Martha Stewart Settles Before Katonah Roast

Martha's agreed to limit the use of "Katonah" as a label for furniture, chair cushions, pillows, and mirrors.

Nothing else.

The town of Katonah's happy.

I guess this means that they're cancelling the roast of Martha that they'd planned for this month, where (I kid you not) they were planning on serving a wine labelled "Australian Bitch." (There it is, in the photo.)

Personally, I've got to get me some of this wine. I've already started the Whine/Wine Pun List.

Blindspot: Judith Regan

Judith Regan is suing for libel. One hundred million dollars of harm to her reputation. This, from a woman who was pushing to publish the OJ confessional with all its word count on Nicole Brown Simpson?

Am I missing something here or does Judith Regan need what some folks would call "a good talking to"?

To clarify: Regan was willing to have millions of copies sold of a book filled with nasty commentary on a woman dead and unable to defend herself, and she's simultaneously willing to sue for millions of dollars for a purported slight to her reputation.

Plueeezzzzzeeeeeee.....

Google's $10 Million Prize Pot: the Open Handset Alliance

Win a prize -- Google's put $10 million in the prize pot.

Read all about Google's Android and Dream and Prize Money in the CNET.COM interview of:

1. Mark Rubin, Google's Mobile-Platforms director and in a

2. Rich Miner, Google's Android guy, by PCWorld.

What's this all about?
Google's just announced the creation of the Open Handset Alliance, as well as introducing its Android mobile phone software. (Read: cheaper, cutting-edge competition for IPhone, etc.)

What's the goal?
Getting you fast and reliable internet service outside of a PC or a laptop and away from your desk or favorite coffee house. Better access and more freedom for you, more advertising revenue for them.

There are 34 companies already committed to the Alliance, including such BigWigs as T-Mobile, Motorola, and Sprint-Nextel. The FCC has given its nod of approval.

The Open Handset Alliance will work together on developing applications for the Android platform. Expect to see the new Androids, or "Google phones," sometime in 2008.

Google bought Android in 2005, with Rubin explaining back then that wireless was the "next frontier in search." Rubin came to Google via Android. So did Miner.

Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett Was BAD

Elizabeth: The Golden Age was horrible. I know, it's been out for awhile. Here's what I thought about it. Don't go see it.

26-year-old Hacker Faces 60 Years Behind Bars & 1.25 Million Dollar Fine

This is a sad story: some smart guy in California obviously used his power for evil and figured out how to hack into Paypal via malware, getting usernames and passwords, using the info (together with his friends) to buy lots of stuff.

Game over.

Now, John Schiefer's in the federal system, which is a much bigger (read that harsher) deal than the state system. He's already confessed, he's going to be arraigned soon, and his case is the first of its kind (read: setting a precedent). And, he is facing a 60 year prison sentence and a $1.25 million fine.

Criminals in federal court must deal with the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. These guidelines more or less tell the judge what the prison term has got to be for a specific crime, and they exist to try and insure fairness in sentencing. You don't want someone in Oregon to get an extremely different federal sentence than someone in Florida for the same crime, for example.

However, other than rearranging the dice on what the charges are, there is not much room to move in any plea bargaining situation. You know plea bargaining, you watch TV.

So, John has made a plea deal on the charges of four counts of fraud and wiretap charges. Factually, he admitted that he and his unidentified co-conspirators infected 250,000 computers through their "botnet underground."

He's got a teensy, little hope. Until 2005, these guidelines were mandatory. Then the US Supreme Court decided that this violated the defendants' right to trial by jury, and they became discretionary. Now, the High Court explained, judges should look to the guidelines, but they can move away from them if they think it best. However, the judge must give his written explanation for doing so, and this open door to an appellate review leaves many judges just following the safety of sentencing based upon the guidelines.

So, expect John to face a judge who's going to follow those guidelines in this precedent-setting case with lots of media attention. Why wouldn't he?