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'The way to make money in technology,' a young Bill Gates told me in the summer of 1990, 'is by setting de facto standards.' It worked, too. For years, Microsoft [...]

Byline: Robert X. Cringely Here it is, Thursday, and we've had an epically entertaining week. In one corner, another yahoo has declared a 2016 presidential bid, which brings the total [...]

Reports on young entrepreneurs in the technology industry in the United States. Brief summaries of several including Graham Spencer, chief technical officer for Excite Inc., Jerry Fiddler cofounder and chairman of Wind River, and Sandy Lerner cofounder of Cisco systems.

I'VE BEEN LIVING the bachelor life this week. Rose finally flipped over what she calls 'California's tobacco fascists' and flew to New York 'to be with some normal people.' I […]

Rose and I celebrated our anniversary at a very nice French restaurant, but the talk was dominated by what we should do to celebrate the turn of the millennium. Rose […]

While relaxing on sunny vacation, Bobby ponders Compaq's Alpha bet I'm feeling very guilty. It seems that when Rose was showing me vacation brochures a few weeks ago, it was […]

Rose has yet to return from Mexico, but she left me an answering machine message to call her friend Jeremy and tell him we would attend his Academy Awards party. […]

The article discusses how multicore computing can multiply processing power in a lesser energy consumption. It states that microchip manufacturers are using the additional transistors theory predicted by Moore's Law which requires additional transistor to increase the number of processors inside a chip instead of making individual processors run faster. This multiple core is believed to deliver the same amount of processing power that a high-speed single-core chips offered in a lesser electricity consumption. Meanwhile, it notes that in order to solve one problem in producing the chips which is parallelism, manufacturers like Intel Corp. have recalled those experts of supercomputing in 1980.

There is a very good chance, if your mail carrier is as slow as mine is, that you are reading this column after the election, while I'm writing it before […]

The article discusses effects of Gordon Moore's law on computers, with respect to the evolving computer industry. This law states that computers will either double in power at the same price, or halve in cost for the same power every 18 months. This law has had a treacherous effect on the computer market, and has increased silicon density by a billion times in the last five decades. The author candidly illustrates the effect of this law by citing that a textbook has a useful life of 10 years, a desk lasts for 25 years, but at the same time a personal computer will be reduced to scrap in almost three years. He envisages consequences if Moore's law does not hold effectiveness, and argues that this would be a welcome effect. It would not only reduce the redundancy of programming efforts, but would also ensure that investments are focused on building data structures of enduring quality. The scenario comprehends to a time when personal computers will labor for 25 years, and perhaps it will also serve as a desk for a student.

Comments on the various issues concerning the computer industry. Stability or reliability of the Microsoft Corp.'s Windows NT operating system; Complaints from some Windows NT users; Limitations of the operating system; Problem running Symantec's pcAnywhere 7.0 with Windows NT 4.0 with Windows NT File System drivers.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry. E-mails from top Intel insiders to be sent to AMD have gone missing. Intel officials assure that it has nothing to do with the antitrust suit against them. Microsoft Office 2007 has removed all of its spell-check libraries and clears that there is no truth that they did it in exchange for the French government harassing Apple about iTunes. Hacker Randal Lee Schwartz has been cleared of charges after 12 years of being in prison.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry as of January 29, 2007. Windows Vista has a marketing slogan. A Utah judge has denied the claim made by SCO against International Business Machines (IBM). A settlement agreement was reached between D-Link and Danish time geek Poul-Henning Kamp after its routers pinged Kamp's Network Time Protocol server.

The article presents news briefs on the computer industry. Customers who bought Vista's anti-piracy technology have 30 days to validate the product. Users of Verizon Wireless's Unlimited BroadbandAccess find the offer a bit limiting. Deposed HP Chairperson, Patricia Dunn, along with four co-conspirators charged with fraud, conspiracy and identity theft, will be able to defend themselves in court.

