I always thought that a Firefox is a kind of … fox, which is not true. It is a kind of Panda.

The Red Panda or lesser panda, is a mostly vegetarian cat-sized (60 cm long) mammal. Its classification is uncertain. It was formerly classified in the raccoon family (Procyonidae), but now many experts, including Wilson and Reeder, classify it as a member of the bear family (Ursidae) or in its own family the Ailuridae. It is native to the Himalayas and southern China. Fossil evidence suggests that it once also existed in North America.

Its Western name is taken from a Himalayan language, possibly Nepalese, but its meaning is uncertain. One theory is that “panda” is an anglicization of “poonya”, which means “eater of bamboo”. Its Chinese name means “little panda,” named after the Giant Panda. It is also commonly known as the Firefox and, because of its distinctive cry, the Wah.

Have a look in Wikipedia.

Nice mascot for a nice product :-)

[via Jeremy]

The interesting thing about weblogs is how they are able to enable both of those while lowering the barriers to them at the same time. By starting a weblog and sticking with it, you find yourself knowing more people who you’d have otherwise never met. But more importantly more people will come to know you. And at the same time, you’re writing and writing frequently. If what you say is interesting to enough people, that reputation builds quickly.

Blogs make it easy to establish connections, a reputation, and do both with nearly infinite reach compared to the traditional approaches.

I was of from Monday till Wednesday for a strategic workshop in the “middle of nowhere”. So, after having tested a Benedictine monastery (“Kloster Fischingen“) in July for a session about Change Management, we will stay at a Carthusian monastery (“Karthause Ittingen“).

Really a nice place, somewhat outside the world.

At this rate, I will be able to write a kind of “Michelin guide” of the religious locations in Switzerland ;-)

From Wikipedia:

The Carthusians are a Christian religious order founded by St Bruno in 1084. There exist both Carthusian monks and nuns. They follow their own Rule, called the Statutes, rather than the Rule of St Benedict (as is often erroneously reported) and combine eremitical (hermit-like) and cenobitic monastic life. Carthusians are sometimes considered the highest order of the Catholic Church, in terms of strictness (this refers to the idea that one is only allowed to switch your religious order if you are going to one that is more strict, and the top being the Carthusians).

You want to have an idea what’s an online psycho? Take the time to read the full story published by Russel Beattie.

I find the comment of vowe particularly interesting:

There are three options to deal with these kind of trolls:

1. Ignore them.

That is the worst punishment of all. They so want to recognized. Ignoring however does not work really well, because there is always someone around to feed the troll.

2. Disagree with them.

That will usually drive them up the wall. And they will make a complete idiot of themselves. Before you mentioned the case here, I did not connect the dots. Now I have, and I can safely ignore all messages from this source. Expect other folks in the mobile space to do the same.

3. Confront them.

These kind of people are only bold as long as they are in front of a screen. Maybe someone from Poland reads this and wants to help him get back into real life.

Whatever you chose to do, don’t worry. Idiots become known idiots very quickly by their own actions. You can speed this up by writing a documentary.

After Mixed Tape 03, Mercedes just released the Mercedes Mixed Tape 04. Really great! Great concept and idea, the quality and coherence of choosen artists and tracks are marvelous.

Mixed Tape 04 is now online – 15 free tracks from all over the globe!

With Mixed Tape 04 Mercedes-Benz continues its successful compilation series – until the 24th of January 2005 you are free to explore, download and enjoy your personal favourites at http://www.mercedes-benz.com/mixedtape.

To give you the best of cutting edge music we have again scoured the world for 15 exclusive, future hits – from French cult star Sébastien Tellier and first-rate indie pop (The Dalles) via Latin-inspired improvisation (Nachttierhaus) and the latest new labels (Melodyfarm) to the “electro-acoustic reality alternatives” of a young Brit (Ux), this compilation features a plethora of intelligent tracks for the perfect groove wherever you are.

Nevertheless, to keep up with the ever-changing music scene, Mixed Tape, too, stays on the move: after nine weeks at the above-mentioned URL Mixed Tape 04 will be replaced by its successor, featuring our latest new discoveries.

Enjoy the mix!

Not very *online* the last days. I was two days in Vienna – Austria for some interesting business discussions and…a huge “Wiener Schnitzel” at the most famous place to eat this Viennese speciality – Figlmüller (Bäckerstrasse).

The plate was definitely too small (for the insiders – these guys are crazy, they serve this gigantic great Wiener Schnitzel without French fries, bloody hell):

Then, one *very good* business dinner with my colleagues from hp Switzerland at the Conti restaurant in Zürich. I got the chance to have a marvelous soup with white truffles. Business is sometimes very hard :-)

Another great article from Knowledge@Wharton – “Can Big Blue Succeed In BPO?“.

After decades of specializing as a computer manufacturer and provider of computer-related services, Big Blue in the past year or two has been heading into some not-terribly-technical fields. Today’s IBM processes thousands of insurance claims, ensures that Procter & Gamble employees get paid, and takes charge of repairing televisions and CD players sold by Philips Consumer Electronics.

Taking on tasks such as customer service and human resources management is part of a broader shift among traditional information technology companies to get into what’s often called business process outsourcing (BPO). […]

BPO is a fertile market, expected to grow from about $405 billion last year to $682.5 billion in 2008, according to research firm IDC. Interest in such operations – and especially in their migration to countries such as India – continues to ride high. […]

In essence, the new Big Blue sees big bucks in focusing on the “B” in International Business Machines. But the strategy carries some risks. They include competing against new foes, handling novel tasks and explaining a grandiose vision to customers. What’s more, the business process push requires a thorough understanding of different industries. Staying on top of specific industries and their changing trends should be a challenge for IBM. […]

IBM combined the roughly 30,000 employees from PwC Consulting with about 30,000 IBM workers to form a new division called Business Consulting Services. The idea behind the acquisition and new unit was to generate revenue by joining IBM’s technology prowess with PwC Consulting’s business expertise. Analysts say the PwC Consulting deal has helped IBM compete in the BPO arena. […]

A more recent acquisition further demonstrated IBM’s commitment to business process services. Earlier this year Big Blue snapped up Daksh, an Indian BPO provider with 6,000 employees. Daksh, which also has a facility in the Philippines, gives IBM an army of lower-wage employees ready to handle services such as telemarketing and transaction processing. […]

I got the last U2 this afternoon – How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. What about you?

As a lot of companies are blocking the usage of MSN Messenger and other identical real-time communication applications (the port ranges are blocked in the firewalls), it could be very interesting to use the exclusively web-based version of MSN Messenger called MSN Web Messenger. Really no client software installion required, only a browser with a web-navigator. Good idea! And it’s working very well with Firefox ;-)

You must have the following to use MSN Web Messenger:

• A web browser: Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0 or later, Netscape 7.1 or later, or Mozilla 1.6 or later, running in Microsoft Windows.
• An Internet connection (56 Kbps or faster recommended)
• A Microsoft® .NET Passport. If you have a hotmail.com or msn.com account, you already have a Passport.
• Popups enabled for this web site if you are using popup blocker software like the MSN Toolbar

What is the difference between Web Messenger and Messenger?

MSN Messenger is a fully featured instant messaging program that you install on your own computer or one you have permission to install on. MSN Web Messenger enables you to quickly and easily use basic instant messaging features on a web browser on any computer without installing any software.

[via vowe]

This illusion is *really* great. Both square A and B have the same color.

I have to admit that I couldn’t believe it. So I erased all the parts of the image (also the A and B), excepted both squares. It looks like this.

Amazing :-)