Laughed my ass off.  Thanks to Dec
and Carl

Seems like its not just Google
that are screwing things up today.

"How fascinating that we who are left
are expected to do even more work than before, all the while waiting for
the next quarter results at which time it may be us on the other side of
the chainsaw on this tree limb we’re all standing on’"

More..

I also couldn’t leave the Belfast Apple
store without iLife and iWork 09!  So far, playing with iPhoto09 and
very impressed.

Although Apple is far from my favourite
company these days, there hardware is still stunning.  I am now the
owner of a 24inch LED display.  This should be my second last hardware
I purchase this year (Still looking for a NAS to replace my aging Terastation).

I will be the first to admit that I am
not a good enough writer to put this post on-line, but after the past few
days, watching excellent, well paid minds being let go from jobs they deserve,
I have had enough.

First…. the downturn/recession.  Am
I the only person thinking that the media is completely taking this to
a lower level?  I call it the "fox news" approach.  If
one station is talking about a shooting, the other station will have to
talk about a massacre to get the viewer’s attention, and get the ratings.
 Newspapers, radio, analysts (IMO) all fall into this sick basket.
 Currently we have media trying to make the recession worse then their
competitors so you will listen to them.  So you will be scared
not to listen to them.  Keep people scared and they pay attention.
 Oldest trick in the book with media (fox news being a perfect example).
 Listening to the news in the morning makes me not want to go to work…
why bother?  Even though many customers of mine, and many I spoke
to at Lotusphere say the same thing "we have the money, we are just
afraid to spend it.  Have you seen the news?".

Now, lets see the recession hit harder,
and when it gets to the point where media people may lose their jobs because
of the recession, or take a pay cut, or lose some benefits.  Will
their tone change?  Too bloody right it will.  The next day you
will hear the media scream "well it’s not that bad, and its
getting better – see our research… blah blah".

In the meantime, big companies have
an opportunity to save some money.  Instead of standing by people
in tough times, and asking them to work with them and work harder, digging
in and helping the company stay in the black, other things happen.

For example, "I am going to cut
your contractor rate by 10%.  If you don’t like it, try to find another
job at the moment!.  Oh yes, and I am not passing that saving onto
the customer… no… I want to make MORE money in the recession!".
 

Or, "you have x days to find a
job in our company that is not hiring or you have to go… sorry"
(same as just letting someone go IMO).  

Or, "I cannot believe I hired you
for that amount of cash, even though you carry an incredible trustworthy
name in the marketplace – so take a massive pay cut, even though we are
still making profit, or leave".

Don’t get me wrong on this.  I
am a capitalist.  I want to make money.  I want to have a financially
stable life and compete for business.  That is the way I work.  But,
I want to sleep at night aswell.  I manage to do that at the moment.
 I have no idea how managers in some other companies do.  Business
Karma works in the long run.  Of that I am sure.  Unfortunately
the people making the decisions that kick other people in the teeth will
have moved on before the Karma pays back.

Gab Davis and I presented the show and
tell session on DAOS and idVault.  We are both feeling generous so
have released it for download on the resources
page.
We are pretty confident that a monkey (or even a developer) could set up
either of these features with this guide.

More

Francesco Pellegrini and Fabrizio Marchesano conduct the crowd at their Show and Tell session on Lotusphere symphony. Excellent!