Mr. Gates relied on a slickly produced video to provide most of the laughs during his keynote. Organized around a "McLaughlin Group" television roundtable, the piece included a number of gags, including a takeoff of the Austin Powers films.
Microsoft president, Steve Ballmer, in the guise of Dr. Evil, warns, "I will infiltrate Microsoft. I will tank technology stocks." Only one person can save the world, the narrator intones, Austin Gates, International Man of Technology.
Microsoft got television's Judge Judy to preside over a legal squabble between Mr. Gates and his friend and fellow multibillionaire, Warren Buffett, who was purportedly suing Mr. Gates over a $2 bet. "We were playing bridge on the Internet," Mr. Buffett says. "I was cleaning his clock as I always do. This miserable little cheat unplugged his computer to avoid losing." Judge Judy finds in favor of Mr. Buffett. "Mr. Gates, pay the man his $2. Maybe he'll invest it and make something of himself."
[end of item]
Carl
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