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According to Reuters, Google CEO Eric Schmidt is discussing a possible expansion of his company’s facilities. Malaysia is the most likely location, as that country ranks number one in Google usage in Southeast Asia. The country is also close to Google’s existing offices in Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan.

From one of my students comes a link to this article about Asustek, also known as ASUS. Here’s a November 2007 article from Forbes with some more details.

The company’s US$299 Eee PC laptop runs Linux on an Intel processor, and ships with OpenOffice and Firefox preinstalled. The price is less expensive than a copy of Microsoft Windows Vista, and was enough to scare Microsoft into a special deal: Eee PC buyers could add Microsoft Windows for US$40.

While the XO project and other spinoffs try to bring their low-cost laptops to the US mass market, Asustek is moving aggressively.

Tech: Taiwanese manufacturers are marketing relatively inexpensive Tablet PCs, just in time for the fall buying season. The Averatec C3500 has 802.11g wireless and a 12 inch screen. PC Magazine seemed to like it.

Sports: Even NBC can’t ignore the fact that the stadiums are empty in Athens. I remember the Atlanta Olympics. Tickets got sold, and people showed up to watch. It’s not happening in Athens because the tickets are too expensive and Athens is hard to reach. Beijing has plenty of people to fill the stands in 2008, but the city is sinking. Buildings are crumbling, and the airport is threatened. So 2008 may be the first Olympics called off because of overdevelopment. Plus, there’s still the threat of an international boycott over China’s handling of human rights, Taiwan or North Korea. The problems in Athens and Beijing give Paris, London and New York City some real advantages for hosting the 2012 Olympics. Then again, what sane city really wants the Olympics these days?