To be frank, Microsoft is still having its era past 15 years. It all started from DOS to XP to Vista. Although open source like linux and ubuntu do have their market but still Microsoft products rule the world. Hats off to Bill gates and his team. Windows XP is a great success and still its era hasn’t ended nor it seems to end soon. But wait, here is what i read :
June 30, Microsoft will stop selling windows XP copies to its reseller and distributors so that they can’t load it on new Pc’s. So officially you will then have Windows Vista. Microsoft says it high time they should now officially stop and pull out XP from the market. Time for change. Either have Vista, or suck at open source for sometime. Is that what Microsoft planned on exit of Bill gates ? But wait. we could have some other OS and i suppose Microsoft does have plans for it soon or maybe we get surprise from other 3rd party. But who better than Microsoft would roll out OS because most softwares and games and apps support windows..so we are in real fix. Its like being puppet drawn by Microsoft the way they want.
Lately several yahoo top executives are leaving, to join other start ups or other established companies. This is not a good sign for yahoo that experienced executives leave the company. Hope a day doesn’t come when only Jerry yang is left as one of the oldest yahoo executives. I appreciate yahoo’s decision and the way Jerry yang is reacting towards Microsoft deal (although, he seems silent). I suppose he must be under immense pressure when top company people are leaving yahoo.
Bill gates stepped down from the Microsoft office as he had announced quite earlier. Its a sad moment to see some guy who created a history unsurpassed. The vision of computers present in each homes that he had helped to make it possible really makes him a unique guy. The windows that he built has made several huge calculations and work as small as pinch of salt. His contribution to the entire world is notable. Although he is now not the richest person on earth, but he surely had his era.
One interesting thing, believe me is that people still use this proverb, “I am no gates !” (literal meaning – i am no rich person). Hats off to you Bill gates. Coming generation will remember Bill gates as a historical figure who changed the computing world. Bill gates now wants to focus on his foundation – Bill and Melinda gates foundation.
Skype phones are available in india now. A TATA enterprise, ‘Croma electronics mall’ have started selling skype phones for INR ~7000. I visited the mall yesterday in my city was an interactive experience. My goodness, Windows XP professional cost your something more than INR 15000 here and Vista at INR 18000-19000 (legal copy, although 99% PC’s have pirated versions). There were other software’s like Mcafee Internet security , etc. for some INR 1000 or so. The mall culture brings several imported things, maybe they are not officially announced to come at that place (not smuggling, its all official).
The burden of knowledge that we face today is the result of continuous discoveries and inventions made by the scientists and so called creative minds. Maybe this statement discourages development of science, but it surely adds to the burden of people studying science and other subjects. The more you develop, more people have to study about them and more you remember. If you see at a philosophical point, earlier times there was no such high developed gadgets and technology or comforts but still man used to live comfortably. What ultimate pleasure has development of science given. Nothing if you calculate its pros and cons both. The effect is ‘nil’. Man should have better understood life and its purpose than science. The more advantages and benefits it got from science, more disadvantages and problems also it received. Not that i am against science or hate it but i am just trying to reason out this whole development of science. Nothing fruitful has occurred by sending man to mars or moon. Wtf would you do even if you know the traces of water once existed on mars. Its pointless, better help the world by solving global problems like poverty, unemployment, etc.
Also this topic is never ending whether ‘Science is beneficial or not’. The reason behind this is because advantages and disadvantages are 50:50 and so result is nil, so you can never stop arguing on this topic.
Microsoft is one such company which cant afford to stay back when Mozilla and other web browser are rocking the web 2.0 with their excellent performance. IE always tried to compete Firefox but it never could beat it. Firefox is such an originality and featured browser that IE has no match except copycat its style and features. Its been announcing that soon they would roll out IE 8. IE doesnt have that security factors that firefox has. IE has no match against firefox.
Orkut has whole bunch of fascinating and learning full apps in it. Earlier, facebook was the only social networking site with inbuilt apps like racing, etc. but now orkut has got hundreds of variety apps related to music, videos, chats, emotions, games, etc. There are apps for investment type game and what not. I tried several apps yesterday and its quite interesting. Orkut remains my sole active social network. You have the freedom to check out other people’s profile and scraps and videos and pics ! While facebook sucks at it. Orkut i suppose is more preferred in india and S. America. Although facebook is the most popular of all but i like Orkut only. Also you can select from several fascinating design templates for your profile and that really makes your social profile at first sight quite cool !
The need for alternate source of energy is increasing with rise in crude oil and decreasing fossil fuels upon the fact that how much harm they cause to earth. Scientists have several great ideas in place of petrol and diesel to run cars.
Hydrogen : Hydrogen has the max. calorific value. Plus on combustion it would produce water (hydrogen + oxygen will give water). But hydrogen possess explosive nature and that is one of the biggest drawback. Combustion under controlled conditions can make some possibilities.
Alcohol : Even alcohol can be used but there are several small technical limitations for this.
Bio-diesel : Bio-diesel is what many are eyeing on in near future. But its under development phase still. Plus with huge population, we will need surplus crop of Bio diesel and hardly any space would be left to grow other ingredients and food items.
Other is electric run cars. The problem is that we dont get required speed in electric run cars but now we would get that speed and style both, very soon. Also production of mass electricity is other problem. I suppose the new auto battery innovation should have large amount of power storage feature too. I will write about one company which will soon roll out stylish electric run cars soon.
This are some shocking but true and breaking news – Someone who can create a most innovative Eco-friendly auto battery that will overtake all existing technologies in field of electricity would be awarded $300 US million by US government if McCain comes to power, as proposed by republican senate McCain. But wait, wait, not so easy money guys, the new economical auto battery should deliver power at 30% than current costs and its size and capacity should be worthwhile. McCain says he wants to break the oil dependency from foreign countries (fact is that US is itself sitting on huge oil reserves that it will only use when other countries oil reserves extinguish). This huge prize is worth. I still remember McCain’s interview in which he said that he really presses on the matter of CO2 emissions and global warming and is all geared up to do something for this cause, but also mentioned at India and China should also co-operate in this matter. McCain stresses on the importance of carbon free world and he does realize the importance and need to pollution free atmosphere. Also he would like to give credits to car makers for making such zero pollution free cars or hybrid cars.
Oil prices are rising at fast pace with crude oil at $140/barrel. Plus there has been problems between US and OPEC (middle east especially). Bush is actually backed up by large coal firms ( exxonmobil ?), so i cant see any action towards pollution free world from him. Plus one thing what i liked about McCain is that he stated that he would like to remove the ban on offshore drilling to reduce dependency on other countries. At this point, Obama opposes this removal of ban. Why does federal impose ban and not let their oil wealth flow in their own nation. Why waste your currency ? US’s policy on energy dept. is really not healthy one nor beneficial for the state.
We badly need some reliable and specially pollution free and Eco-friendly source of energy. Coal, crude oil pollute our environment very much and this causes several long terms diseases to mankind. IIM (Indian institute of management) has also launched a new course on ‘Carbon market’ which involves management of carbon in corporate world and all that stuff. Coal will exist still 250 years will petrol is expected to stay still 15 -20 years. Electricity is one such thing we can depend upon in long term but we need some permanent facility for production of large electricity at cheap cost, especially with development and research in nanotechnology in electricity field.