Reality check: Although it was created as an information resource the Internet “is being manipulated into an advertising vehicle,” Search Engine Strategies’ vice president Kevin Ryan is quoted as saying in Advertising makes the Web go ’round. And while most successful sites still resemble an information agent, Neilsen/NetRatings now believes total minutes spent on a site is the superior metric. Ultimately, Ephraim Schwartz writes, “to state the obvious, everything you love about using the World Wide Web is underwritten by advertising. End of story.” Columnist’s corner: Every once in a while an IT worker comes along who screws up, yet somehow manages to get promoted. In this particular case, “he was what is commonly referred to as a ‘seagull’ manager: fly in, make a lot of noise, crap all over everything, then leave,” reports our Off the Record author. Unfortunately, it took him nearly 4 years to actually take wing. Now, however, “every year, on the anniversary of [his] dismissal, there is a happy hour in honor of his departure.” GripeLine: Ed Foster can’t escape the conclusion that a significant difference now exists between Dell and HP in the realm of PC support. “The old Dell appears to be back in terms of once again providing good support for good products, but, sadly, the old HP still seems to be ancient history,” he writes, though confessing some reluctance to broach the subject. But readers report that Dell is responding much more rapidly, and with greater results. “I’ve also heard more positive things about Dell than HP from corporate customers and those who have service contracts,” Foster shares in Has Dell returned to its roots? He’s still getting gripes about Dell, to be certain, so we’ll have to wait and see if this is all temporary blips or bona fide changes. Foster also is taking a poll on which PC manufacturer provides the best support. Software Development