After Deepika, Rajini will romance Katrina

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This has had one or two interesting twists to the tale.  Deepika was to be seen in Rana; however, she will be replaced by Katrina.  Katrina was offered Kochadaiyaan, but Deepika has stepped in her shoes, because the former could not give her call sheets to Soundarya Rajinikanth.  In retrospect, nobody has lost anything; it is a case of mere role reversals.  Rajini, for one, will act with two top Bollywood actresses in succession.

It was none other than Soundarya R Ashwin, the director of 'Kochadaiyaan', who confirmed the presence of Katrina Kaif in her dream film starring her Superstar dad. But last minute changes ensured that Katrina missed the bus and Deepika boarded into it.

"Soundarya narrated the storyline to Katrina and she was very much interested to make her debut in Tamil with Kochadaiyaan. But she could not adjust her dates following which the plum offer landed on Deepika's lap", sources say.

Deepika was roped in to share the screen space with Rajini in 'Rana' and the actress attended the movie's launch function in Chennai April last. But the project hit a roadblock after the Superstar fell ill and hospitalized.

And now, the word in Kollywood is that Katrina Kaif would star opposite Rajini in 'Rana', which is set to take off soon after he completes shooting for 'Kochadaiyaan'. "By that time, Katrina would free herself from other commitments," add sources.

Aamir likes to act in Malayalam

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"If I come across a good character or story, i would definitely love to act in a Malayalam film as they are unique and high in quality. I  also admire its  nationally acclaimed superstars of the state" revealed Aamirkhan, the Bollywood superstar. Aamir was shooting for his latest advertisement campaign for the Central Government at the backwaters of Alappuzha The star actor who had been rowing in the famous snake boats for some shots in the Advertisement also has a taste of local cuisine, which he opined to be mouthwatering.Also a great admirer of the natural beauty of the state, Aamir was down to earth patiently meeting his fans and signing autographs. The state police also supported the actor's own security outfit for managing the crowd who assembled at Arthunkal and Thechi beaches to see the great star of Indian cinema.

Shruti invited by PM's office

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It was only recently Dhanush was invited by the Prime Minister's office to take part in a dinner hosted to Japanese Prime Minister. And now, the PM's office has invited the actor's co-star in '3', Shruti Haasan, for a similar event.

The actress-singer-musician will be one of the special guests for the State dinner Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be hosting at his Race Course residence in New Delhi for his Mauritian counterpart Navin Ramgoolam.

Extremely happy about the invitation, Shruti, the elder daughter of Kamal Haasan, said, "I am honoured and at the same time, excited! I consider myself very lucky to get this opportunity so early in my life".

The '7aum Arivu' girl, who has just completed shooting for '3', is currently standing in front of the camera with Pawan Kalyan for 'Gabbar Singh', the Telugu remake of Bollywood blockbuster 'Dabangg', which was remade in Tamil as 'Osthi' by Dharani-Simbu.

Ajith - Arya - Nayan film for Diwali 2012?

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While 2011's Diwali was a festival for the Ilayathalapathy fans with the release of 'Velayudham', if sources are to be believed, this year Diwali will be a treat for Thala Ajith's fans for his project with Vishnuvardhan is expected to grace screens then.

"The film will go on floors by mid March and Vishnuvardhan is aiming at a quickie and will complete the film in about three months time. They are aiming for a Diwali 2012 release", says a source close to the unit.

The high voltage action entertainer will have music by Yuvan Shankar Raja and will be produced by AM Ratnam. Arya supposedly plays the villain in this movie. Vinod is the camera man for this yet-to-be-titled venture.

With the coming together of Ajith and Arya as hero and villain respectively and marking the comeback ofNayantara, this film is definitely one big project to look out for in K-town...

Deepika opposite Rajinikanth in 'Kochadaiyaan'!

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Its official! Deepika Padukone who was all set to play the Superstar's lady love in 'Rana', will now be seen opposite him in 'Kochadaiyaan', India's first performance capture photorealistic film! Soundarya Ashwin, Rajinikanth's daughter and the film's director confirmed this news on her microblogging page saying, "Deepika Padukone confirmed to play as appa's pair in Kochadaiyaan, great to have you back!" The big budget film is being made in 3D and Soundarya had earlier announced that they were in talks with Katrina but it wasn't finalized. Sources express that although Katrina was pleased with the offer and her role she couldn't accommodate dates and so the makers had approached Deepika Padukone who has given her nod for the project. Sneha will be seen as Rajini's sister in this film that also has Aadhi, Sarathkumar and Jackie Shroff in pivotal roles. Music is by AR Rahman and the first look posters with the Superstar as a Lord Shiva devotee was welcomed with open arms by fans.

