Google is set to unveil a brand new social networking application, that is all set to integrate with at least two Google products.  The new social network will go head-to-head to compete with the likes of Facebook and Twitter, bringing in a whole new competitor to the market.

According to details posted on The Wall Street Journal, "a new feature that makes it easier and faster for users of Gmail to view media and status updates.”  However, experts believe that the integration will go far beyond just Gmail. 

Microsoft said on Monday that users experiencing battery warnings from Windows 7 are by design.

Last week Neowin revealed reports of users receiving notifications that they should replace their laptop battery. The warning is triggered when a laptops BIOS detects a battery replacement is required. Windows 7 provides the following alert: "Consider replacing your battery. There is a problem with your battery, so your computer might shut down suddenly." Some users claimed their laptop battery's had gone from two hours battery life to 30 minutes whilst others threatened class action lawsuits assuming the software giant had "permanently damaged" their laptop battery. 

Google's increasing profile continued with a major advertising spot in the most sought after ad breaks in globaltelevision – with the search giant paying for a slot during the American Superbowl.

The Superbowl is traditionally one of the most sought after advertising events of the year, and Google was so excited with the web reaction to its slightly twee Parisian Love promo that it plumped for a prime TV spot.

"If you watched the Super Bowl this evening you'll have seen a video from Google called Parisian Love. In fact you might have watched it before, because it's been on YouTube for over three months, said the company CEO Eric Schmidt on the Google blog.

Microsoft issued an advanced bulletin notification on Thursday detailing 26 vulnerabilities the company plans to fix on Tuesday February 9.

February's Patch Tuesday will include 13 bulletins - five rated Critical, seven rated Important, and one rated Moderate - addressing 26 vulnerabilities. The huge bumper Patch Tuesday will also include a fix for a 17 year old Windows vulnerability. Eleven of the bulletins affect Windows and the remaining two affect Office. The Office vulnerabilities only affect older versions of Office. Office 2007 and Office 2008 for Mac are unaffected. 

Microsoft issued a new security advisory on Wednesday, warning of a potential flaw in Internet Explorer which could allow third-parties access to data.

"Our investigation so far has shown that if a user is using a version of Internet Explorer that is not running in Protected Mode an attacker may be able to access files with an already known filename and location." Microsoft said in the security advisory.

This comes after an out-of-band patch was released for Internet Explorer to patch a vulnerability, details of which were released by Google in January after a targeted attack upon them which resulted in the theft of intellectual property. The attack led Google to announce it would be withdrawing support for Internet Explorer 6.

It looks like Google is really taking people's suggestions seriously. According to an official Google job posting, the Mountain View based company is looking to hire a Phone Support Program Manager for Android/Nexus One support. Ever since the release of Google's, first, self-branded phone, users have been complaining of the complications associated with dealing with Google's email-onlycustomer support.

In the past, Google's email support and online forums have been, for the most part, sufficient in dealing with general problems with Google products. However, Google has never dealt with hardware. The growing pains of Google's foray into the world of phones has left them with no choice but to assemble a phone support team to deal with their new, online, phone store and any problems that come with it.

Microsoft has confirmed it is investigating a problem causing some Windows 7 users to receive incorrect battery warnings on their laptops.

The warning is triggered when a laptops BIOS detects a battery replacement is required. Windows 7 provides the following alert: "Consider replacing your battery. There is a problem with your battery, so your computer might shut down suddenly." One user who spoke to The Register claimed their laptop battery life had decreased from two hours to half hour and others posted their experiences in a TechNet forums thread.

Microsoft officials said on Tuesday the company is looking into the issue, "we are investigating this issue in conjunction with our hardware partners, which appears to be related to system firmware," a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed.

According to Sky News, a study by the Institute of Psychological Sciences at the University of Leeds found a link between Internet usage and depression. Psychologists found the more time spent surfing the web, the more likely individuals are to be depressed.

The study, published in the Psychopathology Journal, consisted of 1,319 subjects ranging in age from 16 to 51. An online questionnaire was used to track levels of Internet usage and depression. The research did not conclude whether surfing the web causes depression or whether individuals with mental health issues tend to gravitate toward using the internet.

While Apple looks set to kickstart a whole new category of 'tablet computing' with the launch of the iPad this year, competing manufacturers are quickly re-evaluating their strategies in light of the surprisingly low $499 price point of Apple's new machine.

New that the competition is having to rethink their pricing for tablet PCs comes from a recent rumour in Digitimes, citing unnamed sources who claim companies such as ASUS and MSI were expecting Apple's iPad to launch at around $1,000.

So what now for the competing Android-based offerings to the iPad?

The iPad's highly aggressive pricing strategy is something of a departure for Apple, an attempt to create a new market for tablet computers amongst consumers and, no doubt, in part, a reaction to the increasingly low cost of netbooks in the last year.

Microsoft has announced that Office 2010 has moved into the release candidate stage. The company said it had distributed the software to those in the technology adoption programme.

This means Office 2010 is now officially out of beta. Once it's passed the RC state, it will be released to manufacturing, then offered for sale.

The release candidate period will allow for feedback from partners, which can impact the final build. The launch is expected in June, probably close to the end of the month, as the company says it doesn't expect Office 2010 to have any big effect on third-quarter earnings.