Saturday 23 June 2012

Newly discovered alien planet 'resets the bar for weird'

A small telescope makes some big discoveries in the world of 'hot Jupiters'

Vanderbilt University / Julie Turner

This artist's rendering shows planet KELT-1b, which resides so close to its star that it completes a "yearly" orbit in a mere 30 hours.

Think of it as a win for the little guys. Astronomers using a small ground-based telescope have discovered two unusual alien planets around extremely bright, distant stars.

The two extrasolar planets are gas giant worlds detected using the Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope (KELT) in southern Arizona, which has a lens that is roughly as powerful as a high-end digital camera, the researchers said.
"KELT is slightly more diminutive than Kepler, but we like to think it's small but fierce," said Thomas Beatty, a doctoral student at Ohio State University in Columbus. NASA's Kepler space telescope is an orbiting observatory specially built to seek out distant planets.
Beatty presented the findings on June 13 at the 220th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Anchorage, Alaska.
Hot Jupiters revealed One of the newly found planets, called KELT-1b, is a massive world that is both incredibly hot and dense. The alien planet, which is mostly metallic hydrogen, is slightly larger than Jupiter, but contains a whopping 27 times the mass. [ Gallery: The Strangest Alien Planets ]
These types of alien worlds are known as " hot Jupiters " because they are gas giant planets that orbit extremely close to their parent stars.
KELT-1b is so close to its host star that it completes one orbit in a mere 29 hours. Being this close to its star, the planet's surface temperature is likely above 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (roughly 2,200 degrees Celsius), in the process receiving 6,000 times the amount of radiation that Earth receives from the sun, Beatty explained.
"(It) resets the bar for weird," he said. "It's the sort of object that we would not have expected to find this close to its parent star."
KELT-1b is located about 825 light-years away in the constellation of Andromeda. The massive planet stood out to astronomers not only because of its close proximity to its parent star, but because of its unusual orbital dynamics.
"It's massive enough that KELT-1 has raised tides on its parent star and actually spun it up," Beatty said. "KELT-1 grabbed the star it's around, pulled it so it's spinning at the same rate, so now both KELT-1 and its parent star are locked in each other's gaze as they go around."
Auriga's alien world The other newly identified planet is called KELT-2Ab, and is located about 360 light-years away in the constellation of Auriga. The alien world is 30 percent larger than Jupiter with 50 percent more mass.

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This discovery more closely resembles other exoplanets found to date, except KELT-2Ab's parent star is so bright it can be seen from Earth through binoculars. In fact, the star is so luminous that researchers will be able to make direct observations of the planet's atmosphere by examining light that shines through it when the star passes within KELT North's field of view again in November.
Follow-up observations are also being planned using other ground-based instruments, as well as several space observatories, including the Hubble Space Telescope and the infrared Spitzer Space Telescope.
"We want to look at what's going on in its atmosphere and its interior," Beatty said. "The reason why individual hot Jupiters like these are still interesting is because we still fundamentally do not understand what goes on inside them."
KELT-2Ab orbits a star that is slightly bigger than the sun, within a binary system called HD 42176. In this system, one star is slightly bigger than our sun, and the other star is slightly smaller. KELT-2Ab orbits the bigger star, which is bright enough to be seen from Earth with binoculars.
How they were found Astronomers use KELT to find large planets orbiting very bright stars using the so-called transit method, which involves watching for tiny dips in the star's light that could indicate a planet is crossing, or transiting, in front.
Rather than staring at a small group of stars at high resolution, the twin KELT North and KELT South telescopes observe millions of very bright stars at low resolution, the researchers said. KELT North scans the northern sky from Arizona, while KELT South covers the southern sky from Cape Town, South Africa.
While NASA's prolific Kepler Space Telescope has identified roughly 2,300 alien planet candidates, the small ground-based KELT telescopes provide a low-cost alternative for exoplanet hunters by primarily using off-the-shelf technology. The hardware for a KELT telescope costs less than $75,000, the researchers said.

'Big' Earth plays tug-of-war with Neptune-sized planet around same star

Tags: Big Earth, Orbit, Neptune-sized planet, 1, 200 light-years

Washington: Researchers have discovered a bigger version of Earth locked in an orbital tug-of-war with a much larger, Neptune-sized planet as they orbit very close to each other around the same star about 1,200 light-years from Earth.

The research team was led by astronomers at the University of Washington and Harvard University.

The planets occupy nearly the same orbital plane and on their closest approach come within about 1.2 million miles of each other -- just five times the Earth-Moon distance and about 20 times closer to one another than any two planets in our solar system.