The article offers news briefs related to information technology as of October 9, 2006. Microsoft is suing an individual known only Viodentia for hacking its PlayforSure digital rights movement software. Personal computer manufacturers Fujitsu, IBM/Lenovo and Toshiba are among the companies issuing recalls for Sony's batteries. According to the Information Technology Association of America, one out of three information technology workers is a woman in her own right.

The article presents updates in the computer industry in the U.S. The Leopard operating system is appearing on BitTorrent networks after Apple Computers distributed betas at its Worldwide Developers Conference. The bogus certification site Hotexam.com was shut down by testing service Pearson VUE in August 2006. Dell Computer Corp. is recalling 4.1 million laptop batteries, the largest recall in consumer electronics history.

The article discusses issues surrounding the computer industry in the U.S. Cisco Systems Inc. has filed a lawsuit against Mike Lynn after he revealed flaws in the company's Internetwork Operating System. Microsoft Corp. plans to release its Windows Vista operating system. Time Warner is phasing out its dialup service, disposing free AOL CD to its employees.

The article comments on different computer-related issues in the U.S. He mentions an incident wherein a Dell Inspiron 1300 computer burst into flames. He believes the Apple has given up the fight to force two Web sites to reveal their sources for their reports on the digital music gizmo called Asteroid. He admits that he misused the term nimrod when discussing the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry. BAE Systems consultant Joseph Colon faces charges after cracking into the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation's computer mishegas known as Trilogy while trying to sidestep bureaucratic roadblocks. Celebrity Amanda Congdon has left the Rocketboom video blog, leaving thousands of computer users. Todd H., the founder of a "rat-a-base," which lets women post profiles of ex-boyfriends, is being sued by a bachelor maligned by the Web site.

The article discusses issues in the computer industry as of July 2006. Martin Taylor of Microsoft is now looking for a new job. He left the company the same day his project Windows Live Messenger was released. His resignation was associated with copies of pirated software found in Taylor's hard drive. Microsoft has changed its Windows Genuine Advantage program so that it phones homes only occasionally instead of all the time. The issue of customer loyalty is also discussed in relation to the option of hardware makers no to ship compact discs.

The article provides an update on issues in information technology and computer industry as of June 2006. In a recent court filing, TorrentSpy charged the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) of hiring a hacker to break into the search engine company. TorrentSpy claims it has a signed copy of one would-be hacker's $15,000 contract from the MPAA to snoop around the company's servers. The first working prototypes of hand-cranked notebook was unveiled by the One Laptop per Child gang. It was learned that a California court has given the Scalia Salute to Apple's bid to uncover the confidential sources of PowerPage and AppleInsider.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry as of May 2006. NetSuite planned to host a cocktail reception across the street from the German software giant SAP's SAPPHIRE show in Orlando, Florida until SAP found out about it and pulled the plug. At the 2006 E3 show, booth girls were asked to display a little less skin than usual. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has rejected the advances of hopeful .xxx domain registrar, ICM Registry.

The article comments on several issues regarding the U.S. computer industry. Former CEO Sanjay Kumar and sales manager Stephen Richards of Computer Associates (CA) have pleaded guilty to inventing a 35-day accounting month to increase the revenue figures of CA. Oracle has erroneously released their promotional calendar featuring 31 days in the month of April. Scott McNealy resigned from his CEO post at Sun after 22 years in the company.

The article covers several issues related to the computer industry in the U.S. in April 2006. Jerry Taylor, city manager of Tuttle, Oklahoma, almost called the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation when he encountered an Apache error page while viewing the cityoftuttle.org Web site. Dell Computer Corp. declined to replace a man's DJ Ditty MP3 player on the grounds that the man returned it a few days after its 90-day warranty expired. Google Inc. has developed a Google Romance contextual dating service.

The article offers news related to the computer industry as of April 3, 2006. Microsoft has postponed the launch of its new Vista operating system. The web site Amazon experienced a technical glitch at its Macy's storefront. Quark has changed the design of its logo.

The article offers news brief in the computer industry in March 2006. Microsoft has launched its Origami Project at the CeBit show in Germany. Micro-Billing was introduced by A-1 National Internet to the adult industry.

