A California judge has issued a tentative ruling that Apple Computer can force three blogging sites to divulge their sources, according to reports. In the preliminary ruling, issued Thursday, a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge said that the three blogging sites, which had disclosed information about Apple's upcoming products, did not have the same legal protections that shield journalists, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

If Yahoo Inc. has its way, that beeping in your pocket could be a phone call. Or an invitation to play backgammon. The Internet titan plans to announce today that it has acquired Stadeon Inc., whose technology lets users of Web-connected cellphones play games against opponents on other cellphones or seated at computers. The service is expected to be available through all major mobile networks this year.

Google has added new features to its local search engine, in hopes of attracting a bigger audience and creating more inventory for its advertisers. The company has integrated the newly-launched Google Maps. It's also integrated various other bits of information -- including user reviews, hours of operation and credit cards accepted. All of these are gathered from various sites across the Internet, including Citysearch, Dine.com, SuperPages.com, Gayot.com, AOL CityGuide, Frommers.com and RestaurantRow.com.

Checking out a new iPod now applies to more than shopping trips or web browsing. This week the South Huntington Public Library on Long Island, New York, became one of the first public libraries in the country to loan out iPod shuffles. For the past three weeks, the library ran a pilot program using the portable MP3 devices to store audio books downloaded from the Apple iTunes Music Store. They started with six shuffles, and now are up to a total of 10. Each device holds a single audio book.

Bradley Smith says that the freewheeling days of political blogging and online punditry are over. In just a few months, he warns, bloggers and news organizations could risk the wrath of the federal government if they improperly link to a campaign's Web site. Even forwarding a political candidate's press release to a mailing list, depending on the details, could be punished by fines.

The technical wizardry behind Google's successful search engine may come down to a blindingly obvious insight: PCs crash.

In late January, billboards with the cryptic message "inNw?" began appearing across the country. Since then, the campaign expanded to TV, text messaging, and a Web site that reveals that solves the mystery. The campaign's message: "If not now when?" The mysterious effort is promoting a new Doritos flavor, Black Pepper Jack, to 16-24 year olds, a group PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division calls "Millennials."

Infinity Broadcasting, owner of many of the preeminent News brands in the country, advanced its Internet radio strategy Wednesday with the announcement that it will begin streaming online 11 of its news and News/Talk stations.

When publishers reward loyal site visitors with fewer but more relevant ads, everyone wins -- especially the advertisers. Few things in business are harder to win and keep than customer loyalty. Online publishers often take for granted that their most loyal users' frequent visits are an implied agreement that they will accept the same offers several times per session. This strains the tenuous bond between reader and publisher, and it tends to punish advertisers who bankroll the site.

David Filo remembers the days in 1994 when he and fellow Stanford University doctoral candidate Jerry Yang would get together with friends to conjure up big ideas for making a business out of the Internet. The group batted around ways to sell goods through the emerging medium, but most of the ideas were scrapped. After the meetings, Filo and Yang would retreat to a trailer behind a computer research building on campus and work on a side hobby that they named "Jerry's Guide to the World Wide Web," a Web search directory that would change their lives. A year later …