future.


PC shipments up, but revenue less so, study says Makers of PCs will ship 191.4 million units in 2004, a 13.4 percent increase from a year ago, according to research company iSuppli.


German Ban On Islamic Conference  #39;Extraordinarily Important <b>...</b> A decision by the Berlin state government to ban an Islamic conference promoting the  quot;resistance movement quot; in Iraq and the Palestinian territories was an  quot;extraordinarily


Powell Says UN Is Doing Enough for Iraq Elections (Reuters) Reuters - Secretary of State Colin Powell said\on Thursday that U.N. plans to help with the upcoming election\in Iraq appeared to be on track, despite months of pressure for\the world body to increase its staff.


Barca go clear as Real Madrid held at Villarreal MADRID (AFP) - Barcelona stretched their lead over Real Madrid in the Spanish title chase this weekend as African Player of the Year Samuel Eto #39;o scored twice in a 4-0 win against Malaga.


General Mills to undergo a whole-grain makeover MINNEAPOLIS -- The Trix Rabbit and the Lucky Charms leprechaun are going on a whole-grain diet.


Head to Head They were not supposed to be in direct competition, but Robin van Persie and Kieran Richardson spent much of the night niggling at each other in the kind of spat that has


National Airport Tests Boarding Pass Screens Passengers identified for additional security screening will now have their passes checked for explosives using document-scanning machines.


Fed puts up US interest rates again THE US Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for the third time this year in spite of a renewed surge in oil prices. The widely expected move took the funds rate up a quarter-point to 1.75 per cent, following similar moves in August and June.


Rising Canadian dollars to test Canadian economy The record surge in the value of the Canadian dollar is going to test the Canadian economy, financial analysts here warned. The Canadian dollar, after briefly rose above 85 US


Released Indian hostages return back home After living under fear of death for 42 days, three Indian truck drivers released by their Iraqi captors today returned home to an emotional welcome by their families here.


BNP Paribas Peregrine estimates 7 years of economic feast in HK BNP Paribas Peregrine said Thursday Hong Kong is expected to enjoy seven years of economic feast and the city is now entering the second year.


Pak. scribes on visit to J amp;K Wagah (Amritsar), Oct. 4. (PTI): A 15-member delegation of Pakistani journalists on Sunday crossed over to India on their way to perhaps a first ever visit to Jammu and Kashmir by a team of scribes from that country.


Motorola turns mobile phone into wallet Motorola is to conduct a trial of mobile phones incorporating MasterCard #39;s PayPass, a contactless payment technology. The handsets will allow customers to make payments by holding the device next to a reader


Sony offers a smaller, book-size PlayStation 2 TOKYO Sony on Tuesday showed a smaller, book-size PlayStation 2 that will go on sale worldwide next month as it fights to keep the lead in the competitive video game market.


Telstra Pays Lowest Price in A\$750 Mln Stock Buyback (Update4) Telstra Corp., Australia #39;s biggest phone company, agreed to buyback A\$750 million (\$576 million) of its own stock at the lowest price in a range offered to shareholders.