The Social

Hotties? Definitely. But I wonder what they would've said if I'd asked them if they know who Steve Ballmer is.

(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET News.com)

This post was updated at 4:50 AM PT on March 4 with comment from a Microsoft representative.

NEW YORK--So, on Monday night, Microsoft threw a party for its brand new Office Live Workspace, also known as Redmond's answer to Google Apps. Held at the Twelve21 nightclub in Manhattan's Flatiron District, the guests of honor at the event were Doug Ellin, creator and executive producer of the HBO series Entourage, as well as executive producer Rob Weiss and star Jeremy Piven (you know, "Ari").

I'm always down for a good time with software geeks, so I rolled in hoping to find some people willing to talk about whether Office Live Workspace really is a formidable answer to the Google Docs that I've found myself using pretty frequently. Instead, I walked in to find that the open-bar party was full of models. You know, the sort you'd see at Fashion Week, not a Microsoft party. And aside from my esteemed colleague Natali Del Conte of CNET TV, the only two people I recognized there were Pop17 video host Sarah Meyers and CrunchGear blogger (and local tech party staple) Nicholas Deleon.

Yes, there's an Office Live Workspace logo, but let's face it, everyone was interested in the free drinks instead.

(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET News.com)

Logos for the new Web-based software were everywhere, but the hotties in attendance didn't seem to care, making a couple of us bloggers wonder if maybe they'd been hired to show up and look good. A half dozen computers set up with demos of the Office Live Workspace beta were ignored, for the most part. Jeremy Piven, meanwhile, remained squarely in the VIP section. It was certainly a party, but it definitely wasn't much of a launch party.

A Microsoft representative provided me with an explanation via e-mail. "This was a party that included users of Office Live Workspace from the limited beta program, some press and analysts as well as guests of Jeremy, Doug and Rob," the e-mail read. "Not a typical Microsoft event, but major milestone for the product and we did want to celebrate it."

Oh, well--thanks for the invite and the free Stella Artois, Microsoft. I had a decent time, and I know you guys in Redmond like to put on a big spectacle, but seriously it's O.K. to invite nerds to parties. We're very social, honestly.

(Credit: NBC TV)

On Thursday night's episode of The Office on NBC, dweeby Dwight Schrute (played by Rainn Wilson) revealed himself to be a Second Life addict--something that doesn't require any suspension of disbelief.

The Second Life banter began when Dwight's notably less nerdy co-worker, Jim (played by John Krasinski), asked Dwight if he was "playing that game again."

"Second Life is not a game," Dwight replied authoritatively. "It is a multi-user virtual environment. It doesn't have points or scores; it doesn't have winners or losers."

With all the deadpan wit that's made The Office the hit that it is, Jim fixed his glance on Dwight and commented, "Oh, it has losers."

Dwight, who said that his "life is so great that (he) literally wanted a second one," is known as Dwight Shelford in-world. Just in case you see him flying around.

(Link via Valleywag, which has a video.)

He wants to beat you to a bloody pulp.

(Credit: NBC)

This post has been corrected to provide the correct URL for Red Line Films.

If you thought Kid Nation was pushing the envelope, wait till you hear about this one. Production company Redline Films has just announced that you can now audition for its latest creative masterpiece, Office Fight. It's exactly what you think it is: it'll take co-workers who don't like each other and make them go face-to-face in a boxing ring.

Do you find this as supremely awesome as I do? Of course! To make it even awesomer, getting involved with Office Fight is easy and you can totally be part of it too! Just e-mail Redline, tell them who you want to pummel and why ("Jason smells like rotten cheese," or "Sean totally meant to let his pet python loose in my cube," or the serious stuff, like "Andrew cheated me out of a promotion and then ran off with my wife"), and if you have a valid claim, you're in like Flint.

The production company will then come to your office to shoot some spicy B-roll of how much you and what's-his-name hate each other, and then they'll train you for two weeks. Then you fight. If there's enough space in your office, they'll set it up right there, but otherwise, they'll hold the event in a local gym. The judges, fittingly, will be your other co-workers, and you'll have to wager bets in which the currency is pure unadulterated shame. ("If you lose, you have to wear a chicken suit to the office for the next week.")

Declan, you're on.

(Via Thrillist)