I tore into Microsoft the other day for the style of thinking that gave birth to the installer app for Windows Live products. I was going to follow it up with a post on some of the good stuff you see coming out of the company.

I sat down tonight to get started writing that happy post, but some things changed while I was writing.

Not only is there good stuff at Microsoft right now - there's amazing stuff. And I don't use that italicized adjective lightly. If I knew of a way to get that word to reach out of your screen and slap you across the face for maximum effect, I'd do it. But I don't know how. If you do, then email me. We can be friends.

What's so amazing is a video that was just posted to Channel 10. Specifically, it's a video that I shot and "produced." I don't know what it means to "produce" a video, but Larry Larsen - the bawss at 10 - thanked me in the post for having produced it. I'm way awesomer than I thought, apparently.

The video is an amateurish takeoff on the MTV "Cribs" show where high-rolling music industry douches show you the $8,000 rims they got for their gilted Cadillac Escalades. There's also usually a segment where everybody's drinking Cristal out of ESPN mugs.

In this thing, I follow Scott and Chris around Scott's house, looking at all the blinky fire hazards Scott paid to have installed.

Although the subject of this video is Scott's house and his technology, it's clear that I'm actually the star. Chris and Scott are merely my foils. The "Geek Cribs" theme is only window dressing over what is obviously my show.

I'd like to thank Chris and Scott for helping me out with this one. I owe you guys. Well, I would owe you, but being able to put down on your resumes that you played a minor role in a video I produced is payment enough. You can write your own ticket from here on out. You're welcome.

The thing I was originally going to write about here is a different video that went up on 10 a couple days ago. It was written by Tina Wood and starred just about all my old workmates. I was jealous while watching it because I couldn't have done a better job. It bothers me to see things like that. I'm a control freak and unabashed egotist. That someone could so thoroughly rock my writing skills is unpleasant. The displeasure, however, is balanced out by getting to watch a good video. If it's better than what I can do, then it's phenomenal. It also puts me in my place. As you can see, I've become quite humble. I'm proud of myself for that.

I loved watching my old coworkers. Making a video like that is a pain in the ass. People get grumpy, they have to do a dozen takes for everything, someone has to transfer all the footage to a computer and then edit it... it takes a lot of effort and time. It doesn't come across when you're watching it, though. I just saw Adam, Duncan, Sampy, Erik, and a bunch of other people I miss all having a good time.

I think the Nerf dart-gun sequence was supposed to be part of the joke, but because Sampy has an arsenal of Nerf weapons in his office, the hallways of Channel 9/10 were actually very much like what's shown in the video. I even made a Channel 9 video of Sampy getting shot in the face with a Nerf weapon.

Anyway, Tina's video is good stuff. Probably my favorite 9/10 video ever. I'm biased by enjoying watching my friends in it, but I think I'd dig it even if I didn't know them.

Yeah.

So...

Tah.