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Why Microsoft Is Beating Apple At Its Own Game
ttom writes "OSWeekly.com looks at Microsoft's promotional strategy and concludes that Microsoft is beating Apple at its own game." From the article: "Apple is to blame for this, at least to some extent. They just had to go and release Boot Camp, didn't they? By the way, please don't take my sarcastic tone as an expression of my dissatisfaction for the product. I think it's great, and I really never expected to see something like Boot Camp come out of the Apple Camp. I know that users have bombarded them with requests for officially allowing Windows usage on a Mac, and the fact that they yielded to these requests is interesting because they've emphasized the OS X and Windows experiences as being completely separate for quite some time."
Conan O'Brien, the late-night comedic genius who entertained millions of viewers in the acclaimed "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," died yesterday of natural causes. He would have turned 40 in less than six months.
Conan Christopher O'Brien was born April 18, 1963 to Thomas and Ruth O'Brien in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. Mr. O'Brien was raised in an Irish Catholic household as the third of six children, and his struggle for attention as a middle child became a theme throughout life. In a 1998 interview with Irish Independent, Mr. O'Brien said, "My Irish background has had a huge effect on my comedy...I grew up in a large family and there was a lot that went unsaid, so the way we would communicate was through humor. It was the only way we could really express ourselves."
Both of Mr. O'Brien's parents were successful professionals. Dr. Thomas O'Brien graduated from Harvard as an epidemiologist, and taught at Harvard Medical School. Meanwhile, Ruth Reardon O'Brien, Esq. practiced law with a degree from Yale. With strong parental support, Mr. O'Brien was active in youth, taking tap dancing lessons and writing comedic plays that later formed the basis of his career. Mr. O'Brien entered Brookline High School in 1977 and joined the debate team as well as the editorial staff of the student publication "Sagamore." He graduated as Valedictorian in 1981.
Mr. O'Brien then studied at Harvard University as an undergraduate from 1981 to 1985, studying American History and American Literature. He wrote for the comedic publication "Harvard Lampoon" all four years there and was elected president for two consecutive terms, becoming the first student in about 60 years for such a distinction. Mr. O'Brien described his Harvard thesis on Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner as "the least funny thing I ever wrote," in a 1996 interview with Chris Mundy from Rolling Stone magazine. Mr. O'Brien graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1985 with a B.A. in American History.
After graduation, Mr. O'Brien went to Los Angeles seeking career opportunities. After writing for the networks HBO and FOX, then working for a short-lived stage show in Chicago, he moved to New York. In his native east coast, Mr. O'Brien finally got his big break in 1988 as a staff writer for the late-night sketch comedy show "Saturday Night Live." His SNL team was recognized with a 1989 Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy or Variety Series.
Mr. O'Brien left SNL in spring 1991 to explore other career interests. He wrote an unsuccessful TV pilot called "Lookwell," starring Adam West, the former Batman, for whom Mr. O'Brien had an "obsession." After that, he wrote for the FOX hit series "The Simpsons," and later became the show's supervising producer.
Mr. O'Brien's next opportunity in April 1993 secured his long-term future as a talk-show host. Despite his onscreen inexperience, he successfully auditioned to become host of a late-night talk show replacing David Letterman's show on NBC. "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" premiered September 13, 1993, and Mr. O'Brien with his self-deprecating humor entertained a national audience throughout the show's run. Mr. O'Brien and the "Late Night" crew won Writer's Guild Awards in 1997 and 2000, and were consistently nominated for the Emmy Awards from 1996 to 2002.
Mr. O'Brien earned other distinctions throughout his career. Entertainment Weekly magazine featured him as one of "50 Funniest People Alive," and People magazine noted him in 1996 among the "25 Most Intriguing People." In addition, he spoke at Harvard University's Commencement 2000 and hosted the 54th annual Emmy Awards.
In his personal life, Mr. O'Brien tried to achieve consistency between his lifestyle and career demands. For five years, he dated and lived with Lynn Kaplan, the talent coordinator for "Late Night." After the dissolution of that relationship, Mr. O'Brien met advertising executive Liza Powell during a skit on the show. Mr. O'Brien and Liza
http://mehmeterturk.blogspot.com/2006/09/xgl-on-li nux.html
Change your fucking sig - I did not say that and I'm getting another headache from having to read it.
