Software giant Microsoft and web search veterans Yahoo! have finally struck a deal and joined forces, it has been reported today.

According to an article over at SearchEngineLand, the 10 year deal will see Microsoft having exclusive rights over Yahoo’s core search technologies, while Microsoft’s Bing search algorithms will be used on Yahoo’s websites.

More information can be found on the new Microsoft/Yahoo! microsite at http://www.choicevalueinnovation.com/thedeal.

In response to an article from Tory MP David Davis in The Times, Google has written an entry in their European Public Policy Blog ’setting the record straight’.

In his article entitled “I wouldn’t trust Google with my personal info”, Davis says:

Google is the last company I would trust with data belonging to me. In the words of human rights watchdog Privacy International, Google has “a history of ignoring privacy concerns. Every corporate announcement has some new practice involving surveillance”. It gave Google the lowest possible assessment rating: “hostile to privacy”. It was the only company of the 20 assessed to get this rating. It also said Google was leading a “race to the bottom” among internet firms, many of which did little to protect their users.

In response to this, the big G say that “for a company that supposedly ignores European laws, we did not launch Google Street View in the UK until we had the green light from the Information Commissioner!”

Have a look at the Google blog entry for some more light reading…

The latest version of Microsoft’s flagship operating system, Windows 7, is available for pre-order in the UK according to an article by BBC News.

The Home version costs around £50.00, while the Professional version is double that amount.  Apparently the pre-ordered copies will be shipped on the 22nd October, the same day it goes on sale in stores to the public.

Analysts IDC predict that some 177 million copies of the operating system will be in place by the end of 2010, 50 million of which will be in Europe. The firm estimates that products and services surrounding Windows 7 will generate $320bn (£195bn).

The software giant has said in a recent press release that it will be offering a web version of Office 2010 via their Windows Live services – no doubt to compete with Google who already offer a free web-based office application suite (Google Apps).

Dubbed “Office Web Applications”, this new browser-based version of the Office software package will let you access, edit and even simultaneously share documents across PCs, the Internet and even on mobile phones.

According to Microsoft’s Office Product Manager, Monica Mendoza, she was ‘lucky enough to be travelling around Europe for work’, but when she had to make ‘critical updates’ to a document the only thing at her disposable was an Internet kiosk with… yep, you guessed it, Internet Explorer on it (I guess Microsoft stop giving laptops to their employees now?).

Anyway the point of this story is that Office Web Applications 2010 saved the day (hooray!) – but she says if you don’t use IE then it’s OK because the browser-based software works with Mozilla Firefox and Apple Safari (no mention of Google Chrome though)…

A new system developed by IBM in conjunction with Container Centralen is helping to keep flowers and plants fresh from growers to wholesalers and retailers.

On February 1st, 2010, Danish Container Centralen – Europe’s largest provider of re-usable transport equipment and services – will use IBM sensor technology to allow participants in the horticultural supply chain to track the progress of shipments across 40 countries in Europe. The project is the largest of its kind in the horticulture business.

Approximately 80,000 growers, wholesalers, and retailers use Container Centralen’s flower and pot plant trolleys to deliver fresh flowers and plants speedily and in the best possible condition. The company’s flower and pot plant trolleys – called “CC Containers” – are designed to meet the specific needs of the horticultural industry. The containers are suitable for mechanical handling, and since they are also used as retail display units, the flowers and plants can be transported right from the grower to the consumer in the store with no need for product handling in between – meaning less damage to goods and reduced overall distribution costs.

In order to meet customer requirements, Container Centralen needs to be able to quickly and easily make the trolleys available to their customers where and when they are needed. And with 3.5 million flower and pot plant trolleys in circulation in the international network known as the “CC Pool System”, careful tracking of the trolleys is essential.

Together with IBM, Container Centralen is outfitting each of its flower and pot plant trolleys with intelligent Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, which will allow it to offer an unprecedented level of transparency and security for all the players in the horticultural supply chain. It is expected to help the users reap significant savings through the entire supply chain from growers to wholesalers and retailers due to improved order management.