The iconic software company that is based in King County Washington has been getting almost universally slammed from it's recent Los Angeles press announcement about its entry into the hardware business with the convertible laptop/tablet known as Surface.

Certainly I can see the point that it is now competing with its hardware vendors/partners. Intel has done a good job in the arena creating 'reference designs' without competing with its partners.

There is another viewpoint which seems to be ignored. The cold facts are Microsoft is a public company. This puts Microsoft in a legal position of doing the most it can to return value to its shareholders. Failure to do so means somebody is going to jail.

Microsoft has a vision, which at the end of the day is, a certain way to get enough people to see enough value to hand over their money, to fulfill their fiduciary duty.

Computers. They’re a part of our everyday lives. Most of us couldn’t imagine living a day without them. We use them for school, work, and fun and use them to stay connected to those we love and care about. Since the invention of the web cam, millions of us use webcams to communicate with loved-ones and business contacts far away.

Web camera use has leveled the playing field for business entrepreneurs and given teenagers a fun way to chat with friends. However, solid citizens aren’t the only ones who make use of this popular modern technology. Recently, there have been reports of criminals using a type of webcam spy hack to insert themselves unseen into the living rooms and bedrooms of millions of unsuspecting users.

The Webcam Spy Hack

The most popular way criminals gain access to your webcam is through innocent-looking emails. You may receive an e-card from someone in your contacts list. When you click on it, you’re directed to another website to view the e-card. While you’re listening to music and watching animated puppies scroll across the screen, a Trojan horse is silently installed into your computer’s hard drive.

Cloud computing is the recent rage in the IT industry. According to the report by Forbes, the estimated global market for cloud computing is expected to reach $35.6 billion in 2015, from the $12.1 billion market of 2010.

How it began

The idea of cloud computing was inspired by the concept of “utility computing” which introduced the idea of computing using the virtual servers. These virtual servers do not actually exist anywhere physically and can be moved anywhere without causing any disturbance to the end users. Thus it minimizes the cost involved on the devices to a great extent and provides innumerable benefits to the companies that adopt this system.

Cloud Computing Types

Passbook is one of the newest features of the iPhone. What many people were offput by standards today is that we rely too much on disposable tickets, and the like, such as when you go to the airport for a boarding pass, or a movie ticket. Apple strove to solve that with a new application that is bundled with the newest update: Passbook.

Passbook offers everything you need, especially when a ticket, coupon, or gift card is needed. When you first open the application you are greeted by a sampling of applications that support Passbook, and its features. To begin, install the particular application you want to use. For example, we will be going with the Starbucks application to satiate our coffee needs every morning, as we have a gift card to spend.

Open up the freshly downloaded application, and get ready to be blown away. Like most applications, especially when it has to do with airlines, or coffee, you are almost always required to sign up for a respective account. Don’t worry, it is easy. All you will be asked is to fill out your email, a password, and other miscellaneous information to identify you when you lose your password or others.

Once you have finished signing up, you’re ready to roll. It will prompt you to enter a gift card that you already own, or begin a digital gift card. If you don’t have a gift card, you can start a digital gift card (or, as many may call it: a prepaid card), and pay for your coffee in a fast, and efficient way. Just tap on “Tap to Pay” when you are ready to pay, and tap again after you have paid. It’s really that easy.