More top stories

• Netflix subscriptions up 25%

• China says it has most Internet users at 253 million

• Mary Umberger: 81% afflicted with housing depression

• Sirius, XM will pay fines to clear deal

• State shuts loan firm for alleged fraud

• Eric Benderoff: Microsoft opens Xbox platform

• GATX expands board by adding ExpressJet exec

• Insurance tests raise questions about some pickups

• MB Financial profit up, but short of estimates

• Oil drops to around $123 as traders look for signs of stabilization; US pump prices near $4

From today's Tribune

• Numbers, prices drop

• Urban lifestyle a big draw for buyers in West Loop

• Stock rally ends with a thud

• Hey, bidder! Going once. Going twice. Sold!

• Merging Cubs bids encouraged

• Hasbro sues, seeks to ban Scrabulous from Facebook

• Court upholds non-infringement ruling

• Vital Signs to be acquired for $860 million

• Brunswick sinks on cutback charges

• Reporters' notebooks

• Agribusiness alliance sharpens food-versus-fuel debate

• Ford's worst-ever quarter brings $8.67 billion loss

• Design a kitchen that works for you

• A sleek addition to West Loop

• Avoiding pitfalls of foreclosed property

• Fund manager sees $1 trillion in write-downs

• Foreign sales help 3M profit beat forecasts

• KLM takes wraps off ranch in Spring Grove

• Describe the home improvement class you would like to sign up for right now

• Irving Park builder offers discount

• 10 tips for first-time buyers

• More builders taking energy challenge

• First home? You better shop around

• Outdoors with a peaceful vibe

• Take time to choose your tools carefully

• Cost factors

• Handy products for the home

• Getting the most out of home staging

• Seal deck, then seal it again in 18 months

• Wine-storage unit doubles as carrier

• Proper watering is more than turning on the faucet

• Landlord worries about online complaints

• HGTV reality show seeks first-time buyers

• Treehouses aren't just for kids anymore

From the business wire

• California becomes first state to ban restaurants from using trans fats

• High gas prices and long commutes drive renters to walkable downtown locations

• Gas prices, budget woes make road-trip shopping too much for some, stores fight back

• CSX asks 2 activist shareholder nominees to join board immediately; 2 others uncertain

• Correction: Newspapers earnings roundup

• New Mexico researchers work to halt depletion of native herb by encouraging cultivation

• Samsung Electronics' second-quarter net profit surges 51 percent

• Chrysler dealer says automaker getting out of leasing business because of poor residual values

• Arch Coal's 2Q earnings triple; soaring global prices, tighter coal supplies cited

• Japan court upholds guilty verdict of former Internet mogul accused of securities violations

• 2 million Americans get a raise today; Federal minimum wage rises 70 cents to $6.55 an hour

• Exxon and BHP announce $1.25 billion oil and gas project off Australia

• Dow Chemical says 2nd-qtr profit falls 27 percent, cites higher costs of energy, raw materials

• With its very survival at stake, an American auto icon looks to Europe for help

• Qualcomm earnings outlook short of Wall Street expectations, but stock soars on Nokia deal

• National City 2nd-quarter loss swells to $1.8 billion as bad loans pile up

• Xerox 2Q profit falls 19 pct, meets views, but shares fall as wobbly US economy takes toll

• Newmont Mining reverses loss, posts 2nd-qtr profit on higher gold sales at higher prices

• Ford, Daimler, Hyundai profits fall in tumultuous industry; Renault up but threatens cuts

• Kimberly-Clark 2nd-qtr profit falls 10 percent on high energy, input costs

• AP told 3 Cubs finalists each offer Tribune about $1 billion for team, Wrigley, TV operation

• Existing home sales fall 2.6 percent in June, more than double the expected amount

• Bristol-Myers, Eli Lilly post strong 2Q results, but Wall Street still wait-and-see on stocks

• Ford posts $8.7B 2Q loss on asset write-downs, will switch 2 US plants from trucks to cars

• Expert warns that wheat residue too valuable to use for biofuels production

• NY's attorney general sues banking giant UBS for fraud in auction-rate securities market

• Service sector contracts as orders fall

Top tech stories

• Steve Johnson: Hypertext: High 5

• Steve Johnson: Hypertext: Steve Johnson's Web Spin. Fast takes on the week's five most viewed Tribune stories on the paper's Web site. Find them quickly at www.chicagotribune.com/most.

• Steve Johnson: Hypertext: High 5

• Steve Johnson: Hypertext: Photo-centric news start-up has potential

• Steve Johnson: Hypertext: Steve Johnson's Web Spin. Fast takes on the five most viewed Tribune stories on the paper's Web site last week. Find them quickly at www.chicagotribune.com/most.

From the tech wire

• Reports: Italian prosecutors close probe for 4 Google execs over video showing abuse

• AOL shutting 3 storage services to cut costs, focus on growing ad businesses

• Nokia, Motorola, Palm inch up along with other handset makers

• Bike? Check. Sneakers? Check. Online directions for walking, biking around town? Working on it