Microsoft's China Problem

POOR MICROSOFT. Human rights group Amnesty International slammed Microsoft and other firms recently because they sold computer products to the Chinese government that was used to censor the Internet and jail democracy activists. The Chinese government bans web sites that use objectionable words like "democracy," "human rights," "Tibet," "Taiwan" and "Backstreet Boys." (You can't blame them for that last one...) According to the group, web surfers are jailed, tortured and even executed for posting or downloading information related to democracy and other banned subjects. Cisco Systems, Nortel Networks, Websense and Sun Microsystems were also named as co-conspirators in the snuffing out of free expression in China.

So Microsoft is taking heat globally for helping the Chinese government oppress the Chinese people. What does Microsoft get in return?

Not much. That same government is actively working to rid the country of Microsoft Windows in favor of Linux and home grown microprocessors that run Linux. The Chinese government sees Linux as an opportunity to boost domestic application development, essentially working against a Chinese future that involves Microsoft -- or its development tools and applications. The government-backed Chinese company Evermore Software even seeks to displace Microsoft Office with its Evermore Integrated Office 2004 not only in China but globally.

In addition to pushing alternatives to Microsoft products, the Chinese government is actively creating alternatives to Microsoft-supported standards (as well as existing standards in general). The idea is that if the government requires all companies doing business in China to support proprietary Chinese standards (which were created in most cases purely for the sake of being different), Chinese companies will enjoy an advantage over international rivals like Microsoft.

What's a multi-billion dollar global behemoth to do?

Microsoft should respond to the Amnesty International report by reviewing how the Chinese government is using Microsoft software and, for those products used to crush dissent, revoke the government's license and refuse future sales.

Microsoft: The Chinese government is out to get you anyway. You might as well do the right thing.

Besides, it's only a matter of time before the Chinese democracy movement prevails. The new, democratically elected leaders of China may take note of who helped them achieve democracy for the Chinese people, and who helped the current leadership crush it.

Teen Gets Blood Clot Playing Xbox

A 14-year-old UK boy developed deep vein thrombosis -- a condition normally associated with older people flying on long-distance airplane trips -- after kneeling all day in the same position obsessively playing Xbox. This is perhaps the youngest known case of what some flip quasi-medical wags call e-thrombosis, but is by no means the first.

Dog Issued Credit Card After Owner Mails Application As Anti-Spam Joke

You have to give this dog credit. Which is exactly what a credit card company did recently. Tired of getting spam pitching a pre-approved credit card, a Silicon Valley area man filled out the application with his dog's information and was shocked when his dog received an approved credit card in the mail.

Bad Robots

How can graffiti artists hope to compete in the marketplace against this kind of technology?

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Your Tax Dollars At Work

Hundreds of pages of U.S. President George Bush's defense budget proposal were accidentally posted briefly Friday on the "comptroller" area of the Pentagon's Web site. Shhhhhh. Don't tell anyone.  

Hollywood Spy

I first told you about the Blade-Runneresque Korean sci-fi movie, Natural City, August 25, 2003. Now there's a high-resolution version of the trailer I pointed to, plus a second trailer. The movie is directed by Byung-chun Min and stars Ji-tae Yu, Jae-un Lee and Rin Seo.

Gotta-Get-It Gadgets

Out of the Box Computers Sells PCs built inside motorcycle gas tanks. They call them -- what else? -- Think Tanks. They sport built-in radios and CD players. Think tanks would be perfect for mounting on actual motorcycles, but then of course you wouldn't have any gas.

Timex is transforming nine of its existing watch lines into "Speed Pass"-capable credit cards that can be used to get gas at over 8,000 ExxonMobile stations and 440 McDonald's restaurants. It can also be used at specific Stop-and-Shop markets in the Midwest. Now if they could only make real credit cards that tell the time.

A new infrared laser pointer from Japan's Kokuyo Company has forwards and backwards buttons that control PowerPoint presentations. Unfortunately, you can't control other people's PowerPoint presentations with it, as it requires a USB peripheral receiver.

The Sigma e-Book from Matsushita Electric Industrial and Panasonic that I told you about last May will finally become available February 20. The Sigma looks like a real book and features low power consumption and a very high resolution screen. Panasonic said last year that you'll get up to six months (or 10,000 pages, whichever comes first) on three AA batteries. It features "instant-on," so there's no waiting to boot. Two facing black-and-white 7.2-inch displays have screen resolution of 1,024Ãx768, which is very high for such a small gadget.

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Mike's List Mentions

Fred Langa mentioned a web site that I had mentioned to him in his megapopular LangaList newsletter.

Rich, He of the Randomblings from Rich web site, wrote: "I don't have the time on a daily basis to go through TONS of e-mail. However, there are TWO lists that you should subscribe to, and never turn off, especially if you're into technology. One of these is Mike's List." Thanks, Rich!

The BestEzines.com web site had a really nice write-up about Mike's List with a link.

Did I mention that the Chasing Daisy web site mentioned my mention in the LangaList newsletter?

Waxy.org pointed out my "Teen Gets Blood Clot Playing Xbox" story, which I had posted on the Raw Feed moments before.

The Tvindy web site mentioned an old piece I did on archive footage of young hippie William Gibson (long before he wrote Neuromancer).

Mystery Pic o' the Week

What is it? Go here to send YOUR guess (be sure to say where you live). If you're first with the right answer, I'll print your name in the next issue of Mike's List!

LAST WEEK'S MYSTERY PIC: No, it's not a "fine print reader for reading contracts and legal documents," a "Timex watch after being run over by a steam-roller" or even a "remote-controlled peeping Tom" as suggested by some readers. In fact, it's a picture of Toshiba's Human Centric Laboratory-developed wearable remote controller for home electronic appliances. Users can turn lights on and off by simply pointing at the light (much better than clapping). Other appliances can be controlled by other movements. Mega Mike's List congratulations to Dennis Adams of Madison, Wisconsin USA, for being first with the right answer!

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