Numerous users are reporting that the Windows Live Messenger server is currently down, and not accepting any authentication requests. For those who are already signed in, you can remain using the service as required.

Users also reported earlier issues today, including messenger logging in and out, and users randomly appearing offline.

At this stage the Windows Live Server page is saying all servers are fine, like usual - however, this is highly doubtable. No news from Microsoft just yet, however we will let you know as soon as the service is back up.

Google have entered the web browser market by releasing their new web browser, namely Chrome.

The Google Chrome browser has been designed from the ground up to provide a new browser, designed for today (rather than for the original release of the internet; as claimed by Google). The browser includes many features found in other released browsers, with claims of speed and simplicity.

For more information, visit www.google.com/chrome/

According to a post made on APCMag.com, HP “has upped the ante by designing a machine with a purported 24-hour battery run time”.

Hewlett Packard claim they have been able to create a 24 hour notebook by including an ultra-high capacity battery in their EliteBook 6930p, and newly-released Intel X25-M solid-state drives and LED displays. This release comes just after Dell’s 19-hour notebook release, with the HP machine being released in October 2008.

Perception - the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information, according to Wikipedia. However, it seems people’s perceptions are too self reliant on hearing, rather than their experiences in terms of sight.

At this stage you must be asking yourself what this has to do with technology at all - and rightfully so. However, it seems that perception is one of the most important factors for a successful product in the technology world.

One prime example of this is Windows Vista, the newest version of the Microsoft Windows family. Some people say, including myself, that Vista is a revolutionary product that has a vast improvement over previous versions, including Windows XP. However, there are also some people who do not have the same feelings towards Vista.

Whilst I respect that everyone has different opinions, and that Vista is not for everyone, it gets on my nerves when people use other people’s opinions to judge the system themselves. I mean, I have been told so many times that Vista is “slow” or “shit”, however when I ask these people if they had used the program I usually get the response of “no”, or “not, but my friend did and they said it was not good.”

So, when I saw Microsoft’s experiment released earlier this week to see how people’s perception of Vista would change if they didn’t base their assumptions on what others thought, I laughed. It proved the point that people don’t seem confident enough to try the system out themselves – instead, they rely on other people’s thoughts or messages as to how they will judge the system.

The experiment consisted of getting a few people and asking them what they thought of Windows Vista. They all said responses like “slow”, “bad” and “I heard all this bad stuff about it”. The interviewers then told them that they were going to show them the new Windows operating system, named Mojave. They showed them the operating system and let them use it, then asked for their opinion. The responses were great, and all positive. However, they were stunned when the interviewers told them that they had in fact been using Windows Vista all along. To see their reactions were curious, and their responses were plain hilarious – “But…. why is it so fast” was one response, and another was that “[they’re] going to go out and buy it straight away”.

You can see the experiment yourself at www.mojaveexperiment.com.

Sounds like a good deal, right? All you have to do is get Firefox 3 during Download Day to help set the record for most software downloads in 24 hours - it’s that easy. We’re not asking you to swallow a sword or to balance 30 spoons on your face, although that would be kind of awesome.

The official date for the launch of Firefox 3 is June 17, 2008.

Download and install Firefox version 3 today, and help Mozilla Firefox set a world record!