360-Days Blog

A once-cachet Washington tradition, the annual dinner may have completed its final transformation this year into a crushing gathering of several thousand, increasingly less a celebration of journalism than a parade of Hollywood and television celebrity. Photo positions for paparazzi dotted the Washington Hilton space where the dinner has been held for decades; midway through the evening, in the center of the room, a cluster of a half dozen tables became a traffic jam of Hollywood rubbernecking, as guests glommed around Sting, Kevin Bacon, Steven Spielberg, Kate Capshaw, Forest Whitaker, Natalie Portman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Donatella Versace, among others, who were attending as guests of various news outlets. When the dinner ended, many of those in attendance then fanned out over the city for additional celebrations, though at a time of unprecedented economic difficulty for most news organizations, it is hard to say of what, exactly. (Read the Twitter coverage of the White House Correspondents' dinner, a.k.a. #nerdprom)

The President, who by tradition attends and delivers comical remarks at the dinner each year, won the crowd over early. "Most of you covered me." After a beat, he added, "All of you voted for me." Noting that Sunday is Mother's Day, Obama reported that it was a tough holiday for his sometimes profane chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel. "He's not used to saying the word 'day' after 'mother.'" (See an eight-year retrospective at the attempts at comedy at the White House Correspondents' dinner.)

Obama also made fun of RNC chairman Michael Steele for seeking a bailout for the GOP and noted that former vice president Dick Cheney was not in attendance, busying writing his memoirs which Obama said would be titled, "How to Shoot Friends and Interrogate People." He mocked the reporters' recent obsession with his first 100 days by announcing that he was immediately building a presidential library in honor his first 100 days. "My next 100 days will be so successful, I will complete them in 72 days. And on the 73rd day, I will rest."

Obama said that in his next 100 days he will learn to give a speech without a teleprompter — something he has been criticized by some for relying too heavily on — while his vice president Joe Biden, who has made a string of ill-advised comments lately — will learn to use one.

The President said he was taking credit for "revitalizing the Democrats... bringing in fresh young faces like Arlen Specter." He suggested that his Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, had urged Specter to make his recent jump from the Republican to the Democratic party with the advice, "If you can't beat em, join em."

Obama's less successful riffs — a few of his jokes fell flat — were overlooked because the room is traditionally forgiving of its top guest and because the professional comic who typically follows the president — this year it was Wanda Sykes — can almost always be counted on to go much further overboard. Sykes came through in that department. While delivering a number of one liners that the crowd applauded, she included several — including one about Rush Limbaugh's drug problems and another about the fashion habits of previous first ladies — that would have been better to have scratched from her script.

Source
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1897164,00.html

A nagware anti-piracy feature in Windows isn't going away, it's just getting a marketing makeover by Microsoft.

Windows Genuine Advantage is being re-branded Windows Activation Technologies in Windows 7 and for updated versions of Windows Vista, the company has said.

Microsoft claimed the change reflected the use of "fundamentally" different technologies - new code and "latest methods" that work with Windows 7 and Vista components that are different to Windows XP - to stop PCs running pirated or illegal copies of Windows.

But the explanation makes no sense, given Windows 7 is based on the Windows Vista code and it was Windows Vista that saw long-running complaints over WGA reach their zenith with the creation of the ill-advised Windows Vista kill switch.

The kill switch penalized Windows Vista customers who'd failed to activate or register their copy of the operating system within 30 days or three days after a major change to the PC's hardware configuration by blocking certain key features.

Users would be denied access to features such as Aero Glass, ReadyBoot, and BitLocker, with Windows Vista running in an "out-of-grace reduced functionality mode."

Windows Vista's Service Pack 1 removed the kill switch, but WGA had already earned itself the kind of reputation where people start Googling work-arounds to de-install it.

Built to detect and prevent installation of pirated or illegal copies of software, WGA failed genuine copies of Windows in large numbers for reasons never explained.

One in five PCs running Windows XP have failed WGA tests since July 2005, but less than 0.5 per cent were reported to be running counterfeit software, according to figures from Microsoft released in January 2007. In 2006, Microsoft said that more than 20 per cent of WGA failures had been caused by something other than piracy of the keys used to activate the software.

Along the way, alerts would pop up. If WGA found your copy of Windows to be not genuine, unauthorized or not validated, you got repeated warnings of: "This copy of Windows is not genuine".

Despite these failures, Microsoft remains committed to the idea of WGA - hence the name change to break from the past as it introduces a brand new operating system.

