Exploder - The Next Generation & Bill's pricey gates.

The Continuing Crisis

•Internet Exploder 4.0 was officially released to the public Tuesday night. The latest version of the behemoth's Netscape ripoff has useless new features such as push channels, 'desktop integration,' the watered down Microsoft Java standards and a lot more bloat than previous versions. IE 4 requires between 40 and 64 mb harddrive space and takes between 3 and 9 hours to download, yet offers no advantages over Netscape Communicator except integration with the butt-ugly Windows interface. Luckily, the IE virus won't be ready to infect Win 3.1 PCs or Macs until early 1998.

•Microsoft has sued three computer companies in Southern California, alleging that they were selling illegally copied software with computers. The lawsuits, filed this August in U.S. District Court, are part of Microsoft's new 'continuous sweeps' program against software pirating. The company is fighting 'hard disk loading,' when PC sellers install multiple copies of the same software on computers and only purchase one copy. We sure hope suing our ISP doesn't slow down efforts to stop people from cheating innocent little companies like Microsoft.

•Microsoft CEO Bill Gates reportedly recieved a raise over the last physcal year, up 5% to $591,352 (counting salary and bonuses before taxes). Gates also owns 22.3% of the company, worth between $36 and $41 billion, depending on how the stock market did today. Gates' wealth in stock alone makes him the worlds second richest man, right behind the Sultan of Brunei. Meanwhile, Gates is protesting a $53 million assessment of his new lakefront mansion in King County Washington. The appraisal would give the Gates family a $600,000 property tax bill for their 40,000 square-foot Taj Mahal, which is located on a 5 acre compound and features such necessities as a trout stream, 20-seat theater, underground parking garage, library, boat dock and a reception hall for 100 people.

Microsoft Stock Track

MSFT Stock Price^*133 7/8

Bill Gates' Worth$37.7 Billion

*As Of Closing, 10/01/97
Thanks to Bill Gates Personal Wealth Clock.

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