The news that Google is shopping around the US and buying up miles of fiber-optic cable has sparked some pretty wild speculations. Unlike some, Neowin believes that the fiber shopping is basically to save on bandwidth costs in the long run..

If Google were to build its own network is that it could save the company millions of dollars a month. Here's why: Every time a user performs a search on Google, the data is transmitted over a network owned by an ISP servers via a wholesaler like AboveNet. When AboveNet bridges that gap between Google and Comcast, Google has to pay as much as $60 per megabit per second per month in IP transit fees.

Interesting, although $60 per megabit sounds a wee bit steep. And while we're on the subject of overpricing: Microsoft has apparently been busy working on WinFS and might even announce some new information at this years PDC (Professional Developer Conference).

WinFS is essentially an SQL database layer that sits on top of the NTFS file system. With it, files and data are abstracted and can be access not just more quickly but in many different ways. Some speculate that WinFS may first appear on the server edition of Windows Vista and when coupled with a WinFS enabled client, would allow seamless organization of files and data across a network.

Adrian just pointed me to the NASA's Pluto-Kuiper belt mission website. They allow you to add your name to be "sent to Pluto". A NASA viral? Cool, however no verification makes the list feel a bit meaningless: Mickey Mouse is going to Pluto nearly a dozen times already.