Frustrated with Office 2007

Just got a new laptop with Windows 7 and Office 2007. I now believe Microsoft has gone over the tipping point now and heading for doom. Way over-designed, feature over-load, and just a hogger for time that is killing my productivity. I don't need the option of 20,000 fonts or 2000 options as features staring at me. This is a bread and butter software that has to lean and easy to soft through its use. It is like a store offering 60 cereals when I just buy one, at the most two. If you have to go smart with choices, I should have the option of dumming it down to what I am comfortable. How about a feature that makes my Word look like 2003. And for those folks who like the look and feel of anything new ... they are happy too. Hope someone in Redmond is listening.

BP's dividend policy

Another day with the oil spill disaster. BP stated that they might not payout divdend. In response, are we supposed to look down on this company -- something as a really bad sign. Should shareholders view that something seripously has gone wrong. Well not quite... Public perception with dividend provides all kinds of such perception. Never mind. If I were BP, I wont touch the expected divident policy. After all -- dividends transfer value from firm to the shareholder -- so if BP does not payout dividend -- they are just keeping the value rather than paying out -- alternatively, shareholders can sell the shares -- but perception does not follow corporate finance theory all the time. BP should be knowing more than the grandpa down the street -- so go ahead and payout the dividend.