Microsoft Vandalizes NYC

Brooklyn Bob writes "The New York Times (free registration etc.) is reporting that New York Tells Microsoft to Get Its Butterfly Decals Out of Town. Sure, it's "corporate graffiti", but the butterfly looks pretty good on the subway entrance." The story only covers a small part of their efforts to promote MSN, the "Microsoft operating system required" internet service. The first submission we got about the campaign described another part of it: Latent IT writes "I wish I had a link to submit with this, but strange things are afoot in New York City. At 61st and Broadway, 30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits colored in the Microsoft colors, and carrying MSN banners just rollerbladed by, screaming at the top of their lungs down the middle of Broadway. Interestingly enough, this took them right near the under construction AOL Time Warner building. It seemed worth jotting down, but they were literally gone and down the street before I could reach my digital camera. (Place all bug on windshield jokes here.)"

Comments

You think they would've learned

[wiredog]

from the IBM Linux grafitti fiasco in San Francisco.

Re:You think they would've learned

[apnu]

it's not just SF, here in Chicago as well. you can still see the faint image of Tux at the Jackson street subway entrance to the Blue line.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

What bugs me is the two stories about the Linux Grafitti was all about a good advertising scheme, and this is about 'vandalization'. Petty narrowmindedness is annoying.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

And in front of the post office in hyde park. there are three sets of the symbols. I thinks its cute.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Jucius Maximus]

"What bugs me is the two stories about the Linux Grafitti was all about a good advertising scheme, and this is about 'vandalization'. Petty narrowmindedness is annoying."

The microsoft signs are made with appliqués that are just stuck to walls by static electricity. The ones on sidewalks are can be peeled off. This creates undue waste and probably could create hazards for people who try to nagivate over the sidewalk appliqués in wheelchairs. I expect the people in butterfly suits create an annoyance for all.

The linux campaign was done with biodegradable chalk. Big difference. No harmful waste. Less hazard for transportation, although some say that chalk makes rodes more slippery. And as far as I know, they didn't have people in Tux suits swarming around and creating more distractions.

Both of them create visual distractions and probably shouldn't have been attempted in the first place without authorisation from the city. But the IBM campaign was definitely better thought out than this microsoft one.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Heh. That is a reach. You had to put a lot of thought to get out how the MS one was worse. When people put papers under your windshield wiper and you yank it off and drop it on the ground, its causing the same problems.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

> Most importantly, perhaps, IBM did it first.

No, loser, many, many companies have been doing similar things throughout major cities in the United States for decades now. Get real. IBM wasn't the first, and Microsoft won't be the last.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Cowtard]

Urm... if I recall correctly a lot of the Linux stuff was spraypainted.

Re:You think they would've learned

[gimpboy]

actually it was spraychalked.. they have this chalk that comes in a can with a propelant similar to that found in spraypaint.

Re:You think they would've learned

[jonbrewer]

What bugs me is the two stories about the Linux Grafitti was all about a good advertising scheme, and this is about 'vandalization'. Petty narrowmindedness is annoying.

Quit whining. The IBM Linux ads were portrayed as vandalization and grafitti on Slashdot too. IBM was reprimanded by SF, Chicago, Cambridge, etc., and it was reported about on Slashdot.

http://slashdot.org/articles/01/05/21/0212208.sh tm l

http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/industry/04/19/ibm. gu erilla.idg/

Re:You think they would've learned

[schlach]

Ok, I must have missed the story about the IBM San-Fran chalking faisco, but someone posted the relevant links. The real IDG story, and the exclusive coverage of the IDG story, at the Register.

The short story is that IBM got caught spraypainting / chalking Tux and the caption "Peace, Love, and Linux" on the sidewalks of numerous street corners all over the city. They claimed it was "biodegradable", if not "easily water soluble" chalk, and were banking on it disappearing the next time it rained. It didn't. The article doesn't mention whether it eventually did wash off, after several rains (think back to college days - did that chalk only last one rainfall?), or whether they had to break down and have it removed first.

