Tech & society

Intel went on the record with Reuters saying netbooks are not a good first computer in the article Intel Sees No First-Time PC Buyers for Netbooks. Why not? According to Intel's Sean Maloney, the first time you buy something, like a PC, you want the “real deal.” Does this make sense to you, or is this is subtle plea for buyers to stick with higher margin products like laptops and desktops?

If you watch CNN, you may have noticed some of the shows now include comments by viewers in the crawl section at the bottom of the screen. People send those messages via Twitter. Is this a brilliant tool for viewer engagement or the equivalent of drunks waving in the background when an athlete is interviewed immediately after a game?