In the U. S. ，the Redmond，Washington-based Microsoft said on Sunday it willreverse a long-standing policy and let makers of electronic organizers and cashregisters modify the source code for Windows to combat the use of Linux in consumerelectronics，where it is being promoted by companies including Japan??s Sharp Corpand Sony Corp.
Gates met with Australian Prime Minister John Howard yesterday and will meetMalaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today. He??s also scheduled to visitChina. Ballmer meets government officials in Japan yesterday and today and also visitsSouth Korea.
“These gentlemen are understandably coming out to speak with governments onbehalf of their product and to ensure its longer -term viability when there is a growingchallenge，” said Dr. David Satterwhite，executive director of the FulbrightCommission in Japan，an independent analyst of political and economic development.PC sales in Asia grew 14 per cent in 2003，compared with 12 per centworldwide，according to Framingham，Massachusetts-based researcher IDC. PC Linuxshipments in the region reached 448，124 copies sold in 2003 ，compared with 142，131copies in the U. S. ，according to Stamford，Connecticut-based researcher Gartner Inc.
Microsoft got almost 11 per cent of its U. S. ＄32 . 2 billion in fiscal 2003 sales fromAsia.
Shipments of Linux for server computers that run corporate networks grew at anannual pace of 57 per cent globally in the first quarter，compared with 16. 4 per centgrowth for Microsoft??s Windows server software，IDC said.Yesterday，Fujitsu，Japan??s largest maker of server computers，said it would useMicrosoft??s next operating system，dubbed Longhorn，in its servers. The software isplanned for release in 2006. Fujitsu and Microsoft also said they plan to set up a jointengineering team at Microsoft headquarters later this year .
“Our partnership with Fujitsu will be very important，”Ballmer said in Tokyo.
“We??re making investments in new tools to help us understand the security andreliability parameters of a given piece of software. ”
During a trip by Ballmer to Japan in November ，computer industry groups fromthat country，South Korea and China urged their governments to use programmes suchas Linux.
Notes on language a nd cultur e
1. stem: If you stem something that is passing or spreading from one place toanother，you put a stop to it.
2. Linux: 一种可免费使用的UNIX 操作系统，运行于一般的PC 机上
3. Fujitsu: 日本富士通公司，全球最大的计算机公司之一
4. analyst: An analyst is someone whose job involves analyzing something andgiving their opinion about it.
5. momentum: Momentum is the ability that something has to keep developing in aparticular way.
6. accelerate: When a process or the rate of something accelerates or when youaccelerate it，it gets faster and faster.
7. Novell: 美国Novell 公司，以生产网络产品著称
8. retail: If an item in a shop retails at a particular price，it is on sale at that price.
9. defection: 背叛，背信
10. NASDAQ:〈美〉全国证券交易商自动报价系统协会
11. distributor: A distributor is a person or company that supplies goods to shops,garages，or other businesses.
12. on behalf of : 代表
13. viability: 可行性; 生存能力
14. Fulbright Commission: 富布莱特法案基金
15. fiscal: Fiscal is used to describe something that relates to government or publicmoney，especially taxes. The fiscal year is the same as the financial year ，used in
American English.
16. dub: To dub someone or something a particular name means to give them thatname，especially as a nick name or as a way of describing them.
17. parameter : A parameter is a factor or limit which affects the way that somethingcan or should be done or made.
C. Post -r eading a ctivity
Think and answer the following questions:
1. What was the main reason for Bill Gates to visit Asia?
2. According to Para. 8，what may the“ long-standing policy”of Microsoft involveconcerning the source code for Windows?
3. What can be inferred from the figures presented in Paragraphs 11 & 12?
4. What do you think is the main reason for Fujitsu??s sticking to Microsoft?
Ⅳ. Fast Read in g
In this part，you are required to read three passages and choose the best answersfor the questions after each passage，using the skill you have just learned.
( 1)
In the past year，Microsoft??s hefty profit included ＄1 . 1 billion in customerpayments that the company won??t see again. The money came with no strings attached- no commissions ( 佣金) to be paid，no rebates ( 回扣) to be given and no othercosts necessary.
In the next year，that cash will disappear as some key contracts expire ( 期满) .And as much as the company expects to grow，the ＄1. 1 billion hole is going to hurt.
That??s not all Microsoft faces as it begins its new fiscal ( 财政的) year.
Executives have said the company will not increase expenses，and yearly sales areexpected to grow less than 10 percent for the first time. Meanwhile，shareholders aredemanding an improved bottom line，and the company??s ＄56 billion cash hoard ( 储藏) is coming under fire.
Fiscal 2005 likely won??t be the best year for Microsoft. And the company ispreparing for that，in big and small ways.
It is taking out its budget scissors，looking to save ＄1 billion in an across-thecompanydrive to cut costs. It is cutting spending on travel and entertain- ment，andreducing some worker benefits，such as the discount ( 折扣) at which employees canbuy stock. It has eliminated some positions and is closely analyzing its marketing andsales expenses. Even catering costs have not escaped scrutiny ( 详细审查) .
And in an effort to boost ( 推进) sales，it is offering a number of rebates anddiscounts on its products.
To be sure，Microsoft??s financial position is still one that other companies wouldlove to have. But the company is moving out of its high-growth phase，an era inwhich it spent seemingly as easily as it earned. For four years running，its spendinghas grown more than its sales. Now，executives want to reverse that trend.
1. It can be easily guessed that the passage was written in .
A. 2001 B. 2002 C. 2003 D. 2004
2. In the first paragraph，the word“hefty”most likely means .
A. forceful B. very large in amount
C. vigorous D. very large in size
3. From the passage，we can infer that .
A. Microsoft will be unable to make as much money as it did in the past year