Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) do not have a very respectful or even civil relationship since Google came out the winner in a vital Java lawsuit last year that put Oracle on its heels and has propelled Google to move ahead with the continued development of its Android operating system and its language that replaces Java on most of its devices and web browser tools and plug-ins. And although the trial was decided over a year ago, there seems to still be a bit of bad blood – at least on one side.
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL): Who is ‘Evil’ Larry?
Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) CEO Larry Ellison used an interview with CBS’ Charlie Rose to still vent some frustration over his company’s $6 billion lawsuit loss to Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) over Java last year. Ellison took his sots aimed right at Google CEO Larry Page, as reported by Carl Franzen on The Verge. Ellison was quoted as saying, “I think what they did was absolutely evil” when asked about Google’s use of Java, and that he blamed Page “100 percent” because “he makes the decision over there.”
Later on in the interview with Charlie Rose, the Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) CEO – one of the world’s five wealthiest people – defended the National Security Administration surveillance program, calling it “essential” as a tool that would help “minimize” events like the Boston Marathon bombing. He even went so far as to say that surveillance didn’t bother him, asking, “Who’s ever heard of this information being misused by the government?”
Um. If only a lot of Americans had the same faith and trust in our government.
Does the Nexus 7 Bug You?
Faith and trust being questioned may not just apply only to the federal government, but also to a Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) device, where Brett Nickles of Design & Trend reported some bugs in the latest Nexus 7 tablet, according to a piece from Robert Nelson of the Android Community website. There have been some reports of problems with the GPS in the devices, and now there are complaints about bugs in the multi-touch functionality of the device. The most noteworthy complaints have come in the pinch-to-zoom feature and problems with the virtual keyboard recording double-touching on certain letters.
So far, Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) only says that it knows about the issues and is “investigating,” but had not provided any timeline for a fix, and users are apparently noting that there is no work-around at this point.
Is Chromecast’s Top Competitor Right Under Its Nose?
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) has created quite a bit of buzz in the weeks since it unveiled its Chromecast device to allow for video streaming wirelessly from any Android device onto a TV. The $35 widget, not much bigger than a flash drive, has gained a lot of acclaim as it has been touted as Google’s answer to Apple TV by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). Well, Louis Bedigian of Benzinga puts forth the idea that this new TV-streaming device is in a class by itself – if only it could be free.
Believe it or not, it could be that the very best competitor to the Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) Chromecast could be an Android app that is already available, and free to Android device users. Sebastian Mauer is the developer of CheapCast, which is an Android app that seems to copy much of the most attractive Chromecast features. CheapCast allows users to sare content between devices or to stream content from one Android device (like a smartphone) to another (like a tablet). And if the Android device is plugged into a TV with a HDMI cable, then content on the Android device could then be shown on a TV – similar to a Chromecast device. The one negative about CheapCast is that two different devices have to be on in order for the best features to be used.
While fund managers like Stephen Mandel were likely reveling in the Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) win over Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) and are likely to be jazzed by early returns on the Chromecast device, there may be some concerns about the bugs on the Nexus 7 tablet, which had been one of the better-selling tablets in the market behind the Apple Inc. (NASDSAQ:AAPL) iPad. For more, check out this video clip of the Larry Ellison interview with Charlie Rose.
America is in grave danger, extremely vulnerable to black swan events that strike out of the blue, that throw the world into turmoil, and that raise the specter of even darker black swans still to come.
Like the Russian invasion of Ukraine, decimating an independent democracy larger than Germany and the UK combined, reducing its cities to rubble, sending shock waves through the global economy.
Or a massive future air attack on the independent democracy of Taiwan, igniting a new war in the South China Sea, spreading to the entire Pacific region, plunging East-West trade into turmoil.
How much damage could just one of these black swans cause?
For an answer, let’s not forget the black swans that have struck our nation since the beginning of the new millennium:
The black swan that attacked the very heart of our nation on 9-11 with great loss of life and treasure, setting off a chain reaction of events that have continued to ricochet through time:
The U.S. invasion of Iraq, the fall of Saddam Hussein, the rise of Al Qaeda, the global spread of the Islamic state, and then …
Billions of dollars in new money printing by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Or the black swan that attacked the very heart of our economy.
It wasn’t September 11th, 2001.
It was September 15th, 2008 — the Lehman Brothers failure, again, setting off a chain reaction of events that have continued to ricochet through time:
America’s deepest recession since the 1930s.
America’s largest bank failures and bailouts of all time. And then …
A massive wave of central bank money printing that was many times larger than anything we’d ever seen before.
“A massive and surprising new transition could determine the next group of millionaires,” says Chaikin, who predicted the 2020 market crash. “While leaving 99% of the public worse off than before.”
“If you own regular stocks, you’re in for a big surprise,” he adds.
“I grew up in a world where you could do extremely well by investing in ordinary companies,” Chaikin says. “It’s how I spent the majority of my 50-year career on Wall Street.