Are Shahrukh-Katrina-Anushka doing 'Daag' remake?

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Bollywood lovers were surprised last weekend when rumours started spreading around Shahrukh Khan's next with Yash Chopra's being a  remake of his own 'Daag: A Poem of Love'. Sources confirm though that there is no truth to the tale and the film is as original as it gets, just like is the case for other films that come out of Yash Raj Films. "Neither Yash Chopra nor Aditya Chopra believe in remaking films. Neither have they bought anyone else's script nor have they have ever looked into their own past work for inspiration. Their films may be good or bad but they are always supposed to be original. Same is the case with the Shahrukh starrer as well," informs our source. What added fire to the rumour though was the film's casting that reminded one of the Rajesh Khanna-Sharmila Tagore-Raakhee pairing in 'Daag' which had released close to four decades ago. Since Yash Chopra's film too has one leading man (Shahrukh Khan) and two leading ladies (Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma) with a romantic subject to boast, tongues started wagging about the supposed inspiration. More so since 'Daag', which was much ahead of it's time then, had been directed by Yash Chopra himself. "Rumour mongers have a choice to say anything they want but Yash Raj Films has always believed in not reacting to it all, especially when it is out and out speculation with no theory or basis whatsoever," the source adds, "If one man and two women is a reason to call out 'Daag' as an inspiration, even 'Talaash' (Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee), 'Raaz 3' (Emraan Hashmi, Bipasha Basu, Esha Gupta) or 'Barfee' (Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Ileana DCruz) would sail in the same boat. Shahrukh's film is being targeted just because Chopras have been tight lipped over the film's actual storyline." No wonder, the only information in this regard stays on to be extract from Yash Chopra's official statement that says, "This is a film which has an old soul but a young heart. A film which is classic in its look but contemporary in its language." Well, the only give away we are finding here are the words - 'an old soul' - but guess we may just be reading a little too much between the lines here. Pun intended!

Allu Aravind, Dil Raju team up for a crazy project

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Looks like this is the time for not just big heroes coming together, but also big producers joining forces to bring out big-time films.  Imagine an old-timer like Allu Aravind and a producer like Raju, who is considered a byword for 'success', coming together to make a film.

The news is that AS Ravikumar Chowdhary of Yagnam fame has inspired these two frontline producers of Tollywood with a remarkable story.  (Veerabhadra and Aatadistha are his two other films.  He was seen in some films like Jagadam).  As soon as they heard the story, they were so much excited that they wanted to rope in a popular actor (name not yet disclosed) to make a film together.

The film may go on the floors sooner than later.   Bunny Vasu, who produced 100% Love, will helm the affairs.  A note released on behalf of the producers says that the film is already being viewed as a boost in the trade circles.

While Raju is very much a happening producer, Geetha Arts has produced only two films (100% Love and Badrinath) in the last two years.

Dhanush as Kundan in 'Raanjhnaa'

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Earlier we read that "Kolaveri Di" fame Dhanush was set to make his debut in Bollywood, by signing a film titled 'Raanjhnaa', to be directed by Anand L Roy. Now we have more details about the project, to be produced by Eros International.

Buzz is that Dhanush's character in this film is called as Kundan. "It is one of the interesting roles that I have come across. Though many Bollywood offers knocked my doors earlier, I politely turned them down. But I could not say no to this," says Dhanush.

Meanwhile, Dhanush is happy that the making video of his anthem for Sachin Tendulkar has become an instant hit on the net. "I am a great fan of Sachin right from my school going days, this song is my tribute to him," he says.

The National Award winning actor, close on the heels of the success of "Why This Kolaveri Di...", has joined hands with music composer Anirudh one again, for this Sachin anthem, which also features south hottie Anushka Shetty.

