Good times, bad times
Why was it a bad week for sex robots?
Good Times
John McAfee
With Donald Trump emerging as the leading Republican candidate, it seemed the 2016 US presidential race couldn't get any wackier.
But Trump is now starting to look like Abraham Lincoln following the reported declaration of an even more outlandish character: the IT industry's own John McAfee.
This is a man who last appeared in Good Times, Bad Times in 2013 after making a video in which he shot a PC loaded with McAfee software, in an apparent slur on the firm he founded in 1983. A year before that, he was wanted in connection with a murder probe. Still, if he ends up getting in, at least he'll be able to advise the US population on how to ensure their internet security defences are up to date.
ANS Group staff
Running a thriving reseller may be considered tough work to some, but ANS Group's CEO Paul Sweeney said "the hardest work he's ever done" was something quite different.
Earlier this month, he rocked up to the company's Manchester office at 7:30am to cook breakfast for all 200 staff ahead of a company-wide meeting.
"I totally underestimated the demand - especially the 9am rush and the lengthy queues that formed. It's the hardest work I've ever done," Sweeney (pictured) said.
We're sure he recovered after going back to running the multimillion-pound firm.
Negativity
Haters across the world rejoiced last week as Facebook announced plans to introduce a "dislike" button, which some users have wanted for years.
Mark Zuckerberg has confirmed his company is working on the feature and said it should be available for testing in the not-too-distant future. But he stressed the button should be used only to express empathy with friends sharing "sad" posts.
We're not sure how he plans to police the button's use, so we fear oversharing parents and cat-video fans may be on course for some hurt feelings if their posts get the thumbs down.
Bad Times
Sex robots
Yep, you read that correctly: it's bad times for sex robots, as a campaign is launched to outlaw the carnal droids. Robotics expert Dr Kathleen Richardson argues that the technology will not only reinforce damaging stereotypes of women, but is potentially detrimental to human relationships across the board.
Among those opposing her is New Jersey-based company True Companion, whose soon-to-launch Roxxxy doll has been billed as "the world's first sex robot".
"The physical act of sex will only be a small part of the time you spend with a sex robot - the majority of time will be spent socialising and interacting," said CEO Douglas Hines.
To each their own, Dougie - but don't be offended if we decline any invites to social gatherings at your gaff.
Education suppliers
In news that will fail to shock anyone who has observed what kids do when they're let loose online, it's emerged that classroom technology often stunts rather than aids learning.
In a 31-country study, the OECD found that children who use classroom PCs frequently tend to do more poorly in their studies than those who don't.
So, giving kids free rein to swap pictures of their anatomy and exchange emojis doesn't actually make them better at English, maths and science, you say? Now might be a good time for IT resellers targeting education to stock slide rules and logarithm tables.
Surface VARs
When it comes to its Surface tablet device, the usually channel-friendly Microsoft has always been noticeably frosty to the reseller community.
Having initially sold it purely direct and through retail channels, the software giant eventually allowed a select band of VARs - 150 across the globe - to punt the device and is now adding a further 4,000-plus channel players. But any new recruits will have to compete with the sales power of titans HP and Dell, with which Microsoft has announced go-to-market partnerships.
This tablet could prove a bitter pill to swallow for the channel.