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Can HP rival IBM in global technology services?

Nobody knows exactly when Hewlett-Packard's $13.9 billion acquisition of EDS will close, but it may already be too late for the tech giant to take a run at IBM's leadership in global technology services.

Eight years ago, then-CEO Carly Fiorina looked into acquiring PricewaterhouseCoopers to expand HP's services business, but it ultimately balked at the deal. IBM scooped up the consulting firm for $3.5 billion just two years later, a move that accelerated its famously successful repositioning as a services company.

Now HP Chief Executive Mark Hurd is trying to do what Fiorina failed to do eight long years ago--eons in today's ultrafast-pace technology world.… Read more

The one question Mark Cuban should have to answer if he wants to buy the Chicago Cubs

Those nice people at ESPN reported this week that Mark Cuban, who I am told, was given a lot of money by Yahoo for some gizmoid or other, is one of the finalists in the bidding to buy baseball's most charming, unlucky, losersome team, the Chicago Cubs.

There will be those on the waggy side of humorous who will claim that he is the perfect person to own the Cubs as his Dallas Mavericks team is one of the most charming, unlucky, losersome teams in the NBA.

(My prejudices. One, I have Golden State Warriors hats and shirts and … Read more

Facebook's portal for the masses

This week, Facebook took a number of strategic steps toward its goal of giving people the "power to share and make the world more open and connected." That's how founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg described the mission statement for Facebook.

With that mission statement, similar to Google's mission to "organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful," Facebook is highlighting its noble aspirations, but underneath the "make the world a better place" is the fact that both Facebook and Google, as well as Yahoo, Microsoft, MySpace, and others … Read more

The 404 148: Where MTI is livid and covered in toilet paper

Mark is finally back from his 10 year sabbatical, so we have him on as a guest on today's show to talk about the much deserved practical joke we pulled on him (see post below). He also gives a shout out to Papa Licea and tells us a few stories about his trip. The rest of us get into a rather heated discussion about RoboCop and Batman, give a public service announcement on child abuse, reminisce about a time not so long ago when we worked for pennies, and daydream out loud about all the sinister things we could … Read more

EFF YO CUBE

Mark is an associate producer on Loaded. He took a three week vacation during the busiest time of the year for our team. We had to redesign the set, film off site, move all office furniture for re-carpeting, and cover the 3G iPhone launch all without him. We haven't slept in weeks. This is a little friendly retribution!

Ubuntu's Shuttleworth wants Linux to "out-pretty" Apple desktop

I've been writing about the year of the Linux desktop for at least five years at this point. So far, the majority of the progress seems to be coming from Ubuntu.

What's amazing to me is that more hardware companies don't spend time on the Linux desktop. No matter how good a PC or laptop may be, you are pretty much stuck on Windows. Unless you get a Mac. Then you have limited hardware choices. Seems like a huge opportunity considering the rise of browser-based applications.

Besides the lack of a few important applications, namely MS office … Read more

Ubuntu opens up a new market for Linux: Mobile

For as long as some have been talking about "The Year of the Linux Desktop," I've been hearing the same thing about "The Year of Embedded Linux." My first open-source company was Lineo, an embedded-Linux vendor. I used to preach the gospel of embedded/mobile Linux.

But its "year" never came. As with Godot, we're always waiting for Linux to own mobile and to own the desktop. And despite Linux Foundation's Jim Zemlin preaching that embedded Linux's time has come, I've become a bit too jaded to lend much … Read more

Zebra Technologies introduces G-series thermal printers

Zebra Technologies just announced their new "G-series" line of thermal printers. These little guys fall under the four-inch desktop printer category and, while not specifically for the consumer market, will still appeal to industries that deal with printing labels, receipts, price marking tags, shipping and return labels, boarding passes, ID wristbands and tags, and admission tickets.

The new offerings from Zebra include the GX420t,GX420d, GX430t, GK420t, and the GK420d. Across the board, these printers feature a wide range of convenient, easy to operate printing solutions in the work or home office. Notable specifications include:

Wireless: 802.11g … Read more

Judge in Facebook-ConnectU case to open sealed transcripts

SAN JOSE, Calif.--The public will be allowed a peek at some of what was said last week during a settlement hearing in the long-running legal dispute between ConnectU and Facebook.

James Ware, a U.S. district court judge, barred reporters and the public from attending the June 23 hearing in San Jose, Calif. He also put many of the documents in the case under seal. CNET Networks filed an objection to Ware's decision last week.

On Wednesday, Ware said he would release a redacted copy of the transcript from the June 23 hearing and allow a magistrate judge … Read more