Coop's Scoop: The judge bangs the gavel

From her lofty bench, U.S. District Judge Marilyn Patel declared that Napster had "created a monster." Hmmm, maybe that's just hyperbole, but it sounds like the good judge has already concluded the rights and wrongs of this argument. If the case ever goes to trial, Napster better hope someone else presides. In the meantime, Napster won a last-minute reprieve from an appeals panel for a stay on Patel's ditzy order, which would have effectively shut down the song-sharing site.

With the Republican National Convention getting under way in Philadelphia, a big contingent of online reporters will be there to chronicle the goings-on. History will be made in more than one respect: This will be the first national political convention where cyber coverage comes into its own.

Speaking of democratic processes, Monday is the deadline to sign up to vote in the upcoming ICANN elections. Anyone with an e-mail address is eligible. So, netizens, get off your collective duffs and VOTE!

Oracle will announce -- yet again -- its hosting strategy. Sundry suits will doubtless chat about all the momentum behind Oracle Business Online and roll out new partner programs. Meet Oracle as born-again ASP. But hang on: Didn't Larry Ellison last year say something to the effect that Oracle would work with ASPs only over his dead body?

After several mysterious delays, Microsoft will release over the Web its long-awaited service pack for Windows 2000. The thinking (hope?) in Redmond is that perhaps several of the big fence-sitters might now give the product a serious look.

Can Compaq really challenge EMC in the storage arena? The folks in Houston think so, and word has it they are close to announcing something big on that front.

Remember Sybase? Yes, the software company is still around and, in fact, will hold its TechWave 2000 users conference. Just like everyone else, Sybase is trying to reinvent itself as a B2B player. Sigh.

Check this out: As DEF CON gets under way in Las Vegas, recruiters from the Defense Department are urging the assembled hackers to work for Uncle Sam, not against it.

Talk about the worm turning!

If you've had your fill of Jerry Springer, O.J. Simpson's Web site, which goes live next week, is the place to frequent. You can send in questions to The Juice. All for a fee, of course, but perhaps we'll be able to learn from the former footballer-turned-supersleuth who kidnapped the Lindbergh baby.

Despite a move toward self-regulation by cyber advertisers, the FTC is moving, slowly albeit gradually, to rein in rogue third-party online profiling. But in issuing the second of two reports on this issue, the Federal Trade Commission still isn't speaking with a single voice. None other than its commissioner, Orson Swindle (great name!), has come out against clamping-down regulation that penalizes the honest majority of advertisers because of the offending 10 percent.

Kim Polese stepped aside as Marimba CEO in favor of somebody with more operational experience. Smart move by a smart exec, but I'll miss her. To be sure, Polese received a lot of publicity because she was, well, a babe. So what? Get over it. She also happened to be one of the more talented explainers in the industry, evangelizing Java and then her own company's Marimba technology. In an industry with more than its fair share of testosterone-driven, dumpster-diving nitwit CEOs, Polese was a breath of fresh air. And what's more, she exited just as her company posted its first profit. Jeff Bezos still can't make that claim.

With Intel announcing plans to add support for SDRAM to its Pentium 4, consumers and OEMs are getting a break. RDRAM was more expensive and supplies have been spotty. The news was not so great for Rambus, whose stock took it on the chin as a result of Intel's decision.

Speaking of Napster, there was no small amount of smirking up in Redmond as Microsofties delighted in David Boies' predicament. The one-time Microsoft slayer, now defending Napster, complained Judge Patel hadn't given his new charges ample time to figure out a way to weed out the songs on its site that were from major labels. "Not receiving due process?," cracked one Redmondian wisenheimer. "Now, where have I heard that before?"

Execs from AOL and Time-Warner made nicey-nice in front of regulators while awaiting the final OK to go ahead with their blockbuster merger. Meanwhile, Disney, NBC and a host of messaging rivals are turning up the heat, arguing that Washington needs to get involved before a Frankenstein gets created. Meanwhile, Steve Case is going out of his way to do the kinder, gentler thing. To be continued.

Did you check out the quarterly earnings report card turned in by Compaq? The company posted a profit a quarter ahead of schedule, reflecting the successful restructuring of each of Compaq's four product divisions. Big winners: The company's portable and iPaq pocket PC (which remains backordered). But the biggest winner of them all is CEO Mike Capellas. Remember all the naysayers who questioned whether a CIO could step in and clean up the mess left over by Eckhard Pfeiffer.

FTC cracks down on rogue profilers
Napster appeal: Don't shut us down
AOL-Time-Warner: It's about choice
Writing on the wall for Mac OSX?
Nortel set to acquire Alteon
Sprint to speed wireless access
Hackers: Uncle Sam wants you!
Yahoo pleads case over Nazi auctions
Intel to bring SDRAM to Pentium4
Powerbook to pack G4