Couldn't resist reproducing this from http://xkcd.com/323/
Showing posts with label Fun. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fun. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Thursday, April 05, 2007
The Lemonade Game
Think you are a Hotshot MBA, armed with killer marketing skills ?
Just try winning at this !
Insane Central Arcade
Just try winning at this !
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Rules of Meetings
1) Never arrive on time, or you will be stamped a beginner.
2) Never carry stacks of papers/presentations to any meeting. You will be stamped as a beginner. Laptop is okay.
3) Don't say anything until the meeting is half over; this stamps you as being wise.
4) Be as vague as possible; this prevents irritating the others. Re-iterate some basic points as applied to the current meeting topic. Generally comment on processes.
5) When in doubt, suggest that a subcommittee be appointed.
6) Always praise someone or a team int he meeting. This elevates your status a lot and people would want you in a lot more meetings.
7) Make crude jokes on parties outside the meeting. This will make you popular
8) Be the first to move for adjournment; this will make you popular - it's what everyone is waiting for.
9) Explicitly take down an easy task for yourself to do; Repeat a couple of times. Ensures you don't spend too much time after the meeting, working out detail.
10) After the meeing is over, compliment someone on their clothes. This also makes you popular. On Audio conferences, talk about the weather and Iraq.
2) Never carry stacks of papers/presentations to any meeting. You will be stamped as a beginner. Laptop is okay.
3) Don't say anything until the meeting is half over; this stamps you as being wise.
4) Be as vague as possible; this prevents irritating the others. Re-iterate some basic points as applied to the current meeting topic. Generally comment on processes.
5) When in doubt, suggest that a subcommittee be appointed.
6) Always praise someone or a team int he meeting. This elevates your status a lot and people would want you in a lot more meetings.
7) Make crude jokes on parties outside the meeting. This will make you popular
8) Be the first to move for adjournment; this will make you popular - it's what everyone is waiting for.
9) Explicitly take down an easy task for yourself to do; Repeat a couple of times. Ensures you don't spend too much time after the meeting, working out detail.
10) After the meeing is over, compliment someone on their clothes. This also makes you popular. On Audio conferences, talk about the weather and Iraq.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Monday, November 13, 2006
Character traits of different Functions
I believe I'm the most perfect (If there were a term to describe that I would use it) in the corporate world. I spent quite some time today trying to evaluate what I think of different people in my office and outside it. I came to some good (I think) conclusions. I classified them according to the various functions they perform.
1. MARKETING - These are ambitious yet stupid people. They chose a marketing or a generic degree to avoid having to study in college, concentrating instead on drinking and socializing which is pretty much what the job responsibilities are now. Least compatible with Sales, which is an essential requirement the management looks for, while recruiting.
2. SALES - Lazier than marketing, often referred to as "marketeers without a degree". These guys are self-centered and paranoid. Incompatible with any other function in the company, because they think of themselves as an extended arm of the customer, ready to slap others around.
3. ENGINEERING - These guys actually studied in school and college. They are unable to control anything in personal life. It is said that ninety percent of all Personal Ads are placed by engineers. Instead of girlfriends, they have all the latest "ergo dynamic" gadgets.
4. ACCOUNTING - The only other group that ever studied in college. These guys are mostly immune from office politics. The most feared persons in the organization; combined with extreme organizational traits, majority of rumors say that they are completely insane.
5. HUMAN RESOURCES - Ironically, given their access to confidential information, they tend to be the biggest gossips within the organization. Possibly the only other person that does less work than marketing, (Unable to return any calls today because had to get a haircut, have lunch AND then mail a letter)
6. MIDDLE MANAGEMENT - Catty, cut-throat, yet completely spineless, they are destined to remain at their current job for the rest of their life. Unable to make a single decision, their worth is measured by the number of meetings they can schedule. Every now and then, they get fits, throw tantrums just to make their presene felt.
7. SENIOR MANAGEMENT - (See above - Same sign, different title). Only one addition is that periodically, they come up with a plan to raise employee productivity through a motivational technique (they think). It is called re-organization. It is a skillfult art of convincing an employee that his new role will lead him nearer to his career goal (without any change in pay, position or even work content. Its all in the mind ).
8. CONSULTANT - Lacking any specific knowledge, they use acronyms to avoid revealing their utter lack of experience. They are perennially convinced that their "skills" are in demand and that you could get a higher paying job with any other organization in a heartbeat.