I'm running patched OS X on a Dell Precision 530. Hmm - the best OS on the most eco-friendly of hardware. It even works 99% of the time once the correct patches were applied - the only exception is that the network settings panel crashes, so the net card has to get it's address via DHCP (not a big deal since you can push a static IP address to it).
-b.
SYDNEY, Australia (CNN) -- Steve Irwin, the enthusiastic "Crocodile Hunter" who enthralled audiences around the world with his wildlife adventures, died Monday morning after being stung by a stingray while shooting a TV program off Australia's north coast.
Media reports say Irwin was snorkeling at Batt Reef, a part of the Great Barrier Reef about 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) from the town of Port Douglas, when the incident happened.
Irwin, 44, was killed by a stingray barb that pierced his chest, according to Cairns police sources.
Irwin was in the area to film pieces for a show called "The Ocean's Deadliest" with Philippe Cousteau, grandson of Jacques, according to Irwin's manager and friend John Stainton. But weather had prevented the crew from doing work for that program, Stainton said, so Irwin decided to do some softer features for a new children's TV show he was doing with his daughter, Bindi.
"He came over the top of a stingray that was buried in the sand, and the barb came up and hit him in the chest," Stainton said.
Wildlife documentary maker Ben Cropp, citing a colleague who saw footage of the attack, told Time.com that Irwin had accidentally boxed the animal in. "It stopped and twisted and threw up its tail with the spike, and it caught him in the chest," said Cropp. "It's a defensive thing. It's like being stabbed with a dirty dagger." (Read the TIME.com obituary.external link)
Ambulance officers confirmed they attended a reef fatality Monday morning off Port Douglas, according to Australian media. (Gallery: The life of the "Crocodile Hunter")
Queensland Police Services also confirmed Irwin's death and said his family had been notified.
Irwin was director of the Australia Zoo in Queensland. He is survived by his American-born wife, Terri, and their two children, Bindi Sue, born 1998, and Robert (Bob), born December 2003.
"The world has lost a great wildlife icon, a passionate conservationist and one of the proudest dads on the planet," Stainton told reporters in Cairns, according to The Associated Press. "He died doing what he loved best and left this world in a happy and peaceful state of mind. He would have said, 'Crocs Rule!' " (Watch a remembrance of Steve Irwin -- 1:58)
"Steve was a larger-than-life force. He brought joy and learning about the natural world to millions and millions of people across the globe," said Discovery Communications founder and chairman John Hendricks in a statement. "We extend our thoughts and prayers to Terri, Bindi and Bob Irwin as well as to the incredible staff and many friends Steve leaves behind."
Irwin's "Crocodile Hunter" show aired on the company's Animal Planet network.
Discovery Communications said it will rename the garden space in front of Discovery's world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, the "Steve Irwin Memorial Sensory Garden."
The company also is looking at the creation of a Steve Irwin Crocodile Hunter Fund. The fund will support wildlife protection, education and conservation, as well as aid Irwin's Australia Zoo and provide educational support for Bindi and Bob Irwin, the company said.
Australia Prime Minister John Howard said he was "shocked and distressed at Steve Irwin's sudden, untimely and freakish death," according to AP. "It's a huge loss to Australia."
Irwin became a popular figure on Australian and international television through Irwin's close handling of wildlife, most notably the capture and relocation of crocodiles.
Irwin's enthusiastic approach to nature conservation and the environment won him a global following. He was known for his exuberance and use of the catch phrase "Crikey!" (E-mail us: How will you remember Steve Irwin?)
"His message is really about conservation: He really wants to leave the world a better place for everybody," Animal Planet's Maureen Smith told CNN.com in April.
"It's unbelievable, really," Jack Hanna, the host of "Jack Hanna's Animal Adventure" and director emeritus of the Columbus (Oh
If we discussed which hammer to use to drive in a nail as much as the debate Windows vs. Apple, nothing would ever be built. I care not what operating system, I care that the job is done using the tool in my hand at the time. Both operating systems do it and equally well (though improvement via competitive evolution will occur). I'll get on with my work now on XP at this time.