If you chose not to activate your copy of Windows 7 immediately, the company said Thursday, you're still going to get an annoying alert - but more in the vein of a peppy and irritating health and safety manager than a harsh headmaster ready with the cane. According to Microsoft, it has updated the Windows Vista SP1 reminder so: "When customers choose to activate later they will see a dialog box highlighting how activation helps them identify if their copy of Windows is genuine and be allowed to proceed immediately without a 15-second delay."

WGA is not going away. Microsoft has also hinted at changes in the Windows Vista and Windows 7 management tools to cater for virtualized images and volume activation. Also, the company promised: "More can always be done - which is why you'll continue to see us invest in anti-piracy efforts such as Windows Activation Technologies over the long term."

Interestingly, Microsoft did not tackle the hot-button issue of WGA from either the roadmap or re-branding perspective during its recent outing at the security industry's annual San Francisco, California - the RSA Conference. The company's corporate vice president trustworthy computing Scott Charney instead rehashed a previous pitch for "end-to-end trust" using its planned Geneva identity management and sign-in framework. ®
Source

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/07/microsoft_wga_rebranding/

Developing strategic priorities focused on the customer, an organization should encourage its sales people to work in a collaborative style to leverage business potential within the marketplace. Jeanne M. Liedtka suggests, in her research on how collaborating across lines of business gain competitive advantage, that by establishing a collaborative approach, a focus on internal organizational strengths and on the needs of the customer, there is then potential for gaining (or pulling) a larger segment of market share. Customers have to deal with external influences, their own preferences and multiple competitive choices in order to make informed decisions. Organizations that can take a holistic, collaborative approach to identifying and satisfying customer needs will more likely obtain a greater share of the market. The sales manager’s role is therefore to ensure they optimize their sales person’s performance against the customer. For example, while sales managing a unified sales force targeted at providing holistic solutions for our customers, while the organization had multiple product lines fighting for shelf space, I found myself spending a lot of time preventing our internal silos from looking like our competition - fragmented and confusing.

Create a mental image of a tug of war with the customer in the center – Not just one rope being pulled at both ends but many ropes pulling in all directions. First, they have their own established preferences and habits. Given we are creatures of habit these can be well anchored and difficult to move. Second, they have external influences coming at them all the time by way of marketing, subliminal messaging and information highways to name a few. Thirdly, there is your competition trying to influence them and attempting to pull them in multiple directions. Hopefully they are fragmented and more confusing than your own value proposition. Lastly, there is your own organization and in my own situation various lines of business or products attempting to secure the customer through a single sales force. You can either look like your competition and be pulling your customer in multiple directions or you can collaborate and unify yourself to be the power line that wins the customer’s heart, mind and soul then ultimately their business.

For collaboration to exist, Liedtka suggests that shared goals and partnerships are important and the sales manager’s role is an integral part in developing these relationships. Sales managers and sales leaders today should use a less directive approach to obtain commitment and manage the risk of forfeiting control of what often has been ownership of outcomes for many managers of the past. This is consistent with humanistic-encouraging behaviours in sales managers as described by Dr. Clayton J.C. Lafferty as these sales managers believe that they can assist others in fulfilling their potential by providing a supportive climate that inspires self-improvement, motivation and confidence.

Certainly with my own experience when we were unified, all pulling for the customer to win we had double digit growth, business leaders that were exceeding plan, sales people making more money than they had ever contemplated and we had established brand recognition that clients wanted to be associated with. When we were not unified all of these indicators slipped away and more quickly than it took to establish them.

Nowadays, auto insurance is really expensive. A typical insurance policy can cost a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars a year. And the insurance rates you pay are hugely dependent on the insurance company or agent, your age, your car type, your driving record, and even the area you reside in!

You should never go without auto insurance though, despite the costs. Almost all the states require you to protect yourself with a minimum amount of liability coverage. Naturally, the bare minimum is not adequate enough for the average car owner. And as you add in additional coverage for your car, you realize that you will be paying a fairly large sum annually.

So, understanding auto insurance can actually help you to decide on a suitable insurance policy that won't vacuum clean your wallet! Here, we have gathered 10 of the best tips for lowering your auto insurance, by as much as 40

Always compare insurance policies. There are states which regulate auto insurance rates, but the insurance premiums can vary by hundreds of dollars for the exact same coverage. It is definitely worthwhile to shop around. The first thing you can do is to check with your state insurance department. They often provide information about the coverage you need, as well as sample rates from the biggest companies. You can also ask your friends or look up the yellow pages. Checking consumer guides and asking insurance agents can pay off as well. You can easily find out the price range for your insurance policy, as well as discover the lowest prices in town.