9. RECRUITER, "HEADHUNTER" - As a "person" that profits from the success of others, disdained by most people who actually work for a living. During a market upswing, they resemble squirrels during fall scrambling to save food for winter. During downturns, they hibernate.
10. PRESIDENT, CEO - Brilliant or Lucky. The inability to figure out complex systems such as the xerox machine suggest the latter. Their brilliance comes out when they mask company results to shareholders, just using words.
1. MARKETING - These are ambitious yet stupid people. They chose a marketing or a generic degree to avoid having to study in college, concentrating instead on drinking and socializing which is pretty much what the job responsibilities are now. Least compatible with Sales, which is an essential requirement the management looks for, while recruiting.
2. SALES - Lazier than marketing, often referred to as "marketeers without a degree". These guys are self-centered and paranoid. Incompatible with any other function in the company, because they think of themselves as an extended arm of the customer, ready to slap others around.
3. ENGINEERING - These guys actually studied in school and college. They are unable to control anything in personal life. It is said that ninety percent of all Personal Ads are placed by engineers. Instead of girlfriends, they have all the latest "ergo dynamic" gadgets.
4. ACCOUNTING - The only other group that ever studied in college. These guys are mostly immune from office politics. The most feared persons in the organization; combined with extreme organizational traits, majority of rumors say that they are completely insane.
5. HUMAN RESOURCES - Ironically, given their access to confidential information, they tend to be the biggest gossips within the organization. Possibly the only other person that does less work than marketing, (Unable to return any calls today because had to get a haircut, have lunch AND then mail a letter)
6. MIDDLE MANAGEMENT - Catty, cut-throat, yet completely spineless, they are destined to remain at their current job for the rest of their life. Unable to make a single decision, their worth is measured by the number of meetings they can schedule. Every now and then, they get fits, throw tantrums just to make their presene felt.
7. SENIOR MANAGEMENT - (See above - Same sign, different title). Only one addition is that periodically, they come up with a plan to raise employee productivity through a motivational technique (they think). It is called re-organization. It is a skillfult art of convincing an employee that his new role will lead him nearer to his career goal (without any change in pay, position or even work content. Its all in the mind ).
8. CONSULTANT - Lacking any specific knowledge, they use acronyms to avoid revealing their utter lack of experience. They are perennially convinced that their "skills" are in demand and that you could get a higher paying job with any other organization in a heartbeat.
9. RECRUITER, "HEADHUNTER" - As a "person" that profits from the success of others, disdained by most people who actually work for a living. During a market upswing, they resemble squirrels during fall scrambling to save food for winter. During downturns, they hibernate.
10. PRESIDENT, CEO - Brilliant or Lucky. The inability to figure out complex systems such as the xerox machine suggest the latter. Their brilliance comes out when they mask company results to shareholders, just using words.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Photo-Op (En-core) from Digg
A lighning storm illuminated clouds in such a way as to make it look almost like a volcanic eruption. Moonlight helped capture the motion of the clouds during the time exposure to accentuate the look, Monument Peak, Payson, Arizona
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Signature - Reveals your character
1 .) SINGLE UNDERLINE BELOW THE SIGN
These persons are very confident and are good personalities. They are a little bit selfish but believe in "Happiness of human life".
2.) TWO DOTS BELOW THE SIGN
These persons are considered to be Romantic, can easily change their fiancees as if they change their clothes. They prefer beauty in other persons & they themselves try to look beautiful. They easily attract others.
3.) SINGLE DOT BELOW THE SIGN
These persons are more inclined towards classical arts, simple & are very cool. If you loose faith with them, then these persons will never look back at you. Hence its always better to be careful with these people.
4.) NO UNDERLINES OR DOTS BELOW THE SIGN
These persons enjoy their life in their own way, never pay attention to others views. These are considered to be good natured but are selfish too.
5.) RANDOM SIGN, NO SIMILARITY BETWEEN NAME & SIGN
These persons try to be very smart, hide each & every matter, never say anything in straight forward manner, never pay attention to the other person of what he is talking of.
6.) RANDOM SIGN, SIMILARITY BETWEEN NAME & SIGN
These persons are considered to be intelligent but never think. These people change their ideas & views as fast as the wind changes its direction of flow. They never think whether that particular thing is right or wrong. You can win them just by flattering them.
