They couldn't put a little category box around the Pixel, so they began berating the only thing they could: the software.

CNN: My month with the Chromebook Pixel: A review

Ballmer will reportedly offer a preview of a new Microsoft set top box, a category the the company has attacked several times, with mixed results.

FORBES: CES: Microsoft Chief Steve Ballmer (Live)

If there were a category for box-office earnings, they would have been nominated there too.

FORBES: Awards Season

While there have been a wide variety of entrants into the OTT set-top box market, to date the category has been dominated by two players: Apple TV and Roku.

FORBES: CES: Roku In Streaming Pact With Time Warner Cable

Like other Big Box stores, all the companies in the Office Supplies category have cut back: closed stores, process re-engineered operations and, like every other sector that was unable to find some level of emotional engagement to hang their brand on, price-promoted, price-promoted, and then did more price-promoting.

FORBES: Office Depot To Buy OfficeMax? And Then There Were Two.

Select 'other' as a category and write 'alternative subculture' in the box provided.

BBC: Hate crime: Police record attacks on punks, emos and goths

The likelihood of Apple being leapfrogged or a rival creating a new category is greater if they have to think out of the box.

FORBES: Connect

In the category of how much does an Oscar help your film at the box office, the envelope says: Not much.

CNN: The Oscars just don't matter

News Corp could adopt a strategy of launching films in this category, similar to what Disney has done using Pixar, improving its share in both box office sales and the DVD market.

FORBES: Can Avatar Be For News Corp. What Toy Story Was For Pixar?