My take1

WaMu Shows, Again, Smart Money Can Be Wrong

"don’t make a financial company your largest position"

I totally agree. Financial companies don't actually make or build or create something tangible. What they deal with is papers and paper money, the paper money can grow a lot in value, but it can also vanish in an instant.

Instead, choose companies that make something people can see and use, and something that actually does something in real life. Those companies rarely go bankrupt. For example, I never heard that a semiconductor hardware company or chip company went bankrupt. When things go really bad, they get bought by a competitor with usally more than 50% premium on depressed stock value. So, actually, you can make a lot of money out of troubled tech companies.

Don't build your portfolio on vaporware. I didn't have to learn this lesson, my common sense has worked well for me.

Google's Chrome Sounds Like 1970s Pressure Cooker

User 255295

Your posting makes my head spin. Why should I know how microwave oven is made or care what tech standards geeks like or do not like to follow.

To me, it is just another microwave oven. I am sure that it has its own share of gizmos, but....

It's a microwave oven with Google brand name on it!

Ughh, I am as excited as seeing another episode of Gilligan's island.

Google's Chrome Sounds Like 1970s Pressure Cooker

Google!

If you can't innovate with all your money, then invest it to some startups who are willing to take risks and eager to innovate!

We don't want another brand of refrigerator!

Google's Chrome Sounds Like 1970s Pressure Cooker

Browser war? If I remember correctly, there was a browser war 10 years ago between Microsoft and Netscape. Back then, browser was top-of-the-line software technology.

But, it was 10 years ago! It's a commodity technology now.

Google. Please wake up. Use precious American engineers' brain resource for innovation, not evil politics!

Google. Stop trying to make software version of microwave, refrigerator, ovens, etc. Microsoft already does a darn good job in that.

You are wasting American minds with those commodity technology development! Mind is awful thing to waste.

Meet Chrome - Google's Windows Killer

I am an average PC user and use PC all the time like most every one else who work in a corporate world. The fact is that I never shut down my PC and leave it on even when I go for a long vacation. The XP keeps on going and going and going. I don't even think about what OS I am using and it's just there all the time working in the background. That's what OS is supposed to do. XP does a darn good job in that. That technology was achieved years ago and still big US tech companies like Google drain US brain resources in those nearly commodity techs.

While US tech companies are zero-sum no-tech purely-style quarrels, other countries are catching up and overtaking it.

Japan is nearly destorying US car companies with their hybrid techs. Korea's Samsung destroyed dozens of high-tech US chip companies which were busy doing cut-throat competion with each other.

And US? We are still trying to find the next wheel to reinvent, at least in the software industry.

As long as Google and Microsoft play their hate games, US software dominance days are numbered. Tech companies are supposed to innovate, not play politics. Sigh.

Meet Chrome - Google's Windows Killer

US companies were the source of innovcations in tech industry. Now with Google and Microsoft war, it seems obvious that they are trying to reinvent the wheels made by the other.

Is this the sign of time that there are not much left for true innovation in software? or those companies like Google and Microsoft are just evil companies like GM and Ford which wasted their engineers' minds over styles for years while Toyota and others were pickinig up their engineers' minds for innovation?

Either way, the end is near for software industry dominance for the US.

Meet Chrome - Google's Windows Killer

"if you think that Vista and IE are good products."

Lisa, I have never used Vista, so I don't have any comment on it. I have no need to upgrade from my XP.

OS technology had reached a good-enough level with MIcrosoft XP years ago, and with somewhere between IE 6 and 7, browser technology also has reached a level where there are no real complaints from customers. OS and browser technologies are now kind of commodity technologies.

I hope that US tech companies spend time on innovation than killing their brain cells over styles.

While those evil companies like Google and Microsoft waste precious resources of US engineer minds for needless corporate feud, other nations will put their brain resources in good use and will overtake the US.

It happened in a car industry, it can happen in computer industry too.

Meet Chrome - Google's Windows Killer

Microsoft/Google browser war.

Typical corporate zero-sum warfare, which only results in confusion and will put computer industry back into the dark age of multiple OS systems when chaos, incompatibility and unnecessarily long development time, higher costs were the norms.