Clicked: Arnold Schwarzenegger At Taj Mahal

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Hollywood's star and California's former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was in Agra recently, in a hope to see one of the Seven Wonders of the World and India's beautiful epitome of love, Taj Mahal. However the 'Terminator' famed actor was deeply disappointed when he and his entourage were denied permission inside the famous monument. Reason - Arnold had visited on Friday (3rd Feb), a day when Taj Mahal is usually closed for tourists. However, Arnold didn't go with a sad face, since he was able to have few glimpses of Taj from outside. He was taken around by enthusiastic guides, who took him to Dussehra Ghat and Mehtab Bagh, from where Arnold had good view of the monument, at closer distance. Owing to his tight schedule, Arnold couldn't stay back and have a leisure visit of Taj Mahal. But the star left with a hopeful heart to visit the place again...

'Agneepath' brings Hrithik back in Top-5 zone

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'Agneepath' has proven to be a goldmine for those who had invested in it. The film, after a terrific first day and a heart stopping second day went on to be really stable for its next six days (it had released on Thursday), hence enjoying a bountiful extended week. With over 85 crore in its kitty, the film entered it's second weekend on a high as well, hence crossing the 100 crore mark.

Though earlier it had seemed that mixed word of mouth would hamper its progress after a very good weekend, all such fears have now been laid to rest since this Karan Johar production has numbers to speak for themselves. Now the next immediate target for the film is to cross the 'Ra.One'/'Ghajini' total of 115 crore and come close to the 120 crore milestone set by 'Ready'.

With the super-success of the film, Hrithik Roshan has now left behind the twin disappointment of 'Kites' and 'Guzaarish' that had pushed it's stocks down in 2010. With multistarrer 'Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobara' last year and now a solo superhit in the form of 'Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobara' this year, Hrithik has placed himself firmly into the Top-5 zone.

The film is also special for Karan Malhotra who is now the first debutant director ever to start his Bollywood sojourn with a century. As for Karan Johar, he now has yet another big success against the name of his production house and is now expectedly gung ho about his next release 'Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu'.

On the other hand Priyanka Chopra too sustains herself in Top-3 zone with first 'Don 2' and now 'Agneepath' scoring a century. Not to mention Sanjay Dutt who finally has a box office success to his name after a couple of inconsequential releases in the form of 'Rascals' and 'Chatur Singh Two Star'.

Bollywood Gupshup - The Tidbits

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This is your one stop shop for the latest happenings in the town. The buzz. The release plans. The launches. The works. Yes, this is serious business and we will bring to you the most reliable information twice a week. Have a dekko. With promo of two high profile films - 'Talaash' and 'Agent Vinod' - unleashed last week, Kareena Kapoor is on a roll all over again. 2012 is all set to be her year, what with 'Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu' and 'Heroine' arriving as well. Since neither 'Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya' nor 'Jodi Breakers' are willing to budge from their stand, seems like this high profile clash would now definitely take place on 24th February Promo of Sonu Sood and Naseeruddin Shah starrer 'Maximum' had made a good impression. Since this cop drama comes from Kabir Kaushik who had debuted with a gritty 'Seher' (another cop drama) a few years back, there are good expectations of a 'masala' outing here.

'Kochadaiyaan' excites fans

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Sunday brought sunshine on the faces of millions of Rajini fans all over the world, as the first look of the Superstar's next film, 'Kochadaiyaan', was released in the form of advertisements in daily newspapers.

Within hours, the still, which had Rajini standing on one leg on the top of a hill, was shared by thousands on social networking and microblogging sites. "It was like the Thaandavam of Lord Shiva," said Rajini Balaji, an ardent fan of the Superstar.

At some places, Rajini fans burst crackers and distributed sweets to express their happiness that the Thalaivar's next film has hit the floors. "There is no bigger joy than this for us," said Selvam of Ambattur, who is an office-bearer of a Rajini Rasigar Mandram.

Directed by Soundarya R Ashwin, the younger daughter of the Superstar, the film is produced by Media One Global Entertainment and presented by Eros International. Music is by A R Rahman, while K S Ravikumar has penned the script for this India's first performance capture photorealistic film, which is to be made on 3D.