The article presents the author's views on various issues related to the computer industry in the U.S. as of February 2006. He reports on the ability of the Microsoft AntiSpyware Beta 1 software to destroy copies of Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 10 software. Sony BMG has offered to settle a class action lawsuit.

The article comments on various issues related to the computer industry. Intel announced its rebranding plan during the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas, Nevada. The motherboard of an eMachines personal computer failed and when it was replaced, the Windows XP demanded a new registration key. Microsoft and eMachines failed to address the problem. Grokster.com has a new introductory message to those visiting the Web site.

This article discusses the observation of readers of the journal InfoWorld, on issues in the information technology industry as of January 2006. It was said that a column is not enough to account for all the losers in the industry for 2005. Sony is on the top of chosen losers. Microsoft was also chosen for its failure to anticipate demand for its Xbox 360. According to CEO Steve Ballmer, even his kids could not get one for themselves. Losers who were also winners are picked by some readers which include Carly Fiorina, who walked away from Hewlett-Packard with $21 million. After Carly left, the company's shares gained almost 40 percent.

The article reflects on issues related to the computer industry in 2005. It reveals that the eXtended Copy Protection copy-protected compact discs of Sony BMG may itself break copyright law by violating an open source code license. It describes a problem experienced by a tech consultant in buying Dell servers via credit card. It offers information on the anti-porn technology developed by Irish software company PixAlert.

Provides an update on issues related to the computer industry as of November 2005. Result of a survey on the attitude of the Generation X workers toward work; Rumors on the plan of Google to take on eBay, Craigslist and the Human Genome Project; Information on an 11-DVD set containing Bill Gates' 17-hour deposition in the U.S. Department of Justice's 1998 antitrust suit.

Presents an update on issues and events related to the information technology industries from around the world as of October 2005. Challenges to Google; Comments on the certification of the Netware 3.12 version from Novell; Criticisms against the branch of Dell in Great Britain.

Presents news briefs in the computer industry in the U.S. as of September 19, 2005. Efforts of Oracle to acquire Siebel; Limitations of the Web site set up by U.S. Federal Emergency Management Authority for the survivors of Hurricane Katrina; Attitude of Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer towards the move of Net pioneer Vint Cerf to join Google.

Presents updates on the computer industry as of September 2005. Purpose of the Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface; Number of Neeon MP3 players containing the Wullik.B e-mail worm that were shipped by Creative Labs to its Japanese customers; Customer subscription problems encountered by Cringester Jeff A. with Symantec.

The article presents news briefs on the computer industry as of July 25, 2005. The Wall Street Journal has predicted a September release for a video iPod. When you try to reach apple.com/movies, you get a Forbidden--You do not have permission to access/movies on this server error instead of the usual Page Not Found. Groklaw has published an August 2002 e-mail to SCO chief Darl McBride starting than an SCO investigation failed to produce evidence of Unix copyright infringement in Linux. When Dell closed its Customer Care forums in July 8, critics claimed it was trying to clamp down on the boards' Dell Hell messages. At press time Dell had just reopened its General forum for comments--though the phrase Dell Hell has been mysteriously banned.

This article comments on rumors and issues pertaining to the IT industry, as of July 2005. Rumors continue to swirl that Microsoft is about to snap up spyware vendor Claria. The latest evidence is that Microsoft's Anti-Spyware beta detects the Claria software but no longer recommends its removal. More alleged proof can be found by taking the advanced quiz on Microsoft's spyware site. Meanwhile, Andrew N. talks about his attempts to replace a dead Dell CD drive in a blog. He said that after three weeks, 14 support technicians, 65 reboots, several hours on the phone, and six major new errors created by the techies, he was still waiting for Dell to replace his dead PC. His Dell extended warranty cost $280. In the meantime, Rick T. recently bought a hard drive adapter for his new ThinkPad, which came with EZ-Gig backup software on a 3.5-inch floppy. New ThinkPads with floppy drives are as rare as Pintos with 8-track tape players, so he called Lenovo's support and asked if he could download a copy of the software. After an hour of talking with several technical support representatives he got a negative answer.

