Jeremy Kirk

Microsoft Corp. released the first service pack for SQL Server 2005 on Wednesday, fixing dozens of bugs and paving the way for more businesses to upgrade to its latest database software. The update comes about five months after the release of SQL Server 2005, which Microsoft engineered to be more competitive with products from database leaders Oracle Corp. and IBM Corp.

Computers infected with a well-known virus began downloading a new spam tool Sunday night used by hackers to send unwanted e-mail.

A research institute is harnessing the power of thousands of computers over the Internet to investigate potential drug treatments for deadly avian influenza. The Rothberg Institute for Childhood Diseases, based on Guilford, Connecticut, said it had detailed the first mission for volunteers participating in the distributed computing project.

Hewlett-Packard Co. researchers based in India demonstrated on Monday several new technologies aimed at the unique computing demands of developing markets such as India, from typing complex languages to authenticating paper documents.

Three Computer Science researchers are warning that viruses embedded in radio frequency identification tags used to identify and track goods are right around the corner.

British naturalist Charles Darwin is credited with the theory of evolution, but a crucial part of his theory came from his mentor, a lesser known but equally bright Cambridge University professor. Darwin's teacher, John Stevens Henslow, may have been relegated to an eternity of obscurity were it not for database analytics. For more than two years, a team of researchers worked to uncover a secret hidden in Henslow's vast, brittle collection of plants -- called an herbarium -- from more than 160 years ago.

Apple Corps Ltd. executives did not object to names and logos now under dispute when they were shown an Apple Computer Inc. iTunes Music Store demonstration four months before the public service launched, an Apple Computer attorney said Wednesday during closing arguments in a trademark dispute.

Symantec Corp. is releasing a data backup product that the company claims avoids risks associated with tape backup systems. The software, called the NetBackup PureDisk Remote Office Edition 6.0, is aimed at enterprise-level customers, particularly those in remote offices.