Sathyan with Vijay again

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Sathyan has become a household name, thanks to the impact of his role in 'Nanban'. The hero-turned-comedian, who impressed everyone as 'sincere student' Srivathsan in the Shankar-directed Vijay starrer, is sharing the screen space with the Ilayathalapathy again! "I play an important role in Thupaki. It is a delight to work with Vijay again. My thanks to director AR Murugadoss and the Ilayathalapathy," says the actor, who earlier played Vijay's friend 'Vettaikaran'. "Though I am playing Vijay's friend in Thupaki once again, the role is totally different from the ones I did in the past. And I signed this film much before Nanban hit the screens," says Sathyan, who is a close relative to Sathyaraj. "In fact, when I was shooting for Nanban, the associate producers of Thupaki watched me performing on the sets and recommended my name to Murugadoss. The director paid heed to their suggestion and roped me in," he added. Nanban Trailers

'Saguni', '3' to release soon

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There is a respite for films like '3' and 'Saguni', whose releases were postponed following a decision by Tamil Film Produces Council that 'big movies' could be released only on five occasions a year.

Following requests from its own members and other stake holders of the industry like distributors and exhibitors, the TFPC has relaxed the norms, allowing big films to hit the screens on eight occasions a year.

Says SA Chandrasekhar, president of TFPC, "in addition to the five announced dates (Pongal, Tamil New Year Day, May Day, Independence Day and Deepavali), big films can be released on the first week of March and June and mid-December."

Last month, the Producers Council came with this curfew after it felt that the release of big films throughout the year affect the prospects of small movies in the box-office. Also, small budget movies find it difficult to get theatres thanks to competition from their 'big brothers'.

'3' in three languages

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If sources are to be believed, '3' will simultaneously grace the screens in three languages, Tamil, Hindi and Telugu!

The TFPC had announced that big Tamil films should release only on five occasions a year and now has revised this decision due to much persuasion as eight occasions a year. Apparently making best of the delay the makers are dubbing the film in Telugu and Hindi as well.

'Why This Kolaveri Di...' weaved magic among Indians and also internationally, thus it's a huge boon for '3' which is now eagerly awaited by movie goers all over the country.

If '3' manages to live up to the hype in the North it will be an added plus for Dhanush who is working on a full length Hindi feature film, 'Raanjhnaa'.

'3' marks the debut of Aishwarya Dhanush and music composer Anirudh and can be rightly called as one of the biggies this year, what with the 'kolaveri' buzz. The on screen romance between Dhanush and Shruti Haasan is one of the biggest highlights of the film.

Dhanush to lecture at IIM Ahmedabad

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The Kolaveri sensation Dhanush who is now popular in every Indian household and has received much international acclaim will be making a speech at the prestigious IIM institute in Ahmedabad.

"Gearing up to make my speech at the IIM institute in Ahmedabad tomorrow... I don't know good English, but who cares, I'm an Indian, not English", tweeted a sportive Dhanush.

The song that became a viral hit was rated the most popular video of 2011 by top international media houses and it became a subject of interest for marketing students in leading institutes in our country with students researching on the success of this song.

Dhanush who is known for his simplicity and straightforward statements that strike a chord is sure to impress the students at Ahmedabad as well...

Priyamani blames media for 'fake scandal' with Sachiin Joshi

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CCL brand ambassador and Southern actress Priyamani is furious with a section of the Hyderabad media for creating a 'fabricated scandal' between her and 'Aazaan' actor Sachiin Joshi. A publication reported that Sachiin teased Priyamani in allegedly inebriated state at a party after the match.

The media house reported that he tried to hold her hand and hug Priyamani, rubbing the damsel's ego the wrong way at a CCL after-party. It is said that the report was published despite denial from Sachiin's publicist Dale Bhagwagar and Priyamani's mother.

This has infuriated the actress, who says, "We (Priyamani and Sachiin) were just unwinding after the matches. I don't understand why a story like this has been circulated. All it does is harm Sachiin and my reputation."

Meanwhile, Priyamani will be flying down to Mumbai to hold a joint press conference with Sachiin Joshi to clear air on this front.

Ajith, Arya, Nayan it is!

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Director Vishnuvardhan and producer AM Ratnam are said to be bringing together Thala Ajith, Arya andNayantara for their yet-to-be-titled venture. It is further said that the trio have given their nod for the film which is a high voltage action entertainer.

