Microsoft Corp. is no longer interested in buying all of Yahoo Inc., CEO Steve Ballmer said yesterday, though he told shareholders that the company would still be open to a collaboration on Internet search.

THIS WEEK
  Miami—The Hurricanes have won five consecutive games, tied with Virginia Tech for the longest winning streak in the ACC this season. Of course, the Hurricanes beat the Hokies last Thursday. Miami (4-2 ACC, 7-3) will make the ACC championship game if it closes the regular season with wins over Georgia Tech and N.C. State.

Citing heavy losses and fierce competition, the overnight-delivery giant DHL is cutting 9,500 American jobs and significantly reducing its air and ground operations in the U.S. DHL’s retreat will enable UPS Inc. and FedEx Corp. to further expand their combined 80 percent share of the U.S. market. DHL has about 5 percent of the market.

At least 300,000 low-income Virginians can get a free cell phone with free service for a year. Last month Virginia became the third state to have the phones distributed through TracFone Wireless Inc.‘s SafeLink Wireless Program. The SafeLink Wireless service will provide 68 minutes of air time each month for a year. The Federal Communications Commission recently authorized TracFone to provide SafeLink, the company’s version of the federally subsidized program Lifeline, which helps low-income families get affordable phone service.

Stunned by their first presidential defeat in Virginia in 44 years and the loss of perhaps three House seats, state Republicans are teetering on a return to the minority and struggling to regroup ahead of what could be make-or-break elections for governor and the legislature in 2009. “What state party?“ said J. Kenneth Klinge, a veteran Republican operative and statehouse lobbyist. “You think that what’s down there now is a state party? It’s laughable. There is no state party.“

In “Animal House”—the movie, not the legislative body—when the Deltas vow revenge on their tormentors, Bluto sputters: “I’m not gonna take this! Wormer, he’s a dead man! Marmalard, dead! Niedermeyer—‘’ Fellow frat boy Otter interrupts: “Dead!“ If these were Democrats plotting for approaching House elections, one might substitute Phil Hamilton for Wormer, Tom Rust for Marmalard and Scott Lingamfelter for Niedermeyer.

BY ROBERT C. SUYDAM Virginia has established itself as a leader in land conservation by being one of only two states nationwide that has transferable state income tax credits as incentives for landowners who are interested in protecting their land from development. The credits reflect the sentiments of most citizens. The 2006 Virginia Outdoors Survey revealed that 95 percent of Virginians said it was either “important” or “very important” to protect natural and open-space land. However, development over the past several decades has challenged many localities to influence not only how development occurs, but, more importantly, where it occurs.

Virginia and five other states have agreed to coordinate their planning efforts for the busy Interstate 81 corridor. The agreement is aimed at coordinating public and private investment in highway and rail infrastructure to build a smooth-flowing freight and passenger network along I-81 and its extensions from Tennessee to New York, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation.

State health officials say an outbreak of norovirus has sent roughly 40 people, most of them students at Virginia Tech, to Blacksburg health centers since Thursday. Victims of the illness, none of whom were hospitalized overnight, complained of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, said Robert Parker, spokesman for the Virginia Department of Health.

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. carried the Democrats’ economic message into Southside Virginia yesterday, telling a crowd in Martinsville that Barack Obama will restore the middle class and the nation’s standing in the world. Biden, sticking to a prepared script and facing a TelePrompTer, urged voters to elect Obama president and scoffed at Sen. John McCain for attempting to distance himself from President Bush’s economic policies.

Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, is clearing a “pathway for victory” in battleground states, including Virginia, his campaign manager said yesterday. “One of the most significant moments in this elec tion is that both Virginia and Colorado have strengthened,“ David Plouffe said in a conference call with reporters from across the country.

Skyline Drive, a tiny bucolic mountain road winding 105 miles through the heart of Shenandoah National Park, now is a National Historic Landmark. The designation, reserved for places that possess exceptional value to the American people, is the highest ranking bestowed by the federal government on a historic resource. “It’s really, really a phenomenal resource,“ said Kathleen S. Kilpatrick, director of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. With Skyline Drive, “you are linking this amazing, man-made structure with a phenomenal natural landscape. Each component enhances the beauty of the other.“

Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, is clearing a “pathway for victory” in battleground states—among them, Virginia, his campaign manager said yesterday. “One of the most significant moments in this election is that both Virginia and Colorado have strengthened,“ David Plouffe told a conference call with reporters from across the country.

Virginia’s Skyline Drive has been designated as a National Historic Landmark. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced the designation today. The designation is the highest ranking bestowed by the federal government on a historic resource. The highway stretches 105 miles through the Shenandoah National Park and along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains between Front Royal and Rockfish Gap. The colorful autumn leaves make it an especially popular attraction this time of year.

NORFOLK (AP)—The Navy says the Norfolk-based destroyer Barry is being inspected for damage after it ran aground in the Black Sea. Officials say the ship ran aground yesterday as it was preparing to dock at a port in Turkey. Tugs were able to free the ship with assistance from Turkish coast guard divers and is moored at the Samsun pier.