But the timing of their orbits means they'll never collide, said Eric Agol, a UW astronomy professor and co-lead author of a paper documenting the discovery.

“These are the closest two planets to one another that have ever been found. The bigger planet is pushing the smaller planet around more, so the smaller planet was harder to find,” Agol said.

Orbiting a star in the Cygnus constellation referred to as Kepler-36a, the planets are designated Kepler-36b and Kepler-36c. Planet b is a rocky planet like Earth, though 4.5 times more massive and with a radius 1.5 times greater. Kepler-36c, which could be either gaseous like Jupiter or watery, is 8.1 times more massive than Earth and has a radius 3.7 times greater.

The larger planet was originally spotted in data from NASA's Kepler spacecraft, which uses a photometer to measure light from distant celestial objects and can detect a planet when it transits, or passes in front of, and briefly reduces the light coming from, its parent star.

The team wanted to try finding a second planet in a system where it was already known that there was one planet. Agol suggested applying an algorithm called quasi-periodic pulse detection to examine data from Kepler.

Joshua Carter, a Hubble fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and the other co-lead author of the Science paper, used the algorithm to begin methodically checking planetary systems already in the Kepler data and saw a clear signal in the Kepler-36a system.

“We found this one on a first quick look. We're now combing through the Kepler data to try to locate more,” Carter said.

The data revealed a slight dimming of light coming from Kepler-36a every 16 days, the length of time it takes the larger Kepler-36c to circle its star. Kepler-36b circles the star seven times for each six orbits of 36c, but it was not discovered initially because of its small size and the gravitational jostling by its orbital companion. But when the algorithm was applied to the data, the signal was unmistakable.

“If you look at the transit time pattern for the large planet and the transit time pattern for the smaller planet, they are mirror images of one another,” Agol said.

The fact that the two planets are so close to each other and exhibit specific orbital patterns allowed the scientists to make fairly precise estimates of each planet's characteristics, based on their gravitational effects on each other and the resulting variations in the orbits. To date, this is the best-characterized system with small planets, the researchers said.

They believe the smaller planet is 30 percent iron, less than 1 percent atmospheric hydrogen and helium and probably no more than 15 percent water. The larger planet, on the other hand, likely has a rocky core surrounded by a substantial amount of atmospheric hydrogen and helium.

The planets' densities differ by a factor of eight but their orbits differ by only 10 percent, which makes the differences in composition difficult for the scientists to explain using current models of planet formation.

The team also calculated specific information for the star itself, determining that Kepler-36a is about the same mass as the Sun but is just 25 percent as dense. It also is slightly hotter and has slightly less metal content. The researchers concluded that the star is a few billion years older than the Sun and no longer burns hydrogen at its core, so has entered a sub-giant phase in which its radius is 60 percent greater than the Sun's.

Tatas working on electric car to be priced less than $20,000

NEW DELHI: Diversified business house Tata group is developing an electric car that is expected to be priced below USD 20,000 (over Rs 10 lakh) in partnership with France's Dassault Systemes.
The group's engineering services outsourcing and product development IT services arm, Tata Technologies has completed the first feasibility study of the electric vehicle using Dassault Systemes' 3DEXPERIENCE Platform.

In a statement, Tata Technologies President (Vehicle Programs and Development Group) Kevin Fisher said the company is working on with Dassault Systemes to "leverage the talents of a global engineering team to meet numerous design and cost constraints, as well as create the targeted user experience, including a final vehicle price tag of under USD 20,000."
The statement, however, did not share other details such as when the vehicle is likely to be launched or how much the company is investing to develop the product.
With the help of Dassault Systemes' technologies, the Tata group firm had completed its first electric MObility (eMO) study, demonstrating the feasibility of developing an electric vehicle at an attractive price, the company said.
The company said a significant challenge in the development process was the requirement to fit all the vehicle systems into a small footprint, while maintaining spacious seating for four adults.
"To achieve this, Tata Technologies utilised the powerful capabilities within CATIA and ENOVIA applications to quickly develop various studies, allowing global collaboration to rapidly evaluate and converge on optimal solutions," it added.
The development of the eMO is a global effort, requiring collaboration among over 300 Tata Technologies engineers from different places, including India, the US and Europe.
Commenting on the development, Dassault Systemes Executive Vice President (Industry) Monica Menghini said: "Tata Technologies is a key business partner for us and we see its innovative and forward-looking project as the perfect example of how our 3DEXPERIENCE platform is critical to collaboration with OEMs for accelerated development cycles."
Another Tata group firm Tata Motors had announced that it was developing an electric version of its hatchback Indica with a Norwegian firm for launching it in the British, Norwegian and Danish markets by 2011, which has not taken place yet.

