As of today, Adobe will no longer develop or support GoLive, the Web authoring tool it originally created to compete with Macromedia Dreamweaver. Adobe acquired Macromedia in 2005, and obviously it doesn't make much sense to compete with oneself. Really it was only a matter of time.

But I always had a soft spot for GoLive. Dreamweaver is great, but for whatever reason I always liked GoLive's UI a little better, even if the code it generated was sometimes quirky. Besides, market competition is always a good thing. Where now can we find a competitor to Adobe Dreamweaver?

The latest version of the popular Ubuntu Linux distribution was officially released to the public today after the customary beta-test period. This version is designated "LTS," for "long-term support," which should make it attractive to business customers who prefer a longer upgrade cycle for their operating systems.

Ubuntu 8.04 is available in a version tailored for server systems, but in the past it has been the desktop version that has garnered the most attention. The new release should be no different, as it includes a number of improvements for desktop users -- most notably, a new installer that allows the OS to coexist on a Windows computer without partitioning or re-formatting the hard drive.

The Web 2.0 Expo is underway at San Francisco's Moscone Center this week, and mashups are one of the hottest topics. Mashups, if you don't know, are named after the music phenomenon where DJs create remixes that combine two or more original tracks -- think Jay-Z rapping over the Beatles. In the Web version, developers pull data from two or more sites and combine it in novel ways.

Confession time: I've never created a mashup. Apparently that makes me something of an anomaly in the Web 2.0 world. So I installed the Intel Mash Maker toolkit, which went into public beta to coincide with the Expo, in hopes of getting a jump-start. Unfortunately, I'm still not much further along -- which makes me wonder how long it will take before mashups are truly accessible to most business users.

Windows remains the dominant OS in the PC world, but the largest portion of Microsoft's income actually comes from its business software division, responsible for Office and Microsoft Dynamics. For years Microsoft has struggled to maintain its revenue stream from these  products, however; Office, in particular, presents a challenge, since customers are often skeptical of an upgrade when they don't use all the features of the current version. Meanwhile, Microsoft faces growing challenges from the likes of OpenOffice.org and Google Docs.

Now comes news that Redmond is experimenting with not one, but two new business models for its productivity apps, both targeted at low-end customers. The idea is that customers won't purchase the software at all. Instead, they will subscribe to it -- or, potentially, get it for free in an ad-supported model.

Apple made my pet-peeves list recently with its decision to push Safari out to Windows customers via its QuickTime Update software, and I certainly wasn't the only one. The good news is that Apple seems to have finally relented.

A new version of QuickTime Update, available beginning today, uses a two-pane interface to separate legitimate updates to your currently-installed components from any new applications that Apple would like you to install. Shockingly, that even includes iTunes, for those of us who use our PCs mainly for business. And, though the option isn't easy to find, the new version even lets you opt out of Safari and iTunes downloads completely.

Over the next few weeks, Google will be rolling out a new feature that allows Google Docs users to access their documents even without an Internet connection. For now the change only applies to the word processor, but similar capabilities are expected to become available for spreadsheet and presentation documents once the initial trials are complete.

This move wasn't unexpected. The updated Google Docs take advantage of the company's Google Gears library, a programming tool that allows Web application developers to synchronize online data with files on the user's local hard drive. It also intensifies the burgeoning competition between Google and Microsoft, which offers Web-based collaboration features similar to Google Docs in the form of Microsoft Office Live Workspace. Some pundits feel that online services like Google's are the Number One threat to Microsoft's dominance of the productivity software market. Myself, I remain skeptical.

There are a lot of flavors of Linux on the market, each with its own unique features and quirks. Businesses are usually willing to pony up for one of the "Big Two": Red Hat or Novell/Suse. Regular folks, on the other hand, are more likely to download one of the free alternatives.

Do you smell a market opportunity? Not Red Hat or Novell. Each company independently confirmed this week that you may as well keep those BitTorrent clients running: Neither Red Hat nor Novell has any plans to market a consumer desktop Linux product in the near future.

Comcast, one of the leading providers of broadband cable Internet access in the U.S, has your rights at heart. Of course, exactly what rights you have remains to be seen. But Comcast plans to let you know, just as soon as it's decided what they are.

That was the gist of Comcast and Pando Networks' joint announcement yesterday, calling for a "P2P Bill of Rights and Responsibilities." But skeptics worry that such a plan is likely to be light on the rights, heavy on the responsibilities.

If you're running Windows Vista, you're familiar with User Access Control (UAC). It's the security subsystem that pops up those irritating dialog boxes asking whether you really want to install software, or modify system files, or write to the Registry.

UAC may be Vista's most-hated feature, but as it turns out, it may also be its best-designed. As reported by Ars Technica, UAC was created with a very specific purpose in mind: to annoy you.

I've been playing around with the new Adobe Media Player (AMP), which made its way out of Adobe Labs to receive a formal 1.0 release yesterday. It's an interesting entry into the fast-moving market for streaming digital media, and definitely something to watch (no pun intended).

My initial reaction was: Why do we need another media player now? We already have Windows Media Player, QuickTime Player, Real Player, and a host of freeware alternatives. What could Adobe possibly add to the mix that we don't have already? But AMP is different from any of these. To call it simply a media player belies the true nature of the product; rather, AMP is a full-fledged attempt to offer a kiosk-style interface for browsing and streaming digital TV to your PC desktop. With this product, Adobe is definitely thinking outside the cable box.

Feathers flew at the Computer History Museum in San Jose last week, when the CEOs of SAP and Salesforce.com met to debate the future of software. At issue: Is traditional on-premise enterprise software -- such as that offered by SAP -- obsolete in the era of network-delivered software as a service (SaaS)?

Marc Benioff says it is -- but then, he would. Benioff's company, Salesforce.com, is perhaps the most prominent example of the new generation of SaaS vendors. But a growing number of small business owners are beginning to realize that he has a pretty good point.

Still upset about Windows Vista? Don't worry. According to Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, it should all be over soon.

News wires were abuzz Friday with gossip that Microsoft may be planning to release its follow-up to Vista, currently known as Windows 7, as early as next year. Previous reports had the next-generation OS shipping no sooner than 2010, but now -- for some strange reason -- it seems Microsoft may be upping its timetable.

For graphic design professionals it's that time again. Adobe is readying a new version of its Creative Suite, the software bundle that includes Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, and other applications for print and Web design. Only this time there's a twist: The new version of Photoshop will support 64-bit memory addressing for the first time -- but only if you're running Windows.

Simply put, more bits means you can access more memory, which means you can work with bigger files. By taking advantage of 64-bit CPUs, Adobe is making it possible for designers and photo manipulators to work with really, really big images at high resolutions. Think posters, advertising displays, or even billboards.