I have a picture of one of the MSN butterflies applied to the 7th Avenue Station sign, but I don't know where to post it. You'd say it was quite tasteful if you saw it. It looks like part of the sign. I hear a lot of arguments about why MS's campaign is evil, whereas IBM's was just and righteous. I'm going to play Devil's Advocate for a minute here, since no one else seems to want to.

I don't want to hear anyone in this country say that the reason MS's campaign is evil is because they create waste. I'm not saying they don't, but is that the reason that you think fast-food, snail-mail solicitations from charitable organizations, and buying soda is evil? Let's be honest about how much waste we all generate, whether or not we're tacking up little butterflies to subway stations...

And the rollerbladers are evil, not because they are generating waste, but because they're a "distraction". A pedestrian might walk into an open manhole because they were too distracted by the butterfly men. Uh huh. MS has pretty deep pockets. Let the frivolous lawsuits begin. If you can squeeze any money out of their lawyers, you've earned it.

What's that leave? Evil because they're advertising for MSN 8, instead of a righteous cause such as Linux, therefore anything they do, regardless of eco-friendliness and distractive potential is Evil? I don't think a rational argument can be made for or against that, so I don't want to debate it.

MS is evil, because IBM did it first. Hate to disappoint, but IBM did not invent the concept of publicity stunt. I have no idea how far back it goes, but in modern times I've got a reference here for 1917 before the original release of the first Tarzan movie. Harry Reichenbach was hired to promote it, so he anonymously let loose an oranguatan dressed in a tuxedo inside a fancy hotel filled with New York elite. The newspapers had a field day, and a few days later, Reichenbach called to let them know that it had been a stunt for Tarzan, so they covered it again, this time letting everyone know it had been for the movie. Tarzan made a killing at the box-office.

As far as I'm concerned, every publicity stunt since then has been Evil. Evil! (whoops, I think I lost my serious edge. Anyway, my source on the Tarzan story is Uncle John's Biggest Ever Bathroom Reader, from the scholarly "Bathroom Reader's Institute", which is an absolute crack-pipe for trivia junkies like myself.)

You may now resume the one-sided witchhunt. =)

Re:You think they would've learned

[the_Bionic_lemming]

What a crock - exactly how much waste are we talking? More than one dumpster day at Burger King? I sincerely doubt the amount of butterflys posted out there would come close to matching the amount of Ciggarrete buds ground into the ground down central avenue in an hour.

While I think that they (and the penguin) should not have defaced public property with ads - to simply state that it creates waste and Microsoft is evil because of that IMHO just illustrates an agenda rather than a fact.

Microsoft does do bad things. We know that. It's a given, Just like rain falling from the sky, Grass grows, and rocks hurt when they fall off a cliff and hit you on the head.

But to claim "waste" and "landfill" on this? Sheesh..

Re:You think they would've learned

[Chromonkey]

Um, no. The IBM/Linux pieces were neither 'spraychalked' nor 'bio-degradeable'. Over a YEAR later, they are still visibile. This is after thousands of people walking over them, rains, sidewalk washings and even IBM paying a private company to try to remove them. They were eventually fined by the City but it doesn't make them go away.

These stickers and such are nothing compared to the IBM/Linux spray ads.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Hays]

I think the fact that the Microsoft materials can be cleaned up so easily is a bonus for them. Biodegradable chalk that doesn't dissappear for years is certainly still vandalism.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Reality Master 101]

And the rollerbladers are evil, not because they are generating waste, but because they're a "distraction". A pedestrian might walk into an open manhole because they were too distracted by the butterfly men.

Sheesh, man, you're really digging deep trying to find something wrong with this. By that logic, you could get sued because you distracted someone by picking your nose.

As far as open manhole covers go, it's the city that would get sued under ANY circumstances. It's not like they normally leave ones lying open without any sort of fencing or another worker directing people around it.

Re:You think they would've learned

[schlach]

I think you misunderstood my intent. I was ridiculing the argument that the butterfly men were Evil, simply because they posed a distraction. I agree that it's nonsensical, but it's going on in other parts of the discussion as we speak. I read several comments to that effect.

