Search Wars!

Been a long time since I blogged. So many things have happened, yet I haven't had the energy or time to write anything down, besides some scribbled thoughts. Haven't even begun to sort out my own thoughts internally, to let them flow into prose. Sigh, just so many things happening at one shot, emotions can be a drag at times. Well, just wish that this semester will be over soon. Which it probably will, considering the insane amounts of deadlines upcoming.

Anyway, some interesting news:

Microsoft on Friday began offering large businesses rewards if they have employees scout the Internet with the software giant's Live Search service.

In a move intended to wrest users from rival search engines such as market-dominating Google, Microsoft will give business customers service or training credits based on how much employees use Live Search.

"We are conducting a trial program through which Microsoft is providing service or training credits to a select number of enterprise customers based on the number of Web search queries conducted by their employees via Live Search," the Redmond, Washington, company said in a written statement.

"As search evolves into more of a productivity tool, and revenue sharing becomes more commonplace across the industry, we are engaging in mutually beneficial partnerships such as this and our recently announced a deal with Lenovo to more easily enable customers to choose Live Search."

Microsoft announced a deal this month to pre-install software that makes Live.com the default page in computers made by the China-based Lenovo.

Google has a deal with US computer maker Dell to preload its search engine tool bar on that company's machines.

Microsoft would not disclose how the credits are calculated, saying it depended on the number of personal computers enrolled in the program and the amount of Live Search use.

- http://sg.news.yahoo.com/070317/1/47c6f.html

Both are intruding into each other's 'territory' ... wonder who's come out champs in this fight ;)
Was about to write something else, more, but Marcus and Meiqi's spying dissuaded me lalala!

Weird news

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/070301/1/46zqd.html

Just read a piece of news that kinda shocked me. Read the above link for more info, but here's an excerpt from the news.

An Australian state has banned the popular internet film-sharing website YouTube from school computers in a bid to clamp down on cyber-bullying.

The move follows public outrage after a group of schoolboys filmed themselves sexually abusing and degrading a teenage girl and uploaded the video onto YouTube.

The horrific film showed a group of 12 youths surrounding the 17-year-old girl, who has a mild mental disability, bullying her to perform sex acts, urinating on her and setting her hair alight.

Now, the shocking thing is not the act itself, although that in itself is terribly disgusting, and I'm in no way condoning such acts. But the strange thing is the state's reaction. By banning YouTube to "clamp down" on cyber bullying, that's tantamount to saying that having a place to post their video has actually caused the act of bullying itself! Doesn't ANYONE find that strange? That's like one of the most obvious case of the "slippery slope" fallacy I've ever seen in my life. Geez. Fallacy aside, does anyone really think that not having an avenue to post things will prevent such things from happening again? That it's the best solution for the matter. That's not even taking into consideration that YouTube is ONE out of many many video sites on the net, just that its one of the more popular. Gods, there are tons more sites akin to YouTube around. So, we're gonna put a blanket ban on those sites as well? Why stop there? Ban all file sharing sites... hell, ban the internet because it can give one the avenue to see such sites, or other objectionable material that could give cause to such actions. Why not ban video cameras as well! Certainly without the video cameras, the youths would never think of filming such things.

Perhaps even governments should think before they act.