Bill Gates shares his notes

Ever wondered what it would be like to compare notes with Bill Gates? Well now you can! Yesterday he launched a website designed to share his thoughts on everything from his foundation work to musings on other topics including energy and the environment.

Gates told CNET that he missed having the kind of Web presence he had here at Microsoft and that he plans to post content about three times a week, with some posts being brief and others being more in-depth.

In an introductory note on the site, Gates said that since he left his full-time job at Microsoft, he has spent much of his time "learning about issues I'm passionate about." That learning process has led to meetings with experts in their fields -- and a lot of note-taking from Gates.

"I thought it would be interesting to share these conversations more widely with a website, in the hope of getting more people thinking and learning about the issues I think are interesting and important. So, welcome to the Gates Notes," he wrote. He's split up the site into several categories, including: What I'm Thinking About; What I'm Learning; My Travels; Curious Classroom; Conversations; and Infrequently Asked Questions.

"I think it's going to be a lot of fun to share on an ongoing basis," he said, adding that he is looking forward to the feedback. "It will help guide me."

It seems social media fever has taken over, because in addition to this, he's also just joined Twitter, where he racked up hundreds of thousands of followers in record time... why didn't it happen like that for us when we launched? Already the Gates Notes site has some great content on there, so watch this space. Oh, and if you fancy, why not start following us on Twitter too at MicrosoftBizUK :)

And while we are on the subject, what are your thoughts on social media as a tool for your business?