Does anyone else feel ridiculous saying "the butterfly men"?

Re:You think they would've learned

[CableModemSniper]

Well I didn't really wanna dive into the whole Microsoft vs. IBM method or whatever, but the MSN butterflys are literally five feet apart. Its like they tried to use them to make a dotted path to redmond or something. There are a lot of butterflys.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Dude! where are you at?
Its been a while but i've also seen one near the Metra Tracks and 55th or 54th st.
(I work in Hyde Park and my fiancee is a student at U of Chicago)

Re:You think they would've learned

[gimpboy]

i'm not quite sure why you replied to me. i don't believe i said anything condeming, or accusatory. for what it's worth, i believe both ibm and microsoft are wrong, that an 75 cents at a gas station will get you a condom.

Re:You think they would've learned

[ceejayoz]

Read his whole comment - he's not taking that position. He's using that to ridicule the original poster who said the rollerbladers were a distraction, not agreeing with him...

Sheesh.

Re:You think they would've learned

[schlach]

Oh, nothing personal. It just made sense to me, like in a voice conversation, you reply to the person who just spoke, even when you're talking in a group. Sorta. Just following the thread...

Re:You think they would've learned

[Latent IT]

And the rollerbladers are evil, not because they are generating waste, but because they're a "distraction". A pedestrian might walk into an open manhole because they were too distracted by the butterfly men.

Yeah, I agree he's digging with that. Manholes are only laying around open in the movies anyway. ;)

The thing is, there were about 30-40 of these butterfly guys, and they went straight down the center of the street. Blocking *all* lanes of traffic, probably intentionally. If I was down there driving instead of leaning out my window seeing it, I'd have been all sorts of pissed.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Latent IT]

Um, no. The IBM/Linux pieces were neither 'spraychalked' nor 'bio-degradeable'. Over a YEAR later, they are still visibile.

Seriously, I'd be interested to see that. There were two of those ads on my block, and they were gone in a week. And it really *was* chalk.

These MSN sidewalk stickers are stickers, and aren't pulled up easily. (lord knows I tried ;p)

Slightly odder is the stickers they're placing on *buildings* of the MSN butterfly, willy-nilly. They're those static kind of stickers that don't really use any glue or anything, so it's really okay. I have a couple of those now. ;)

Re:You think they would've learned

[stu42j]

"Peace, Love, and Linux"

I just love that slogan! I wish they had made a T-shirt with it.

Back in college (before the IBM campaign) we had this community service project called Project 200. The slogan was "Peace, Love and Service". When our ACM was trying to think of a slogan I suggested "Peace, Love and Computers" but it didn't fly.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Whenever you see such an elaborate and literate defense of Microsoft here think Astroturfing.

I mean, really, if you wanted to improve your image and had $40 Billion, what would you do?

I might advertise on Slashdot and form a team of Astroturfing commentors along with a team of people who get mod points to mod them up. That wouldn't cost very much and could go a long way toward influencing the geek contingent, who actually have a some power on the overall IT community.

Knowing what we know about Microsoft's dirty behind-the-scenes dealings, why wouldn't they do it?

Even if this specific guy is not an MS shill, how many people who defend MS here are? Keep up your cynicism, review the record, they haven't changed.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Reality Master 101]

I was ridiculing the argument that the butterfly men were Evil, simply because they posed a distraction.

Sorry, I think I misread your post. It's a little ambiguous there in the middle. :)

Re:You think they would've learned

[DeComposer]

Okay, which one of y'all is surprised that Microsoft would rip off someone else's idea?

It's not as though they boosted someone else's UI, or built a knock-off application, or stole a competitor's idea...

Personally, I think back to when they launched Windows 95 and they filched (with permission, of course) the Rolling Stones' song Start Me Up.

I always wondered why they thought that a song containing the line, "you'd make a dead man come," was appropriate for an all-ages OS...

Re:You think they would've learned

[schlach]

Even if this specific guy is not an MS shill, how many people who defend MS here are? Keep up your cynicism, review the record, they haven't changed.

