Review of the Epson Stylus Pro 9800: Its First Year in Retrospect

It has been a year since the first announcement of the Epson Stylus Pro 9800 printer, the new generation of 44 inch width, inkjet printer from Epson. Like many of the new releases from Epson, the printer was highly anticipated; offered breakthrough new features; and was impossible to get for about 7 months. The initial rush has past, the printers are readily available, and it is time to take a moment to reflect on the good and bad points of Epson’s latest printing wonder.
I think there are far fewer negatives than positives, so I will address them first.

1. You have to perform an ink swap to switch your dark black ink from photo-black to matte black. For a brief time Epson offered the Stylus Pro 4000 which had 8 inks including both the matte black and the photo black, there was no need to swap dark black inks if you changed from photo paper to mat paper. This new generation still uses 8 inks but has added a light light black ink instead of offering the two varieties of dark black inks. The additional of light light black ink has enable the printer to produce finer gradations of tone and finer detail in the highlight area, but having to swap out the dark black inks to optimize printing on photo paper as opposed to matte paper is an inconvenience and an unfortunate waste of money.

2. There are quirks with the LCD menu on the printer. One in particular, comes up frequently with a message that says “Power Cleaning?” Y or N. Having been prompted many people select yes to this prompt, thereby executing a power cleaning cycle which wastes a good bit of ink and maintenance tank capacity. I have had a number of clients really upset about this situation and I hope Epson will rectify it soon in a firmware fix.

3. Dark ink density not improved when using matte black ink on matte papers. The new K3 inks made a giant leap forward in providing richer blacks when using the photo-black ink on photo surface types of papers. The K3 matte black ink on matte papers seems not to have improved black density, and some users report that matte black is less dense on matte papers than the previous UCM matte black ink. I find the blacks to be the about the same density as with the previous inks, but had hoped for more from the matte black K3 ink.

4. Epson designed the new 220 ml ink cartridges to fit inside the ink bays, unlike the previous 220 ml cartridges that stuck out to the point where you could not close the cover. Well you can close the cover with the new cartridges but the new cartridges are pressurized and occasionally arrive leaking. This has led us to always check cartridges for leaks before sending them out. If you are using the new 220 ml cartridges, check them for leaks as soon as you receive them.

5. A final negative, although not affecting the quality of the printer, was that for nearly 7 months of last year, dealers like myself, that focus mostly on the Epson printer line, had no Epson printers to sell. Epson announced the new printers, stopped supplying the previous models, and was unable to ship the new generation of printer for what seemed an eternity. Our belt was tightened more than a few notches.

That’s it on the negatives, so here’s some of the positive highlights:

1. The printer is about 2.5 times faster than the previous generation, but Epson hasn’t sacrificed quality for speed. Epson built the new model with a print head that is more than twice as large as the previous print head, thereby more than doubling the speed.

2. Time consuming and confusing manual nozzle checks and print head alignments have been streamlined and are now carried out automatically, at the touch of a button.

3. Metamerism and bronzing, which were significant problems with the previous UCM inks, have been virtually eliminated. If you don’t know what these are, consider yourself lucky and know that you won’t have them with the new printers and K3 inks.

4. Deeper, richer blacks when using photo-black on photo surface papers. This represents a significant improvement over previous models and inks.

5. A new advanced black and white mode in the driver that produces stunning black and white prints.

6. Improved color gamut- not earth shattering improvement like in black density but still a nice addition to the color palette.

In my opinion, the positives far outweigh the negatives and this new generation of Epson Stylus Pro printers will take their rightful place in Epson’s track record of award winning, superior value and outstanding quality, large format inkjet printers.

About the author:
Kirk Economos is President of Meridian Cyber Solutions, digital equipment and printer dealership headquartered in San Francisco, that offer products and services nationwide. Kirk is also a practicing fine art photographer and fine art printer. Kirk Economos recommends you visit http://www.meridiancyber.com/C_1037.aspx to get an in-depth price catalog for the Epson Stylus Pro 9800 printer. For more information you may call (888) 782-7878.
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What Does MICR toner mean? All You Need to Know About MICR Printing

By Lena Butler

Remember Frank Abagnale, Jr. (or Hollywood hottie, Leonardo DiCaprio, to you!) in the movie “Catch Me, If You Can?” A lot of scenes there showed him cashing Pan Am Airline checks that he wrote using a typewriter. Well, that is not possible now with the emergence of MICR or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.
Banks have started to find ways to streamline their handling of checks as more people grew mobile and (perhaps have grown rich) found more use for bank checks. To automate the processing of these, a standard electronic processing, handling and reading system was established. This is now known as Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.

Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) defines MICR or Magnetic Character Recognition as the accepted machine language specification used in payment transactions on paper – that’s bank checks for you. These are characters printed (MICR Printing) in a special magnetic ink (MICR Toner) that is then read by high speed magnetic equipment that is especially made to recognize these. MICR printing follows an agreed pattern or syntax that, besides authenticating the check, provides the bank with the necessary information like the account number, bank routing number, check number and even the amount requested.

Printed with an E-13B font or CMC-7 font, these MICR characters have to follow a standard arrangement of numbers and symbols for these to be read by a high speed check sorting and reading machine. Just like some barcode fonts, these symbols have a pre-determined prefix and suffix that serve as codes for these machines—there’s no way Leonardo DiCaprio’s character could decipher this as MICR printing follows a lot of strict conditions such as the positioning of the printed lines in relation to the Clear Band Area of the check.
MICR printing involves a special formulation ink called the MICR toner, and these can be printed using a laser printer or printed on a printing press or w/ impact machines. The MICR toner is magnetically charged so that the reader-sorter machines can recognize them through each character’s unique shape. And since it is a machine that optically recognizes these characters, it become important then to have an even or consistent print quality, correct placement of characters on the designated printing area to ensure readability.

MICR Toner
You can use your regular desktop laser printer in MICR printing as long as you use MICR toner. MICR toners are specially formulated magnetic inks that are not the type that you usually use with your printers. These may be readable to the human eye but what the reader-sorter machines are looking for are the magnetic signal or the electronic “fingerprints.” Trying to pass a check in a bank with invalid MICR codes will have them rejected at the clearing center, may cause you a lot of delays, or worse, the bank teller may suspect a modern Frank Abagnale, Jr. who is totally clueless about Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.

About the author:
This Article is written by James Kara Murat from PrintCountry.com, the contributor of PrintCountry Printer Ink Related Articles. A longer version of this article is located at What Does MICR toner mean? All You Need to Know About MICR Printing, and related resources can be found at Printer Ink Cartridges.
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Finding Places To Access The Internet For Free

By Ron King

In an increasingly wireless world, there are lots of places where you can connect your laptop to the internet when you are out and about. These places are called "hotspots," and if you know where to find them, you may never want to go home again.

How To Find Public Hotspots
The first place to look for hotspots is big public institutions. Libraries are increasingly offering wireless access. And, if you're a student, chances are that your campus is already wireless-enabled, or will be soon.

Searching Out Private Hotspots
The private sector, though, is the real growth area in wireless hotspots. Businesses are falling over themselves to provide free internet access to their customers. Cafes, hotels and airports are all starting to offer wireless access to anyone nearby. All you need to bring is a wireless ready laptop.

You may wonder how it benefits businesses to offer free wireless internet access. They are willing to pay the minimal cost in exchange for the new customers it brings in, especially in areas where internet access is hard to find. Customers see wireless access as a big added value, and they vote with their feet and wallets for places that provide it.

Tracking Down The Hotspots
Even though there are thousands of hotspots, they don't advertise this service well. Doing an internet search for hotspots in your town could really surprise you. In a town of any size, it would be surprising if there weren't lots of hotspots to choose from.
There are plenty of websites you can go to to find hotspots. The most comprehensive, though, is generally thought to be JiWire.com. Or you can type your zip code into Yahoo Maps and choose 'WiFi Hotspots' from the menu on the right of the screen.
Can't be bothered with all this? Then just look for a Starbucks. They are everywhere, and almost all of them offer wireless internet access. Borders and Kinko's are also good places to try. Failing that, just ask at a place of your choice.

Not All Hotspots Are Free
Some of the larger hotspot networks require a small fee to a wireless Internet Service Provider to use them. You usually buy a prepaid card where the access is offered -- it's easy and affordable. If you want to save your money, just stick to the smaller, independent places.

Get Your Own Free Hotspot Software
If you like visiting hotspots, you might be interested in an easier way to find them. Just download and install hotspot locator software on your computer. This software has a database of known hotspots that you can search at any time, whether you're online or offline. Just type in a zip code or the name of the town, and the software will give you a list of the nearest hotspots, sorted by distance from you. Each time you make an Internet connection, the software downloads the latest hotspot list, to keep your database current. How cool is that?
This hotspot locator software is available free from hotspot provider sites. T-Mobile Hotspot, for example, at: http://www.tmobile.com/hotspot.

