it wont take over for years and even in that case it might be only the new development. Business won't change everything over as that's a capital expenditure. Do you realize how may manhours it took to generate the first system and you want to change it? .NET = one platform (you mono guys go piss on someone else) You may get a small subset going over to mono but it isn't going to be "everyone"

On the other hand - Companies will look for paid support.

Which may be a good thing as Oracle's ERP offerings are Java based - Consultancy lock ins and jobs to retire in.....

The cynic in me says; Haven't been paying attention the past few years, eh? Privatize profits, socialize risk/debts. The number one rule in Corporations (sociopaths) is to make money.

How many of those regimes were created to support U.S. "interests" in the area? Just look at power changes in Afganistan - The U.S. "meddles" too much. It's one thing to work openly and another to sneak around. Where is the line of morality? The people have a right to choose their own system of government without judgement from other cultures that have their own value system.

Examine actions of the religious "spreaders" (what's the word?) on condom use. What's the reason that condoms are condemned ? Their use stops the spread of disease.

Same problems as above, instead of being a positive force - it's negative to promote their own agenda.

When I'm "shopping",yes i agree. When I'm reading - I'm usually immersed in the book and can hit the next page a little before i'm done with the sentence and minimize the wait time. This doesn't work for PDFs as i'm scanning for info.