MP3.com has launched a marketing service for record labels, sending emails to fans touting new music. The first band to be promoted is VAST, which is signed to Warner Music Group’s Elektra entertainment division, according to a story at ZDNet UK. More from The Associated Press.

From the humor site Segfault.org: The “New Nerd Network” (NNN) is joining the rush to produce yet another voyeuristic reality show (YAVRS). The show will be available only over the Internet, using live, streaming video. The new show, named “Code Noir”, will highlight the antics of a bunch of wild and crazy hackers as they develop applications, utilities, viruses, and other artifacts of the new e-generation of programmers. Dozens of cameras and microphones located in and around the hackers’ cubicles, cafeteria, and ‘fun zone’ will capture the action 24/7. The hackers’ own “web cams” will also be used.

The New York Times has a story about sites battling for the ears and minds of music lovers.

From SecurityFocus.com: Patches are available for FreeBSD 5.0-CURRENT, 4.1-STABLE and 3.5-STABLE. Upgrading to a version of these operating systems after the correction date listed in the discussion will also remove this vulnerability.

From the humor site Segfault.org: In a bold move Wednesday afternoon, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) employee Donald Rutherford, fixed approximately 3 bugs in the Microsoft application Outlook Express. “Boredom” was the reason cited for this unusual display of programming. “It was about 1:30 in the afternoon, and I had just gotten back from lunch.” Rutherford explained. “My office was already clean, my hard drive was defragged, and I still had a half hour before I got off work for the weekend, so I just started programming.”

Will email kill the radio star? Net music service MP3.com thinks it has a good chance. The company today unveiled a service that will email Net music fans radio-edited songs. So instead of tuning in to the radio to hear a new single, people will be able to pull these “single-serve” songs from their email in-boxes. CNet reports.

Scientists have developed an armed robotic security guard.
“Roboguard,” devised in Thailand, can shoot at will or wait for the order to fire from its human masters via the internet. At present the machine, consisting of a handgun and a small video camera, is statically mounted on a directional platform, reports the BBC.

Federal law enforcement authorities on Thursday arrested a suspect in the stock manipulation case of technology company Emulex, which saw its stock plunge more than 50 percent last week as investors reacted to a fake news announcement. “We do have someone in custody in the Emulex case,” said Laura Bosley, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles office of the FBI. Bosley would describe the suspect only as being male, reported CNet. More from ZDNet: The man arrested Thursday for staging the hoax that sent stock of technology company Emulex reeling last week was a former employee of Internet Wire Inc., the press release company through which the damaging hoax report was disseminated, officials said Thursday.

So what if Universal CEO Edgar Bronfman despises MP3.com? Universal Music Group’s copyright lawsuit rolls on, Judge Jed Rakoff ruled. MP3.com’s legal hounds had sought to prove that Universal refused to settle the suit because it wanted to squash MP3.com as a competitor to its own online efforts. Sorry, the judge ruled, the only motives that matter are MP3.com’s. TheStandard.comreports on the continuing court drama

Master cryptographer Bruce Schneier’s “Secrets and Lies” explains why computer security is an oxymoron. Salon.com reviews the book.