The film will go on floors come March, after Ajith finishes work on 'Billa 2'. It may be mentioned Vishnu worked with Ajith and Nayantara in 'Billa' and Nayantara and Arya had worked together in Rajesh's 'Boss Engira Baskiran'.

It's supposedly a high budget entertainer for the salaries of the trio itself come up to about 23 crore rupees! It is also said that Arya has increased his salary to Rs 5 crore with this movie and Nayantara is charging a whooping Rs 1.5 crore for this venture which will mark her comeback in K-town.

Kochadaiyaan-First Look

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Vidyut - Ajith & Vijay's happening villain

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Vidyut Jamwal will be foraying into Tamil cinema as a villain for two big releases, for the actor plays the baddie in Ajith's 'Billa 2' and Vijay's 'Thupaki'. The young talent who recently bagged the Best Male Debut Filmfare Award for 'Force' (remake of Khaaka Khaaka) is shooting for both these biggies currently.

"When I was shooting with Ajith in Georgia where the snow was falling heavily and covering the roads, I thought it was humanly impossible to shoot but Ajith and director Chakri were meticulous and prepared me for it", says Vidyut.

While it is said that 'Billa 2' will have another villain apart from Vidyut, he plays a powerful baddie in 'Thupaki'. At a time when there's a dearth for suave villains in here, if played the right cards Vidyut can make it big in K-town!

Sreeni to produce, Vineeth to direct

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After not so sweet performance of their latest black comedy 'Padmashree Bharat Dr. Sarojkumar', actor-writer and director Sreenivasan will once again join his son Vineeth Sreenivasan for a home project. This new flick will turn Sreenivasan again as a producer while his son Vineeth will direct this movie. This yet to be titled movie to be produced in the banner of Lumiere Cinema, will be a romantic musical with Shaan Rehman tuning the songs. Lumiere Cinema also have actor Mukesh as a co-partner with Sreenivasan. Their first venture was 'Katha Parayumpol' which was a big success.

Mohanlal in a Shankar movie

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Yes, this is big news...Superstar Mohanlal is all set to play the lead in the new movie by the biggest showman of south,  Shankar, the director who has plenty of fans in the state. The more surprising fact is that this will be Shankar's first movie in  Malayalam. This movie to be made by Aascar films Ravichandran will be simultaneously made in Tamil and Telugu also. The Tamil version is already titled as 'Thalaivan Irukkindran' and will feature Universal star Kamal Hassan in the lead. The Telugu version will have Prabhas as the hero. As per the early reports Kathrina Kaif will play the female lead in all the three versions. Another highlight of the movie will be that Hollywood star Jackie Chan will also become a part of these three versions. Watch this space to know more details about the movie which will have A R Rahman as the music director.

Katrina in Kamal Haasan-Jackie Chan starrer?

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First she became Superstar Rajinikanth's arm candy, and now she is hopeful of playing opposite to yet another superstar for a Tamil project...

Buzz is that "Chikni Chameli" hottie Katrina Kaif is being considered for a mega-budget Tamil venture by Aascar Ravichandran. The movie 'Thalaivan Irukiran', which is alleged to have the highest-budget ever in Kollywood, will have Kamal Haasan in the lead. Talks are that it will be simultaneously made in Telugu and Malayalam with Prabhas and Mohanlal respectively. Not only that, Hollywood action king Jackie Chan is also said to have a pivotal role in this one.

However, if things work as planned and if Katrina gives her nod for this one, then apparently the film will be made in Hindi as well.

Some sources claim that the production house is keen on having director Shankar and music ace A.R. Rahman for this magnum opus.

As a matter of fact, Katrina is sharing the screen with Rajini in 'Kochadaiyaan' and now let's see if this British gori says yes again to a south flick...

Entry-Level Facebook Engineers Get A $100,000 Salary, $50,000 Signing Bonus, And $120,000 In Stock

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How much does Facebook pay a recently graduated software engineer?

Over on Quora, an anonymous user answered:  "I am graduating in the spring of 2012, and I was offered $100,000 in salary, a $50,000 signing bonus, $5,000 in relocation, and as [much stock] as necessary to be worth $120,000."

We've since had this answer confirmed with a second source familiar with Facebook compensation. Facebook PR declined to comment.

Pretty good right?

