Stan's List

(Reuters) - Microsoft will start selling a wireless digital music and video player to compete with Apple’s iPod by Christmas, sources close to the matter said on Wednesday.

AppleInsider: Microsoft Corp. may have plans to debut a wireless digital music player this year, but likely so does Apple Computer, say one Wall Street analyst.

Mac OS X 10.4.7’s release notes describe a new feature in the release:

You can now verify whether or not a Dashboard widget you downloaded is the same version as a widget featured on (www.apple.com) before installing it.

Second from the bottom (under “Other”)

In a statement to CNET, Apple said:

The Dashboard Advisory feature is a security tool that ensures that the correct version of a widget has been downloaded from a third-party site and no personal information is transmitted back to Apple.

ThinkSecret reports that Apple will release a spreadsheet application as part of its iWork ‘07 release at next year’s Macworld San Francisco. Budded “Charts,” won’t be positioned as an Excel killer, but rather as a consumer-friendly spreadsheet:

Nonetheless, Charts will support importing and exporting Excel formatted documents, as well as legacy AppleWorks spreadsheets, and Apple is hoping the performance of Charts will at least rival that of Excel…

Arizona State University’s online journal, Insight, is covering the demise of one computer industry’s longest-lasting technologies—AppleTalk. According to ASU’s University Technology Office, the networking protocol on the institution’s core network will be discontinued from July 12:

• Outdated technology
• A decline in AppleTalk usage
• Increased costs to continue support

Bloomberg reports that Apple and Creative Technology have said in court papers that they haven’t given up on settling out-of-court.

The parties will remain open to the possibility of settlement,” they wrote in the joint report to the judge. “No specific settlement discussions are planned. More …