The biggest tech companies continue to outdo each other every single time with the latest gadgets, but even with all the straight out competition there are plenty of things that these companies do on the sidelines to keep their business image alive. Here are some of the more interesting tidbits that we’ve dug up.
TRUST ISSUES (APPLE)
You might secretly wonder how large companies such as Apple manage to keep their products under wraps. Well, here’s the secret: whenever Apple recruits new personnel, they are tasked to work on products that they never know what’s it for. The rationale behind this is, if information regarding the product is released, they know who did it. Once the newbies are proven to be trustworthy, Apple, then let’s these folks work on the real projects.
GOAT GALORE (GOOGLE)
In 2009, instead of using the traditional means of cutting grass via lawnmowers, Google’s Mountain View headquarters used goats as their means of cutting grass. A herder came in with 200 goats – who were rented from a California grazing farm – which then proceeded to eat as well as fertilize the grass. While there were no exorbitant costs incurred (as transportation of the goats costs about the same as the electricity bill for the lawnmowers), Google was up for this as it’s less damaging to the environment and according to them “goats are a lot cuter to watch than lawn mowers”.
BLACKBERRY THUMBS, ANYONE?
BlackBerry certainly made their mark in not just the tech world, but even the medical industry. With the spike in texting over the recent years, many of us put unwanted strain on our fingers, which is known as a condition called “BlackBerry Thumb”. This condition rose to gain awareness in 2005, when BlackBerries were popular, and thereby, were known after this brand. Back then, BlackBerry users in particular, were known to type mainly with their thumbs for it helped them type more quickly as compared to typing with all their fingers.
FROM NOODLES TO TECH (SAMSUNG)
The corporation with around 80 companies, Samsung had its beginnings in the food industry. In 1938, when it was initially founded, Samsung Sanghoe was a company that sold noodles and dried seafood, and then it eventually expanded to other food products such as sugar and industries such as textiles. It was only in 1969, that Samsung Electronics was formed along with a change in their logo which originally consisted of 3 stars – the direct translation of the word ‘Samsung’.
THE ACRONYM (YAHOO!)
Originally called “David and Jerry’s Guide to the World Wide Web”, Yahoo! got it’s name because the original slang definition of it(rude, uncouth and unsophisticated) was liked by it’s founders, David Filo and Jerry Yang. However, it was reported that at that time, that “Yahoo” had already been trademarked by a barbecue sauce company, and that’s how Yahoo! got it’s exclamation mark. The acronym also stood for “Yet Another Hierarchically Officious Oracle”, since hierarchical represented the list of websites the founders compiled together chronologically, officious represented the large number of office workers, and oracle stood for it being the provider of wisdom.
If you wish to find out more tech scoops, keep an eye out for our Mid-February issue which will be hitting your schools next week. We’re covering everything from cool technological products of the future as well as in-demand tech jobs.