I couldn't agree more. I hate when I post jokes at Microsoft's expense, and they get modded down by MS zealots. As far as being anybody's shill, I stand by my track record. My real issue is intelligence and open-mindedness on Slashdot. The strength of the community increases when we don't sound like a bunch of reactionary zealots, ourselves.

Actually, what I think would be a better plot if I were 'Astroturfing' (?), would be to post an accusatory comment calling into question my objectivity, and allowing me to post comments testifying to my credibility, thereby heading off others' potential criticism. Kinda like the whole Republicans and Democrats being owned by the same guy. Or Coke and Pepsi.

Wrap your head around that... ; )

... And then to establish my credibility even further, I'd tell people my entire plan, in case they suspected as much...

Who's gonna out-paranoid who? =)

Re:You think they would've learned

[timmie...]

"This creates undue waste and probably could create hazards for people who try to nagivate over the sidewalk appliqués in wheelchairs."

It's not just the wheelchairs, but trying to navigate over anything shiny and plastic when you're on a walking stick or crutches is a nightmare. Especially true if it's been raining or there's a morning dew.

Although it sounds horribly manipulative and i'd not wish it one anyone, If someone disabled were to slip on one of those and break something then it would cost MS a great deal more than the $50 graffiti fine.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

"but is that the reason that you think fast-food, snail-mail solicitations from charitable organizations, and buying soda is evil?"

Well... yes, that's one good reason to like those thing slightly less than the alternatives. I wouldn't go so far as to call it "evil", but Microsoft's campaign is tasteless compared to the IBM thing. Not that I particularly care for the idea of any corporate behemoth tagging the city, but using chalk strikes me as more subtle and much less annoying than billboards or big vinyl stickers.

Re:You think they would've learned

[spectecjr]

Whenever you see such an elaborate and literate defense of Microsoft here think Astroturfing.

Whenever you see such a claim posted by an Anonymous Coward, it's probably Joe Barr posting it.

Simon

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Good one.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

DUDE, layoff the many variations of smilies that you bless all of your posts with.

In any case, we get the point that you're an anti-Microsoft activists who's doing us all loads of good by stealing MSN stickers. Please don't tell us how many you've tried or have ripped up. true==(you==loser).

Thanks

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

You people should really check your databases before you post. This type of confusion can and SHOULD be avoided.

Val M.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

And half the time he is talking about you.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Chromonkey]

I don't know what IBM did in New York. But in San Francisco, they spray painted them. I'll try and get a photo of one of them later today.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Note that he didn't deny being a Microsoft shill. He just showed how he got his +1 posting ability in the first place. If you actually go back and read the posts that he gives as "proof" that he's not a MS shill, they actually work to draw attention away from or excuse MS misdeeds.

In one, he says we should suspect that an anti-MS article is a sham to catch us out.

In another, he excuses a Washington congressman's attempt to suppress the use of GPL for Government supported IP as "serving his constituency".

He throws some jibes in MS in both, but the overall effect is to draw attention away from MS and to other issues.

Sorry, I don't see a lot of close-minded one-sided zealotry here. I just see people who know Microsoft for what they are.

Anyone claiming that MS is being treated unfairly is suspect. I wonder if he would favor us with a full exposition of any possible business relationship he might have with MS or with a close MS partner...

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

;p

=)

=p

>:-)

And my personal favorite?

@ @
|
\____/

Everyone say hello to plus5insightful!

Re:You think they would've learned

[Latent IT]

Yeah, I was reading some of the other posts to that end... don't worry about the picture, I really do believe you. =)

I've been thinking - IBM must have used some kind of local ad agencies, right? I mean, I highly doubt they were flying some kind of penguin swat team around the country. It seems that they said to use chalk, and some local goobers fouled things up.

It also sounds like it happened in Chicago too, though. So maybe the NYC agency fouled up and used chalk, while IBM specified paint. ;p

Re:You think they would've learned

[spectecjr]

And half the time he is talking about you.