However, you should not be shopping based on price along. The insurance company should provide good service at the best price. Excellent personal service is available as well, and they provide added conveniences, although they cost a fair bit more. Ask the company how you can lower your costs, and also check their financial ratings. The rule of thumb is always to get three price quotes from three different companies, and pick the one with the best value.

It can also be a good idea to increase your deductibles. When you file a claim, the deductible is the amount you pay before the insurance company pays for the rest of the damage. A higher deductible on collision and comprehensive coverage can lead to a much lower premium. For example, increasing your deductible from $200 to $400 can reduce your premiums by up to 25àHowever, you must ensure that you have the financial resources to handle the largest deductible when the time comes.

Remove certain types of coverage from your policy. Almost all the states require liability coverage for your car, but the rest of the coverage is probably dispensable. However, you do not want to be underinsured if you're in an accident, so it isn't advisable to remove all of your additional coverage. Optional coverage includes medical payments, uninsured motorist, collision, and comprehensive coverage.

Drop collision and comprehensive coverage for older cars. If you drive an older car that's worth less than $2,000, it's probably more cost-effective to drop collision and comprehensive coverage since you'll probably pay more for the coverage than you'll collect for a claim. You can find out the worth of your car by asking auto dealers and banks.

Make sure your credit report looks good. Car insurance companies often look at your credit history as there is a correlation between the risk to the company and your credit history. If you pay your bills on time and maintain a good credit history, you can enjoy lower insurance rates.

Drive less. Insurance companies often offer low-mileage discounts to motorists who drive less than a predetermined number of miles each year. You can use public transportation more often, car-pool with friends, and take the train or a plane instead of driving to another state. And you'll save on more than your coverage as you'll need to spend less on gasoline (of which prices are incredibly high).

Maintain a clean driving record. The company will give you a price break and you can save on your insurance policy after a specified period of a clean driving record. This means that you have no accidents, no serious driving violations etc, during this period of time. The simplest and surefire way to qualify for this discount is to drive carefully and defensively all the time.

Choose a low-profile car. Insurance rates vary among difference models of vehicles. Generally, sports cars and high-performance cars tend to cost more to insure, mainly because they represent more risk of theft and the drivers are often the people who drive more recklessly. Newer cars will cost more to repair or replace than older ones, so naturally they can more to insure. Low-risk vehicles include station wagons and sedans.

Ask about safety and security discounts. The insurance companies sometimes offer discounts on your insurance if your car is equipped with the following: anti-lock brakes, air bags, automatic seat belts, car alarms, tracking systems. These reduce the injury risk to you, as well as the chances of your car being vandalized or stolen.

Finally, ask about other discounts. You may receive a discount if you buy more than one type of insurance from the same company or if you insure multiple cars under the same policy or company. You may also receive discounts for taking a defensive driving course, staying with the same company for a few years, being a driver over 50, good-student discounts, and being an AAA member. If you already have adequate health insurance, you can also eliminate paying for duplicate medical coverage, thus lowering your personal injury protection costs by a substantial amount.
Source
http://www.recent-articles.com/automotive/auto-insurance-rates-insurance-policy.php

Congratulations Blu-ray, you might be ready to step into the zone of mass market acceptance, as NPD's retail tracking service found Q1 sales of standalone players up 72 percent over last year, moving over 400,000 units with a 14% increase in dollar sales. Last year sure the format survived mad fights but high prices were a setback; fast forward to March when an online survey of 6,994 people found awareness has reached 90 percent in the last six months, with customers fascinated by its updates. Although BD-Live is looking more and more like an unneeded gimmick, the real facts are people care about cost and average player prices dropped from $393 last year to $261 in 2009. The "Blu-ray report" suggests the magic number is $214 for folks like Shawn Marion, so more room might be needed to breeze, and could come as soon as this fall around the time Vizio's player finally appears. It might be tragic for Vudu, CBHD and others trying to get a foothold, but Blu-ray's magic wand is word of mouth - so while much talked about, but much lower selling tech like Kindle is happy as hell to get a record deal, right now Blu-ray's unique skills can't be compared.

Source
http://www.engadget.com/2009/05/06/blu-ray-making-greenbacks-sales-up-72-to-start-09/