CONFESSIONS OF A FACEBOOK EMPLOYEE: What It's Really Like Working For Zuckerberg

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Later this year, Facebook is expected to IPO at a valuation close to $100 billion. 

More than anyone else, the person responsible for that success is Facebook's 27-year-old cofounder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg.

What's it like working for him?

We know a lot about what he was like as a boss during Facebook's early days.  

Along with some Harvard friends and a buddy at Stanford, Zuckerberg started working on Facebook in a dorm way back in 2004. Back then, according to personal messages we've viewed and written about in the past, Zuckerberg the boss was cut-throat, comfortable leading others, and sometimes awkward about sharing success.

That was a long time ago, of course, and you have to assume Zuckerberg's leadership style has matured over the years.

Has it?

For a long time, the best answer to this question was Facebook employee Andrew Bosworth's blog post, "Working with Zuck." Its four main points where:

• Zuck expects debate.
• Zuck isn't sentimental.
• Zuck experiences things contextually.
• Zuck pushes people.

More recently, former Facebook employee Yishan Wong has written a long answer to the question on Quora: "Is Mark Zuckerberg an autocratic CEO with whom no one wants to work? Is he a pain to work with?"

The gist is "no" – that Zuckerberg is not a "pain," even if he "does have a touch of the Asperger's." 

"If your confidence in your own abilities is self-generated and emotionally secure, and you are seeking someone who will pose to you ever-greater challenges to surmount, then Mark Zuckerberg is a pretty good fit for you.  However, he is not there to "develop" you - that's your own job."

Here's the whole answer:

There are plenty of people who are happy to work with [Zuckerberg], though there are also plenty who find it difficult.

He is not some sort of ideally charismatic person whose primary quality is that he's easy to get along with.  Rather, he's a demanding CEO with a monomaniacal focus on making Facebook succeed in its mission.  This is not to say that he's mean - he's a perfectly nice guy on a personal level; it's just that professionally, he is focused on getting it done, and has a limited tolerance for emotional fragility in the people he needs to help him execute on that mission.

In my study of business leaders, I've yet to come across one who was considered "great" who didn't also have a significant body count of ex-employees claiming that they were autocratic and mean.  Examples include Jack Welch, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Larry Ellison.  My theory is that the level of personal demandingness needed to drive a global enterprise to a position of world-changing leadership is one that can be too much for some people.  Such leaders don't tend to provide much in the way of emotional coddling, and Mark Zuckerberg is like that.  If your confidence in your own abilities is self-generated and emotionally secure, and you are seeking someone who will pose to you ever-greater challenges to surmount, then Mark Zuckerberg is a pretty good fit for you.  However, he is not there to "develop" you - that's your own job.

He does have a touch of the Asperger's; in my experience this is primarily manifested in that he does not provide much active feedback or confirmation that he is listening to you.  I have had multiple experiences where he will ask for my opinion on something and even when we're the only two people in the room, I wasn't sure if he had really comprehended or cared about what I was saying (he doesn't do the usual "oh, all right!" or "hmm, I see!" that most people do; he just listens, sometimes while looking away from you), until later when some strategy change was announced that integrated some or all of my opinions.  I think this leads many people to think that he's thoughtlessly autocratic, but it turns out he is actually listening all the time to anything that anyone is saying to him, but you will simply not receive confirmation or acknowledgement until later when he announces his conclusion or decision, whereupon you can observe that he has integrated all his streams of information and advice together.

I would characterize him as "tough but fair."  He's not a pain in the ass to work with if you're the type of person who is looking to achieve greater and greater things in life, but if you just want to get something good done once and then take a break, then he's probably not the guy for you.

REVEALED: Facebook's Stock Symbol

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Facebook hasn't decided on which exchange it will list, but it has already decided on a symbol, the New York Post reports.

Ready?

…

…

…

Really ready?

It's…

"FB"

EXCLUSIVE: The IM Conversation In Which 19-Year-Old Zuckerberg Decided To Build Facebook, This Year's $100 Billion IPO

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Later this week, Facebook will file documents with the SEC to announce its intention to go public. 

People close to the deal expect the company to be valued somewhere between $75 billion and $100 billion when shares finally begin trading in late May.

Facebook is so valuable mainly because more than 850 million individuals use the product each month. Half that number come back every day. 

