LOS ANGELES Word of mouth is one of the most common ways homebuyers and sellers find a real estate agent. Now, there are several Web sites that tout a more scientific approach: ranking agents based on criteria such as years of experience, how many sales they've closed, and the number of positive testimonials from past clients.

NEW YORK Maybe there's something to face-to-face interaction after all.

DAYTON, Ohio If only we could be a fly on the wall when our enemies are plotting to attack us. Better yet, what if that fly could record voices, transmit video and even fire tiny weapons?

TEN SLEEP, Wyo. The nearest Wal-Mart is two hours away, and only foul weather, a deer in the road or a Washakie County sheriff's deputy would slow down anyone with a mind to drive there faster.

LIMA, Peru Not everyone is slashing jobs in these grim economic times. Microsoft Corp. has no plans to cut back on research spending and plans to add workers in the coming year, senior executive Craig Mundie said Friday.

WASHINGTON The Pentagon has banned, at least temporarily, the use of external computer flash drives because of a virus threat officials detected on Defense Department networks.

SAN JOSE, Calif. Two engineers from China were sentenced to a year in prison Friday for stealing computer chip designs from their Silicon Valley employers and trying to smuggle the secrets to their homeland to launch a government-backed startup there.

SAN FRANCISCO If Google delivers useless search results, just erase them and you won't see them again.

ROUND ROCK, Texas Dell Inc.'s fiscal third-quarter profit sank 5 percent as concerns about the deepening economic crisis crimped corporate spending on computers and other technology products.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. Lively, a virtual reality service from Google Inc., is dying.

KIRKLAND, Wash. Shareholders of telecommunications company Clearwire Corp. have approved a plan to merge with Sprint Nextel Corp.'s wireless broadband network.

NEW YORK Despite the bad economy, U.S. Internet advertising revenue rose in the third quarter, according to an analysis released Thursday.

REDMOND, Wash. Microsoft Corp. is giving an early holiday gift to people who pay for all-you-can-listen access to the Zune digital music store: 10 songs to keep each month, included in the $14.99 monthly subscription fee.

NEW YORK With the recent releases of three new BlackBerrys across three different wireless providers, Research In Motion Ltd. has fired back at Apple Inc. in the Great Smart Phone Skirmish of 2008.

REDMOND, Wash. Microsoft Corp. is giving an early holiday gift to people who pay for all-you-can-listen access to the Zune digital music store: 10 songs to keep each month, included in the $14.99 monthly subscription fee.

NEW YORK With the recent releases of three new BlackBerrys across three different wireless providers, Research In Motion Ltd. has fired back at Apple Inc. in the Great Smart Phone Skirmish of 2008.

SAN FRANCISCO After 27 years as a print publication, PC Magazine is ditching its print edition and going online-only in February.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Akamai Technologies Inc., a Web content provider, said Wednesday it is cutting 7 percent of its work force in the fourth quarter as part of a restructuring to save on costs.

SAN FRANCISCO In space, no one can hear you scream. But scoring an Internet hookup suddenly isn't out of the question.

SAN FRANCISCO It was bad enough when Dan Lyons stopped sharing his musings about the technology scene in a hilarious satire of what Apple Inc. founder Steve Jobs would be like as a blogger.

BELLEVUE, Wash. Microsoft Corp. is no longer interested in buying all of Yahoo Inc., CEO Steve Ballmer said Wednesday, though he told shareholders that the company would still be "very open" to a collaboration on Internet search. His comments sent Yahoo shares diving more than 20 percent.

NEW YORK In a Nov. 18 story about the earnings forecast at Hewlett-Packard Co., The Associated Press erroneously reported that HP expects quarterly revenue of $33.6 million. The correct figure is $33.6 billion.

BEIJING Baidu.com has been the star of China's Internet world. But now the search engine dubbed "China's Google" is scrambling to rescue its reputation after state TV accused it of letting unlicensed suppliers of medical products pay for higher rankings on its results page - without alerting users.

NEW YORK Hewlett-Packard Co. surprised Wall Street on Tuesday by saying its earnings will be slightly above analysts' expectations, going against the grain as other technology bellwethers have slashed forecasts and posted weak results in the sagging economy.

