Oops. Sorry. I must have logged into Yahoo Watch by mistake. The web site says microsoft-watch but it's obviously a phishing attempt to further drive down the value of Yahoo.

I can't think of a compelling reason Yahoo HAS to sell its search operation to M$. In my opinion, the whole company is worth more than the parts, simply because it doesn't make sense to break it up. There's too much brand value in Yahoo, so they need to either sell out completely to M$ or acquire AOL. The later makes a lot of sense if Yahoo's board wants to take an incremental approach to building the brand. In some respects, it makes sense for M$ to let Yahoo acquire AOL, continue to build their online technologies, and then decide in a couple of years what to do about Yahoo. In any situation, they will continue to loose search to Google, which simply has become synonymous with Internet searches.

Joe, you go ahead and enjoy Windows 7, I know how you feel. Its so COOL! You should check out MCE, I love it!

I am a regular reader of MSFT watch and I am so disturbed by "Andre" comments here all the time. He looks like a spammer and MSFT watch should adapt Digg style comment system. His comments will always score highest negative points.

Joe,

I urge you to introduce comment rating system like Digg which could save your readers time so that they don't need to read spam.

@crux - I'm with you

@joe - how many corp's have you run Joe?

Joe's comment about the RI governor is reminiscent of what folks said about an Illinois state legislator back in 1860. That guy had previously failed, twice, to even get elected to the US Senate. He was also one of the best Presidents that US has ever had, many would argue -- the best.

And what I ask would better qualify Steve Ballmer to run Yahoo than Carol Bartz.

Disclosure : I knew Carol back in her DEC days, my recollection is of a smart, efficient and straight talking operator.

Joe;

I agree with "Crux" on that one.

--------------------------------------------------

You may not know it, and I'll be the first to let everyone at Microsoft Watch be on the "inside" track of what is really going on between Yahoo and Microsoft.

I received an email yesterday morning from Steve Ballmer of Microsoft and this is a direct copy/paste from my wonderful MS Outlook Email:

Dear Draoi:

The reason I am personally writing you is to thank you for your previous inquiries on what is really going on with Yahoo and us here in beautiful Redmond, WA.

As you suspected, we've been working very close with the Yahoo Corporation in the eventual acquisition of their company. Carol Bartz is now the new CEO of the company. We are very proud that Yahoo has selected her in this position. We believe that it is move is ultimately in our best interest.

We also like to thank Jerry Lang for stepping down, and again, as you suspected, allowing Carol Bartz, our ringer to take over and assume his role with this company that we will certainly acquire.

With the down-turn of our economy, we are assured with with the highest expectations that Bartz assuming the position (no pun intended) that we should pick up Yahoo in a mater of a quarter or two after the "dust settles" and allowing Bartz to run it into the ground nose first as they say.

I will assume that you will keep this information to yourself. As a man who personally shook Gate's hand, I will also assume that you can be trusted.

By the way, you should be receiving the brand new laptop specified in our agreement pre-loaded with the "optimized" Windows 7 operating system.

I personally ask that you adhere to the EULA agreement and do not show any benchmark performance information publicly.

Since this laptop and like so many others we send out to our clandestine Shill operatives, this "optimized" version is so enhanced and above and beyond anything that we would ever sell to the public, and that you keep all this information strictly confidential.

Enclosed, you will find a binding legal contract and waiver that you must sign when you accept this gift from us.

I also would require that you would write a few, as you put it, "mind-numbing" comments on Joe Wilcox's Microsoft Watch Blog, and several others as well on how much you truly enjoy the latest from Microsoft in the Desktop arena. Any of these great comments, factual or not, would be greatly appreciated by me, personally.

I am also included the additional requirements as you requested of 2,000 shares of Microsoft in this package, enjoy!

Steve Ballmer...

P.S. Will you be up this way in the Spring, hope to have some time to tee-up and golf with you again.

Addenda

Before Sue Decker, the retiring president of Yahoo, became the Yahoo's CFO back in 2000 she was an analyst at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, who are a long gone French & then a Swiss owned, investment banker.

If an analyst from a defunct foreikgn owned investment bank can run a media company called Yahoo, why can't the CEO of a successful software development corporation!

@InquiringMind - rofl
@Andre Da Costa - rofl
@crux - rofl, his comments will score highest positive points :P

Come on guys, Andre's one of the funniest posters on this board, almost as funny as I-Man. They don't use alias's so they are easy to skip if they disturb you.

Originally Yahoo was a great web portal, an interesting entrance way to the wonders of the web. However the web and browsers have moved on and I don't think such a thing is really so important now. MS has the same problem that they try to drive everything through their MSN portal (or whatever its called now). People don't seem to want or need this, they can bookmark their own web pages or their browser can do it for them, like Chrome's simple memory of your most visited web sites that it displays as your home page. I still use quote.yahoo.com for stock prices, but that's about it, and if it disappeared it would be easy to switch to any of a number of other services.

@Draoi

LMFAO

My gosh, what an imagination. I caught the link from "chips" that seemed a little unnerved by what you wrote. Keep it up, love your style of humor.

@Tim

Thanks, I also realize that people may cry buckets over what I wrote here or do not have the grasp for my humor such as in the person you've mentioned. I really don't care, I just don't.

Sorry Draoi I think Ive misunderstood you.
When you made the post suggesting Linux (or Ubuntu) needed a major marketing push to directly compete with MS, was that your humor again?
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I thought you simply didnt understand the ethos of open source. ;)
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I like a laugh as much as anyone else, and whilst I think your career as an online comedian has someway to go, you know what they say, practice makes perfect.
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Quote "I also realize that people may cry buckets over what I wrote here"
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No dont worry about it I dont think anyone did, we've seen it all before. Just dont create multiple accounts to say it, otherwise you may find your posts deleted (its happened before)

@Golbin;

Now you're accusing me of multiple accounts? You may need some serious and professional help. I will have you on ingore from here on out. I can see you have some problems, not to mention one of them being paranoid.

Quote Draoi "Now you're accusing me of multiple accounts? "
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Er No, Im not. Unless of course you think my comment of "just dont create multiple accounts to say it, otherwise you may find your posts deleted (its happened before)" is accusing you of such. I thought it advises you not to, not says you have. Since we've seen no duplicate posts under different handles then Id tend to say you havent. I hope thats clear. This is a little bit like when you claimed I called you a shill. Ive yet to see you quote me where I did.
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I dont need to push the point further because if people are that interested in who is telling the truth, they simply need to look themselves.
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Quote "I will have you on ingore from here on out. I can see you have some problems, not to mention one of them being paranoid."
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Yep the insults again. However since its established you misread my comment (which Ive quoted) maybe we can agree that Im not. Are you still ignoring me?
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Draoi, I dont expect to have to speak with an adult this way, and your behaviour in throwing insulting and then an attitude of "im not talking to you anymore" is similar to that of a child. Please, lets debate, isnt that what this site is about?
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If you really want to throw a playground tantrum at your own misinterpretation do you have to do it here?
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Anyway, since you were being playful with Tim in regards to your "humor" I didnt get the impression that you were taking many things seriously. (FYI thats not an accusation, thats my observation)