The Fertility Institutes recently stunned the fertility community by being the first company to boldly offer couples the opportunity to screen their embryos not only for diseases and gender, but also for completely benign characteristics such as eye color, hair color, and complexion. The Fertility Institutes proudly claims this is just the tip of the iceberg, and plans to offer almost any conceivable customization as science makes them available. Even as couples from across the globe are flocking in droves to pay the company their life’s savings for a custom baby, opponents are vilifying the company for shattering moral and ethical boundaries. Like it or not, the era of designer babies is officially here and there is no going back.

Microsoft has warned users that yet another critical vulnerability has been found in its popular Office spreadsheet program Excel. The flaw could allow remote hackers to open and run malicious code on an unsuspecting user’s computer through an infected spreadsheet file.

The attack effects users of Microsoft Office Excel 2007 but also those using any of the older binary .XLS files. A user opening a file, probably through an email, will be asked to open a malicious spreadsheet. They’ll then begin downloading at least two files onto their system, one valid, the other the malicious binary. Once the new and infected file is opened, unsuspecting users will unfortunately execute a hidden Trojan horse downloader that could be used by hackers to log user keystrokes and any sensitive personal data, including financial information.

Vudu has become the first on-demand service to offer high-definition movies for download to own rather than just rent.

Under agreements with such independent film companies as Magnolia Pictures, FirstLook Studios and Kino, Vudu will begin by offering 50 HD titles, including best documentary Oscar winner “Man on Wire,” for purchase.

Vudu already offered a library of more than 1,400 HD movies for rental. Vudu’s new collection, being unveiled Tuesday, will be available for rental as well as purchase in both instant HD and Vudu’s HDX format.

In addition to Magnolia’s “Man on Wire,” other titles include FirstLook’s “Transsiberian” and “War, Inc.”

High-definition titles purchased from Vudu can be stored on the consumer’s Vudu box or in the Vudu Vault, a free online storage option for movies and TV shows that enables consumers to free up disk space while retaining access to all their purchased titles. Movies are priced from $13.99 to $23.99.