Microsoft monarch Bill Gates opened a few new windows in Bangalore on Friday on his likes and dislikes after an hour of tiresome technical humdrum.
BANGALORE : Microsoft monarch Bill Gates opened a few new windows in Bangalore on Friday on his likes and dislikes after an hour of tiresome technical humdrum.
After a presentation he made to a meeting of developers, Gates did some straight talking while answering questions from the audience.
If he didn’t get into software, he said, he would have chosen medicine. “If I weren’t allowed to write codes for some reason, I would probably work on finding cures and drugs in medicine.”
When a developer asked whether it was true he liked the North Indian snack, samosa, a lot, Gates had the crowd eat out of his hands, when he said he liked upma, a South Indian breakfast. As the applause increased, he quickly added, “Though I don’t know how to make it, it sure tasted good.”
To a question on cricket, he said: “I was thrilled to hear that they (Indian team) use PCs to record what competitors do and learn to improve their performance. They are pretty
tech-savvy. I signed a bat for them because they were using our technology.”
When was the last time he wrote a code? “The last time I wrote a complete code was in 1983 for the hand-held computer. These days I write a lot of programmes to keep in touch with what’s happening out there.”
The talk then veered to the charity work of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates says that it all started with a simple thought, “What am I going to do with all the money I have?” This had the audience in splits.
Then on a serious note he adds, “Unfortunately or fortunately, I found my cause. There is a set of diseases, which only poor countries are battling. The best brains and money is not available to them. So we decided to give a few billion here and there to help get rid of these diseases. It is a hobby, something I do when I’m not working.”
Before it all began, hazy smoke, dimmed lights and rock music set the mood for the entry of Gates, the rock star of IT. He made a grand entrance shortly after the opening act of Indian rock band Parikrama to attend a Developers Forum and launch a few products.
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