Microsoft says Zune players working again

Many of Microsoft’s Zune media players that froze up on the last day of 2008 because of a glitch involving their internal clock were functioning properly Thursday as the new year was ushered in, according to the company. However, a few people were still complaining of problems operating the devices.

Microsoft spokesman Brian Eskridge said that based on responses from customers and his review of online message forums, affected users of the 30-gigabyte Zune model were not having further problems after fully recharging their devices and powering them on again on Thursday.

Prolific mystery writer Donald Westlake dead

New York — Donald Westlake, a prolific author considered one of the most successful and versatile mystery writers in the United States, has died. He was 75.

Westlake collapsed from an apparent heart attack as he headed to New Year’s Eve dinner while vacationing in Mexico, his wife, Abigail, told the New York Times.

In a lengthy career that spanned a half-century, Westlake won three Edgar Awards, an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay “The Grifters” and the title of Grand Master from the Mystery Writers of America in 1993. His first novel, “The Mercenaries,” was published by Random House in 1960.

Westlake wrote more than 90 books — mostly on a typewriter. Aside from his own name, he also used several pseudonyms — including Richard Stark, Tucker Coe, Samuel Holt and Edwin West — in part because people didn’t believe he could write so much so quickly.