7.) SIGN IN PRINTED LETTERS
These persons are very kind to us, have a good heart, selfless, are ready to sacrifice their life for the sake of their near & dear. But these seems to think a lot and may get angry very soon.
8.) WRITING COMPLETE NAME AS THEIR SIGN
These persons are very kind hearted, can adjust themselves to any environment & to the person they are talking. These persons are very firm on their views & posses a lot of will power
Don't alter your signatures accordingly to the respective attributes.
Rely on the signature on your id card for genuine assessment
Anyway, mine looks like this :)
These persons are very confident and are good personalities. They are a little bit selfish but believe in "Happiness of human life".
2.) TWO DOTS BELOW THE SIGN
These persons are considered to be Romantic, can easily change their fiancees as if they change their clothes. They prefer beauty in other persons & they themselves try to look beautiful. They easily attract others.
3.) SINGLE DOT BELOW THE SIGN
These persons are more inclined towards classical arts, simple & are very cool. If you loose faith with them, then these persons will never look back at you. Hence its always better to be careful with these people.
4.) NO UNDERLINES OR DOTS BELOW THE SIGN
These persons enjoy their life in their own way, never pay attention to others views. These are considered to be good natured but are selfish too.
5.) RANDOM SIGN, NO SIMILARITY BETWEEN NAME & SIGN
These persons try to be very smart, hide each & every matter, never say anything in straight forward manner, never pay attention to the other person of what he is talking of.
6.) RANDOM SIGN, SIMILARITY BETWEEN NAME & SIGN
These persons are considered to be intelligent but never think. These people change their ideas & views as fast as the wind changes its direction of flow. They never think whether that particular thing is right or wrong. You can win them just by flattering them.
7.) SIGN IN PRINTED LETTERS
These persons are very kind to us, have a good heart, selfless, are ready to sacrifice their life for the sake of their near & dear. But these seems to think a lot and may get angry very soon.
8.) WRITING COMPLETE NAME AS THEIR SIGN
These persons are very kind hearted, can adjust themselves to any environment & to the person they are talking. These persons are very firm on their views & posses a lot of will power
Don't alter your signatures accordingly to the respective attributes.
Rely on the signature on your id card for genuine assessment
Anyway, mine looks like this :)
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Windows........Hilarious
Someting that I came across on a joke site. I loved it...
No, Windows is not a virus. Here's what viruses do:
1. They replicate quickly. ... Okay, Windows does that.
2. Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing down the system as they do so. ... Okay, Windows does that.
3. Viruses will, from time to time, trash your hard disk. ... Okay, Windows does that too.
4. Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user, along with valuable programs and systems. ... Sigh.. Windows does that, too.
5. Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect their system is too slow (see 2) and the user will buy new hardware. ... Yup, Windows does that, too.
Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are fundamental differences: Viruses are well supported by their authors, are running on most systems, their program code is fast, compact and efficient and they tend to become more sophisticated as they mature.
So Windows is not a virus. ... It's a bug.
No, Windows is not a virus. Here's what viruses do:
1. They replicate quickly. ... Okay, Windows does that.
2. Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing down the system as they do so. ... Okay, Windows does that.
3. Viruses will, from time to time, trash your hard disk. ... Okay, Windows does that too.
4. Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user, along with valuable programs and systems. ... Sigh.. Windows does that, too.
5. Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect their system is too slow (see 2) and the user will buy new hardware. ... Yup, Windows does that, too.
Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are fundamental differences: Viruses are well supported by their authors, are running on most systems, their program code is fast, compact and efficient and they tend to become more sophisticated as they mature.
So Windows is not a virus. ... It's a bug.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Abracadabra - By Ambrose Bierce
By Abracadabra we signify
An infinite number of things.
'Tis the answer to What? and How? and Why?
And Whence? and Whither? -- a word whereby
The Truth (with the comfort it brings)
Is open to all who grope in night,
Crying for Wisdom's holy light.
Whether the word is a verb or a noun
Is knowledge beyond my reach.
I only know that 'tis handed down.
From sage to sage,
From age to age --
An immortal part of speech!
Of an ancient man the tale is told
That he lived to be ten centuries old,
In a cave on a mountain side.
(True, he finally died.)
The fame of his wisdom filled the land,
For his head was bald, and you'll understand
His beard was long and white
And his eyes uncommonly bright.
