Una palabra: pertinencia. Hoy estaba buscando información sobre WPF/e (ahora Silverlight) y, sin pensarlo dos veces, fui a Google para encontrarla. Sin embargo, después de ver que tan buenos fueron los resultados de la búsqueda de esta tecnología Microsoft, decidí darme una vuelta por el motor del gigante de Redmond para comparar. Decepcionante, cuanto mucho. Vean los resultados (reduje las imágenes para ponerlas a la par, pero se puede hacer clic para verlas mejor):

I got to 81 while teaching (yes, I know I shouldn’t play in class…) I might have guessed more if I had been doing only that and if it were more flexible with spelling (”The Bahamas” is not the same as “Bahamas” for example). How many can you do?

As you probably read before in my blog, I’ve had a crippled version of Windows Vista since I installed it. Microsoft calls it the “N” version. Well, as of yesterday, my Windows is complete! Microsoft is pushing the Nsku Media Restore Pack for Vista x86 (KB925749) through Windows Update. A “recommended” update described as: Media Restore Pack (MRP) and Format Restore Pack (FRP) are non-discoverable, regulated releases required to satisfy consent decree agreements for Windows sale in certain markets.

It has happened, my Office Professional 2007 trial has expired… And entering a new Trial key did not extend my trial period for another 60 days :( If only I could get my hands on one of the at least two keys I legally have the right to (one from MSDN and one from helping out during the TechDays.) I do have to congratulate Microsoft on the way they are managing licensing with Office 2007, though.

Since Patrice tagged me, I guess it’s my geek duty to share 5 things people don’t know about me with whatever stranger stumbles upon my blog (and the few regular readers.) I’ll need a moment to think though, because if there are aspects of my life that are not public it’s probably because I like them that way. There’s a trip to China coming up soon (Saturday), so I’ll have some time to think then.

So, here I am, preparing to go back to Paris. And, by preparing, I mean I’m already at the airport in San José where they do offer free WiFi (unlike Barajas). There was lots of work to do last week: a full schedule of meetings last Monday and Tuesday and after that, a less-full schedule of family to meet until today, as well as a passport to make. I’ll be talking about the passport later this week (or in a couple of weeks, we’ll see) in order to put the “tech” back in my blog.

Oops, I forgot to post this when arriving at Costa Rica. I’ll post now, and you can read everything about me leaving in the next entry ;) I am sitting on the floor in Barajas airport in Madrid right now. It’s 09:24 local time and the airport is as empty as they get. This entry will not be posted right away though. I have no intention (or the means) to pay 5€ for 30 minutes of wireless Internet access (I’ll talk about this again later.

I know I have a tendency to abuse exclamation marks, but this time it is really important. On Sunday, January 28th, 2007, Jim Gray, a renowned computer scientist was reported missing at sea. As of Thursday, Feb. 1st, the US Coast Guard has called off the search, having found no trace of the boat or any of its emergency equipment. Follow the story here. Through the generous efforts of his friends, family, various communities and agencies, detailed satellite imagery has been made available for his last known whereabouts.

Una de las cosas que más miedo me daba cuando pasé a Vista era que Mozy, el servicio que uso para mis back ups, todavía no estaba soportado. Pero como mi Windows XP ya no funcionaba bien de todas formas, instalé Vista igual y crucé los dedos. Desde que Vista salió hace algunos días, visito la página de Mozy prácticamente todos los días esperando que aparezca la versión que soporte Vista y anoche, por fin, pude bajar la versión de Mozy compatible con Vista.

One of my greatest fears when I made the move to Vista was that Mozy, the service I use for my online backups, wasn’t supported yet. Since my Windows XP had stopped working properly I still installed Vista and crossed my fingers. Since Vista was launched a couple of days ago, I have visited the Mozy site almost every day hoping to see a version that supports Vista, and last night, finally, I was able to download a Vista-compatible version of Mozy.