A simple thing like a vote count. Where were the checks, the verification of figures, the common sense realisation that something didn't add up? Can we just not concentrate these days? Or do we simply believe in what emerges from the computer as if it were the gospel truth? I'm starting to despair... It must be something in the water.

Hmmm. Is the proxy related somewhat with "Diebold voting machines"?

Mine's the one with the self-disappearing votes in the pocket.

So they put out figures showing Yang has 85%, world+dog reads that and sees huge popularity for Yang, thinks no more about it.

Then when they correct it to a more modest 65%, far fewer people will be listening or noticing.

So as long as you don't change the actual result, it would be easy to boost your perceived popularity with little risk (unless the SEC apply some meaningful sanction/fine as a result of this.)

...who believe this was really a honest mistake?

Paris Hilton, because with honest mistakes like this, she WILL be president.

How on earth can a truncation error be off more then a full digit ?

if you truncate wrong you can go +1 or -1 .... not almost 20 like from 85 to 66..

and actualy truncating is defined as : throw away the non integer part...

Only rounding can go the wrong way.. that's why they came up with a system like bankers rouding

Does anyone have a problem with putting faith in the future direction of a company that can't correctly count votes?

Where's Jim Henson and Count Von Count when you need them?

Or is the "!" joke by the reg getting very! old now

You're aware it was Broadridge, not Yahoo that failed right?

@D!A!V!I!D! Yes, but so what!!

Paris, because math is highly overrated.

A "truncation error" is easy if you only allow 8 digits, so 100,000,000 becomes 10,000,000, or, even more likely, 00000000. I'm just aghast that someone would still own more than 8 digits' worth of shares of Yahoo!

As to how they could have missed it, I still vividly recall when I was teaching a calculus class and I asked a student what six times seven was. She dutifully plugged it into her calculator and gave me an answer of 279,936. I asked, "Are you sure that's right?"

Her answer, "Of course. This is a really expensive calculator."

*SIGH*

Spoil! sport!

On a side note:

This election brought to you by Flordia. We put the DUH! in FlorDUH.

Time for another 50 recounts, maybe a couple lawsuits and several re-votes.

Is it just me of when you tell the comment box to "Remember me on this computer" it never does? And no I dont clean cookies. Work computer FTW

I am terrified by that guys actions since the whole MS drama begun.

First of all, Yahoo and Microsoft cultures doesn't match at all.

It wouldn't be 1+1=2 , it would be 1+1=0.5 making Google a further de-facto monopoly.

As a Yahoo user, I see this fact and Icahn, a billionaire tech investor doesn't see? It makes no sense. That guy should be paid whatever amount he wants and should be sent out of Yahoo at any cost.

Just imagine you are a high end person/developer working at Yahoo for some new projects, you take your coffee and open "The Register", this story appears. What kind of motivation it would give?

That guy will kill Yahoo and it will be bad for everyone even including Microsoft themselves.