Volkswagen launches 1.4 TSI engine Jetta starting at Rs 13.60 lakhs

Volkswagen Jetta

Volkswagen, Europe’s largest carmaker announced the launch of the compact, efficient and powerful 1.4 L Jetta TSI. With this launch the Jetta now becomes even more attractive for the customers providing a choice of both efficient diesel and petrol engines. Furthermore, Volkswagen has ensured that this carline is an absolute value for money for every petrol customer with its Trendline priced at Rs. 13.60 lakhs, ex showroom New Delhi and Comfortline at Rs. 15.07 lakhs. ex showroom, New Delhi. Commenting on the launch of the Jetta TSI, Neeraj Garg, Member of Board and Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Volkswagen Group Sales India Pvt. Ltd said “In the current market scenario, fuel efficiency has become extremely crucial for every customer looking at purchasing a new car. Customers looking at buying a petrol vehicle are either postponing their buying decision or purchasing a diesel car. Under these circumstances we strongly feel the need to provide the customer with a choice to opt for a value for money petrol car. The Jetta TSI is the perfect answer; a powerful car with an extremely efficient engine consuming less fuel.”
TSI is a pioneering technology of petrol engines by Volkswagen. TSI engines are compact, high powered and use less fuel thereby successfully implementing the downsizing concept. The Volkswagen TSI engines are designed to deliver maximum torque from engine speeds as low as 1500 rpm. That is good for both driving pleasure and fuel economy. This is achieved by combining Direct Petrol injection and intake of high compress air with the use of turbocharger thereby giving high fuel efficiency.
The Jetta TSI is equipped with 1.4Litre, 4 cylinder TSI engine with a maximum power output of 90 Kw @ 5000rpm and a maximum torque of 200 Nm @1500-4000 rpm with a 6 Speed Gear Box in manual transmission. The Exterior is equipped with ``Navarra’’ alloy wheels 205/55 R 16 tyres, rear fog lights, side turn signal lights integrated in exterior mirrors and dual exhaust pipes. There are also features like leatherette seat upholstery, leather package for steering wheel, gear shift knob, hand brake grip, front center armrest with storage box, storage compartments on headliner, rear AC vents for comfort, lockable and illuminated glove compartment.
Advanced occupant safety is one of the key features of the all-new Jetta which comes equipped with Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), 6 airbags, front seat belt with height adjustment and seat-belt tensioner, central locking with 2 remote control folding keys, 3-point belt for center rear seat, electronic engine immobilizer, engine and transmission guard, hill hold control. The Jetta TSI will be offered in 6 different colours.

Alan Turing: Inquest's suicide verdict 'not supportable'

Turing was found dead in his bed by his housekeeper

Alan Turing, the British mathematical genius and codebreaker born 100 years ago on 23 June, may not have committed suicide, as is widely believed.

At a conference in Oxford on Saturday, Turing expert Prof Jack Copeland will question the evidence that was presented at the 1954 inquest.
He believes the evidence would not today be accepted as sufficient to establish a suicide verdict.
Indeed, he argues, Turing's death may equally probably have been an accident.
What is well known and accepted is that Alan Turing died of cyanide poisoning.
His housekeeper famously found the 41-year-old mathematician dead in his bed, with a half-eaten apple on his bedside table.
It is widely said that Turing had been haunted by the story of the poisoned apple in the fairy tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and had resorted to the same desperate measure to end the persecution he was suffering as a result of his homosexuality.
But according to Prof Copeland, it was Turing's habit to take an apple at bedtime, and that it was quite usual for him not to finish it; the half-eaten remains found near his body cannot be seen as an indication of a deliberate act.
Indeed, the police never tested the apple for the presence of cyanide.
Moreover, Prof Copeland emphasises, a coroner these days would demand evidence of pre-meditation before announcing a verdict of suicide, yet nothing in the accounts of Turing's last days suggest he was in anything but a cheerful mood.

“Start Quote

We have... been recreating the narrative of Turing's life, and we have recreated him as an unhappy young man who committed suicide. But the evidence is not there”

Prof Jack Copeland University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

Alan Turing's genius

He had left a note on his office desk, as was his practice, the previous Friday to remind himself of the tasks to be done on his return after the Bank Holiday weekend.

