You look at things you enjoy in your life, but much more important is what you can do to make the world a better place.

With documentary-film projects, you hope you highlight an area of concern people haven't thought about before. A lot of times, I'm asking myself - 'This seems to be a significant problem. What can be done that hasn't been done?

In global warming, I think everyone is scratching their heads - are there technological things that can be brought to bear that can make a difference?

I grew up around books. When I first held the book and it was a substantive, tangible thing, and I thought of all the work that went into it, not just my work but everybody else's and the research and so forth, there's a sense of really have done something worthwhile.

For the most part, the best opportunities now lie where your competitors have yet to establish themselves, not where they're already entrenched. Microsoft is struggling to adapt to that new reality.

When it comes to helping out, I don't believe in doing it for the media attention. My goal is to support the organizations that need help.

Technology is notorious for engrossing people so much that they don't always focus on balance and enjoy life at the same time.