I was honored with the MVP award for the 4th year in a row this month from Microsoft corporation.

The Microsoft MVP Award recognizes exceptional technical community leaders from around the world who voluntarily share their high quality, real world expertise with others. Microsoft MVPs are a highly select group of experts representing technology's best and brightest who share a deep commitment to community and a willingness to help others. Worldwide, there are over 100 million participants in technical communities; of these participants, there are fewer than 4,000 active Microsoft MVPs.

So last night, I took the plunge and decided to update my IPhone to 2.0

It worked, I let ITunes do the work and 20 minutes later, Voila!

Then I decided to hook my IPhone to my hosted Exchange Server for work. It took less than 2 minutes and Voila!  very cool!

Connected my Exchange Calendar to my IPhone calendar and Voila!

I really like Apple's superiority in User Interface, it is just pretty cool!

I heard a lot of people had problem yesterday (first day for the release) to get hooked up to Apple Store and ITunes, but I tried at 10:00 PM PST last night and it was pretty painless.

I am looking forward to start writing some applications on the IPhone 2.0 SDK

More on that later :)

Well, I have been a Republican since I immigrated to the United States in 1991. It was a simple choice for me really, I just did not believe that people that don't work hard should enjoy the same benefits in life as those that work their butt off.  There has to be a difference between these two categories.  I could never force someone to work extra hours or study very hard to become somebody but I reject the notion that they deserve to be at the same level of standard of life of those that do.

That said, this is the first time I am contemplating voting for a Democratic President, Barak Obama.  I like this guy!

President of the United States of America for me is not really a Job, it is a title.  I expect the President to be surrounded by a lot of very smart people that are expert on the subject matter at hand to advise him.  My expectation is also that the President be smart enough to listen to them and make the correct choice based on their feedback.

For me, the President of the USA has to have "PRESENCE", when he or she speaks, people listen!  it is a gift, not everyone has.  I expect when my President travels abroad, citizens of other countries receive him in awe, respect and admiration.

You have to be able to tell that you are listening to the most powerful man in the world from the most significant country in the world.

Barak Obama gives me that feeling.  Very elegant speaker and a convincing one for sure.

MCCain stands for all that I believe in, I am with him on Iraq (I think I am qualified on this as I spent more than half my life in the middle east and I know how things work there).  I am also with him on the latest economy issues like bailing out consumers on the mortgage crisis.  Why? Why should the US Government bail citizens out that made bad choices in getting ridiculous mortgage deals that they can not afford, why should I be paying for that?  And what about my mortgage and my good choices, I get nothing for that?

So it was hard this year to find an easy answer of how to vote, until I decided to do what I am good at and use numbers:

Capital Gains Tax:

• MCCain -> 15% (no Change)
• Obama -> 28%
• Clinton -> 24%

How does this affect you? If you sell your home and make a profit, you will pay 28% of your gain on taxes. If you are heading toward retirement and would like to down-size your home or move into  a retirement community, 28% of the money you make from your home will go to taxes. This proposal will adversely affect the elderly who are counting on the income from their homes as part of their retirement income.

Dividend Tax:

• MCCain -> 15% (no change)
• Obama -> 39.6%
• Clinton -> 39.6%

How will this affect you? If you have any money invested in stock market, IRA, mutual funds, college funds, life insurance, retirement accounts, or anything that pays or reinvests dividends, you will now be paying nearly 40% of the money earned on taxes if Obama or Clinton become president. The experts predict that "Higher tax rates on dividends and capital gains would crash the stock market yet do absolutely nothing to cut the deficit."

Income Tax:

• MCCain -> No Change
• Obama -> Reversion of pre-Bush tax cuts (Very Significant)
• Clinton -> Reversion of pre-Bush tax cuts (Very significant)

Inheritance Tax:

• MCCain -> 0%
• Obama -> Keep the inheritance tax
• Clinton -> Keep the inheritance tax

How does this affect you? Many families have lost businesses, farms and ranches, and homes that have been in their families for generations because they could not afford the inheritance tax. Those willing their assets to loved ones will not only lose them to these taxes.

