Since the Wright brothers, Americans have viewed the airplane as the future and trains as the past. These days, it looks more like the other way around. If we were meant to fly, we weren't meant to suffer this much for it. If we mean to get somewhere, we'll develop a high-speed rail system.

High-speed rail solution for chronic sky troubles

Working in IT isn't always pretty. After all, we can't all work on the cutting-edge technologies all the time. Some of us have to get dirty -- in some cases, literally.

Unfortunately, dirty jobs -- whether you're being chained to a help desk, hacking 30-year-old code, finding yourself wedged between warring factions in the conference room, or mucking about in human effluvia -- are necessary to make nearly every organization tick. (Well, maybe not the human effluvia part.)

The good news? Master at least one of them, and you're pretty much guaranteed a job with somebody. We don't guarantee you'll like it, though.

Here are seven of the dirtiest jobs in IT, and why your organization needs them.

The 7 dirtiest jobs in IT

As much as people I know complained about how crappy CompUSA was when it was still in Atlanta, people defiantly notice when it is gone. All the Microcenters and Fry's are spread out into the suburbs, and all the mom & pop stores are sparse and scary. The "Gotta have ____ right now" has me going to places like Office Depot, Best Buy, and the urban (read: "reduced sized") Wal Mart ... with Office Depot tending to have the best selection. Fry's (one on I-85 in Duluth) is just to far to roam for small part and pieces (traffic can get bad during those times of the day); but a late afternoon pilgrimage with friends to Fry's followed by hitting up one of the nearby boxed franchise restaurants can turn into a decent nerdy social night outing (Maybe even some quick tailgatting and pregaming when we get there).

RE: Last CompUSA Stores to Close

Rapidly rising Internet star Facebook Inc. has sold a 1.6 percent stake to Microsoft Corp. for $240 million, spurning a competing offer from online search leader Google Inc.

The deal announced Wednesday after several weeks of negotiation values Palo Alto-based Facebook at $15 billion

Microsoft buys Facebook stake for $240M - Yahoo! News

Nearly three decades ago, he pioneered 24-hour news. Now he’s trying to save the world—and make money doing it. In this week’s Seven Questions, entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner talks about the United Nations, the death of newspapers, and why climate change offers “the greatest business opportunity that has ever come along.”

Ted Turner on the Future of the Planet

The makers of Coors and Miller plan to combine their U.S. brewing operations in an effort to compete better against industry-leader Anheuser-Busch. The joint venture announced Tuesday will be known as MillerCoors and will have responsibility for selling brands like Miller Lite and Coors Light in the U.S.

SABMiller PLC will have a 58 percent economic interest in the venture and MolsonCoors Brewing Co. will own 42 percent of the new company. They will have equal voting interests, however.

Under the terms of the agreement, the companies said they will conduct all of their U.S. business exclusively through the venture.

Coors, Miller Team Up To Battle Bud - CBS News

Acting as a bunch of Thugs and Gangsters, AOL has finally been brought down on abuse of cancellations. 48 States brought up the suit, and a measly 3 mil was the settlement. AOL killed dial up service for customers, but then would not allow them to cancel even though they had no access.

This isn't the first time AOL has gotten in trouble.

In 2005, AOL paid $1.25 million in penalties and costs to resolve a similar complaint in New York. In 2003, the company agreed to improve the way it dealt with customer cancellation requests as part of a Federal Trade Commission inquiry into allegations about unfair billing practices.

In a separate development, investors hurt by accounting shenanigans that inflated AOL's advertising revenue from 1998 to 2002 will begin to receive payments from a $2.65 billion class action settlement later this month.

This looks like a tail spin for the once giant. Customers are leaving due to broadband, negative publicity, and other free services on the internet.

AOL ended March with 12 million U.S. subscribers, down from 21 million less than two years ago.

AOL to pay $3M, reform cancel policies - Yahoo! News