CNET: AOL fights spyware in coming software upgrade

New version based on 9.0

CNET reports that a new, slimmed-down version of AOL, code-named Tahiti, will allow users to prevent spyware programs from installing. The story takes pains to distinguish between the reviled spyware other types of tracking software that users sometimes allow on their computers.

Though definitions of spyware vary, it's generally thought of as software installed surreptitiously on a PC … Spyware's more common cousin, "adware," is similar but is routinely installed along with free software such as digital video viewers or file-swapping programs.

Another features of the new AOL version is the stripping out of most of the annoying AOL graphics and features that act as a layer between subscribers and the real Internet.