This is likely the main reason Otellini "stepped down" a few years early. Intel CEOs typically stay at the helm for 10 years.

I didn't agree with the ribbon interface at first either. But after watching the lengths at which microsoft went in R&D it does make more sense. After watching this 1 hour 30 minute presentation I was left with the sense that this move was genuinely engineering over marketing.

However, force-feeding Metro to windows users stinks of marketing over engineering in a big way. For this Microsoft deserves lots of egg in their face.

Each of those were still more useful than Windows 8

Because governments meddle too much turning an otherwise mostly self-correcting system into crony capitalism. The moment any regulation is introduced the government has metaphorically jabbed a pole in an otherwise smooth flowing stream. The distortions caused by this affect the surrounding environment creating the need for more regulation and more poles jabbed. Before long the system is so chaotic and distorted that it is unrecognizable as capitalism.

Government policy created the worst offending corporations we see today. Don't confuse this crony capitalism with capitalism.

GPS is not necessary in modern aviation and is not used as much as you may think. Modern commercial and military aircraft typically use INS/IRS during flight and use GPS only during the initial flight programming while on the ground and/or manually if the pilot wishes to compensate for INS drift while in flight. If GPS were knocked out during flight it would not affect commercial or military flights equipped with INS.
I would assume that with the $billions dumped into military drone development that they operate the same way. Instead of a pilot they rely on computer vision systems and INS during a GPS outage or loss of communication with C&C.

The real danger we face is not jamming, but cyber warfare. We have already seen the command and control compromised with the RQ-170. A $1 billion INS equipped drone that seeming landed safely on an Iranian airstrip. Think about that one for a minute. For the C&C of a drone to be taken over like that, security at the deepest levels in the military must have been compromised. Of course it is easier to play like an ostrich and keep your head in the sand and believe the official story that GPS (which is never the primary flight sensor in military or commercial flight) was used to land a $1 billion drone on enemy territory.

What it feels like using Windows 8

Yes, it is functional but only enjoyable to a small minority.

The nice thing about bitcoin is there is no record of ownership if you do it right. A bitcoin address can be as small as 22 characters, these characters are the store of value. Use your imagination on where this string of characters can be hidden.
How would the IRS even know you owned them?

This.

Connect a Kill A Watt and compare your energy usage under full and idle loads.
My PC consumes about 60W idle and 250W under full load.
10 years ago it would make sense to use spare clock cycles for side projects, today not so much.

With all of the FUD Microsoft lobbed towards Linux beginning in the 90's, it is fun to see the tables turned for once.

and Nintendo is seemingly unaware.

Every kid I know want's either a smartphone or tablet. From my observation the only people playing consoles anymore are teenagers and adults that grew up with consoles many of which are increasingly shifting their attention to mobile. The younger kids have ditched their DSi for iTouches over the last two years and are playing casual and social games. When I visit family I am bombarded by nephews and nieces that want to play my iPad.

Nintendo is trying with a tablet but doing it horribly wrong. Instead of focusing on their hardware they need to focus on their software on established mobile hardware and ecosystems.

Every year more mobile devices activate than all consoles sold combined. Mobile devices also iterate with a much higher frequency. Most modern mobile devices are fully capable of rendering any Nintendo title if adapted for it.

My prediction is none of the new consoles will sell as well as the prior version and all will likely flop. They will fail for the reason that they focus on a living room that has become mostly vacant.

undoing incorrect moderation.
If there is a better way to do this let me know.

I agree so long as the government doesn't choose winners and losers like they have done and still currently do.
AT&T prior to the breakup is a good example of how far this cronyism can go. Don't get me started on the industrial media complex. Right now it is cellular carriers and cable companies. Both are using public resources unfairly.
Your public road analogy is good, but if you were to accurately compare it to the telecommunication industry there would be roads that only Ford, Chevy, and Crystler vehicles were allowed to drive on. Chevy would make and agreement with Ford to allow eachother's cars on their roads but not Toyota, KIA and many others. The barrier to entry would be so high that newer better cars would not be allowed in.

When Cox bought out our local Cable America in Phoenix all they did was switch subscribers over, and charge 20% more. Did they use any of the infrastructure of the competitor that they bought out? No, they systematically dismantled it. All of those years of negotiations with various municipalities to get access to easements, poles, alley ways, etc. all gone. The millions of dollars spent to install that mostly redundant infrastructure also gone. There is no possible way now, unless you are Google, to come in and compete with them.