links for 2010-08-20: Ellison to hire Hurd?; Laptop reliability survey; Google thwarted by California; Oracle vs Google on Java; Cloud data offers intelligence; Ubuntu advantages over Windows and OS X

• Mark Hurd to Oracle? Don't be surprised - An interesting idea.
  
• Acer makes the shoddiest laptops, say IT professionals - From those they surveyed, I'd agree Acer is at the bottom of the list.  It is interesting to see HP and Dell with high percentages in both the best and worse categories.
• Google accuses California of rigging bidding process for e-mail contract - I personally find Google's labels and search preferable to traditional e-mail clients.  Let's hope California didn't have a closed mind on the subject.
  
• Charles Nutter's thoughts on Oracle vs Google - A great read if you have the time.  If you don't, Stephen O'Grady's thoughts are good as well (and shorter).
• Intuit: Small businesses slow hiring; increase pay and hours worked - Another great example of how Cloud based services (Intuit's Online Payroll service) offer an opportunity to use volumes of data to offer intelligence.
  
• Ubuntu's two big advantages over Windows and Mac - Jason makes very good points.  I doubt it is going to cause a major shift to Ubuntu though...