Wednesday 8am Silicon Valley news report:

Internet upstarts left Sun in the dust -SFGate

The demise of Sun Microsystems as an independent company closes the book on one of Silicon Valley's brashest upstarts and shows how great ideas get copied and commoditized in an era of relentless technological change.

Cisco offers security for "cloud" computing -Reuters

The new security products will include software that filters through online traffic as well as services that help companies assess their overall technology security, it said.

U.S. to create cybersecurity military command: report -Reuters

Defense Secretary Robert Gates plans to announce the creation of a new military "cyber command" after the roll-out of the White House review, the report said, citing multiple military officials familiar with the plan.
The newspaper earlier reported that computer spies have repeatedly breached the Pentagon's costliest weapons program -- the $300 billion Joint Strike Fighter project.

Google Analytics API Now In Public Beta, Desktop Reporting Takes Stats Offline -TechCrunch

With the Google Analytics data API, developers can develop client applications that access Google Analytics data and subsequently present it in new, innovative ways. By combining a wide variety of metrics and dimensions, an API-based client application can deliver custom reports, more refined data or new visualizations that in turn provide new ways to analyze the performance of websites and web applications.

Mayo Clinic backs new personal health record site -AP

The Mayo Clinic Health Manager, as the site is called, is one of many emerging services for so-called personal health records. The sites, from companies such as Microsoft and Google Inc. (GOOG) and major health insurers, are meant to give people an easy way to stash medical information and transfer it to a new clinic, hospital or specialist.

With Oracle's acquisition of Sun, Larry Ellison's empire grows -MercuryNews

While Gates has stepped away from Microsoft to focus on philanthropy, Ellison remains both chairman and CEO of the business software company he founded in 1977, nurturing it to a global powerhouse. In recent years, he has pursued an aggressively acquisitive strategy, building Oracle's customer base and tech products with dozens of takeovers both hostile and friendly.

Lawmakers to re-examine Internet-sharing software -AP

A House committee is reopening its investigation of Internet services that let computer users distribute music and movies online amid reports the same software was exploited to gain unauthorized access to government and private data.

Computer Spies Breach Fighter-Jet Project -WSJ

The U.S. has no single government or military office responsible for cyber security. The Obama administration is likely to soon propose creating a senior White House computer-security post to coordinate policy and a new military command that would take the lead in protecting key computer networks from intrusions, according to senior officials.

Sun’s Schwartz Tries to Reassure His Troops in Email -WSJ

But it’s important to note it’s not the acquisition that’s changing the world - it’s the people that fuel both companies. Having spent a considerable amount of time talking to Oracle, let me assure you they are single minded in their focus on the one asset that doesn’t appear in our financial statements: our people. That’s their highest priority - creating an inviting and compelling environment in which our brightest minds can continue to invent and deliver the future.

EU states, lawmakers on Internet collision course =Reuters

The battle over copyright abuse has emerged as a final sticking point between EU states and the European Parliament, which have joint say. The issue was not part of Reding's reform, which covers infrastructure rather than content.

Google reveals tool that seeks similar images -SFGate

The technology, which relies on automated image recognition, along with metadata, or accompanying tags, is intended to save users the hassle of retyping a query. In any case, describing a photograph for a search, such as the Golden Gate Bridge, taken from below at water level, can be complicated.

Yahoo Posts Earnings Decline; Plans to Cut Work Force -AP

While the financial results reflect Yahoo’s continuing troubles, many investors are focused on what Ms. Bartz may say during a conference call scheduled for Tuesday afternoon regarding the company’s efforts to cut costs and sell assets, as well as the progress of talks with Microsoft over an advertising partnership, which have heated up recently.

VMware’s Cloud OS Is Compelling, But Closed -NYTimes

The question is whether this impressive array of capabilities and partners is worth the apparent VMware lock-in. Cloud computing is as much about flexibility as it is about cost savings, which means using the right tools for the job, regardless of whether they are VMware, or whether they virtualized at all.

Newsom makes his official governor bid online -SFGate

Aiming to stake his claim to the tech-savvy young voters who helped elect President Obama, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, 41, today took to the new media to formally announce he's running for governor - by directly addressing hundreds of thousands of supporters simultaneously via YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

AMD posts deeper loss, shares fall -AP

"The economy is still weak, making it very difficult to forecast end-user demand," Meyer said on a conference call with analysts, noting that the first and second quarters are typically the weakest for chip makers. "I've heard some say we've hit bottom. I don't know how someone could say we've hit bottom in the current economic climate."

NCF2009: Where to find the social media influencers -Tekrati

Now celebrating its fifth year, New Communications Forum will once again bring together thought leaders and decision makers to discuss the impact of social media and emerging communication tools, technologies, and models on PR and corporate communications, marketing and advertising, media and journalism, business, culture and society.

Yellowstone to expand cell, Internet service -msnbc

Yellowstone completed the plan this month after taking public comment on a proposal released last fall. The plan includes a limited expansion of cell phone service, restrictions on wireless Internet at historic lodges and rules for new scientific monitoring stations.

Unesco Puts World's Major Works Online -NYTimes

The project, called the World Digital Library, aims to “promote international and intercultural understanding,” said James H. Billington, the U.S. librarian of Congress, speaking as the Web site (www.wdl.org) was introduced at Unesco headquarters in Paris.

Facebook: Can it be Tamed? -WSJ

This is one of the central conundrums of the digital age. The endless access to information on the Internet is truly democratizing. But pure democracy requires too much effort from its citizens – that's why we elect representatives to make decisions on our behalf. Online, we rely on aggregators such as Google, Yahoo and Digg to cull through the Web and tell us what's relevant.

Pizarro: Al Gore coming to San Jose to receive humanitarian prize at Tech Awards =MercuryNews

Gore's work on environmental issues — which garnered him a Nobel Prize in 2006 — certainly make him a worthy choice for the award, which is given annually by the Tech Museum to leaders who take on the world's biggest challenges.