This week is our big quarterly marketing event: "Network Computing 05Q3".

If you want somebody^h^h^h^hthing to remind you to check out the webcast, you can sign up to get an email message when the big day arrives. You can also download and run a widget on your desktop, which will presumably give you a series of whizzy, annoying announcements with increasing frequency as the time draws near.

I say 'presumably' because I can't actually run the widget. The instructions say:

Don't miss the NEXT Network Computing Event. Download the NC Events widget for a reminder.
Here is what you need to do:

1. Download and install Konfabulator
2. Then download and install the NC Events widget
Runs on Windows XP or 2000 and Mac OS X 10.2 or greater

That's right. The widget announcing Sun's big quarterly product rollout does not work on Sun's operating system. It doesn't even work on Linux. You have to be running Windows or MacOS X to get marketing's full attention.

If anybody can think of an occasion where Apple required a potential customer to use Windows-only technology, or where Microsoft required a Mac-only technology, please drop off a pointer in the comments section.