Former CEO Steve Ballmer describes Microsoft as a "two-and-half trick pony" to describe its success despite missing on the mobile trend during a talk at the Oxford Saïd Business School.

"Most tech companies fail," Ballmer says. "They are zero-trick ponies. They never do anything well and they go away. You are a genius in the industry if you are a one-trick pony. You get some innovation right and then spin it. I am very proud of the fact that [Microsoft] has done at least two tricks. Tricks are worth billions and billions and billions of dollars."

What are the "tricks" Ballmer speaks of? The first is the modern Windows-and-Office PC. The second is "bringing microprocessor technology into the data centre," while the Xbox counts as half a trick.

If the sources speaking to TechCrunch are true Intel is taking the wearables business pretty seriously-- enough so to cough up $100-150 million for fitness band maker Basis Science.

Basis is best known for the B1 activity tracker, a wristwatch-style device featuring reportedly advanced sleep analysis functionality. It also offers an online health tracking suite and mobile device apps.

According to a previous TechCrunch story Basis has been in acquisition talks with Google, Apple, Samsung and even Microsoft, with the price tag described as "sub-hundred million." Did Intel get to outbid them all or did they simply give the prize up, one wonders...

Feel like munching on Creole shrimp-lamp dumpling or an Austrian chocolate burrito? If you're wondering who'd come up with such dishes, get this-- these recipes, and more, were actually created by IBM and its "cognitive computer."

Cognitive computers are machines designed to approximate the workings of the human mind. A leader in the field (having been working on the subject with DARPA since 2008), Big Blue clearly wanted to have some fun through a collaboration with the Institute of Culinary Education it calls "cognitive cooking."

Cognitive cooking is like a search engine on steroids. The chef enters a key ingredient and a couple of parameters (for example, "lobster" and "Thai"), and the system crunches through big data sets to come up with a never-made-before recipe. The result? Swiss-Thai asparagus quiche, Turkish bruschetta and Portugese lobster rolls.

HP reports improvements for the first fiscal quarter ending 31 January 2014, with all but flat net earnings of $28.2 billion (-1% Y-o-Y decline) thanks to better-than-expected enterprise PC and server sales.

The company generated cash flow worth $3bn during the quarter, up 17% Y-o-Y.

"The progress we're making is reflected in growth across several parts of our portfolio, the growing strength of our balance sheet, and the strong support we're receiving from customers and channel partners," CEO Meg Whitman says. "Innovation is igniting our comeback, and at a time when many of our competitors are confronting new challenges, two years of turnaround work is setting us up for an exciting future."

According to a California district court report Apple and Samsung fail to reach an out-of-court agreement over a fresh round of patent-related disputes, meaning the two companies will soon return to the legal battlefields.

The report says the the two companies met with a mediator in hopes of an out-of-court agreement on January 2014, with Apple and Samsung holding "at least" 6 and 4 calls respectively with the mediator. However "notwithstanding these efforts, the mediator's settlement proposal to the parties was unsuccessful."

Also mentioned is an 18 February 2014 meeting involving CEO Tim Cook, general counsel Bruce Sewell, chief litigation counsel Noreen Krall and chief IP counsel BJ Watrous on the Apple side and CEO JK Shin, IP centre heads Seung-Ho Ahn and Ken Korea, CFO HK Park and heads of licensing Injung Lee and James Kwak on the Samsung Mobile side.

Sony declares "PCs No More" and sells off the Vaio unit to Japanese investment fund Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) in order to further concentrate on smartphones, tablets and high-end PCs.

Why is Sony out of the PC business? The company blames "the drastic changes in the global PC industry," of course.

Following the deal Sony will "cease planning, design and development of PC products," if with the promise customers are to continue receiving aftercare customer services. It will officially stop making and selling PCs following the launch of the Spring 2014 Vaio lineup.

After a months-long search Microsoft confirms recent rumours and names enterprise and cloud chief Satya Nadella as 3rd CEO in company history, starting immediately.

"Today is a very humbling day for me," Nadella writes in an internal Microsoft memo. "It is an incredible honor for me to lead and serve this great company of ours."

The appointment allows Steve Ballmer to retire earlier than the previously announced August 2014 date. A 20-year Microsoft veteran, Nadella was in charge of the server and tools business, a division renamed as enterprise and cloud following the most recent Microsoft executive reshuffle. He also has experience in online services research and development, and was business division VP.

Bloomberg reports Microsoft is set to hand the mantle of CEO to no other than enterprise and cloud chief Satya Nadella, while Bill Gates is to be replaced as chairman.

According to anonymous "people with knowledge" replacing Bill Gates is lead independent director John Thompson. However the Microsoft founder will not be wholly out of the company, since he reportedly wants to be more involved in areas such as product development.

A 20-year Microsoft veteran, Nadella was in charge of the server and tools business, a division renamed as enterprise and cloud following the most recent Microsoft executive reshuffle. He also has experience in online services research and development, and was business division VP. He would be the 3rd CEO in Microsoft history, following Gates and Steve Ballmer, who's to retire on August 2014.