Philosophers gathered from far and near
To sit at his feet and hear and hear,
Though he never was heard
To utter a word
But "Abracadabra, abracadab,
Abracada, abracad,
Abraca, abrac, abra, ab!"
'Twas all he had,
'Twas all they wanted to hear, and each
Made copious notes of the mystical speech,
Which they published next --
A trickle of text
In the meadow of commentary.
Mighty big books were these,
In a number, as leaves of trees;
In learning, remarkably -- very!
He's dead,
As I said,
And the books of the sages have perished,
But his wisdom is sacredly cherished.
In Abracadabra it solemnly rings,
Like an ancient bell that forever swings.
O, I love to hear
That word make clear
Humanity's General Sense of Things.
An infinite number of things.
'Tis the answer to What? and How? and Why?
And Whence? and Whither? -- a word whereby
The Truth (with the comfort it brings)
Is open to all who grope in night,
Crying for Wisdom's holy light.
Whether the word is a verb or a noun
Is knowledge beyond my reach.
I only know that 'tis handed down.
From sage to sage,
From age to age --
An immortal part of speech!
Of an ancient man the tale is told
That he lived to be ten centuries old,
In a cave on a mountain side.
(True, he finally died.)
The fame of his wisdom filled the land,
For his head was bald, and you'll understand
His beard was long and white
And his eyes uncommonly bright.
Philosophers gathered from far and near
To sit at his feet and hear and hear,
Though he never was heard
To utter a word
But "Abracadabra, abracadab,
Abracada, abracad,
Abraca, abrac, abra, ab!"
'Twas all he had,
'Twas all they wanted to hear, and each
Made copious notes of the mystical speech,
Which they published next --
A trickle of text
In the meadow of commentary.
Mighty big books were these,
In a number, as leaves of trees;
In learning, remarkably -- very!
He's dead,
As I said,
And the books of the sages have perished,
But his wisdom is sacredly cherished.
In Abracadabra it solemnly rings,
Like an ancient bell that forever swings.
O, I love to hear
That word make clear
Humanity's General Sense of Things.
Sunday, June 11, 2006
The Tiger Versus the Donkey
Once upon a time an old ass
Its master thought ‘what an appetite it has!
“I have to work for all day
To give it bales of hay.
Why don’t I abandon it?
And peacefully here I sit”
And thus he left it in the forest alone.
Alone left it was to cry and moan.
Our ass was watched by a hungry tiger.
This sight made his mouth wider.
The tiger was of its fame
As the king of the jungle was its name
Its mouth watered at such a treat
For it had never tasted a donkey’s meat.
Miya! It shouted to the old one.
“Sorry I did not hear you son!!”
“Do you know everybody obeys me?”
“At my presence”, said the ass,”how can that be?”
”Let’s have a race uptil eve, Hey!
And see who wins lots of prey.
The tiger ran and caught some rabbit with distraught.
The ass lay on its back
Like an old beaten haystack.
Vultures and hawks came beside
The ass trampled and crushed them to his side.
By eve both came to see who had more.
The tiger had a dozen, but the ass had a score.
Said the ass,”You have caught animals living on land,
But my prey consists of those which hardly touch sand.
“Alas!” Said the tiger,” I fail”.
And left with its hind legs covering its tail.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Pretty Scary Huh ?
I'm obsessed with Google.
http://www.lightover.com/epic/
Should take abt 8-10 mins to watch. The audio is important.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
A fake heir
This e-mail (which dropped into my inbox this morning) was too hilarious for me to ignore.....
Dear friend,
I am Barrister Dean Hargreaves, a solicitor at law and attorney to the late Mr. Mark Michelle, a national of France who was formerly a contractor to the shell petroleum development company (SPDC) in Saudi Arabia. On the 6th of June 2004,he and his wife with their two children were involved in a ghastly-fatal auto crash during the summer vacation. Since then, I have made countless enquiries with his country's embassy to locate his immediate or extended families to no avail. The deceased passed away leaving in my possession a copy of his will stating his two late children as the direct beneficiaries or a relative as next of kin in their absence.
After several unsuccessful attempts to locate the deceased’s next of Kin, I have decided to
contact you with this partnership proposal to assist in repatriating a huge amount of money before it is confiscated/declared unserviceable by the bank where the deposit is lodged. The deceased has a deposit currently valued at $21 million US dollars and the bank has issued me a
notice to provide the next beneficiary or next of kin before the end of the fiscal year (2006).