Presents news briefs concerning the computer industry in the U.S. as of July 11, 2005. Problem with the use of BusinessSecure computer program from Panda Software; Remarks from Steve Ballmer of Microsoft regarding the Web search engine Google; Electronic mail message that was accidentally sent by New York State Assemblyman Willis Stephens to his constituents.

This article presents updates on several companies in the information technology or computer industry as of June 6, 2005. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents disabled the film-swapping Web site elitetorrents. In a press release, the agents said a number of "Star Wars" fans downloaded bootleg copies of "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith from the site. Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has failed to meet a single one of its 13 cybersecurity goals, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office. Furthermore. IBM has reached a proposed settlement in a class-action suit over its Deskstar hard drives. The settlement would give buyers 75GXP drives $100 apiece, provided they can produce the serial numbers. However, IBM reseller Tony W. noted that the settlement applies only to consumers. On the other hand, Escape From Netscape, a Microsoft blogger has discovered installing Netscape 8 could cause IE to gag on XML pages. America Online says it will release a solution to fix the problem. The Punjabi Fight Club, is a dating portal that promises world class dating, marriage, travel companions and forums literally filled with those who want to feel violence.

Presents an update on the computer industry as of May 2005. Information on the annual salaries for top Silicon Valley CEO published by San Jose Merc; Error made by the Passport service of Microsoft to the Hotmail account of Linda L.; Fines to be imposed by the European Commission against Microsoft if the company did meet the deadline of May 31, 2005 to distribute a working version of XP sans Windows Media Player.

Presents news briefs on the computer industry as of May 23, 2005. Arrest of teenager for stealing Cisco's router source code; Information on an online contest sponsored by Microsoft for information technology professionals; Shutdown of eBay after hosting provider Qwest Communications experienced power outage.

Presents an update on issues related to the computer industry in the U.S. as of April 2005. Appointment of Mark Hurd at Hewlett-Packard; Acquisition of SunGuard Data Systems; Security feature added by Microsoft to its Longhorn computer system.

Presents updates on the computer industry and on the World Bank as of March 2005. Candidates for president of the World Bank; Pricing strategy used by Dell; Ruling given by Judge James Kleinberg on the suits filed by Apple against rumor blogs.

This article focuses on issues involving several computer companies in the U.S., as of February 7, 2005. InfoWorld reader Mark C. was shopping for a memory upgrade for a Dell OptiPlex when he discovered something curious: Dell.com was charging different prices for identical products. A Dell spokesman says that is just the way they do things: Each segment sets its own pricing, and consumers are free to pick the one that is cheapest. In October 2004, a McAfee affiliate bought a Google advertisement claiming to remove the BitDefender virus. In January 2005, Microsoft's Anti-Spyware beta flagged the Bucharest-based security company's virus scanner as spyware. Then a virus claiming to be a security alert from BitDefender's support department circulated on the Net. In a security alert released to the media, BitDefender said that it does not issue security alerts, at least not from its support department. And BitDefender was not responsible for that bogus story about the Romanian baby named Yahoo. Meanwhile, an anonymous Cringester shared a resume from a job seeker who claimed fluency in Dilhok, a fictional language used by ghouls in an unpublished novel. Appropriately enough, he was applying for a help desk position.

This column presents some off-beat news items on issues and events related to the computer and Internet industry in the U.S. as of January 24, 2005. The author notes that PeopleSoft will suffer most of the 5,000 jobs cut by Oracle in January 2005. According to the San Jose Merc, decommissioned employees must call Oracle's human resources center and make appointments to retrieve personal belongings from their cubicles. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has quietly shelved its Virtual Case File project after burning through $1 70 million in taxpayer money. The project was supposed to allow agents to share information using something other than carrier pigeons and disappearing ink, but, according to the author, the agency apparently dropped the project when they discovered they could get more powerful software by scouring the discount bins at CompUSA. On the other news, readers continue to share tales of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's generosity to inventors. Dubious patent holders include a unique method for using a child's swing, an animal toy, and a toy missile powered by human gases. Meanwhile, a Romanian couple who dated online for three months before marrying have named their first child Yahoo, after the search site that brought them together.