Nevertheless, at the inquest, the coroner, Mr JAK Ferns declared: "In a man of his type, one never knows what his mental processes are going to do next." What he meant by "of this type" is unclear.
The motive for suicide is easy to imagine. In 1952, after he had reported a petty burglary, Turing found himself being investigated for "acts of gross indecency" after he revealed he had had a male lover in his house.
Faced with the prospect of imprisonment, and perhaps with it the loss of the mathematics post he held at Manchester University, which gave him access to one of the world's only computers, Turing accepted the alternative of "chemical castration" - hormone treatment that was supposed to suppress his sexual urges.
It is often repeated that the chemicals caused him to grow breasts, though Turing is only known to have mentioned this once.
The authorities' continuing interest in Turing became apparent in 1953 when a gay Norwegian acquaintance, Kjell, announced by postcard his intention to visit him at his Wilmslow home, but mysteriously never arrived.

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Turing told a friend, by way of explanation: "At one stage, the police over the north of England were out searching for him."
With six decades of hindsight, these oppressive attentions, the nation's failure to appreciate his wartime contributions, his apparent sidelining at the Manchester computer department, have led to a tragic picture of Turing being hounded during his last years, and suicide being a natural outcome.
But Prof Copeland argues that on the contrary, Turing's career was at an intellectual high, and that he had borne his treatment "with good humour".
Of the Kjell affair, Turing had written that "for sheer incident, it rivalled the Arnold [gross-indecency] story"; and immediately after his conviction had told a friend: "The day of the trial was by no means disagreeable.
"Whilst in custody with the other criminals, I had a very agreeable sense of irresponsibility, rather like being back at school."
On the face of it, these are not the expressions of someone ground down by adversity.

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A centenary celebration at Cambridge University considers Turing's legacy

What is more, Turing had tolerated the year-long hormone treatment and the terms of his probation ("my shining virtue was terrific") with amused fortitude, and another year had since passed seemingly without incident.
In statements to the coroner, friends had attested to his good humour in the days before his death.
His neighbour described him throwing "such a jolly [tea] party" for her and her son four days before he died.
His close friend Robin Gandy, who had stayed with him the weekend before, said that Turing "seemed, if anything, happier than usual".
Yet the coroner recorded a verdict of suicide "while the balance of his mind was disturbed".
Prof Copeland believes the alternative explanation made at the time by Turing's mother is equally likely.
Turing had cyanide in his house for chemical experiments he conducted in his tiny spare room - the nightmare room he had dubbed it.

Bombe decryption machine: We should focus on Turing's genius, says Prof Copeland

He had been electrolysing solutions of the poison, and electroplating spoons with gold, a process that requires potassium cyanide. Although famed for his cerebral powers, Turing had also always shown an experimental bent, and these activities were not unusual for him.
But Turing was careless, Prof Copeland argues.
The electrolysis experiment was wired into the ceiling light socket.
On another occasion, an experiment had resulted in severe electric shocks.
And he was known for tasting chemicals to identify them.
Perhaps he had accidentally put his apple into a puddle of cyanide.
Or perhaps, more likely, he had accidentally inhaled cyanide vapours from the bubbling liquid.
Prof Copeland notes that the nightmare room had a "strong smell" of cyanide after Turing's death; that inhalation leads to a slower death than ingestion; and that the distribution of the poison in Turing's organs was more consistent with inhalation than with ingestion.
In his authoritative biography, Andrew Hodges suggests that the experiment was a ruse to disguise suicide, a scenario Turing had apparently mentioned to a friend in the past.

Turing was injected with Stilboestrol - a synthesised form of oestrogen

But Jack Copeland argues the evidence should be taken at face value - that an accidental death is certainly consistent with all the currently known circumstances.
The problem, he complains, is that the investigation was conducted so poorly that even murder cannot be ruled out. An "open verdict", recognising this degree of ignorance, would be his preferred position.
None of this excuses the treatment of Turing during his final years, says Prof Copeland.
"Turing was hounded," he told the BBC, adding: "Yet he remained cheerful and humorous."
"The thing is to tell the truth in so far as we know it, and not to speculate.
"In a way we have in modern times been recreating the narrative of Turing's life, and we have recreated him as an unhappy young man who committed suicide. But the evidence is not there.
"The exact circumstances of Turing's death will probably always be unclear," Prof Copeland concludes.
"Perhaps we should just shrug our shoulders, and focus on Turing's life and extraordinary work."
Roland Pease has produced two episodes of Discovery on the BBC World Service devoted to Turing. In the first, he follows the events leading up to Turing's design for a fully programmable computer (Ace) at the National Physical Laboratory. In the second episode, to be broadcast on Monday, he explores the life and legacy of Turing. Both programmes are presented by Standup Mathematician Matt Parker.

