Google is working on technology that can automatically identify photographs of landmarks, based in part on geographic patterns of photos posted online. "Intuitively, if a large number of visually similar photos are densely concentrated on a geographical site, this site has a high probability to be a touristic landmark," researchers for the company wrote in a paper made public today.

Microsoft on Tuesday is scheduled to release the public beta of its Microsoft Security Essentials software, a free replacement for its discontinued Windows Live OneCare security suite. See coverage by Emil Protalinksi of Ars Technica.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will be in France this week for the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, where he will deliver a keynote address and accept an award as "Media Person of the Year." The company says he will also host an advertising seminar while in the country.

In the realm of celebrity gossip, Ballmer was spotted taking in a different form of media over the weekend, the movie "The Hangover," at Bellevue's Lincoln Square Cinemas. A couple people posted on Twitter about seeing the Microsoft CEO at the theater.

Following the Wall Street Journal's report that Steve Jobs had a liver transplant two months ago, the Apple CEO was reported to be back on the job today following his six-month medical leave. He was quoted in a company news release about Apple selling more than 1 million iPhone 3GS models since the Friday launch.

Trubion Pharmaceuticals got some good news as drug giant Wyeth extended its research-and-development deal with the Seattle biotech company for an additional year. The collaboration agreement now runs through December 2010.