SAN FRANCISCO Google Inc. has opened an online photo gallery that will include millions of images from Life magazine's archives that have never been seen by the public before.

WASHINGTON One of the two Democrats on the Federal Communications Commission is calling on the agency to investigate whether a new electronic measurement system used by Arbitron Inc. to track radio station listenership is unfairly harming minority broadcasters.

NEW YORK Facebook plans to start charging for verifying applications built for the social network - an optional process that has upset some developers despite the company's assurances it will bring plenty of positive benefits.

MOBILE, Ala. Mobile officials are considering providing free, wireless Internet services in the downtown district, joining the ranks of other cities with free wi-fi for roving laptop users on Main Street.

NEW YORK If you aren't sure which books to give that avid reader on your gift list this holiday season, how about considering every title she could name?

KANSAS CITY, Mo. A wireless affiliate of Sprint Nextel Corp. has pulled its request that an Illinois judge block the planned spinoff of Sprint's new broadband network.

NEW YORK Hewlett-Packard Co. surprised Wall Street on Tuesday by saying its earnings will be slightly above analysts' expectations, going against the grain as other technology bellwethers have slashed forecasts and posted weak results in the sagging economy.

Real news from the virtual world:

NEW YORK National Geographic, best known for its yellow-framed magazine and often breathtaking nature shows, is getting into video games.

NAME: Jerry Yang.

SAN FRANCISCO With Jerry Yang quitting as Yahoo Inc.'s chief executive, the Internet company's board will confront pivotal questions as it looks for a new leader.

NEW YORK A judge has tentatively approved a settlement of lawsuits between Google and book authors and publishers that may put millions of out-of-print texts online.

SAN FRANCISCO Spansion Inc. wants to block U.S. sales of iPods, BlackBerry gadgets and other devices because memory chips made by Samsung Electronics Co. and used in those products allegedly violate Spansion patents.

SAN FRANCISCO E-mailers, enjoy the early holiday gift: Spam volume has been cut by more than half because Internet providers pulled the plug on a Web hosting firm that was allegedly helping some of the world's most dastardly junk e-mail gangs.

Microsoft is positioning the Zune as a music lover's device, in part by promoting artists and giving Zune users access to original interviews and free or discounted music. Some musicians who have teamed with Zune:

SEATTLE A video for the title track on hip-hop veteran Common's forthcoming album, "Universal Mind Control," begins with a digital music player pulsing to the beat. The viewer is pulled through the screen into the gadget's guts, where the cool, collected rapper lets loose an easy stream of lyrics.

WASHINGTON Federal regulators on Monday charged Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban with insider trading for allegedly using confidential information on a stock sale to avoid more than $750,000 in losses.

Panasonic has begun talks to take over smaller Japanese rival Sanyo. A look at the two electronics makers:

TOKYO Panasonic Corp.'s plans to take over rival Sanyo Electric Co. would create the world's second-largest electronics maker. But Panasonic already has plenty of gadgets. Instead, the crown jewels Panasonic wants from Sanyo are green.

FRANKFURT, Germany The German-language version of the Internet encyclopedia Wikipedia is back online after a left-wing lawmaker dropped a complaint.

ALVISO, Calif. Digital video recording company TiVo Inc. said Monday it is teaming up with Domino's Pizza Inc. to allow subscribers to order pizza for delivery or pick-up from their TV sets.

WASHINGTON A new startup company wants to have a say in the high-stakes patent disputes that loom over many industries.

SEATTLE The One Laptop Per Child project is set to resume its Give One Get One promotion for its kid-friendly computers Monday with logistics help from Web retailer Amazon.com Inc.

DENVER Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and recovering from a grenade attack, Iraq war veteran Ian Newland wanted to pursue a business degree after his discharge from the Army last year. What he didn't want to have to do was set foot in a classroom.

WASHINGTON Before he ran for president Barack Obama quit smoking. Now that he's won the job, he may have to break another addiction: Checking his BlackBerry for e-mail.

NEW YORK Gadget makers love to sell us on all the things their devices can do, whether it's letting us chat with distant friends at any time or watch movies on our commute. But can anyone fix this stuff when it breaks?