Since I haven't had any luck in locating the next beneficiary of the deceased’s will in the past two years, I therefore seek your consent to present you as the next of kin /will beneficiary to the deceased, so the deposit presently valued at $21 million US dollars would be paid into your account for further disbursements.40% to you, 50% to me and 10% for bank transfers and
overhead costs. I have in my possession every legitimate and backing document as handed over from the deceased for every process of the transaction.
Furthermore you have every reason to carefully ascertain the integrity of this proposal, as I require your utmost cooperation, confidentiality and trust. I guarantee that this transaction would be executed with 100% legitimacy and without the slightest breach of the law. You could get in touch by email deangreaves2458@aim.com as I am presently in Ireland furnishing me with the following details.
(1.) Your full name
(2.) Your telephone and fax numbers
(3.) Your contact address
Your urgent response would be highly appreciated as I await your response in earnest.
Best regards,
Barrister Dean Hargreaves
Dear friend,
I am Barrister Dean Hargreaves, a solicitor at law and attorney to the late Mr. Mark Michelle, a national of France who was formerly a contractor to the shell petroleum development company (SPDC) in Saudi Arabia. On the 6th of June 2004,he and his wife with their two children were involved in a ghastly-fatal auto crash during the summer vacation. Since then, I have made countless enquiries with his country's embassy to locate his immediate or extended families to no avail. The deceased passed away leaving in my possession a copy of his will stating his two late children as the direct beneficiaries or a relative as next of kin in their absence.
After several unsuccessful attempts to locate the deceased’s next of Kin, I have decided to
contact you with this partnership proposal to assist in repatriating a huge amount of money before it is confiscated/declared unserviceable by the bank where the deposit is lodged. The deceased has a deposit currently valued at $21 million US dollars and the bank has issued me a
notice to provide the next beneficiary or next of kin before the end of the fiscal year (2006).
Since I haven't had any luck in locating the next beneficiary of the deceased’s will in the past two years, I therefore seek your consent to present you as the next of kin /will beneficiary to the deceased, so the deposit presently valued at $21 million US dollars would be paid into your account for further disbursements.40% to you, 50% to me and 10% for bank transfers and
overhead costs. I have in my possession every legitimate and backing document as handed over from the deceased for every process of the transaction.
Furthermore you have every reason to carefully ascertain the integrity of this proposal, as I require your utmost cooperation, confidentiality and trust. I guarantee that this transaction would be executed with 100% legitimacy and without the slightest breach of the law. You could get in touch by email deangreaves2458@aim.com as I am presently in Ireland furnishing me with the following details.
(1.) Your full name
(2.) Your telephone and fax numbers
(3.) Your contact address
Your urgent response would be highly appreciated as I await your response in earnest.
Best regards,
Barrister Dean Hargreaves
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Disney-Pixar: It's a Wrap
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2006/tc20060124_959402.htm
The deal would make Steve Jobs the Mouse House's biggest shareholder, and it could shake up the industry
The merger of high tech and entertainment seems to have arrived. At an all-day meeting on Jan. 23, Walt Disney's (DIS) board of directors agreed to buy Steve Jobs's Pixar Animation (PIXR) powerhouse for about $7 billion, BusinessWeek Online has learned. Jobs, who's also chief executive of Apple Computer (AAPL), would become Disney's largest shareholder and take a seat on the Disney board, according to sources with knowledge of the deal.
The transaction could transform Disney, whose own animated films have been less than spectacular in recent years, into the animation dynasty it was during the early 1990s, when it turned out such hits as Beauty and the Beast and Lion King. But just as important, the acquisition will usher in a new era in which Disney, with Jobs and Disney CEO Bob Iger allied, could rewrite the rules of how entertainment is distributed digitally via new consumer technologies.
Additional specifics about the deal aren't yet clear. As of late Jan. 23, the agreement still had to be approved by Pixar's board of directors, the sources say. Disney's board approved the transaction with the expectation that it could be announced on Jan. 24. The terms include giving Jobs an estimated 7% stake in Disney and letting Pixar's top creative executive, John Lasseter, have a key role in advising Disney in creative matters. It's expected that Pixar, which made such animated blockbusters for Disney as Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., and The Incredibles, would continue to work from its Northern California headquarters.
