In a video interview with ZDNet Australia last month, Microsoft blogger and group manager of technical community, Frank Arrigo, explained how important it is for the Redmond giant to follow Web standards.

“Standards are important,” said Arrigo, who admitted that Microsoft had been guilty of ignoring them in the past. “If you look at IE6, we didn’t quite follow all the standards but standards are important … IE7 as an example is trying to address that.”

In July 2003, IE owned more than 90 percent of the browser market and very few companies even bothered testing their Web applications against anything other than Microsoft’s (non-standards compliant) browser.

In that position of power, Microsoft announced that IE would no longer be released as a standalone browser and instead would only be available as part of the next desktop operating system–at that time known only by the codename Longhorn, but since released as Windows Vista.

In response to the announcement, analysts such as Gartner’s Michael Silver warned that Microsoft’s decision was likely to create opportunities for alternative browsers.

“People will think, ‘are the applications I’m writing for the browser-agnostic, or are they IE applications–which makes them Windows applications?’ If I want an application to run on a Linux desktop or Macintosh desktop, maybe the way to do that is to ensure it runs on Mozilla, Safari and the other main browsers,” Silver said.

This was also the view of James Governor, an analyst at RedMonk. Governor said: “The bottom line is that consumer-facing Web sites have been remiss in supporting the latest standards, and unresponsive to the needs of many users. It’s time to reassess that approach, and Microsoft’s decision is a good spur to doing just that.”

Four years on, Microsoft still has the dominant browser, but its last year market share has plummeted. Firefox and Opera, which are standards compliant, have made amazing progress and Apple is also hoping to have an impact with it Windows-based Safari offering.

Microsoft is now facing a new challenge–in the world of Web 2.0, the company’s Expression Web design tools, which along with Silverlight, have been touted by some as potential “Adobe Flash Killers”.

However, this time around Microsoft is preaching the use of standards.

At Remix, Microsoft’s Arrigo said: “Expression Web is about being a standards-compliant tool because we want to make sure our tools are used by people that are embracing the standards”.

When asked if it could be a “Flash killer”, he said: “At the end of the day, the customers are going to decide. People who are making applications are going to make a decision. At least we have got something in this genre now”.

It seems that Microsoft has learned a very big lesson and this time, it will be the quality of the software rather than an attempted abuse of market power that will decide the winner.

”There is a lot of material on the Internet that claims to come from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, but anyone can post anything on the Internet and you can’t believe everything you see online,” the statement read. ”We all have our theories on how the series will end, but the only way we’ll know for sure is to read the book ourselves at 12:01 a.m. on July 21st. No matter what anyone claims before that time, we know that parents, booksellers, librarians and especially fans do not want spoilers but rather want to keep the magic alive for that midnight moment when everyone can read the book together.”

Of course, Scholastic has a vested interest in debunking spoiler claims and encouraging readers to lay down their $34.99 to read the secrets themselves. The near-obsessive efforts to keep the book under lock-and-key include wrapping the books in black plastic as they travel to stores on trucks tracked by GPS, keeping secret the location of printing plants, and threatening serious legal action against anyone who breaks the embargo.

”I want the readers who have, in many instances, grown up with Harry, to embark on the last adventure they will share with him without knowing where they are going,” Rowling has written on her website.

And yet, despite Scholastic’s attempts at increased security, there’s a deluge of people claiming to have spoilers from the book and reports of it being traded on online file-sharing sites. It’s quite possible, despite Scholastic’s attempt to cast doubt, that someone was able to get hold of a copy early, read it, and post the spoilers. Whatever the truth, nobody thinks it’ll prevent the 784-page Deathly Hallows from quickly running through its 12-million-copy first printing anyway. ”[Leaks] happened with the last [Potter] book too,” said a manager at a major book retailer in New York City. ”It’s Harry Potter, right?” (Source) ]]> http://www.corruptful.com/?feed=rss2&p=68 http://www.corruptful.com/?p=67 http://www.corruptful.com/?p=67#comments Wed, 18 Jul 2007 19:55:48 +0000 Lpspider http://www.corruptful.com/?p=67 British teenager who bought a Sony Playstation 2 on eBay for £95 ($194) got more than he bargained for when he opened the package. Instead of a shiny, happy gaming console, there was a whole heap of euros - €65,400 ($90,000) to be precise—stacked neatly inside. A spokesman for eBay said that the parcel’s contents were “somewhat unusual,” but that they would help the police in any way they could. When the parcel arrived, on March 20, the boy’s parents contacted the Norfolk Constabulary, who are now holding the money under the Proceeds of Crime Act. If the owner does not come forward by September 22, then the family can apply to have the cash returned to them—unless the police apply to hold onto the money for a longer period.

Yet Republicans seemed to have the votes to erect a procedural roadblock to stop a Democratic plan that is backed by a majority of the Senate to withdraw U.S. combat troops by the end of April 2008.

A showdown vote on the plan was expected shortly before noon EDT( 1600 GMT) on Wednesday by weary and sharply divided lawmakers.

“Republicans will need to choose whether they want to protect the president or protect our troops,” said Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.

Democrats repeatedly noted that more than 3,600 U.S. soldiers have died in the increasingly violent Iraq war, now in its fifth year, while Republicans warned a troop pullout would embolden terrorists and increase the risk of attack on the United States.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky fired back: “The Democrats, unfortunately, are trying to undermine the efforts of our troops and restrict the ability of our generals to carry out their mission.”

Republicans denounced the all-night debate as a stunt by Democrats who have drawn fire from voters for failing to deliver on a 2006 campaign vow to withdraw troops.

