Let’s face it, Microsoft (specifically Gates) and Intel were pivotal in creating the desktop boom. Sure, they weren’t the revolutionaries, but they brought it down to the masses. Yes, Microsoft probably used their monopoly power to shove the Win 9x crap down our throats, but there weren’t that many options. And its hard to believe that they want customers to pay for OneCare when they themselves left big security holes in their products.
But its hard to imagine a more philanthropic person than Gates. The Gates Foundation is funding a lot of initiatives to fight diseases in third world countries like malaria and tuberculosis. They are funding a project to make boats into mobile libraries in Bangladesh and providing scholarships to students who can’t afford to go to college.
Like an InfoWorld article says, maybe Bill realized the software industry was changing and not the way he was used to thinking. It was time to move on and do something fruitful with his name and money he had amassed. There are lot of rich people out there, but very few using their power to fix the myriad of problems the world is facing.
Technorati Tags: microsoft, billgates
If you are interested in upgrading to Windows Vista when it comes out (eventually, someday), you’ll probably have to upgrade your computer. According to
Microsoft, the minimum requirements for a Vista “Capable” PC are
- A modern processor (at least 800MHz).
- 512 MB of system memory.
- A graphics processor that is DirectX 9 capable.
Yeah, right. A bit more realistically, a Vista “Premium” PC should have at least the following:
- 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor.
- 1 GB of system memory.
- A graphics processor that runs Windows Aero.
- 128 MB of graphics memory.
- 40 GB of hard drive capacity with 15 GB free space.
- DVD-ROM Drive.
- Audio output capability.
- Internet access capability.
A bit better, but thats not really reasonable either. Assume you’ll need a PC at least 50% better just to get some menial level of productivity.
Or you can just wait to get your 350 GHz system. No, not 3 GHz. Three hundred fifty gigahertz.
Georgia Tech and IBM have created a processor that runs that fast at room temperature and 500 GHz if its supercooled. According to the
press release, researchers think they can achieve terahertz performance with some tweaks.
The purpose of the research was to figure out the upper limits of processor speeds with the current technology and see what kind of speed improvements would manifest with cooling processors to absolute zero.
According to USA Today, FIFA wants to put RFID chips in soccer balls, so refs can tell if the ball actually crossed the goal line. Apparently, they are waiting to make sure it works perfectly before officially using them.
This doesn’t seem like that bad of an idea. I guess arguing whether it was really a goal or not is half the fun, but at least the refs would get it right. It can be done in football as well. Put the chips at the ends of the ball to see if it crossed the goal line. Maybe put the chips in the thigh guards of players to know if they were down when the ball crossed the line.
Its probably not a cheap solution, but its fair.
Technorati Tags: soccer,fifa,world cup
For the last year, my favorite cigar has been the Joya de Nicaragua Antaño Machito. Its a strong full-flavored cigar that should require a surgeon general warning: Eat Before Enjoying! But its small enough at 4.75 x 42 for a 30 minutes break anytime.
I try to mix up what I smoke so I don’t get tired of any one cigar, but lately the Antaño Machito has been boring. I’m wondering if I’ve smoked too many and its warped my taste buds. I’ve been thinking about giving Antaño’s cousin a try, the Celebracion. Keepers of the Flame has a pretty good review of it. The 3/06 issue of SMOKE Magazine has an article about how a lot of manufacturers of strong cigars have come out with milder versions, like the Rocky Patel Edge Lite (was the Edge that strong in the first place?) and Celebracion. Check out the issue because the article isn’t on the website.