President Bush finally called on Helen Thomas yesterday. Some verbal fireworks resulted. (Hat tip: Wonkette.)

Windows Vista has been delayed again, meaning it won’t be available in time for the Christmas season.

“I was stunned,” says analyst Al Gillen of market researcher IDC. “I’m very surprised.” He had expected the product to be available no later than September. [David] Smith, of [market researcher Gartner Inc.], calls it a “black eye.” The Windows upgrade was originally expected by some analysts in 2003, but Microsoft launched a huge initiative to improve security and planned major improvements in the way the operating system stored and retrieved documents — which were later dropped as too ambitious.

Still, [Microsoft executive Jim] Allchin promises that it will be worth the long wait. “Everyone we show it to loves it,” he says. “We think people will be blown away.”

Now the question is, will Leopard beat Vista out of the gate?

BREAKING NEWS: The latest incarnation of Stanford’s embattled Tree has been suspended:

Stanford’s mascot will not be in San Antonio [for the women’s NCAA Sweet 16]. Whether it’s headed for the wood chipper remains to be seen.

The Tree was suspended for the rest of the NCAA women’s tournament Tuesday, a day after it was forced to make like itself and leave during the Cardinal’s second-round victory over Florida State in Denver.

“Make like itself and leave.” Heh. Of course, that reminds me of Back to the Future 2 and Biff saying the nonsensical “Make like a tree and get outta here!” Anyway, moving on…

This is not the same Tree, mind you, that was ousted for having too much drunk in the trunk at the Cal game last month. So that’s good. Or not so good, considering the pattern of rising sociopathic behavior on the part of Peninsula-area lumber-based beings.

“Athletic events are meant to be fun, and we want everyone to have a good time,” said Gary Migdol, Stanford’s senior assistant athletic director. “But we also demand that we respect the opponent, we respect the game and we respect the facility that’s putting on the event.”

NCAA officials thought Tommy Leep was out on a limb in that regard. As the halftime period ended and players returned to warm-ups, the band’s mascot was grooving with the Dollies — the five-woman dance team — when he was banished to the tunnel. (Officials said they had warned him repeatedly to make way for the players.)

Leep disputes the allegations that he was uncooperative, stating, “There were a bunch of little steps involved and a bunch of little requests. I had no problem honoring the requests, but they weren’t very clear.” Leep’s account seems to jive with that of a commenter, apparently from Stanford, on my previous post. Anyway, the article goes on:

So will he be the most short-leaved Tree in history? Leep said as far as he knows, he’ll be reinstated once the tournament ends. Migdol said that matter could come up for review within the athletic department, which sets ground rules for The Band but doesn’t provide funding.

Leep said he regrets the silliness detracting from the team’s success and that he can’t be there to cheer on his friends.

As for others who might be miffed by his antics? “As far as I can tell, I’m a mascot. Adding value to a spectator sport seems to be my job.”

Incidentally, in case you hadn’t noticed, I’ve created a Stanford Tree category, since this seems to have become a frequently recurring topic here on the blog!

P.S. If you’re wondering how I keep abreast of all the latest Tree-related news… I set up a Google News e-mail alert. :)

Fellow Mid-Majors Say Missouri Valley Suddenly Acting Like It’s Better Than Them:

Friends and acquaintances of the Missouri Valley Conference say the conference has started acting as though it’s superior to them in the week since it received four bids to the NCAA Tournament and saw two of its teams qualify for the Sweet 16.

“Yeah, it’s like all of a sudden they think their s—t don’t stink,â€? said the Metro Atlantic Conference. “We called them up the other night to congratulate them on their success and they were all curt with us and said: ‘Uh, sorry. But I have to go. I’m supposed to go to the mall to hang out with the ACC.’â€? …

The Metro Atlantic is not the only mid-major to notice the Missouri Valley’s attitude change.

“We always used to hang out together, commiserating on how tough it was to compete with the power conferences,â€? said the Mid Continent Conference. “And then I see them during the NCAA Tournament at a bar with the Big East and Big Ten, buying each other expensive import beers and thinking they’re the coolest cats in the place. And when I walked by them at the bar all I get from them is some lame nod like: ‘Hey, ‘sup man,’ as though they hardly even knew me. Apparently they thought their big, fancy friends the Big East and Big Ten wouldn’t think they were cool if they were friends with the lowly Mid Continent Conference. Whatever. Screw them.”

Heh.

Adam Morrison missed Monday’s practice with flu-like symptoms, which he was apparently also suffering through during the Indiana game on Thursday. But “the team still expects Morrison to play when Gonzaga faces No. 2 seed UCLA Thursday night.” Will he be 100%? Only time will tell. (Hat tip: UCLA grad Mike Tran, whose Bruins are totally going down on Thursday.)

Sean Sullivan and 2003 champion Rick Boeckler went 7-for-8 Tuesday and stayed in first place atop the 9th annual Living Room Times NCAA women’s pool heading into the tournament’s second weekend, while A.J. St. John dropped into a tie for fourth place after a 6-for-8 day.

Sullivan, of Boston, MA, and Boeckler, of Silver Spring, MD, each have 240 points out of a possible 272. They are followed by Victoria Lopez, a.k.a. “Vicki from NJ,” with 238, and then former co-leader St. John and Notre Dame 2L Chris Pearsall with 233.

But Pearsall, despite his lofty position in the rankings, was eliminated from any chance of winning the pool when #8-seed Boston College stunned #1-seed Ohio State on Tuesday. Pearsall had picked the Buckeyes to reach the Final Four — and that pick was the only difference, from this point forward, between his bracket and Sullivan’s. Thus, the Buckeyes’ loss means Pearsall cannot gain any ground on Sullivan, so his best possible finish is second.

BC’s stunner also eliminated Carol LaPlante, currently in 14th place. On the flip side, the Eagles’ win was a boon for Bonnie Stone, Charles Fenwick, Diane Huffman and Rebecca Loy, the only four contestants to pick the Eagles. It was particularly important for Loy, who would have been mathematically eliminated if OSU had won. Thanks to the Eagles, she instead moved up 26 spots since Monday night, into 41st place.

Complete standings here and after the jump.

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Gary Kirby increased his lead, clinched a Top 10 finish and solidifed his status as the odds-on favorite to win the 2nd annual BrendanLoy.com NIT Pool on Tuesday, even as seven other contestants were mathematically eliminated from any chance of winning the pool.

Charles Fenwick, Kevin Pilz, Matt Scarborough, Paul Zak and Rebecca Loy were eliminated when South Carolina beat Florida State in overtime, and Scott Robertson and Wilson Loftis joined them when Cincinnati crushed Minnesota. That leaves just 12 contestants out of 74 with a chance to win: Gary Kirby, Brad Miller, Jay Johnson, Jamie McGinnis, Dennis Chow, Rick Boeckler, Andrew Long, Mike Quinn, Tom Greca, John Feeney, Terry Jones, and defending champion Tom K..

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