In hindsight, something so massive and valuable as Facebook can seem almost historically inevitable. 

But the truth is, Facebook's creation—and even its sustained development—was anything but a foregone conclusion.

We know this because back in college and in the year or so following, Mark Zuckerberg held lots of instant message conversations with friends and confidants about his plans for life and work. Due to a lawsuit or two, these instant messages were preserved.  We have viewed some of them.

In one of these conversations, a 19-year-old Zuckerberg confers, during the fall of 2003, with his best friend from high school, Adam D'Angelo—who would become Facebook CTO and later cofound Quora—about which project he should focus on: a "dating site" he was asked to build for some Harvard seniors, or "the Facebook thing." Zuckerberg and D'Angelo discuss what "the Facebook thing" should be like.

Zuckerberg: So you know how I'm making that dating site

Zuckerberg: I wonder how similar that is to the Facebook thing

Zuckerberg: Because they're probably going to be released around the same time

Zuckerberg: Unless I fuck the dating site people over and quit on them right before I told them I'd have it done.

D'Angelo: haha

Zuckerberg: Like I don't think people would sign up for the facebook thing if they knew it was for dating 

Zuckerberg: and I think people are skeptical about joining dating things too. 

Zuckerberg: But the guy doing the dating thing is going to promote it pretty well. 

Zuckerberg: I wonder what the ideal solution is.

Zuckerberg: I think the Facebook thing by itself would draw many people, unless it were released at the same time as the dating thing. 

Zuckerberg: In which case both things would cancel each other out and nothing would win. Any ideas? Like is there a good way to consolidate the two. 

D'Angelo: We could make it into a whole network like a friendster. haha. Stanford has something like that internally

Zuckerberg: Well I was thinking of doing that for the facebook. The only thing that's different about theirs is that you like request dates with people or connections with the facebook you don't do that via the system. 

D'Angelo: Yeah

Zuckerberg: I also hate the fact that I'm doing it for other people haha. Like I hate working under other people. I feel like the right thing to do is finish the facebook and wait until the last day before I'm supposed to have their thing ready and then be like "look yours isn't as good as this so if you want to join mine you can…otherwise I can help you with yours later." Or do you think that's too dick?

D'Angelo: I think you should just ditch them

Zuckerberg: The thing is they have a programmer who could finish their thing and they have money to pour into advertising and stuff. Oh wait I have money too. My friend who wants to sponsor this is head of the investment society. Apparently insider trading isn't illegal in Brazil so he's rich lol.

D'Angelo: lol

There are two historically significant notes about this conversation:

• It seems to be the moment when Zuckerberg decides not to work for somebody else, and to strike out on his own to build what would become Facebook.
• It's D'Angelo, not Zuckerberg, who seems to suggest "We could make it into a whole network like a friendster."

In the months following his conversation with D'Angelo, Zuckerberg—along with a little bit of help from some Harvard friends, Eduardo Saverin and Dustin Moskovitz—built Facebook (then called TheFacebook), and watched it grow very popular very quickly.

By the next summer, Zuckerberg and pals moved to California and began working on Facebook full-time. By late July, Facebook had almost reached 1 million users, just 7 months after launching.

But despite that early success, a surprising instant message conversation between Mark Zuckerberg and a confidant on July 26, 2004—about who will foot legal bills in the event that Facebook were ever to be sued—reveals that Facebook was not his main priority at the time.  

Confidant: Well you should recover the shares you need to recover legal fees.

Zuckerberg: I won't pay the legal fees

Zuckerberg: The company that buys us will haha 

Confidant: Cool hopefully that'll be soon so you can move on and just work on what you want to

Zuckerberg: Well it just needs to propel Wirehog 

Confidant: So you have gotten responses to your national recognition? 

Zuckerberg: Responses from whom?

Zuckerberg: Some more VCs. Still talking to Google and Friendster.

 What's enlightening about this conversation:

• Even as a million people found themselves addicted to Facebook, Zuckerberg wasn't sure yet that it would end up being worth his time. To him, Facebook "just need[ed] to propel Wirehog," which has since been described as a file-sharing service.

• How close Google came to owning Facebook—probably for a price approximately $99,990,000,000 lower than what Facebook will IPO for in just a few months.