Web Development Live

As an avid Apple afficianado and advocate of all things open source, my stance on Microsoft is usually clear-cut: I don’t care for it.  Everything about Microsoft’s business practices rubs me wrong.  With that said, I was surprised to learn that Microsoft has been toying with its own little pet social network since the beginning of the year.

Well “social” might not be quite the right term for Microsoft’s baby network, which is called TownSquare.  Consider it a more elite community of Microsoft nerds.  Perhaps a better term would be the anti-social network.  Townsquare is an intranet-based social network currently open to all Microsoft employees, and shares many similarities with Facebook.

All the normal social goodies - pictures, bios, updates, feed are included on TownSquare for each user and shared with the Microsoft community.  Additionally, Microsoft employees can see when documents and files on the intranet have been updated  or modified.  The whole thing is designed on enterprise newsfeeds to compile various public information about employees on the network.

Microsoft is also sharing TownSquare with a group of select consumers who are responsible for testing Townsquare.  All the testing and restructuring can’t possibly be for Microsoft’s own good time, though; it wouldn’t surprise me if Microsoft did a revision or two and marketed the intranetwork social structure to businesses.  As one of the main features is updating users on document and data revision on the intranet, many businesses could, no doubt, benefit from such advances.

Which brings me back to my original issue with Microsoft.  What could be a fantastic tool developed by some no-name third party developer will undoubtedly be marketed for sale by Microsoft to small business owners who will buy into the product simply because it has Microsoft’s stamp of approval.  If anything, I would be delighted to see a third party developer replicate the social structure for viewing profiles and updating intranet-public documents as open-source freeware, available to all.

The entire reason I believe that Microsoft will continue to spiral downward is because the who’s who in Microsoft’s management will never be able to adapt to the new, very open style of program sharing and development, and leave behind the monopoly mindset. In the end, Microsoft will have to buy into a little Darwinian theory and adapt and evolve, or go the way of the dinosaurs.

Sure, the rampant consumerism drives me crazy. Jewelry commercials makes me want to throw the remote at the TV. And every car trip I’ve had to take through the mall area since November fills me with road rage. But there is no better time of the year to be a beer lover. All those superb tasty and strong winter warmers and special brews released this time of year really help facilitate that whole “goodwill towards others” thing.And if you are going to give gifts, then why not choose beer or other beer-related goodies? Is there any other gift that gives as much as a good craft beer? Wouldn’t a Rogue neon wall light spruce up that den? I bet the family beer nut would love an all-expenses-paid trip to the Great American Beer Festival in 2008.OK - I’m getting ahead of myself. The point is beer or beer-related gifts are awesome holiday gifts. Whether you have just $10 to spend or hundreds to blow, there are awesome beer-related gifts out there. Here are just a few that I wouldn’t mind getting this year - hint hint.Beer. Specifically, winter warmers (which all feature lots of malt flavor, tons of hops, and high alcohol content) and special holiday ales make excellent gifts, from stocking stuffers to a keg under the tree. OK, the keg thing might be hard to pull off, but the Boise Co-Op has over a dozen excellent holiday beers in stock right now. All the pacific northwest stalwarts (Full Sail, Deschutes, Rogue, Anchor, Sierra Nevada, etc…) are available in sixers from between $7-to-$12. As always, I like to support local breweries. A nice magnum of Boise’s Sockeye Brewing Winterfest would look great under the tree, and it is very reasonably priced at $6.39. Small bottles of Ponderay-based Laughing Dog Cold Nose Ale make for good stocking stuffers.If you want to go Belgian, magnum bottles of the Chimay blue label are $25. Lots of people enjoy Anchor’s ever changing Christmas beer, and a magnum of that runs about $12.99. Beer related clothing makes for an excellent gift as well. Almost every craft brewery sells lots of merch on their Web sites, so find the beer your giftee likes and search the site. You’ll find something.I personally like the offerings of San Diego-based Stone Brewing Co., proud makers of Arrogant Bastard Ale. The beer rocks, and the Gargoyle mascot is sweet. Just check out the Applique Work Shirt, a short sleeve collared shirt with the Arrogant Bastard gargoyle on the back. It’s $53, but it’s snazzy. Hopefully they will have more colors available later this month.And I love the Arrogant Bastard neck tie. At $35, this 100 percent silk tie a great gift for the beer-loving corporate raider, lawyer, or Idaho legislator of the family. If you are unfortunate enough to have to wear the noose, this is a nice option. If you want your giftee to represent, Idaho breweries Laughing Dog and Grand Teton both have cool t-shirts for sale. I really dig the $39 long sleeve Devil Dog imperial IPA t-shirt. Allusions to the the devil, writing on the sleeves - it’s totally metal. Rock on!Since almost all bottles of craft beer need an opener, why not opt for the Dogfish Head bottle opening belt buckle/bottle opener? Luckily for Idaho imbibers, big belt buckles never go out of style, and this sucker has a bottle opener built right in for only $26. We Idahoans may not be able to drink the deliciously aggressive beers from the Delaware brewery, but we can wear the belt buckle.Glassware is always a nice gift for the serious beer drinker. I have accumulated about 24 pint glasses from all over the country over the years but I find there is always room for one more. In fact, I sing the Anthrax song of the same name every time I add one to the cabinet. The good thing about this gift is they are relatively cheap, and are available on the Web sites of almost every craft brewer for about $10. But the Boise Co-Op is making more of an effort to keep funky beer glasses in stock. I picked up a Chimay snifter and an Ayinger imperial pint glass the other day for less than $15. Co-Op “beer guy” Matt Gelsthorpe said he will try to keep as much unique glasswork stock in the store as possible this season, so check it out. I don’t know any smokers anymore, but I do remember back in the day how drinking beer and smoking went to together pretty well. I also remember house parties where some fool ashed in my open beer bottle “by accident.” That unfortunate house party phenomenon can be rectified with the Bottle Top Ashtray. This aluminum ash tray snaps snugly into an open empty beer bottle that even the drunkest fool can’t miss. It’s an excellent gift for the hard partying college student or adult with arrested development and an excellent stocking stuffer for only $5.89.If you really want to make someone’s Christmas and fulfill the fantasy of many beer enthusiasts, what about buying the “Kegerator?” For a mere $469 plus shipping, you can make somebody hero of the neighborhood with this handsome refrigerator unit that holds one regular size keg and has a single tap on the top. Who wouldn’t want a neon beer light for the den or kitchen? That answer is probably most people. But if you are reading this column, this likely sounds like a great gift idea if you have the ducats. The Rogue Ales neon sign from the venerable Newport, Oregon brewery makes for a sweet gift. At $350, its not quite as expensive (or useful) as the Kegerator, but its very cool.