Slashdot Mirror

As typical by this poorly organized and completely out-to-lunch company a great idea put together with horrible execution. Obviously companies try to launch products on their first day with a big media blitz. So far so good, they get the front page of Slashdot, many newspapers (http://seattle-pi.com/ articles and widespread coverage on mac news sites (http://www.macnn.com./

So, how about trying it? Well, you can go to the Rhapsody site, http://rhapsody.com/ and try to get to it. Well, NOTHING on the rhapsody.com site says anything about the web features. Nothing in the FAQ and the system requirements say Windows only. If you're going to launch a major new feature don't you think you would update your home page?

If you click to "TRY RHAPSODY" you come to a jump page and if you select either option, one says "Windows required" and the other says "Rhapsody is currently offered only on Windows..." Oh nice.

So, if you're super persistent, then you can go to http://real.com/ . You will notice the web page doesn't even load, and stalls somewhere around 50% loading of the 31 items on the page. Ooops, looks like their servers can't handle the load. Oh , some poor Sys Admin's pager is blowing off the hook right about now I'm sure. Real's CTO Mesrobian is probably trolling down the hallways with a bat clubbing engineers like baby seals and screaming like a banshee.

If you manage to find the small text link at the bottom of the real.com page "Rhapsody Unlimited for Mac" that page also barely loads. And then, there doesn't seem to be any obvious way to the 25 free trial without giving them your credit card number.

Horrible launch, a disgusting display of web marketing. My 15 year old sister could do 50 times better than this and she could create a website that looks more visually appealing than this blue and white patchwork.

Good luck Real, hope your servers recover and hope people come back to try it some other day when they can actually find the software.

Yes, the Q&A was quite revealing. I think the open source question appeared to be basically ignored, politely.

The issue of women execs was also something you could tell they weren't going to address, which is very strange, in that most of Bill Gates foundation work has focussed on educating women and providing contraceptive measures for women in third-world countries.

As to China, this again was something that didn't seem to be that interesting to the execs.

Very disappointing responses, overall. One related news item in the Seattle P-I business section today noted that many MSFT employees have picked up their purchases of stock recently.

Does this mean we're nearing the bottom of the market, or that they know something we don't?

-

Hopefully this new way of transmission has
NOTHING to do with technology described here:

http://www.seattle-pi.com/local/navy06.shtml

Sometimes too much is just too much. Think about
it, WHERE THE HELL are the whales going, if the
sea is unbearable? Sheesh.

I guess you haven't been listening to the news lately: http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/international/s tory/0,3604,102378,00.html

Quote from the link above: "These K-For figures suggest that there are as many murders now as there were in the two months of mutual ethnic attacks before Nato air strikes began against Yugoslavia in March - roughly 15 to 20 a week." Happen to know how many Serb civilian were killed by NATO airstrikes? (Hint: it's more than the number of people from all sides that had been killed in Kosovo before the NATO airstrikes.

It looks like that if you are Serb, Roma, muslim Slav, Jew, or even moderate Albanian being killed doesn't count as ethnic cleansing: http://www.seattle-pi.com/opinion/soap131.shtml and http://www.emperors-clothes.com/interviews/ceda.ht m

At least the NATO troops at Kosovo have some perks . http://www.the-times.co.uk/news/pages/tim/2000/02/ 05/timfgneur01001.html?1984

Care to reconsider your views? Maybe human rights didn't have much to do with the Kosovo "virtual war"?

Looks like it's on cNet, according to this story here.

Anyone seen it on CNN in Tech, or NY Times, or Washington Post yet? How about Seattle Times or Seattle Post-Intelligencer or Seattle Weekly or The Stranger?

Here's an article with a little more information on the effect this scumbag is having on his intended victem:

Woman given help at last in battle with hate group - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Just think of the extra profits that all of the MegaCorps will reap in not having to worry about net tariffs. This isn't a friendly gesture on their part, it's a well concocted plan to maintain their profit margin. They stand to make so much money by avoiding these tariffs. If it costs more to import MS software, less money makes it back to the company. Not to mention that it encourages competitive pricing.

Of course MS is using the WTO as a grandstand, that's what the WTO is all about, a big press party to take pictures of suits signing treaties. Microsoft will make this announcement before all the cameras and come off looking like they have been fighting for the freedom to disperse their product without restraints all these years. But the big bad government and 17 states have been attempting to restrict Microsoft's way of business. Watch out! Microsoft has a new best friend and their lawyers are going to make very good use of it. Much more than just self-serving press. They have the opportunity to make a multi-national organization give them clearance to continue their anti-competitive marketing strategies... world wide... without reprieve.

I work at an (unspecified) company that will be coordinating with the media and police in Seattle. The people in this city don't know what's going to hit them. There are over 25 scheduled marches throughout the week. Several of which will shut down major arteries of the city (which was recently rated #3 in worst traffic). The largest will be the AFL/CIO march on Nov. 30 which joins with an unpermitted Direct Action Network March. I expect all hell to break loose around 3pm as the people who were foolish enough to come work can't leave the city.

Already there have been several "professional protesters" who took actions last week by hanging (themselves included) a sweatshop slogan banner over the Old Navy store downtown. Today they hung over the side of the freeway retaining wall, slowing Interstate 5. By the way, last Wednesday's Seattle Post Intelligencer was covered with a mock front page with fake headlines concerning trade.

The frightening thing from my point of view is how the media is really blowing this out of proportion. All of the protest groups I've spoken with are adamantly non-violent, but you wouldn't know that from the news. Plus the police tend to over react in this town.

But best of all is that Fidel Castro may make an appearance. If that doesn't send the secret service into a frenzy I don't know what will... Castro of all people belongs here. Spokesperson of the shitty end of trade embargos.

So besides Microsoft's announcement, some Monsanto poison seeds and what the protest groups are upset about, has anyone actually seen a WTO agenda?