OK, here’s an addition to “press releases you’re not quite sure how to react to”: if you use Internet Explorer, and you download the latest version of Java, you’ll have the option to download and install the MSN toolbar. Um. Yay?Java and the MSN toolbar are both free downloads on their own, so it’s sort of baffling to me why this deal has any reason to exist; I suppose those who remain blissfully unaware of such things might be slightly more likely to download the MSN toolbar — which funnels search queries to Microsoft’s Live Search — if the option is presented when Java automatically updates (though I think they’d be more likely to dismiss the pop-up box in annoyance). The deal is mostly being heralded as a sign of the thawing relationship between Microsoft and Sun, which you’ll recall got icy mostly over Java, way back in the day. Now, Microsoft wants to push its search business, and Sun … well, as PC Magazine puts it, “The move reflects fiscal weakness on Sun’s part; the company posted a $1.7 billion loss in its most recent quarter.” I’m assuming this means that Microsoft is paying Sun good money for this opportunity? Whatever the deal’s origin, the two downloads strike me as so mismatched that they must have been paired together by corporate negotiators with MBAs, who then faced bemused techies back in either camp. Technology Industry