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File Extensions And Monopolies

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the stuff-to-think-about dept.

A_Non_Moose sent us an article from Salon that talks about how file extensions are one of the tools used by Microsoft to extend their mind and market share. It's a very simple idea but its honestly something I'd never thought about. Definitely worth a read, and a few neurons to realize how its really the simplest of things that will guarantee that this monopoly isn't stopped even if Microsoft's deep pockets didn't let them buy the law.

3 of 881 comments (clear)

  1. Interesting, but /.-worthy? by M_Talon · · Score: 2, Flamebait

    Ok, the author did point out that other applications set their own extensions, but is this really some sign of MS conspiracy or just another example of anti-MS hysteria? There are plenty other ways MS controls mindshare in their software, most notably bundling their own version of an application.

    Yes, changing the file type can be a bit daunting to the average user, but the average user is also the one who uses IE and WMP without bothering to look for alternatives. They don't care if a file opens with app A or app B, just as long as it opens. MS preys on that by providing a quick and easy way to open files. Those of us who do care know how to change the file extensions.

    Can we, just for once, not go with every bit of anti-MS hysteria that comes down the pipe and focus instead on the real issues? The article started out good, then dropped into an almost laughable Lone Gunmen style conspiracy argument.

    --
    Electronic Frontier Foundation for online civil rights information
  2. You silly bastard. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Fucking lame idiot. Wake up and read what you just wrote, it's so funny.

  3. That article contains Macintosh propaganda. by imagineer_bob · · Score: -1, Flamebait
    It's amazing how sick and twisted Macintosh-ophiles are.


    Since 1995, Windows let you distinguish file types from resources in a file. You'd write a "shell extension" to permit the operating system to inspect the file and determine the correct handler for it. (This is, for example, how Adobe Photoshop for Windows puts up thumbnail icons for .psd files. You can rename a .psd file something else and Adobe Photoshop will still find it if you click on it.


    The Salon article is written by some whiny Mac-head (they claim that the Mac doesn't have this "problem") who doesn't understand how computers work.