The next-generation of computer operating-system interfaces from Microsoft and Netscape is dispensing with most metaphors in favour of something that looks more like the typical text-and-image Web article than like the Mac's faux office.

ECONOMIST: Ban cyberspace

The traditional system allows investment bankers to use IPO shares to curry favor--legally or illegally--by dispensing shares to individuals or institutions.

FORBES: A Better, More Honest IPO