About the author:
Visit http://www.havewireless.com for more info. Ron King is a full-time researcher, writer, and web developer. Copyright 2005 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact.
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Common Printer Ink Questions Answered

By oliver turner

What are the options available for refilling my printer?

There are mainly two ways you can refill your printer – with printer cartridges or with ink refill kits. There are OEM cartridges, remanufactured or recycled cartridges and compatible cartridges. The cheapest option is, however, buying a printer ink refill kit and refill the empty cartridge.

Do remanufactured cartridges harm the machine?
Remanufactured cartridges do no harm to the printer. Remanufactured cartridges are nothing but recycled OEM cartridges. You only have to buy a remanufactured cartridge that is meant for your specific printer.

How many times I can refill a cartridge?
Many suggest refilling should not be done for more than 4-5 times. Printer cartridges come with printer heads and once these heads wear out, the cartridge needs to be changed. As long as you are satisfied with the print quality, you can go on refilling.

How to save printer ink?
Printer inks are very expensive and the best way to save money on printer ink is to use it economically. Plan and print. Often people take printouts simply to realize later that it is not required. Take printouts of only those documents, which are necessary.

Where to buy printer ink?
Printer inks can be brought from retail stores or from online stores. Buying from online stores will save you a lot of money – both on the product and on shipping and traveling expenses as well.

Does my printer warranty remain valid even if I use compatible or remanufactured cartridges?
Printer manufacturers like Hewlett Packard, Canon, Epson, Lexmark etc suggest that you use only OEM cartridges. Generally your printer warranty will be void if you use compatible or remanufactured cartridges. If you have ever used remanufactured or compatible cartridges, the printer manufacturer will not take responsibility for any damage done to the computer.

About the author:
We have made the most comprehensive research to find the best place to buy printer inks. Find the results only on http://www.leandernet.com/Printer_ink/Printer_ink.php . All about printer inks on http://www.leandernet.com
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All About Multifunction Printer, Scanner And Copier

By Roberto Sedycias

Multifunction printers are the best for small offices and or the home. It is a real miracle - one unit that prints, copies and scans. It saves on space and money. One point has to be kept in mind that it does all these functions but not all of them well. If the requirement is for high grade scanning then this three-in-one model might prove to be inadequate. It is all right for moderate use and not for intensive application.
As regards the speed the printer might prove to be too slow for professional use. This is especially so in the case of colour printers. While using a multifunction printer and trying to get some fast assignment completed then the rate of 22 pages per minute as against the crawl of 12 pages per minute does matter.
Multifunction printers that have more memory turn out to be more costly. This inadequacy becomes apparent when one tries to do three things together - scanning, printing and copying. If the requirement is heavy then it is best to opt for a multifunction printer that has 16 MB - to say the least.
The quality of the image depends on dpi or dots per inch. The standard (600x600) will suffice for printing but is unsuitable as regards quality of photo. Scanner resolutions must be noticed, as these are usually low in multifunction models. There is a wide gap as regards quality between interpolated and optimal resolution.
Multifunction printers that have to be fed with one page at a time can become a real headache and eat up the whole day. It is best to buy a multifunction printer that is fitted with a document feeder system that is automatic and at each go holds 15 sheets at the minimum.
It is advisable not to just pick a multipurpose printer off the store shelf, have it packed, pay and walk off with it. Always play around with it in the store giving a good amount of time and attention. Carefully scrutinize the specifications and see how the printer actually behaves when put to the test. Each operation should be tested separately. After all it must meet the specific requirements of the buyer - no matter how small it is.
Most of the multifunction printers are manufactured with the prime function of photographic output. But being three-in-one the other utilities are kept in mind.
The scanner function is of great importance. There are two main types technologies involved in manufacture of scanners. CCD or charge-coupled-device performs better as regards quality of image especially when dealing with books. On the other hand the other technology of CIS or contact-image-sensor makes the machine more durable. Other points to consider are sheet-fed versus flat-bed machines.
The flat-bed ones allow scanning of thicker objects. Try to include in the purchase package an OCR or optical-character-recognition. It converts the pages that are scanned into text documents that can be edited. This will save a lot of time - running into hours - if the original soft copy is misplaced. For those who want to store old photographs purchase with this multipurpose printer attachments that will enable scanning of slides and films.
The speed of making copies can never be up to the mark unless the unit has these gizmos. Always bear in mind that documents have to be lifted and replaced innumerable times. Apart from speed other areas of importance are user friendliness and storage of memory. But with all the attachments included it will be child`s play to manage multiple copies; only few buttons will have to be pressed.

