Dilbert Investing Tips

This from Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert.  It's a great chuckle.  His theory is buy stock in companies that you hate.

"If you buy stock in a despicable company, it means some of the previous owners of that company sold it to you. If the stock then rises more than the market average, you successfully screwed the previous owners of the hated company. That's exactly like justice, only better because you made a profit. Then you can sell your stocks for a gain and donate all of your earnings to good causes, such as education for your own kids. Having absorbed all of the wisdom I have presented here so far, you are naturally wondering if I have any additional investment tips. Yes, and I will put my tips in the form of a true story. Recently I bought something called an iPhone. It drops calls so often that I no longer use it for audio conversations. It's too frustrating. And unlike my old BlackBerry days, I don't send e-mail on the iPhone because the on-screen keyboard is, as far as I can tell, an elaborate practical joke. I am, however, willing to respond to incoming text messages a long as they are in the form of yes-no questions and my answer are in the affirmative. In those cases I can simply type "k," the shorthand for OK, and I have trained my friends and family to accept L, J, O, or comma as meaning the same thing.  The other day I was in the Apple Store, asking how to repair a defective Apple laptop, and decided, irrationally, that I needed to have Apple's new iPad. The smiling Apple employee said she would be willing to put me on a list so I could wait an indefinite amount of time to maybe someday have one. I instinctively put my wallet on my nose and started barking like a seal, thinking it might reduce the wait time, but they're so used to seeing that maneuver that it didn't help.  My point is that I hate Apple. I hate that I irrationally crave their products, I hate their emotional control over my entire family, I hate the time I waste trying to make iTunes work, I hate how they manipulate my desires, I hate their closed systems, I hate Steve Jobs's black turtlenecks, and I hate that they call their store employees Geniuses which, as far as I can tell, is actually true. My point is that I wish I had bought stock in Apple five years ago when I first started hating them. But I hate them more every day, which is a positive sign for investing, so I'll probably buy some shares.  Again, I remind you to ignore me."
The entire article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704025304575285000265955016.html

How Do You Like Dem Apples?

All I can say is "wow".  I had no idea that Apple's value had grown that much.  I guess that I better get that iPad and the iPhone 4G!

"Apple Inc., the computer maker turned mobile gadgeteer, overtook Microsoft Corp. to become the most valuable technology company on optimism it can keep adding customers for its iPhone, Macintosh computer and iPad.  By 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading, Apple’s market value was at $222.1 billion, higher than Microsoft’s $219.2 billion. That made Apple the most valuable technology firm in the world. It’s also the second-largest U.S. stock by market value, behind oil company Exxon Mobil Corp., valued at $278.6 billion on the New York Stock Exchange."
Source: Bloomberg

An Apple Flash Mob

A few weeks ago I made a post regarding the emerging phenomenon known as "flash mobs".  It appears that Apple is dealing with a different type of "flash mob".  The Flash Mob in this case wants Flash technology displayed on Apple products.  Steve Jobs recently wrote a missive on why they won't adopt Adobe's technology.

My perspective on why Apple failed to be the dominant PC of the 80's was the fact that "it didn't play well with others".  Apple has always focused heavily on "proprietary technology" and a "must be invented here" mentality.  That cost them dearly in the 80's and 90's.  Proprietary formats for their music on iTunes is another example.  Technology is about integration.  Time will tell if it bites them again.

An entire article about the saga:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/195264/steve_jobs_thoughts_wont_shut_up_the_flash_mob.html

The Next Big Thing?

The iPad has arrived. Is this the next big thing?



http://www.apple.com/ipad/#video

Here Come The Tablets

The scoop on Microsoft's new secret tablet device leaked out today. Gizmodo reports that:
"Courier is a real device, and we've heard that it's in the "late prototype" stage of development. It's not a tablet, it's a booklet. The dual 7-inch (or so) screens are multitouch, and designed for writing, flicking and drawing with a stylus, in addition to fingers. They're connected by a hinge that holds a single iPhone-esque home button. Statuses, like wireless signal and battery life, are displayed along the rim of one of the screens. On the back cover is a camera, and it might charge through an inductive pad, like the Palm Touchstone charging dock for Pre. Until recently, it was a skunkworks project deep inside Microsoft, only known to the few engineers and executives working on it—Microsoft's brightest, like Entertainment & Devices tech chief and user-experience wizard J. Allard, who's spearheading the project. Currently, Courier appears to be at a stage where Microsoft is developing the user experience and showing design concepts to outside agencies."
The details:
http://gizmodo.com/5365299/courier-first-details-of-microsofts-secret-tablet?skyline=true&s=x
Rumor has it that Apple will release a similar product soon.