So if you want to know more, read my work.

Microsoft (MSFT, news, msgs) stunned investors and Internet users around the world this morning by making an unsolicited $44 billion bid to buy rival Yahoo (YHOO, news, msgs).

The offer was made last night and announced this morning. The $31-a-share offer is a 62% premium over Yahoo’s closing price of $19.18 on Thursday. Yahoo shares soared on the news, jumping 45% to $27.72 by 12:20 p.m. ET.  –  MSN

WordPress, the open source way to blog announced it’s new Multi-user blog software today. Named WordPress MU, for people like me who host and manage many blogs, as a writer and website consultant, the idea that I can easily manage multiple users is great. Check out more at WordPress.org – Jon Burgess

Google has always tried to be easy to use and confidential, so the first benefit is to have a system that is safer than using a credit card online. Google stores your credit card data and never gives it to the merchants, so your credit card is not directly used in transactions, which has been PayPal’s exclusive model over the past few years.  This is obviously attractive to buyers, because security is a big issue on the internet.  It also is good for sellers because Google is providing the transaction protection and fraud guarantees to the merchants.

The bad news is that Google is quickly becoming the world’s information giant, which will strongly test Ethics and Intellectual Property rights.  Not only does Google contain the best data mining tools and search ability, but they also store ALL the information they gather.  Google is rumored to have the largest grouping of servers in the world, not to server up web pages searches, but to actually store data, such as whole websites that have been cached, so much of the information found on the internet is actually being stored at Google server farms. Google will now have the ability to collect vast amounts of personal information directly from users, such as address, full names, and credit cards.  Traditionally all information that is in Google databases was collected from other websites, so personal data found on websites isn’t necessarily right or complete, it is only as good as it’s source.  The question must be asked who owns that data?  Does Google because they captured and stored it, or does the creator of that information?

Recently Google refused to turn over information the United States Attoney General about viewing habits of internet surfs in regards to child pornography.  So Google holds its information in high regard and will protect it for as long as possible.  However, once credit cards get tied into the transaction process, more attract against Google may come because of the simple fact that money is involved.

Google must be wary of the contractual agreements with its users.  Credit card information is highly regulated, so they will need to fulfill the government mandated agreements, meaning they may not be able to cross data with search data.  Google will be on the leading edge of the Internet E-Commerce Dispute law, they will need to be prepared to defend against lawsuits and lobby for proper laws and regulations.  They will be the testing ground of internet law.

This is a huge deal, helping position WordPress in the with the top blog tools like Blogger and MovableType (MT). I love Word Press and have used it for more than 8 of my own clients, so this really pleases me.

On behalf of the WordPress community, I’m proud to announce a merger we’ve had on our minds since the first time we saw Dean Allen’s dog — WordPress and Textpattern are joining forces to create the greatest CMSMS ever, WordPattern. “WordPress and Textpattern: Two great tastes that taste great together.” – WordPress.org

Google does it again, and blows us out of this world. Google has sent its search engine software to Mars, well…. at least they have a cool map of Mars.

I like talking about Google and our world. Like my last theory that Google and Yahoo are going to be the fall of China, Google has taken it’s Google Map software and inserted a topographical map of Mars.

It’s pretty cool and you can even see where the spacecraft have landed, check it out at http://www.google.com/mars/

So what is Origami? Origami is Microsoft’s new portable computer, sort of. Microsoft is not a hardware company so it designed the specs and farmed out the design to manufacturers, supplying its software, a modified version of XP Windows. Microsoft is clearly trying to enter into the handheld world to hold on to its operating market share, not to make the best product on the market. Reviews seem to bash the product, saying it will never handle the software that Microsoft intends it to use.

• Origami looks paper-thin
• Is Microsoft’s Origami Just a Paper Tiger?
• Introduced at CeBIT, the new mobile PC form factor, formerly codenamed “Origami”

Here’s how you can create a Google Toolbar Button for your Movable Type site.

Need a Google Toolbar? Find out how to download the Google Toolbar.

Google Page Creator is much easier to use than the similar application from Yahoo, and a whole lot faster and intuitive than Microsoft Front Page, which Microsoft is apparently preparing to drop and which was considered the simplest web-design program, up until now. – Playfuls.com

Google has clearly continued to move into a wide variety of products, most of them involving the creation of content or dissemination of information. All of which are powering continued advertising sales on there network, which accounts for 99% of there revenue.