Not Sir Bill

MacCentral: Bill Gates picks up honorary knighthood from Queen Microsoft Corp. Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates will receive an honorary Knighthood from the U.K.'s Queen Elizabeth II in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday.

Gates has been awarded the title KBE, or Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, for his contribution to enterprise, employment, education and the voluntary sector in the U.K., and for his efforts to reduce poverty in the developing world, including parts of the British Commonwealth.

As part of the ceremony to present the decoration, Gates will kneel before the monarch, who will tap him on the shoulder with a sword. The motto of the order of chivalry is "For God and the Empire."

Under a system established in 1917, Gates cannot use the title "Sir" because he is not a U.K. or Commonwealth citizen, but he can write the letters KBE after his name."

Ronald Reagan, George Bush Senior, Rudolph Giuliani, Gen. Tommy Franks, former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Bob Hope, and Steven Spielberg have received the KBE.

Once Bill Gages receives this "free upgrade", I wonder if he will be equally generous with upgrades from Microsoft.