Back in the dark ages of multiple OS, developers had to spend much more time for developing one application because they had to support multiple OS's: microsoft ms/dos, ibm ms/dos, atari, digital dos, ibm os/2, macintosh, etc.

Those days are coming back: at the worst of time ever, when the US is losing its grip on world economic dominance.

I recently travelled to South Korea, and did a bit of web surfing for their local sites there, I was surprised at how nice and fancy their websites were, seemed light years ahead of typical websites offered by American companies.

I found out that it was because their developers only program against one standard, IE, and don't spend any time for supporting other browsers, that way, they take a maximum advantage of one set of technologies and spend more time for developing contents and less time worrying about compatility issues, which US web developers can't afford.

SiRF Tech Collapses - But Is a Bounce Candidate

"the SiRF chip MAY BE designed into Google's phone"

The same thing can be said for SIRF's competitors' chips.

"GPS functionality will be widely available in handsets SOONER OR LATER."

Sooner or later, almost anything will be available in handsets.

Apple's Asian Production: Macs Up, iPods Down, iPhone Volatile

"I would pay a ten fold premium to use a Mac"

I know. The fact that Apple is making money proves that there exist people like you.

"My time and productivity are important to me. Maybe yours aren't."

What productivity? At work, I don't turn off PC. I come to work and unlock my PC screen, use it for 9 hours, and then lock the screen and leave the work. How can you lose productivity when your PC is on 24 hours 365 days a year?

I know that it is not produent to have an electronic device always on. But, it's not just any electronic device, it's a computer! You use it for a few years and throw it away when Intel comes up with a newer and faster CPU, or any other fancy device comes along such as a faster hard drive.

People used to argue about which OS is better, which hardware is better. That kind of discussion is laughable these days.

Apple buyers! Don't live in the past!

Apple's Asian Production: Macs Up, iPods Down, iPhone Volatile

If I translate what I said above to financial terms:

Apple's business model is based on premium branding on a commodity product; yes, computer is a commodity product, now. That's why PC makers have been on cut-throat competitions for decades now. Premium branding on a commodity product that people are forced to replace in 3-5 years due to newer and faster chips, is like trying to build a castle on sand.

Current fascination with Apple will give an illusion of a sturdiness in its business model, but only for so long, it will crumble down.

Apple's Asian Production: Macs Up, iPods Down, iPhone Volatile

Apple charges too much for a computer. Most people use a computer for just interent access. They can buy the latest NEW PC for less than $400.00 from a major PC brand and it comes with nice features (1.6GHz Intel Chip, 1GB RAM, 250GB hard disk, etc.) and all the standard warranties.

Why pay at least three times as much for macintosh? I just don't get it. Some people don't care that much about their money since using plastic credit card gives an illusion that it's not really money.

But, folks! It's your REALLY MONEY! If you have that much left over money, spend it for some worthwhile causes such as donation to a charity, don't donate it to a commerical corporation!

Apple's Extraordinary Edge

I forgot to mention. The darn good reason can't be, "Oh, it's such a beautiful object!"

LOL, that only works with the silly guy who wrote this column.

Apple's Extraordinary Edge

I am an independent thinker and therfore don't use Apple.

I like Windows because of the freedom it gives me. When using Windows, you just upgrade the components whether hardware or software you want to upgrade, no corporate leader makes a decision and forces me to buy something. I can be a follower at certain situations, but never to a corporate leader.

The office application suite I am using (Office 2000), I bought it 9 years ago. Over the years, Microsoft have come up with newer and updated office suites, but I haven't spent a single penny on them since I am happy with the office app I have. I started using it with Windows NT, then with 2000. Now, I am using it with XP.

Same thing with Vista. When Microsoft came up with a newer and better OS, Vista, I yawned at it. Hey, the last time my XP crahsed after years of using it, ... Well, it has never crashed. Sorry, Microsoft. You did a pretty darn good job with XP. When I buy a new computer, I will try Vista.

If any corporate guy wants my money, he'd better give dang good reason for it. I'm no Apple guy.

Apple's Extraordinary Edge

I am happy with my Windows XP.

Vista? I don't need it. Why upgrade when I am happy with what I've got now?

Apple? No thanks, I am an independent thinker.

Linux? Yuck.