Columnists’ corner: With Vista, Microsoft is donning a new identity — that of a secure OS vendor. Thanks to significant new features, in Security Adviser Roger Grimes writes, “I will go out on a limb and say that I believe Windows Vista, and the forthcoming Longhorn server, will be tough to hack.” That said, will Vista be penetrable? “Sure, anything super-popular gets hacked.” Notes from the field: Vista may be in OEMs hands, but one Cringeman already found it breaking his Nvidia GeForce GPU, and Nvidia is only saying that new drivers will become available when the OS ships to consumers. Google’s Checkout system isn’t working so well, either. And Cringe brushes up on acronyms, albeit in his characteristic manner. Vista driver muddle, Google service scuttled. The news beat: Even though Vista may be less hackable than previous Windows OS’s, pirates are working around its activation features already and distributing a file that can be used to circumvent anti-piracy mechanisms. BitTorrent buys uTorrent in its effort to become a viable competitor in the online content realm. And Nasdaq’s bid to purchase the London Stock Exchange touches IT. Technology Industry