Morning Xtra: Japanese Probe Crashes Into Moon, No IE in Euro Windows 7

Kaguya Probe Crashes Into the Moon
Japan's Kaguya lunar probe (pictured) gave astronomers one last show as it took its final bow yesterday, slamming into the moon's surface at 4,000 mph and exploding in a fireball that could be seen from Earth. The scheduled (and spectacular) impact was a fitting end for Kaguya, which provided the first up-close videos of the moon in stunning HD, and posted them on YouTube, no less. [From: Scientific American]

'Internet Explorer' Forced From Euro-Release of Windows 7
Thanks to European anti-trust rulings, Microsoft's newest operating system Windows 7 will not include 'Internet Explorer' when released across the pond. Independent and third-party browser makers have been fighting this battle for over a decade, so consider this a win for the little guy (and Firefox). We're glad to see that Europe is keeping things competitive, but does this mean that Apple's upcoming Snow Leopard release of OS X will be missing the Safari browser? [From: BBC]

USA Today Focusing on Digital Distribution
USA Today thinks it has an answer to the newspaper industry's woes, and it's an e-reader-heavy strategy. While other large papers (most notably the Wall Street Journal) have announced their intentions to make their online content subscription-only, USA Today is instead creating products to be digitally distributed to mobile devices (e.g. iPhone, Amazon's Kindle). Look for the first of these products on August 3rd, when the paper rolls out its first paid digital edition. [From: Editor and Publisher]

Twitter's New Verified Accounts
Yesterday, Twitter initiated its new, verified accounts as an attempt to curtail false celebrity accounts and generally improve credibility around the site. Expect to see the page of your favorite celeb adorned with a new, verified-account badge this week. [From: Mashable]

Recyclers Expecting Lots of Old TVs Thanks to DTV Switch
You know that digital television (DTV) switch we've been hearing about for years now? Well, it's finally happened. If you're still rocking an analog set, you can get a converter and keep kicking it old school, or you can use the DTV switch as justification for buying yourself a 42-inch plasma. Electronics recyclers around the country are betting on the latter, and are expecting a huge influx of old televisions. [From: LiveScience]

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