Twitter is all about making connections. These come in the form of followers, who can be known friends or simply people who are interested in what you have to say on a regular basis. And now, they can also be random people who have been spammed until they follow you. It seems although you can’t buy friends, you can buy Twitter followers.

Microsoft appears to finally have an ad campaign that is resonating with consumers, but not all of the ads did it quite the right way.

A British consumer group says lawyers for software manufacturers are wrongly accusing people of putting video games on filesharing services. It argues this seriously brings into question the process used to identify offenders.

Spammers and scammers alike have been churning out emails designed to ensnare fans looking for news about the death of the King of Pop. Some security researchers describe the surge in malware as, “bad bad- really, really bad.”

Firefox 3.5 was released on June 30 after, well, not really that much of a publicity drive. Regardless, the newest build of the Mozilla Web browser managed to secure over five million downloads in the space of 24 hours. So, as well as being speedy, secure, and more stable, it’s also massively popular.

Formerly one of the most talked about video startups, Joost has decided to become a white label video hosting service, pretty much ensuring its eventual death.

Officially China has indefinitely postponed the launch of the much-maligned Green Dam Youth Escort Internet filter. But the decision appears to be motivated by practical needs rather than principles.

One of the greatest challenges of Twitter has always been managing connections that number in the hundreds or even thousands. These new features may not be a silver bullet but will have the Twitterati breathing a sigh of relief.

Except for GE’s motto, “We bring good things to life,” it is difficult to figure out why an electric company is getting into stem-cell research.  OK, General Electric does have a health care division and that division will be working with Geron Corporation to come up with commercial products from stem-cells.  No we are not talking cloning.

Netbooks are a growing trend these days. Many savvy consumers have opted to carry the netbook around versus the laptop due to its ultra portability. However, one of the problems consumers may face is finding the right case for their new netbook.

When Michael Jackson’s death was broken first by a celebrity gossip blog, I and many others considered this a sign of things to come, with the Internet taking over from traditional media and news organizations. But while speed and timing is one thing, legitimacy and trustworthiness are another. On that score, traditional media still rules.

Students at the University of Michigan used Z Corporations 3D printing and scanning technology to design and test Infinium, their solar car.  Infinium is this year’s student solar car entry in the upcoming World Solar Challenge in Australia.

The day all Firefox fans have been waiting for is finally upon us: Firefox 3.5 has been officially released.

The Pirate Bay has sold out. That may be a good thing, it may be a bad thing; either way, the site should at least have the guts to admit it.

The National Intelligence Service (NIS) of South Korea has launched a Flash game to teach young people about the dangers of North Korean spies. Subjects of the indoctrination are eligible for prizes like a laptop or a total frontal lobotomy.

Google Earth is a brilliant innovation that has opened up a new way of looking at the world in which we live. Unfortunately, it has also opened up a new way for criminals to find targets.

Dow Chemical Company and Algenol Biofuels are working together to create a biorefinery that uses algae to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) to ethanol.  Dow, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) and Membrane Technology & Research, Inc. will be providing science and technology to Algenol’s algae system.  The plan is to locate the facility at Dow’s Freeport, Texas site.