MORE CORDIAL NOW. An immediate announcement of the deal was held up so that Jobs and Pixar top officials could personally tell Pixar executives, presumably on the morning before the announcement was made public. A Disney spokeswoman declined to comment beyond denying that a deal had been reached.
If completed, the agreement would end a long and initially stormy negotiating process between the two companies (see BW Online, 1/20/06, "Will Steve Jobs Be Disney's Big Cheese?"). The companies' existing agreement, in which Disney and Pixar share the cost of making the films while Disney releases them, was scheduled to end this summer when Pixar delivers the final film, Cars, under that agreement. Since then, Jobs has been talking to other studios about doing a distribution deal, but he has kept open the lines of communication with Disney executives. Relations between the two companies improved last year, when Disney CEO Michael D. Eisner, with whom Jobs often sparred, resigned.
Jobs's relationship with Eisner's successor, Bob Iger, is much more cordial, and Iger nurtured their ties by making Disney TV shows like Desperate Housewives and Lost available for the video iPod that Apple began selling last year. Moreover, Iger and Jobs get along well on a personal level, as do Jobs with Disney studio chief Dick Cook, the initial architect for the Disney side.
FORWARD THINKER. Whether or how quickly Jobs can push Disney further into digital distribution for films is unclear. But analysts have long predicted that Apple will eventually introduce living room gear to make that more feasible. Many Apple rumor sites have suggested that Jobs & Co. are working on a version of the Mac Mini that would be designed to connect to the TV and could be operated via Apple's Front Row software and Apple Remote, which are already available on the iMac desktop PC. Such a machine would let customers who download movies via Apple's iTunes Music Store watch them on their TVs.
Iger, who's an early adopter for many new technologies, is considered among the most forward thinking of media executives and is likely to welcome accelerated delivery of entertainment over the Web and through wireless means, if safeguards could be worked out to secure the content.
The deal would make Steve Jobs the Mouse House's biggest shareholder, and it could shake up the industry
The merger of high tech and entertainment seems to have arrived. At an all-day meeting on Jan. 23, Walt Disney's (DIS) board of directors agreed to buy Steve Jobs's Pixar Animation (PIXR) powerhouse for about $7 billion, BusinessWeek Online has learned. Jobs, who's also chief executive of Apple Computer (AAPL), would become Disney's largest shareholder and take a seat on the Disney board, according to sources with knowledge of the deal.
The transaction could transform Disney, whose own animated films have been less than spectacular in recent years, into the animation dynasty it was during the early 1990s, when it turned out such hits as Beauty and the Beast and Lion King. But just as important, the acquisition will usher in a new era in which Disney, with Jobs and Disney CEO Bob Iger allied, could rewrite the rules of how entertainment is distributed digitally via new consumer technologies.
Additional specifics about the deal aren't yet clear. As of late Jan. 23, the agreement still had to be approved by Pixar's board of directors, the sources say. Disney's board approved the transaction with the expectation that it could be announced on Jan. 24. The terms include giving Jobs an estimated 7% stake in Disney and letting Pixar's top creative executive, John Lasseter, have a key role in advising Disney in creative matters. It's expected that Pixar, which made such animated blockbusters for Disney as Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., and The Incredibles, would continue to work from its Northern California headquarters.
MORE CORDIAL NOW. An immediate announcement of the deal was held up so that Jobs and Pixar top officials could personally tell Pixar executives, presumably on the morning before the announcement was made public. A Disney spokeswoman declined to comment beyond denying that a deal had been reached.
If completed, the agreement would end a long and initially stormy negotiating process between the two companies (see BW Online, 1/20/06, "Will Steve Jobs Be Disney's Big Cheese?"). The companies' existing agreement, in which Disney and Pixar share the cost of making the films while Disney releases them, was scheduled to end this summer when Pixar delivers the final film, Cars, under that agreement. Since then, Jobs has been talking to other studios about doing a distribution deal, but he has kept open the lines of communication with Disney executives. Relations between the two companies improved last year, when Disney CEO Michael D. Eisner, with whom Jobs often sparred, resigned.
Jobs's relationship with Eisner's successor, Bob Iger, is much more cordial, and Iger nurtured their ties by making Disney TV shows like Desperate Housewives and Lost available for the video iPod that Apple began selling last year. Moreover, Iger and Jobs get along well on a personal level, as do Jobs with Disney studio chief Dick Cook, the initial architect for the Disney side.