And if you really believed that, you'd post it under your own name.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Anyone claiming that MS is being treated unfairly is suspect. I wonder if he would favor us with a full exposition of any possible business relationship he might have with MS or with a close MS partner...

He doesn't, but he does have a close relationship with your mother.

Every night.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

What the hell, dude! Lay off the god damn smiles! Even your newest point has the "excuse that I'm a lamer" smilies.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

C'mon, New York. Let's show the world we still have some balls [wtc2002.com].

Please, stop. This thing is beyond grotesque.

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

=)
=)
=)

Re:You think they would've learned

[Anonymous Coward]

Note that he didn't deny being a Microsoft shill.

Would you have believed him if he had?

Who's gonna out-paranoid who?

Looks like you win...

Vandalizes?

[yohaas]

That might be little strong. They didn't do any damage. Get over it.

Re:Vandalizes?

[tetra103]

Agreed. It's not like they're breaking the law.
Personally, I hate ad campains like this. But it's legal...now, if the Linux community wanted to steal the visual show...Maybe they could get a bunch of Linux streakers to skate right past them...guess the streaking part would be illegal eh?

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

It's not like they're breaking the law.

Er, no, it's exactly like they're breaking the law, in exactly the same way that a kid with a spraycan tagging a subway car is breaking the law.

Re:Vandalizes?

[IRNI]

But, my question is... Is it illegal to paintball the MS skaters? Does that fall under artistic freedom? :)

Re:Vandalizes?

[taphu]

from the article: The law, Section 19-138 of the New York City administrative code, states: "It shall be unlawful for any person to deface any street by painting, printing or writing thereon, or attaching thereto, in any manner, any advertisement or other printed matter."

Did you read the article? hmm??

Re:Vandalizes?

[cpfeifer]

Because hey, if 30-40 people in velvet rainbow butterfly jumpsuits can't run around in the city and advertise a product, then I say the terrorists have already won.

Re:Vandalizes?

[nege]

No they should get some guys in penguin suits to go beat the crap out of the butterflys. Oh wait...that would be illegal too. Maybe they should settle this on the 'rink, where fighting only gets you in the penalty box.

Re:Vandalizes?

[xtremex]

Actually..it's NOT legal. There are city laws that prohibit this. Especially since Giuliani was in office.

Re:Vandalizes?

[agallagh42]

However, according to the article, the agency MS hired for this "promotion" claims to have permits for everything they did. It's not clear who issued the permits though...

Re:Vandalizes?

[agallagh42]

""There are permits for everything," said Colleen Lacter of Waggener Edstrom, a public relations firm representing Microsoft"

Did you read the article? hmm??

It's not totally clear if the permits were valid, but if this is true, then they were totally legal.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why not just get penguins to clean it all up... Would that be legal?

Re:Vandalizes?

[taphu]

It is considered vandalization for a kid to spray paint his name onto the subway wall, even though this doesn't damage the wall. So yes, "vandalizes" is the correct term for microsoft attaching little butterflies all over publicly owned property.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Deth_Master]

You read the article, right? Some anonymouse coward posted it, but it might be below your threshold, look for "courtesy of the NYTimes fake login generator" as the title
From the article: The law, Section 19-138 of the New York City administrative code, states: "It shall be unlawful for any person to deface any street by painting, printing or writing thereon, or attaching thereto, in any manner, any advertisement or other printed matter."
They broke the law, plain and simple. Microsoft implied that they had a "Permit" for it("There are permits for everything," said Colleen Lacter of Waggener Edstrom, a public relations firm representing Microsoft), but the source was not identified in the article...suspicious? ( But she would not tell a reporter what agency had issued the permits. After a brief huddle with two people whom she identified as being from McCann-Erickson, the advertising firm handling the account, Ms. Lacter said: "There's nothing else to say. They didn't want to get into a discussion about the details." ) It wasn't the people going nuts down the street. It was the gobs of butterflies they spewed all over a part of NYC.

Re:Vandalizes?

[gallen1234]

The emphasis is on "claims". When confronted on the issue they had a hasty conference and headed for the door.