About the author:
This article can be accessed in portuguese from the Article section of page: http://www.polomercantil.com.br/multifuncional.php, http://www.polomercantil.com.br/impressora.php
Roberto Sedycias works as IT consultant for PoloMercantil.
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How Different Similar are Dell and Lexmark Printers and Printer Cartridges?

By Lena Butler

You must be wondering why Dell printers look like new Lexmark printers. Lexmark International is the manufacturer of laser printers for Dell. Even the ink cartridges of both laser printers look the same but they are not interchangeable and will not work if used in the other brand.

Lexmark International, Inc.
Lexmark International, Inc. is one of the leaders in developing, manufacturing and supply of printing solutions, e.g., Lexmark inkjet printers and laser printers. Lexmark, which was founded in 1991, is also widely known for its multifunction products and associated supplies and services. While it provides color laser printers and other IT products for home and office printing needs of consumers in more than 150 countries, it also does business to business with other big names in IT-based technologies. Lexmark reported revenue of more than $4.1 billion in 2001. More information about Lexmark International, Inc., could be found in its website at www.lexmark.com

Dell Computer Corporation
Dell Computer Corporation is one of the primary names in information technology as far as providing for the IT and internet requirements of various customers around the world are concerned. Following direct business model, Dell is best known for its customized products and services that answer specific customer requirements. It has an extensive selection of software and peripherals which it designed and manufactured. It reported a quarterly revenue of $32.1 billion. Dell is a trademark of Dell Computer Corporation and it does not claim any proprietary interest in the names and trademarks of other entities. More information about Dell Computer Corporation can be found at www.dell.com

Case in Point: Dell Color Laser Printer 5100cn
Dell Color laser 5100cn, is moderately priced compared to Lexmark C762n. At less than $1000, this laser printer from Dell comes with Ethernet capability and prints both sides of the paper. It has sufficient speed that is capable of handling an office workgroup setting.
Lexmarks’ C762n comes with usage tracking, it is capable of printing banners and other excellent features that Dell printers of the same category do not have. While Lexmark C762n comes with an impressive array of upgrades, Dell Color Laser 5100cn also has some upgradeable features without putting a hole in your pockets. One of Dell Color Laser 5100cn’s best features is its built-in duplexer that can churn out double sided print-outs. This is an expensive feature to the more expensive Lexmark C762n.
One of the best advantages of having Dell printers is that it offers to recycle your old printer for free, regardless of brand. It also has an online support that provides access to knowledge base and driver downloads. All in all, Dell Color Laser 5100cn gives you satisfactory performance in terms of print-outs in both black and white and color office printing needs. What make it better is that Dell printers come in at a lesser price compared to Lexmark printers.

About the author:
James Kara Murat, the contributor of PrintCountry Printer Ink Related Articles. A longer version of this article is located at How Different / Similar are Dell & Lexmark Printers and Printer Cartridges?, and related resources can be found at PrintCountry Printer Reviews.
Article Source: http://www.Free-Articles-Zone.com

Best Christmas Related Project Ideas Using Your Inkjet Printers

By Lena Butler

Here are some exciting ideas that you could use with your inkjet printers during Christmas holidays. That’s right, inkjet printers—your color printer, to be more specific! It is time to disassociate color printers with work and use them for fun, and for helping you save during Christmas.
It is easy to pair the word “Christmas” with “shopping,” right? And when these two words are joined, they could result to another word, “exciting!” However, for some, “Christmas shopping” means, “Expensive!” Inkjet printers can come in very handy in terms of helping you save in Christmas decors, and a whole lot more!

CHRISTMAS DECORS
Banners – do you know why even the most expensive restaurant caterers or event organizers place those bold letter banners to announce the occasion? They aren’t only useful for photo souvenirs, they also set the mood. Individually print each letter of the phrase “Merry Christmas” on A4 size glossy paper with your color printer. Buy differently colored glossy paper for more funky effect and use different font and size for each letter and cut them out.

Standees – want a life-sized Santa Claus in your living room? How about your 5-year old boy in his favorite superhero costume? There are so many photo editing software that can help you place your boy’s face on any costume—how about a Santa Claus costume? There are software that can help you print sharp images with your color printer and join individual print-outs into a life size image.

