An impressive feat of manual special effects:

http://crass.on.ru/flash/pingpong.html

I began my career at Microsoft, and some of the smartest people I know still work there. (Take Sam McKelvie, for instance, of Internet Explorer, MSN Messenger, and now MSN search fame…) Microsoft remains a formidable competitor and I wouldn’t count them out of any race, including search.

It looks like the MSN folks are hiring for a number of interesting positions. I spoke with Kevin Kaufmann of MSN Search and they are looking for a strong release program manager; here are Jobster links to additional openings that they have. If you’re someone I know, I can put in a good word for you.