Outside the Capitol, a couple dozen protesters chanted, “Lead us out of Iraq now, Nancy,” to House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, after the California Democrat held a news conference on an unrelated topic.

In preparation for the all-night session, portable beds were set up in a room near the Senate. Pillows, snacks and toothbrushes were also brought in.  Continued…

Many of these people have basic needs. They have physical needs of shelter, clothing, and food. Then they have emotional and spiritual needs of love and hope and Jesus christ. There are so many needs in this world and so much that I - and each of you - have to give. Yet we don’t. I suppose we more or less choose not to. Oftentimes we simply don’t know how; but if we don’t know how could that be an excuse? Could it simply be that we’re unwilling to seek out a way to aid those in need? To help the less fortunate?

For me it’s a burden of sorts. It’s something that I must find a way to do. To achieve. To help. I can’t help them all, but I can try. I just must figure out the means to the end. I simply cannot take pleasure in my well being when others cannot. If you think about it, it takes away the happiness of it. I simply cannot live life to the fullest when this world just keeps dying.

I suppose these few paragraphs are more without a crystal clear point, but I do have one. I suppose that it is 1) To realize how abundantly blessed each of us are. 2) To see those in need, notice them, and to open our hearts to them. 3) To take the initiative to help the helpless.

Please, don’t just consider my words. Find a way to act on them.

Thank you for listening.

Basically what I’d like to say is this: for the average person in my age group, music is something you can’t get away from. It’s something you love, something you enjoy and something that is continuous. You probably have a CD or MP3 player and/or listen to music in your room, on the PC, in the car, et cetera. It sorounds us. There’s no escape.

For me, for the longest time, music shaped me in a very negative way. To be straightforward, it was hate music. Needless to say it was extremely depressing and it pulled me down in every aspect of my life; in my relationship with God, with my friends, and with my self-esteme. Eventually I was able to ward out the music that I knew was having a negative impact of my life, but it was difficult. The fact is, in my case, the vast majority of music simply is depressing. Even if it’s not intended to be. You have your songs about hate and pain, which are clear in message. Then you have the wonderful songs about ending the hate and pain, making things better, making things right. In my case this only intesified the mood. Why? Because I’ m a realist. I knew that no matter what people did, people would still kill, would still die, and would still cry. Bombs would still fall. Terrorists would still create terror. People would still starve. It’s a simple reality. I suppose in one aspect it was a good reminder of how blessed I am - but in another way, it’s a curse. Then there’s the music that talk about hope, about love, about freedom and about sucess. The downfall of those songs in my eyes was that I simply thought I could never have them. I could never be loved; could never love someone. Hope was an idea, not a reality. Freedom? Cut that down too. Sucess? I’m a failure. It tormented me.

Anyway, as per usual my point isn’t exactly clear. I’m not sure I have one. Perhaps it is simply for you to realize what influences you (such as music) - because even if you don’t realize it, it can shape you into a person you do not want to be come.

I see this daily. Things such as school, work and hobbies are things that should be pursued, but not when one no longer desires to pursue them. We shouldn’t make these priorities to the extreme. If we don’t want to take a certain class at school then we simply should not take it. If we don’t want to work 30 hours a week, then we simply must take a stand and speak for ourself and get better hours. If someone pushes us to pursue something we don’t want to, then simply don’t.

The first thing you need to be able to take such a stance is to simply know what you want. Make a plan. Know what you want in life. Know what you want to do, who you want to be with, where you want to go. If you know you don’t want to work 18 hour days at work when your 30, then don’t start by working 12 as a student. Likewise, pursue what you love. Don’t hold back. Find security. If you want to be a famous singer then don’t let someone else tell you you can’t. You can.

Don’t hold back.

First, seriously consider that question. Why do you care what your friends, family, and co-workers think? Why?

I’ll answer that for you. It’s because you want to fit in. Fit into what? Fit into a label society has given you. To fit in, in more cases than not, into an organization of self-centeredness.

Now comes the next question: why do you feel the need to fit in? How many times have you wanted to stand up for something you believe in, only to give up because you don’t want to break the mold?

What if you didn’t care? What if it made no difference to you if you sat by yourself at the lunch table? What if you weren’t ashamed of your passions or beliefs? Has there ever been a situation in your life in which you knew you should say something, you knew you were supposed to say or do something, yet you didn’t? What if you had said or done it? Things could be different.

Image yourself at such a point that you value other people’s opinions, yet you don’t care what they think of you. I’m at such a point, and it’s such a blessing. This isn’t a point where you do drastic things to prove that you don’t care – that is showing you do care that they think you don’t care.

To not care what people think mentally of you is to be free from the shackles that pervious bound you. A burden is lifted. When you’re not bound, it’s as if you’re free and open to your true potential. When you don’t care, you take away their control. As an individual, nothing is more satisfying.

I suppose that my point is that too many times we don’t say or do things that need to be said or done, because we’re ashamed. We want to, but because we’re afraid of what others will think, we don’t. Don’t be such a person. Don’t give up control of your life.

Basically I went in there and got nitrus (laughing gas). My arms got numb. It made me a little dizzy, but mostly numb. I was completely aware of what was going though, just a little less observant of the pain.

The had to dig. I’m tellin’ ya. They dug out those teeth. I recall the surgeon pull one out and say “that’s a big, ugly tooth”. The last one was the killer though. They had to keep giving me more topical stuff to numb my gums because it hurt. Turns out the roots on that tooth were slightly curved (well, 90 degrees of a curve, so very curved) which made it come out harder.

I finished and it wouldn’t stop bleeding. Still is a little.

Feels like I’m missing four teeth. Really wierd.

I don’t recommend it.