Hey genius, they want you.

Microsoft are probably the biggest and most influential software company in the world. I know, I don't like it much either but it hasn't done bad now, let's admit. Whilst trawling the student pages of Microsoft, I came across another patronising, fake esteem building, crap student oriented promotion, essentially advertising the fact that Microsoft want you, rather the other way round.

You'll hate the music, or at least if you don't, you'll have Vietnam style flashbacks to when you were younger and your older sibling snatched away your Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) as you were transfixed by the blocky-graphics of Super Mario (which at that age, you thought nothing could ever beat it).

Essentially the point of this appalling Flash "mind invasion" is to immerse you into the world of getting a job at Microsoft. There's a forum you can join in and talk to other geeks, a College Code Challenge on its way soon, and a lounge where you can spend your time working away on some of the simplest logic games I've ever seen. I mean honestly, my nearly-5-year-old goddaughter could do them had she worked out how to use a mouse properly.

However I do wish to stress, not all jobs at Microsoft are geeky and involve sitting in front of a screen all day, drinking 2 litre bottles of Diet Coke, in a room with no fresh air and one single window, but the blinds are shut because you're scared of daylight. Oh no - you can have all that still, and not be stuck behind a desk tippity typing away some useless code for another useless product they'll throw at you - (more on Live@edu another time I'm sure). There's marketing jobs, sales, technical, user experience stuff (which would be way up Long's street) and human resources of course.

Remember, in any organisation, the CEO is powerless over the administrative staff. I will tell you again and again, in any job - make friends with the HR people, keep on the good side of the financials, and for God's sakes don't piss off any of the marketing staff, because it's them who run the company, not the bosses. Trust me on that one.

On a separate note, I was considering heading to Seattle to see some friends of mine next month, however only found out today that I can't even drink over there as I'm not old enough (3 months off being 20 by the way). Pfft, it escapes me how I can go to a country and be old enough to buy a gun but not a pint of Guinness. MJ, looks like I'm buying rounds when you head over to London on your book tour later this year.