John Battelle weighs in on the Google Desktop beta that Google quietly released yesterday. This is truly a very exciting time for the web.

From a Business Week interview with Steve Jobs

Jobs: People always ask me why did Apple really fail for those years, and it’s easy to blame it on certain people or personalities. Certainly, there was some of that. But there’s a far more insightful way to think about it. Apple had a monopoly on the graphical user interface for almost 10 years. That’s a long time. And how are monopolies lost? Think about it. Some very good product people invent some very good products, and the company achieves a monopoly.

But after that, the product people aren’t the ones that drive the company forward anymore. It’s the marketing guys or the ones who expand the business into Latin America or whatever. Because what’s the point of focusing on making the product even better when the only company you can take business from is yourself?

So a different group of people start to move up. And who usually ends up running the show? The sales guy. John Akers at IBM (IBM ) is the consummate example. Then one day, the monopoly expires for whatever reason. But by then the best product people have left, or they’re no longer listened to. And so the company goes through this tumultuous time, and it either survives or it doesn’t.

BW: Is this common in the industry?

Jobs: Look at Microsoft (MSFT ) — who’s running Microsoft?

BW: Steve Ballmer.

Jobs: Right, the sales guy. Case closed. And that’s what happened at Apple, as well.

Attorney General John Ashcroft and the U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday released a report “saying peer-to-peer piracy is a “widespread” problem that can be addressed only through more spending, more FBI agents and more power for proscecutors.”

Sound like another espensive war doomed to failure?

“Team America: World Police” is “Thunderbirds” fucked in the ass by “South Park”.

Andy Tyler built a 50mph shopping cart powered by jet engines.

Oh, my stress…

I’m moving into a new place today. This is my first big move. Ever. I’ve been really looking forward to this for a long time – I first looked into buying my new place almost a year ago, and the day has finally arrived.

The place looks awesome – I had my walk through yesterday. Some things weren’t finished, but they assure me they’ll be done by this afternoon.

I’m going to be without internet or phone for a week or so… stupid Bell Canada. But I’ll try to get pictures or something up this week. I’m off to do all my last minute packing.

John Dvorak has compiled a list of “You might be an IE user if…” jokes. It includes such gems as:

2. If you actually think you will get $50 for “punching the monkey.”

6. When you get a popup ad showing a Windows-like warning and you think it is a Windows warning box, you might be an IE user.

7. If you web browser has 8 search bars and you don’t even know how they got there, you might be an IE user.

How to pick up and carry your iMac G5

Cat Stevens, known as Yusuf Islam since he became a muslim in the 70’s, is apparently on the U.S. Homeland Security Watch List. A flight to Washington on which he was a passenger was diverted to Maine and he is now set to be deported, due to activites allegedly linking him to terrorism.

“Someone has put tooth-marks into one of the keys, probably by chewing on it.”

If you’re not sure why this auction is so funny, perhaps you missed this.