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Rory Cellan-Jones visits the exhibition dedicated to the life and work of Alan Turing.

Friday 22 June 2012

Friday Poll: Will Microsoft finally conquer mobile?

With Windows Phone 8 smartphones and Surface tablets on the way, has Microsoft hit on a recipe for success in the elusive mobile space?

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Windows is about to become a lot more portable. Microsoft hopes that its new mobile moves will also make it a lot more popular for buyers shopping for smartphones and tablets.
Microsoft has dabbled in both the phone and tablet worlds, but without the resounding sales success Apple and Android have achieved.
Now that Windows Phone 8 is due in the fall and Surface tablets are in the pipeline, it looks like Microsoft is going all in with the mobilization of Windows.
Both Windows Phone 8 and Surface will tie in strongly with the company's still-popular desktop OS, perhaps giving it a leg up among long-time Windows users.
Windows future in mobile is still up in the air until the actual products splash down and customers vote with their dollars.
There are several ways this could go. It could go the way of the ghosts of Windows tablets past. It could take off like an Android rocket. It could tread water fighting for market share.
It's time for you to weigh in on Microsoft's mobile future. Considering the upcoming Windows Phone 8 release and Surface tablets, will Microsoft finally conquer mobile? Vote in our poll and tell us why in the comments.

Robots that can touch and feel?

The robot can connect with the Microsoft messenger software and the user will be able to send messages by talking to the robot.

Researchers have shown that a specially designed robot can outperform humans in identifying a wide range of natural materials according to their textures, paving the way for advancements in prostheses, personal assistive robots and consumer product testing. The robot, built by researchers at the University of Southern California''s Viterbi School of Engineering, was equipped with a new type of tactile sensor built to mimic the human fingertip. It also used a newly designed algorithm to make decisions about how to explore the outside world by imitating human strategies. Capable of other human sensations, the sensor can also tell where and in which direction forces are applied to the fingertip and even the thermal properties of an object being touched.
Like the human finger, the group’s BioTac sensor has a soft, flexible skin over a liquid filling.
The skin even has fingerprints on its surface, greatly enhancing its sensitivity to vibration. As the finger slides over a textured surface, the skin vibrates in characteristic ways. These vibrations are detected by a hydrophone inside the bone-like core of the finger. The human finger uses similar vibrations to identify textures, but the robot finger is even more sensitive.
When humans try to identify an object by touch, they use a wide range of exploratory movements based on their prior experience with similar objects.
A famous theorem by 18th century mathematician Thomas Bayes describes how decisions might be made from the information obtained during these movements. Until now, however, there was no way to decide which exploratory movement to make next.
The study, authored by Professor of Biomedical Engineering Gerald Loeb and recently graduated doctoral student Jeremy Fishel, describes their new theorem for solving this general problem as “Bayesian Exploration.”
Built by Fishel, the specialized robot was trained on 117 common materials gathered from fabric, stationery and hardware stores.
When confronted with one material at random, the robot could correctly identify the material 95 percent of the time, after intelligently selecting and making an average of five exploratory movements. It was only rarely confused by pairs of similar textures that human subjects making their own exploratory movements could not distinguish at all.
So, is touch another task that humans will outsource to robots? Fishel and Loeb pointed out that while their robot is very good at identifying which textures are similar to each other, it has no way to tell what textures people will prefer.
Instead, they say this robot touch technology could be used in human prostheses or to assist companies who employ experts to assess the feel of consumer products and even human skin.
Loeb and Fishel are partners in SynTouch LLC, which develops and manufactures tactile sensors for mechatronic systems that mimic the human hand.
Founded in 2008 by researchers from USC’s Medical Device Development Facility, the start-up is now selling their BioTac sensors to other researchers and manufacturers of industrial robots and prosthetic hands. (ANI)

