THE NEWS HACK'S CREED:
I know more than you.
I make lots more money than you.
I'm smarter than you.
I'm sexier than you.
I appear on TV all the time.
I work ten minutes a day.
I rule the universe.
I'm going to live forever.
You are an idiot.
THE NEWS HACK'S CREED, No. 2:
A lie isn't a lie when it tells THE TRUTH.
THE NEWS HACK'S CREED, No. 3:
I've come to realize that the looseness of the journalistic life, the seeming laxity of the newsroom, is an illusion. Yes, there's informality and there's humor, but beneath the surface lies something deadly serious. It is a code. Sometimes the code is not even written down, but it is deeply believed in. And, when violated, it is enforced with tribal ferocity.
--JOHN "OMERTA" CARROLL.
THE NEWS HACK'S CREED, No. 4:
News isn't news when we don't report it.
PERMALINKS:
THE NEWS HACKS' DICTIONARY
THE EUGENE DAVID GLOSSARY
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Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Posted
10:07 AM
by Gene
Microsoft has increased the price of telephone support for users of its Windows XP operating system and Office XP productivity applications. The changes were quietly coincident with last week's high-profile introductions of the company's new Windows Vista operating system and Office 2007 suite.
According to information posted on Microsoft's Web site, the per-incident support cost for all Windows users is now $59. Prior to January 30th, when Microsoft released the retail version of Vista, the support cost for users of Windows XP and older versions of the operating system was $39 per incident. That represents a price increase of 51%.
Similarly, phone support for Office users prior to the launch of Office 2007 -- which also debuted January 30 -- was $35.00 per incident. The price is now $49 per incident, or 40% higher, regardless of version.
Microsoft's explanation for the new plan will be more familiar to economics professors than computer users. "To more accurately reflect the value of and Microsoft's investment in the service, support incident pricing for Microsoft consumers has been designed through an analysis of competitive offerings and in reference to GDP per capita," said Microsoft, in a statement.
TRANSLATION: WE'RE A MONOPOLY. DEAL WITH IT.