FORWARD THINKER. Whether or how quickly Jobs can push Disney further into digital distribution for films is unclear. But analysts have long predicted that Apple will eventually introduce living room gear to make that more feasible. Many Apple rumor sites have suggested that Jobs & Co. are working on a version of the Mac Mini that would be designed to connect to the TV and could be operated via Apple's Front Row software and Apple Remote, which are already available on the iMac desktop PC. Such a machine would let customers who download movies via Apple's iTunes Music Store watch them on their TVs.
Iger, who's an early adopter for many new technologies, is considered among the most forward thinking of media executives and is likely to welcome accelerated delivery of entertainment over the Web and through wireless means, if safeguards could be worked out to secure the content.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Google Bombing
Type the words miserable idiot in a google search text box and click on the "I'm feeling lucky "button.You may be surprised to see the whitehouse website with George W Bush's Biography (This is as of today - 14th January 2006). This is not a coincidence, but a practice known as Google-bombing.
My summary of this practice is this.
(I'm not digressing) A Page-rank algorithm is an algorithm that assigns numerical weightings to hyperlinked documents indexed by a search engine (Larry Page is the developer of this algorithm or family of algorithms). This is used by Google (Larry Page is one of the founders of Google).
In layman's terms, a site will be ranked higher if the sites that link to that page all use consistent anchor text. A Google bomb is created if a large number of sites link to the page in this manner. Google bomb is used both as a verb and a noun.
From Wikipedia....
Google has defended its algorithms as simply a reflection of the opinion on the Internet, saying that they are not damaging the overall quality of its services. Google has said it expects Googlebombing to return to obscurity and has dismissed it as "cybergraffiti" and just another internet fad.
On 18 January 2005 the Google blog entry "Preventing comment spam" declared that Google will henceforth respect a rel="nofollow" attribute on hyperlinks. Their page ranking algorithm now avoids links with this attribute when ranking the destination page. The intended result is that site administrators can easily modify user-posted links such that the attribute is present, and thus an attempt to googlebomb by posting a link on such a site would yield no increase from that link rank.
On 16 September 2005 Marissa Mayer, Director of Consumer Web Products for Google wrote an entry on Google Blog to those who were offended by the result of President George W. Bush's biography with the search of "failure", "miserable", and "miserable failure", stating that Google has no control over and does not condone the act of Google bombing. Apparently, people who sent in complaints believed that the search results showed Google's political bias.
My summary of this practice is this.
(I'm not digressing) A Page-rank algorithm is an algorithm that assigns numerical weightings to hyperlinked documents indexed by a search engine (Larry Page is the developer of this algorithm or family of algorithms). This is used by Google (Larry Page is one of the founders of Google).
In layman's terms, a site will be ranked higher if the sites that link to that page all use consistent anchor text. A Google bomb is created if a large number of sites link to the page in this manner. Google bomb is used both as a verb and a noun.
From Wikipedia....
Google has defended its algorithms as simply a reflection of the opinion on the Internet, saying that they are not damaging the overall quality of its services. Google has said it expects Googlebombing to return to obscurity and has dismissed it as "cybergraffiti" and just another internet fad.
On 18 January 2005 the Google blog entry "Preventing comment spam" declared that Google will henceforth respect a rel="nofollow" attribute on hyperlinks. Their page ranking algorithm now avoids links with this attribute when ranking the destination page. The intended result is that site administrators can easily modify user-posted links such that the attribute is present, and thus an attempt to googlebomb by posting a link on such a site would yield no increase from that link rank.
On 16 September 2005 Marissa Mayer, Director of Consumer Web Products for Google wrote an entry on Google Blog to those who were offended by the result of President George W. Bush's biography with the search of "failure", "miserable", and "miserable failure", stating that Google has no control over and does not condone the act of Google bombing. Apparently, people who sent in complaints believed that the search results showed Google's political bias.
Statistics
This how statistics and correlation works.
Year 1981
1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes
4. Pope Died
Year 2005
1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes
4. Pope Died
In future, if Prince Charles decides to re-marry and Liverpool wins another European crown.... someone please warn the Australian cricket side and the Pope!
Year 1981
1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes
4. Pope Died
Year 2005
1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes
4. Pope Died
In future, if Prince Charles decides to re-marry and Liverpool wins another European crown.... someone please warn the Australian cricket side and the Pope!
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