Links for 01-19-2009

• Free Rides Can't Last Forever - Managing Technology - Dennis McDonald's Web Site - I agree with this. So long as a reasonable balance between commercialism and public trust is maintained I don't see that every single money-related connection needs to be explicitly and publicly aired.
• Press:Here » Home - A tech version of Meet the Press. Episodes are online.
• The Value Add - The evidence suggests, though, that people aren't generally willing to pay for expertise. So stores like Circuit City and CompUSA end up competing on price with a higher cost structure than online retailers.
• Eight Years, 300 Spartans | Culture11 - "The definitive film of the Bush era."
• cocktailnerd » Blog Archive » Ginger Beer Extravaganza: Part I - A blog of most things cocktail and alcohol related - An obsessive, compulsive roundup of ginger beers. I agree that the Maine Root is pretty good.
• Interview: Intel's Barrett on Paranoia, the Core Craze and the End of Gigahertz - Barrett: "If everything works well, they continue to get Moore's Law from a compute power standpoint. [But] you need software solutions to go hand-in-hand with software solutions...There's a whole software paradigm shift that has to be happen."
• Shall I Compare Thee to Robert Frost? | Culture11 - "Even famously inspirational poems, such as “The Road Not Taken,” if read closely, can be seen to subvert, ironize, and flout aphorisms that masquerade as fully-fleshed truths. To say “with a sigh” that taking the road less traveled made any real difference, Frost subtly implies in that poem, is self-important nostalgia."
• AMD kinda sorta takes aim at Atom with Athlon Neo - Engadget - The Neo makes it pretty clear that the netbook is a matter of degree and not kind.
• When Life And Work Blend, Everything Is Commercial Use | Techdirt - More discussion of non-commercial clauses in licenses.
• Microstock Talking Points in 2009 | Microstock Diaries - Interesting. The general gist of his argument is that the microstock market and traditional stock are coming together. The net result? It will be mostly professionals again--selling at lower prices of course. "As barriers to entry rise to again exclude hobbyists, and professional stock photographers reclaim the lost portion of their realm, the distinction of microstock as a market supplied by hobbyists will largely disappear in 2009."
• SarahLacy.com: Yahoo's New CEO: The Best News I've Heard All Day - "I covered AutoDesk for BusinessWeek, and watched as the company sprung from obscurity based not on being the sexy technology of the day, but on strong operating results and stock appreciation." I think Sarah makes an important point. Analysts and reported can get wrapped around the axle of fit or strategy, but execution ability is critical.