ShadowRAM: September 6, 2004
The company appears to be playing it down the middle politically. Microsoft donated more than $1 million in products and services to both the Republican and Democratic conventions this year, a spokesman said.
And a spokeswoman recently downplayed the significance of a segment in Michael Moore's controversial "Fahrenheit 911" that alluded to a supposed meeting between Microsoft and Halliburton during a 2003 business conference on American business opportunities in Iraq.
The episode was an apparent attempt to juxtapose the greed of two big Bush beneficiaries: Microsoft on the antitrust front and Halliburton on the war front. But Microsoft took issue with Moore's presentation, and the spokeswoman said the company never met publicly or privately with Halliburton at that conference.
IBM honcho Sam Palmisano really does like his channel guys. He even loaned new global channel chief Donn Atkins and Americas channel guru Greg Adams his private jet so they could fly to San Antonio for an Avnet partner confab last week.
Avnet top dog Roy Vallee and Fred Cuen, president of Avnet Partner Solutions' IBM Division, both complained about noise from an errant monitor during their presentations. I'm not so sure the noise didn't emanate from the rumbling tummies of Yankee partners not used to Southern breakfast staples like biscuits, sausage and ham smothered in white sausage gravy. Novell is still digesting Suse. Next on the menu, Suse's Web site, which is being consolidated into novell.com to cut costs and ensure up-to-date material. The goal is to finish by late October, insiders say.
Cycling fanatic and BMC channel chief Willy Donahoo spent time this summer pedaling some of the Tour de France route, including the infamous Alp de Huez leg. BMC is a sponsor of professional cycling.
How 'bout them Yanks? Last week's embarrassing loss aside, we're feeling more inclined toward the BoSox lately. After all, they did schedule PC Connection exec veep Robert Wilkins (an IBM Business Partner) to throw out the first pitch at Fenway Sunday. Hmmm. Isn't the Bronx closer to Somers than Boston?