Berkeley is offering a series of lectures from various classes in podcast and/or video format for general public consumption.  I love the open format of it all and applaud the use of new media.  There are a number of classes that I am interested in.  One in particular entitled “Data Structures” is something I have always wanted to take, but the subject matter of classes offered is rather broad. 

Here’s a list of the courses.

Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, in reference to his recent book, said — from a CNN interview:

“I’ve stated whatever I had to … it [the war] has made the world a more dangerous place.”

I’m no fan of the Pakistanis and never really have been, but I can respect him for standing up to the US and stating what the rest of the world already knows:  The world is a more dangerous place without Saddam Hussein. 

The Pakistani and Saudi Arabian forms of government, amongst others, contradict US rhetoric about nation building and democracy.  It amuses me that the US speaks so highly about bringing democracy to Iraq, but yet maintains relationships with such regimes.  It also obvious to the world as to the reasons why:  The gov’t of the US can turn a blind eye when its need are being satisfied.

But I disagree with Musharraf on several fronts:

“Pakistan is a very, very stable country. We have a strong government. We have a strong military. We have a strong intelligence system….”

A stable country?  Not really.  All one needs to do is compare the flow of technology investment between India and Pakistan.  That’s the real measure of stability and Pakistan doesn’t come close.  And they certainly don’t have control of some of the outer lying areas that remain under tribal warlord governance.

A strong military?  He should know since he overthrew the previous government in a military coup. And there have been more actual attempts on his life in recent years than one might expect for a President of a “stable country.” 

A strong intelligence system?  Not so.  They weren’t strong enough to prevent Pakistan’s nuclear weapons founder to proliferate technology for personal profit to the countries that we should really be worried about:  Iran and North Korea.  And then he was pardoned by Musharraf himself after admitting to his crimes on national television.  “House arrest” for a AQ Khan, regarded internally as a national hero, is a travesty of international justice.  Musharraf is quick to criticize Hamid Karzai for atttempting to balance opinion with execution in Afghanistan, but he fails to do it himself in Pakistan.

Putting troops in Pakistan proactively is the only way that we will find bin Laden in my opinion.  It’s apparent that Pakistan, whether willfully or otherwise, continues to harbor individuals important to the current “war on terror” as it relates not just to Americans, but to Indians as well.

BusineekWeek has an article about the spread of Linux in India.  It’s a great read for anyone interested in the philosophical spread of open source software and the inherent challenges of proprietary wares in the developing world. 

“We’re using something called Linux,” says 12-year-old Arya VM as she plays with Tux Paint, a Linux drawing and painting application. And Windows? “Never heard of it,” she says.

Chris wrote about diversity recently in a post entitled “The Future of White Boy clubs” in reference to “The Future Of Web Apps” conference held in San Francisco.   Chris writes very eloquently about his feelings on the subject:

There’s something important here that needs to be impressed upon us white boys by a white boy — one who happens to find himself uncomfortably in the white boy club (just coz you’re born into it doesn’t mean that you’re not responsible for being part of the change that needs to happen). It goes back to that fortune I got and to the point I made at 20×2 at SXSW last year: as it stands, we, as white men (of course I include myself in that), have a tremendous amount of privilege and power — power that many of us don’t know we have, power that many of us choose to ignore, power that some of us disclaim or shrug off. The utter reality is that whether you want it or not, you have the power and the potential to be part of the ongoing solution.

For what it’s worth, I have felt a little uncomfortable myself when allowed entrance into the white boy club when I find that there’s no one else like me around.  But then again, I’m also not necessarily too keen on “The Indus Entrepreneur” events where the majority of attendees are South Asian.  A diverse crowd always makes me feel the most comfortable.

It’s strange —– I attended a DLA Piper VC event here in Atlanta this past Wednesday and I felt the exact same way as Chris did in San Francisco.  In Atlanta, a city where 65% of the population is African American, I don’t recall seeing a single one at the event.  But it wasn’t just about race —– I don’t think I saw more than 4 - 6 women in total.  I was one of 2 – 3 Indians present.  A few other Asians.  The 4 speakers were all white males.  There was a level of imbalance and inclusivity involved —– it was invite only. 

The “long tail” was certainly not represented in that room.  And let’s face it —– that’s where one finds opportunity these days.

Sanjay Kumar, former Computer Associates CEO, has been given a month long stay from his scheduled sentencing which was to occur on September 12.  The stay was granted at the request of his defense.

Sentencing for Stephen Richards, former CA sales exec, who plead guilty with Kumar will be sentenced on October 16th. 

As an aside, apparently CA employees are as interested in this case as I am.  This post generated hundreds of views from within CA owned domains.  I feel for the employees that will have to suffer from the consequences of two selfish people for a long time.  This kind of event will not fade from memory quickly. 

Hat Tip:  CRN

Digg appears to have become a cross between high school and a soap opera.  Melrose Place, maybe?

http://digg.com/tech_news/Gaming_Digg_New_Changes#c2960255

Poor Patricia Dunn.  She’s being butchered by the blogosphere and the mainstream media.  But, rightly so.  She was caught spying on her board members and journalists. 

The basic facts are these: HP’s general counsel, at the request of its board, hired an outside investigative agency to determine who on the board had been leaking information to the press earlier this year. When the agency reported back that the leaker had been director George Keyworth, a former science advisor to President Reagan, Keyworth admitted it and was asked by Dunn to resign. He refused.

There followed a long chain of events, including the resignation from the board of Keyworth’s friend and fellow director Tom Perkins. Now, largely because of prodding by Perkins, it has emerged that in order to obtain those phone records, HP’s agent used methods that are unethical at best (and probably illegal as well).

The company admitted in an SEC filing yesterday that its contractors had lied to the phone company - on how many occasions remains unclear - by pretending to be someone they were not. They then were granted access to personal phone records.

If she was investigating the HP board by examining their HP email and internal HP telephone records it’s all fair game.  Accessing the home and cell records of board members AND journalists by hired private investigators who are pretexting crosses the line. 

The unethical (and possibly illegal) practices authorized by the Chairwoman of HP are reprehensible.  She’s claiming ignorance.  She didn’t know the precise methods that the PI was using to figure out which board member leaked information to the media.  Bullshit.  She’s responsible.  She has to go. 

And it’s comes at a time when HP was finally recovering post-Compaq-Carly ™.  Profits are up, Dell looks more and more like the ugly girl in school, and Mark Hurd looked unstoppable as HP CEO. 

And poor HP.  The shareholders and employees deserve better. 

Sept 11 is a day of remembrance, but the 12th yields an exciting event.  I’m almost unnaturally excited in my hopes that Sanjay Kumar gets a long prison sentence.  The former Computer Associates (CA) chief will be sentenced on September 12 for obstruction of justice and securities fraud. 

We need continued demonstration that corporate misgivings will not be tolerated.  This was a crime of an egregious nature.  He cheated CA stockholders, his employees, and his family.  It’s a shame that his compadre, Charles Wang, escaped the same fate. 

If Sanjay Kumar does not get jail time, the public will be cheated yet again.

It was a bocce tournament filled afternoon this past Sunday.  My close friend Roy drew brackets and made it a competition.  I had the lucky dog spot.  I suck at most sports, bocce included apparently. 

The characters from Star Wars pictured above were part of the bocce trophy that Jerry, one of my other close friends, made for the event.  It’s uber-geeky, I know, but funny.  More pics here.