Next time Judge Jackson sees a horrific criminal act and is tempted to pronounce evildoer a bad boy, he'll likely temper his statements, something on order of, "Uh-uh-uh! Don't do that!" Then shut his mouth tight as he sentences crook to life in prison for ... "doing something that is not allowed in our society." Don't say anything bad to them.

The problem is that Microsoft is made to appear victim of unfair judgement when judge can't contain his disdain for absurdly monopolistic practices that have Microsoft ruling not only Planet PC, but Planet Earth.

I am occasionally tempted to trade in my Macintosh for a PC because I'm so frustrated that I MUST have Windows to run applications I need to have. I've occasionally considered purchasing Microsoft Macintosh version of software so that I can view PowerPoint presentations or upgrade from my old Word version 6.0 for Mac because it garbles text from new Word Documents. But ultimately, I just can't do it.

I won't. I can't even stand fact that new Mac specific software emulates look and feel of Microsoft products. It was other way round in beginning, before Bill copied Mac OS and put it on a PC and called it Windows. It angers me that Internet Explorer comes with Mac OS. It drives me nuts that WebTrends and Web Position Gold only come in Windows versions.

Linus Torvald is a personal hero to me. Open source is only answer to ridiculous Microsoftopoly. My iMac and I will stick it out and beg Steve Jobs to slay Giant. Or even an unbiased zipper-lipped judge could do it, as long as he doesn't talk about his opinion, just enforces it.

Building a successful Web site doesn't necessarily have to involve any complex, specialized skills. Rather, it involves a series of repetitive (and admittedly sometimes tedious) steps, over and over again. It's a task that any determined and focused person can achieve.

Incidentally, HTML (the coding used to create sites) is really not hard to master. And in any case, there are many Web editing programs around that will write coding for you.

3. "Since IPO pipeline dried up, I'm don't think I'll ever get a shot at becoming a Dot Com millionaire."

Reality: this widespread fear, of course, is grounded in bursting of Dot Com stock bubble over past year. But consider this fact: somewhere out there in vast world of cyberspace is a person who only today started up his first Web site. Five years from now, that person will be a millionaire. Will that person be you? Odds are, no. But fact is, Web remains a wonderful opportunity to earn a living. If you're only looking to get rich, you have an unrealistic view. But if you work hard and you have an intelligent business plan, you will most likely succeed.

The best possible outcome, is of course, cashing in your stock options someday in a successful IPO. But barring that, it's still hugely satisfying to simply earn a comfortable living from your Web site.

I've known a number of people who were able to quit their day jobs. They now earn a living from Web. They aren't rich, but they ARE happy. They work hours that they choose to work. They don't have to get up at 7 a.m. and fight rush hour traffic to office. And they know that they are sole beneficiary of hours that they work...not some corporate employer. The fact is, working under these conditions is vastly more satisfying than a day job. In fact, you'll find that you can put in 12-hour days and not feel burned out at all---because it's all for you. And it's a quite reasonable goal to aspire toward.

The reality is that, although Dot Com bubble has collapsed, dream remains alive and well for many thousands of Webmasters.

If you have a Web site, or are thinking of starting one, then be prepared to work hard to meet many challenges you'll face. And you should know at outset that it's counter-productive to have unreasonable expectations. But, on other hand, you shouldn't burden yourself with unreasonable and exaggerated fears and anxieties that simply aren't grounded in reality.