Finally, Microsoft is all set to wrap off its much anticipated search engine named Bing, (formerly coded as Kumo). Going to be fully operational from June 3, 2009, Bing is a replacement for Windows Live Search. Unveiled as a ‘Decision Engine’ by Microsoft CEO- Steve Ballmer on May 28, 2009 at the ‘All Things D’ conference in San Diego, the search engine has been started as an attempt to smack down Google’s domination in the search arena.

Will Bing takeover Google’s dominance?  Is Bing a Google-killer?

We can’t say with a certainty that Bing will dethrone Google or not, but surely there are some unique features which enable Bing to withstand competition against Google and Yahoo.

Home Page: The most remarkable feature of Bing is its homepage which is loaded with nice wallpapers that seem to change on a daily basis. By hovering over the mouse on the image you can also find the story behind the wallpaper.

Search: Bing throws the information at you in a much uncluttered, unconfused and neat manner. Bing includes navigation for search results, including a new left-hand navigation bar and a categorized search feature that groups all search results by topic category. What is liked most about the web results are the snippets of information that are seen beside every search result link.

Other Features: There are other expected features on home page such as Images, Videos, News, Maps along with Shopping and Travel. You can also check out the bits of information at the bottom of the homepage; there’s also a ‘Popular Now’ link that shows you the topics that are currently getting the buzz at Bing.

Well, it might take some time getting used to this new set of search results and finally coming to a judgment  ‘Is Bing better than Google and Yahoo?’ but Microsoft has had a good start with Bing by creating a good amount of buzz as well as receiving some early positive reviews for this nice search engine.

“Severe migraine attacks during Sunday evenings…”
“Six million people per year take sick leave from work…”
“Maximum number of heart attacks during office hours…”

These are some of the headlines published these days in the Health column of daily newspapers. Research studies have proven that the only reason behind these unhealthy situations is the Workplace Stress. According to a survey, ‘63% employees say that the job pressures interfere with their personal life and 60% say that the job is negatively affecting their physical and emotional well-being.’

We all know what Workplace Stress is, right? Struggle to beat the clock, deadlines to meet, targets to catch up on…etc., etc…

However, it is not true that workplace stress is always negative. It can yield positive results also. In fact, people perform better when they are under ‘stress’. While stress and pressure are productive for a short time, their long time influence can affect a person’s mental, emotional and physical perspectives. Negative stress turns out when the job is mismatched with what was really wanted, little on-the-job flexibility and no time to relax and recover.

Over the past few decades, stress in the workplace has been greater than before. Occupational Stress can be one of the most devastating types of stress. Employees are not acknowledged properly by their Managers. Attitudinal problems among superiors cause lack of communication due to which subordinates feel isolated, unsupported and stressed.

Perhaps, this so called epidemic can be cured by taking immediate actions to control the causes of stress. Employees themselves can deal effectively with stress on the job. Proper time management and planning can help create a routine and get organized. Respect and appreciation at work, mix of a little fun and smile with work also might help to ease the stress of workdays. Sometimes small words of acknowledgment like ‘Thanks’ can create big wonders.