Pay $ 100 million and your next destination is Moon

If you have $ 100 million in your pocket then buckle up your seat belt as your next destination is none other then Moon itself.
More than 40 years ago when Neil Armstrong first stepped on the surface of moon, human achieved the unachievable, but now they have advanced their technology even more and are ready to take tourists on a tour to the Moon.
Excalibur Almaz, a British space company has bought a fleet of former Soviet shuttles and is selling tickets to make a trip to moon in $100 million in the year 2015.
If all goes well this will be the first Apollo 17 mission of 1972. The company and space stations and is planning the mission in three years time.
The said tour of the space and moon would last four months. During this time tourists will first dock with one of the space stations then will be blasted into the Moon's orbit. Tourists will fly past the moon from a distance of 1000km.
This tour to the moon is available to anyone who has more then enough money in his or her pocket. However, they would have train hard and to fly the craft themselves. Tourists will be provided complete astronaut training with tactics to tackle weightlessness and emergency measures.
Art Dula founded Excalibur Almaz in the year 2005. He has plan to test first flight in 2014 and to send first civilian voyage a year later.
Space tourists have already traveled to the International Space Station and back.

Students measure Earth's circumference on longest summer day

Tags: Earth`s circumference, longest summer day, SPACE, Delhi`s Jantar Mantar

New Delhi: Students from various Delhi schools participated in an exercise Thursday to measure the Earth's circumference on the longest day of the summer.

Organised by Science Popularisation of Communicators and Educators (SPACE), the participants took actual measurements of the shadows made by the sun to measure the circumference of the earth as done 2,300 years ago by Greek astronomer Eratosthenes.

"Thursday being the longest day and the shortest night, we measured the circumference of the earth. After today the duration of the day will be shorter and of the night will be of longer," said Pooja Kumar of SPACE.

"We are observing the angle of the sun and measuring the shadows. In general, the exact timing of the summer solstice changes from year to year," she added.

Known as Project Paridhi, the measurement activity went from 9.30 a.m till 2 p.m. at central Delhi's Jantar Mantar. The project involves participants taking measurement of shadows at noon, at different places on the same longitude, such as Delhi and Bangalore.

"I am measuring the shadow of the sun through an instrument called gnomon meaning 'indicator'. It is the oldest method to measure direction, time and location by shadows," said Mehul, a student from Ryan International, Rohini.

"Using the shadow of the sun we will find out the angle of the sun. We are measuring the shadow after every 5 minutes," Mehul added.

SPACE will partner with astronomers from Kazakhstan, Nepal, Pakistan and other SAARC countries for conducting the Eratosthenes experiment.

"What we have gathered is that Thursday would be 14-hour long day. We measured the sun's shadow every 5 minutes and we will calculate the earths circumference by the formula known," said Vibhu Narayan, a student of St. Columba's school in Delhi.

Microsoft's Surface proves software is dead

Open ... and Shut Did Microsoft finally get the memo on software licensing? While Microsoft's legal department continues to believe that software licensing is the industry's best business model, its mobile team now acknowledges that software is just one piece of an overall product, and not even the part that consumers buy.
With the launch of its end-to-end Microsoft-designed Surface tablet, Microsoft has declared what much of the rest of the industry already knows: software is dead.

Redmonk analyst Stephen O'Grady best explains this come-to-Jobs moment for Microsoft. As O'Grady points out: "The market has not generated a large technology vendor oriented around selling software in twenty-two years," as companies like Facebook, Google, Red Hat, and more have learned to sell services based upon or built around software. But the software itself? Free.

Not just free as in beer, to paraphrase Richard Stallman, but also free as in freedom. The new "software" kings give mountains of code away through open-source licensing, because they recognise that their economic value is not in the software itself. Not content to just open-source its software, Facebook has taken to open-sourcing its data centre designs, too.
Not every company hankers after openness, of course. Apple is more closed than Microsoft ever dreamed of being. But Apple has for years set the pace on reducing the value of software as an economic driver. Apple sells iPhones, not iOS. Yes, it takes margin on all the apps sold through its App Store, but Apple's own software is inextricably tied to its hardware. The software is, in effect, free.
Google gets at the same result, but from a different angle. In mobile, Google has open sourced Android, allowing anyone and everyone to build Android-based smartphones and tablets. The software, again, is free.
Now Microsoft is following suit with the Surface tablet. The Surface isn't cool because of its technology, though the technology is cool. No, the truly impressive thing about the launch of the Surface tablet is, as Reg-correspondent-turned-Bloomberg-hack Ashlee Vance writes, that Microsoft would finally risk annoying its OEM partners to build a holistic product that embeds software but doesn't attempt to sell that software.
It's a strategy that Microsoft has been getting right in other areas, including the Xbox and its Azure cloud computing platform, but this is perhaps the most glaring example of Microsoft finally getting a clue. The industry has very definitely moved away from software as a business to software as a service. At long last, Microsoft is a poised to be a competitor again. ®