CHRISTMAS GIFTS
Personalized Christmas gift wrappers – your gifts become more memorable if they come with personalized wrappers. The designs you can come up with are limitless. Choose lighter colored glossy paper that would fit in your inkjet printer and tape these to the box for a tight wrap.
Christmas cards – Search for the nicest winter photo, superimpose your family photo, print using your color printer and send it to the in-laws or your boss (nothing impresses a boss better than a nice family photo on Christmas!)
Calendar – what could be better than a personalized calendar on someone’s office desk? You must have a photo of the recipient (better if you’re in the same picture too) tucked somewhere. Find the most memorable one, add it as a graphic design to your downloaded calendar template from the internet and print it with your inkjet printer. Frame and send with it your best wishes.
Business Cards – This could be the least expensive but the most appreciated gift you could ever send. There are a lot of business card templates in the internet and they come with some desktop publishing software. You may even design your own. Use the appropriate thick paper (glossy or matte) print in your color printer, carefully cut them into individual cards (50 pieces would be enough) box them and send.

QUALITY TIME WITH THE WHOLE FAMILY
With your inkjet printer, you can have fun and memorable time with your hubby and/or with your kids. Is there a story teller among the family members? Is there an artist in the house? Write the story as it is being told, scan the drawings that your kids draw for each particular scene or page, lay-out them in half the size of a legal page, print them using an inkjet printer or color printer and bind them. Who knows, you may be sitting on the next children’s book best-seller!
There are endless uses you can make with color printers besides using them for business. Just explore with your inkjet printer, and you will be surprised to find out you hardly even scratched the surface yet.

About the author:
This Article is written by James Kara Murat from PrintCountry.com, the contributor of PrintCountry Printer Reviews. A longer version of this article is located at Best Christmas Related Project Ideas Using Your Inkjet Printers, and related resources can be found at PrintCountry Printer Ink Related Articles.

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An Inkless Printer in Your Pocket: The Zink Printer

By Lena Butler

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is one of those big events that tech and gadget geeks from all over the world look forward to every year to get a glimpse of the new gizmos they could salivate on and hopefully get a hold of before the year ends. In the last CES, one of the many gadgets that certainly wowed cellphone and photo geeks is an as-yet nameless product that we shall call the Zink printer.

What is the Zink printer? The Zink printer is one of the newest offerings of Polaroid, that camera products company that we are all familiar with, and of Zink, or Zero Ink Printer Company. The Zink printer promises to become a craze by the time it is released before fall. Why? First, because it is a portable cellphone printer that can easily fit in your pocket. Second, it is an inkless printer – with the Zink technology, it does not consume even a drop of ink.

How Does the Zink Printer Work?

Yes, the Zink printer does not use even a drop of ink. That is because this inkless printer makes use of special paper that was developed by Zink. This special Zink paper has numerous tiny crystals colored in yellow, magenta and cyan, the basic colors needed by inkjet printers to produce color prints.

The way the Zink printer works to produce color prints is quite simple. When a photo is printed using this inkless printer, the Zink printer’s head applies the appropriate heat and pressure on the Zink paper, as accorded by the image being printed. This heat and pressure causes the yellow, magenta and cyan crystals on the Zink paper to melt and blend together to capture the desired image on the paper.

Are photos printed with the Zink printer durable? The answer is yes. The Zink paper is designed so that any image printed on it will be highly resistant to light and heat, therefore more durable and more long-lasting that even Polaroid prints. The Zink paper’s polymer overcoat is the one that makes this possible.

Using the Zink Printer as a Cellphone Printer

What makes the Zink printer so great is that it can be used as a cellphone printer. Any image you can capture on your cellphone camera or digital camera, you can now easily print on the Zink printer.

As mentioned above, the Zink printer is so small it can fit easily into your pocket. Having a portable cellphone printer such as the Zink printer will make it a joy for photo geeks to exchange snapshots. What is more is that the Zink paper can come in variants with adhesive backing, which would make for lovely and colorful customized stickers and labels. A pack containing 10 sheets of the Zink paper is said to cost only $4.

The Zink printer promises to be a hit when it gets released this fall. As a cellphone printer, it is poised to add another dimension of fun and convenience to taking pictures with a cellphone. As an inkless printer, it is a more affordable and handier way of getting the prints that you want.

About the author:
This Article is written by James Kara Murat, the contributor of Printer Ink Related Articles. More information on the subject is at An Inkless Printer in Your Pocket: The Zink Printer, and related resources can be found at HP Printer Ink Cartridges.