New Taxes being proposed by both Clinton and Obama:

• New government taxes proposed on homes that are more than 2400 square feet
• New gasoline taxes (as if gas weren't high enough already)
• New taxes on natural resources consumption (heating gas, water, electricity)
• New taxes on retirement accounts
• and last but not least....
  New taxes to pay for socialized medicine so we can receive the same level of medical care as other third-world countries!!!

So although I like Obama as a person very much, I am afraid I can't afford him!  Go MCCain!

It is midnight here on the 17th of March and I just received a phone call from Egypt notifying me that my Father Captain Adib Tadros has passed away at the age of 79 about 45 minutes ago.

I am in a room in a hotel away from my family waiting to start teaching a class in the morning for 4 days.  I think that is going to be hard to accomplish.

I felt blogging about this experience as it is impossible to sleep.

I am remembering my time with my dad from the time I was a little kid till I left Egypt at the age of 19.

He was a loving father, extremely funny, had a huge presence whenever he is in a room.  I learned so much from him.

Dad, I pray for you.  I am very grateful for so many things you have done for me in my life. You will always be remembered.

May God bless you and have mercy on your Soul.

I feel a bit lost, great sadness and burning in my heart.

For all of you out there away from their parents, give them a call, check on them regularly, you never know when it will be the last time.

Bye Dad

Your son always

Lino

I usually try my luck here on my blogs first when I need help in finding a service that is needed for my company.  So here it goes

I am looking for a phone system for our new offices in Santa Cruz that is not based on regular phones but VOIP.  I looked at Vonage but it was not geared towards business, as you can't have a phone attendant to request pushing a specific extension to reach a department.  I also looked at Packet8, it was a good solution but very expensive as you will have to have a full line for each employee that needs a phone on their desk to make calls, it came out to about $350 per month + $1400 startup fee for 9 phones in the office with a fax line.

They suggested having only 3 phones in the office, one for sales, one in the conference room and one for management, the rest of the team can use the phone in the conference room which sounded lame to me to ask employees to go to the conference room to make a call or use their cell phone. That costs about $185 per month.

Anyone heard of a different company that can make this work for us?

Thanks for your suggestion in advance

This week, I have been at two corporations in San Antonio, Texas and Birmingham, Alabama teaching TestComplete 6.0, a SOLID automation testing tool that is gaining extreme momentum and acceptance in the industry.

I completed the training tonight for the Alabama company, they were truly terrific, very nice people and I enjoyed their company for the last few days, while teaching TestComplete 6.0.  It was emotional for me personally as they use Delphi as their main development tool.  Seeing Delphi running on their machine, and how successful their product is, I felt proud!  It has been almost 3 years since I wrote any code in Delphi for any customer but I have to say, every time I see Delphi code or get together with Delphi developers, it always bring a sweet spot to my heart.

I head home in few hours after a long week in airports and teaching every day.

Next week, I head to beautiful SYDNEY, Australia to teach there as well for 1 week, I will try to blog more and keep this blog alive and interesting. 

Cheers!

With a very heavy heart, I share with you that our beloved cat of 14 years, Delphi, has passed away this morning.  Delphi was a gift from my dear friend Steve Teixeira, that my wife and I received upon our marriage and soon after the release of Borland Delphi 2.0.  Delphi was a wonderful kitten, extremely social and always wonderful with my kids.  He will be missed greatly around our house.  Delphi was a famous cat as he made it into several of the technical articles that I wrote worldwide during the last decade and also made it into 2 Delphi books as honorary mention.

I will miss him greatly, Bye Delphi!

I read this message and wanted to share it with the world as it touched me greatly. 

The paradox of our time in history is that :

We have taller buildings but shorter tempers,

wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less,

we buy more, but enjoy less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families,

more conveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees but less sense,

more knowledge, but less judgment,

more experts, yet more problems,

more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly,

laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry,

stay up too late, get up too tired,

read too little, watch TV too much,

and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We've added years to life not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back,

but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

We conquered outer space but not inner space.

We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less.

We plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait.

We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever,

but we communicate less and less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion,

big men and small character,

steep profits and shallow relationships.

These are the days of two incomes but more divorce,

fancier houses, but broken homes.

These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers,

throwaway morality, one-night stands,

overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.

A time when technology can bring this letter to you,

and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete...
Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.
Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.
Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.
Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.
Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

-Dr. Bob Moorehead