This section deals with several issues concerning the computer-service industry in the U.S. as of December 2004. In November 2004, Microsoft Corp. paid the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) nearly $20 million to drop its anti-trust actions against the company. Nearly half the money was allegedly allotted to CCIA president Ed Black, formerly one of the company's vocal critics. Meanwhile, the blessed Virgin Mary grilled cheese sandwich was purchased by The Golden Palace, an online casino. The casino's Web site is displaying the Holy Toast on a make your own sandwich page, where the user can insert their own mug in place of Virgin Mary's. In other issue, several Internet users are complaining because they can no longer access Hotmail from Outlook or Outlook Express unless they pay an account. According to Microsoft Corp., it made the change to stop spammers who were using the e-mail programs to bypass Hotmail's junk mail protection.

This article comments on various topics. Those who think that the PeopleSoft/Oracle saga is over, well, think again. It appears that nearly two-thirds of PeopleSoft shareholders are willing to take Oracle's $24 per share offer. The rest, it seems, would rather bid on that cheese sandwich portrait of the Virgin Mary on eBay, which cost $28,000 plus $9.95 shipping or nearly 1,200 shares of PeopleSoft stocks. On a different note, Japanese researchers have uncovered that spending too much time in front of the computer screen can cause early blindness. Meanwhile, it has been reported that the Bank of America e-mailed credit card offerings to their clients, which displayed the 16-digit credit card number of these clients. Bank spokespeople declined to say how many credit card numbers got spewed into cyberspace, but said that they are unaware of any unauthorized activity due to the snafu and will cover any losses that might result as such. For those who like British slang, here are some: down to the septic to sausage a Gregory; knock you in the morning; bangers for breakfast. The first slang translates to, down to the bank to cash a check.

This article presents some rumors and gossips on issues and events related to the computer and Internet industry as of November 22, 2004. PeopleSoft's Board aggressively rejected Oracle's takeover offer, accompanied by a series of hand gestures unfit for family viewing. Shareholders had until November 19 to decide whether to join Larry's extended family. According to rumors, if the PeopleSoft deal falls through, Mr. E. may buy a pro football team. On the other hand, Microsoft can breathe easier now that the feds have arrested a scofflaw who sold Windows 2000 source code to an undercover agent for $20. According to SecurityFocus, the perp says he offered the code for sale as a joke, because it was available for free on p-to-p networks. He also claims the agent paid $15 for the equally titillating Paris Hilton video, leading to the obvious question--Which item was more overpriced? Meanwhile, according to The Register, a gas station attendant in Turkey lost his cell phone, so he called the number--and heard his dog's stomach ringing. He has since recovered the phone, but the reception is now really shoddy. Also, a Cringester says he received an e-mail from Dell that addressed him by a part of his anatomy. Dell cannot account for how this could have happened.

This article presents the author's thoughts and experiences on a variety of topics. Piles of mail poured in deriding my efforts to cut the world's richest man some slack. Some readers correctly pointed out that both I and my source had our numbers slightly askew: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has an endowment of $27 billion; so far the have only given away a paltry $7.2 billion. Several Cringesters argued Gates' largesse was tainted because he made his billions selling shoddy software using Machiavellian marketing strategies, and he uses his foundation to foist Microsoft products onto its beneficiaries. Other readers opined that Bill should be lopped off the foundation's name given that he discovered philanthropy only after he got hitched. I am sure he is not the only guy who got married and started giving. While we are in a corrective mood, an anonymous reader pointed out that a recent InfoWorld headline mentioned e-voting sceptics instead of skeptics. Given the ugly turn this U.S. 2004 election has taken, septic might have been more apt. According to my spies, Oracle declared 2004 the Year of the Consultant and, to celebrate, allegedly delayed annual raises and promotions for consultants. Welcome to the Oracle family, PeopleSoft employees! Please check your wallets at the door.