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external SATA to shed the power plug

by Stephen Shankland If your power strips are as overloaded as mine with cords and bulky transformers, you'll be glad to hear that eSATA--a standard that gives external hard drives the data transfer speeds of internal drives--is untethering itself from its power cord. eSATA is an external version of the Serial ATA technology used to hook up internal PCs, but today external eSATA drives need their own power supply. But on Monday, the Serial ATA International Organization (SATA-IO) announced it's working on a version that will let external drives draw power over the cable that connects the drive to a computer. The standard, called Power Over eSATA, is expected to be completed in the second half of 2008, and the first devices supporting the standard could arrive as soon as this year, too, the consortium said. The technology should be able to deliver enough power to run a single 2.5-inch drive, said Knut Grimsrud, the SATA-IO president and an Intel fellow, and likely will become a regular part of eSATA products. "I would expect the powered eSATA (to) quickly become commonplace for applications where eSATA is used," Grimsrud said of the new technology. The power link could help eSATA catch up to the two most common connection technologies, USB and IEEE 1394 "Firewire," which can power external hard drives. But the groups behind those standards aren't standing still--and of course those connections can link to many other devices besides hard drives. Specifically, Intel and others are working on a new fiber-optic "SuperSpeed" version of USB that should make its transfer speed to at least 4.8Gb per second, 10 times faster than today's 480 megabits per second. And the 1394 Trade Association is preparing a 3.2Gb/sec specification that should be ratified by February. That should quadruple the current top-end 800Mb/sec IEEE 1394 speed. Another weakness of eSATA today is hot-plug support, the ability to plug a drive into a running computer. "Some operating systems and/or device drivers might not yet have enabled full support for the hot-plug features that the SATA technology provides," Grimsrud said, and some legacy hardware configurations or product deficiencies can make it difficult. The Power Over eSATA technology will use the same connectors as current eSATA, but will require new cables to carry the power, Grimsrud said. The current eSATA has data-transfer connections only on one side of the plug, so the Power Over eSATA technology likely will add the power connections on the reverse side, he said.

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Microsoft to buy Yahoo! for $44.6 billion (£22.4bn)

Microsoft has offered to buy the search engine company Yahoo for $44.6bn (£22.4bn) in cash and shares. The offer, contained in a letter to Yahoo's board, is 62% above Yahoo's closing share price on Thursday. Yahoo cut its revenue forecasts earlier this week and said it would have to spend an additional $300m this year trying to revive the company. It has been struggling in recent years to compete with Google, which has also been a competitor to Microsoft. It is a shotgun marriage, but the person holding the shotgun is Google Tim Weber, business editor, BBC News website"We have great respect for Yahoo, and together we can offer an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market," Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said. Chairman quit There has not yet been any comment from Yahoo. Its chief executive, Jerry Yang, announced on Tuesday that he intended to lay off 1,000 staff as part of a restructuring plan. Terry Semel, who stepped down as chief executive last June, also quit as non-executive chairman on Thursday. Microsoft said that Yahoo shareholders could choose to receive either cash or shares. YAHOO'S FALLING PROFITS Oct to Dec 2007 down 23%July to Sept 2007 down 5%April to June 2007 down 2%Jan to March 2007 down 11%Yahoo shares have fallen 46% since reaching a year-high of $34.08 in October. They rose 54% in pre-market trading. "Ultimately this corporate marriage was forced by the rise of Google, which has grown into a serious competitor for both Microsoft as a software company and Yahoo as an internet portal," said Tim Weber, business editor of the BBC News website. "It is a shotgun marriage, but the person holding the shotgun is Google." 'Exorbitant premium' According to its letter to Yahoo, Microsoft attempted to enter talks about a deal a year ago, but was rebuffed because Yahoo was confident about the "potential upside" presented by the reorganisation and operational activities that were being put in place at the time. "A year has gone by, and the competitive situation has not improved," Microsoft's letter said. But there has been some concern about the price that Microsoft is offering. "To me, the premium seems exorbitant, for what is a dwindling business," said Tim Smalls from the brokerage firm Execution LLC. "I personally don't see how the synergies of Microsoft-Yahoo is going to take on Google." Other analysts were more enthusiastic about the offer. "It is a fantastic offer. It is game on," said Colin Gillis from Canaccord Adams. "This consolidates the marketplace down to Google versus Microsoft. These two companies will be going head to head."

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