Re:Vandalizes?

[G27 Radio]

The "stickers" at the static type, not the sticky type so it sounds a lot more like littering than vandalism to me. BTW, the vandalism fine is only $50. Littering fines are usually more expensive.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

Flamebait? WTF are you moderators thinking? I found this hilarious. Mod him up, damn you.

Re:Vandalizes?

[tetra103]

Yikes! Yikes! Yikes!

I stand corrected! I wasn't aware of the illegal ramifications. I only concider it to be bad taste. If it was a pep rally, I guess that's one thing, but the law is correct. Grafiti is grafiti. Even if they were Picaso paintings without advertising associated, it's still visual destruction. So yes, THROW THEM ALL IN JAIL!

Re:Vandalizes?

[Deth_Master]

But, the vandalism fine is $50 per butterfly. I didn't count how many there were, but we all know that money is no object to M$, so I don't think the fines will do anything. It is making a lot of discussion here, so whether or not it was legal or it costs them more money than they had initially planned, they are still getting publicity over it. If we REALLY want to hurt M$ we should not talk about it.
Hey, look over there, it's a decoy!
:P

Re:Vandalizes?

[taphu]

It's not totally clear if the permits were valid, but if this is true, then they were totally legal.

maybe. I'm not an expert on NYC Law, but in my home town the concept of a permit is built into the each law itself.. (i.e. don't do this, don't do that, and never do this other thing unless you have a permit). For instance the city (or state) cannot issue you a permit for drunk driving.

but on another note, I can just imagine some guy on a street corner: "PSSSST! microsoft... wanna buy some permits? I'll throw in a nice rolex. Just don't mention where you got them."

Actually, now that I think about it, that sounds like something a polititian might actually say.:)

Re:Vandalizes?

[toupsie]

That might be little strong. They didn't do any damage. Get over it.

Wrong! I work near Madison Ave. Yesterday morning and this morning I watched building supers scraping off the stupid butterflies off their buildings. The stickers are on the sidewalks as well and they have that slick coating. I am just waiting for an old lady to face plant right into traffic. You are not going to get a city employee to scrape them up -- they have better unions than the building supers.

This is just as annoying as IBM's stupid "Peace, Love and Linux" campaign of last year where the stickered everything and spray painted their logo at every street corner.

Re:Vandalizes?

[tetra103]

Hey, you beat to the punch!

Say it was a "legal" permit for them to lay advertisements across midtown. Would it have been "illegal" if a bunch of Linux die hards when around cleaning it up? And yeah! Dressed as penguins would have been the kicker. Could almost carry a story line like "Linux cleans up after Microsoft's mess!" Talk about an advertising campain backfire.

Re:Vandalizes?

[SubtleNuance]

How about Mass Littering?

equally offensive.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Ymerej]

• Seen in a sig: --- 29A....The Hexidecimal of the Beast

That would be funny if "hexadecimal" wasn't misspelled.

Re:Vandalizes?

[xtremex]

The funniest thing is I've had that sig for over 6 months and no one has ever commented on it, and ispell never detected it....odd

Re:Vandalizes?

[rseuhs]

I think you are a bit confused.

Let me explain:

If an individual sprays/puts something on one wall, it's vandalization and by now probably terrorism.

If a megacorporation sprays/puts something on 1000 walls, it's "they didn't do any damage, get over it."

Do you have any other naive questions or is everything clear now?

Re:Vandalizes?

[the_brat_king]

According to MOST states' (and cities') laws, you MUST display any permit received, and ANYONE has a right to inspect it (the permit). To claim a permit, and then refuse to even state the agency from which it was received, much less display the permit, is generally in and of itself a code violation.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

You said that about the IBM Linux ad campaign, right?

You didn't?

So what's the difference?

Re:Vandalizes?

[shepd]

>The funniest thing is I've had that sig for over 6 months and no one has ever commented on it

You need a sig like mine then. Though the near daily insults do wear thin after a while...

Re:Vandalizes?

[sludg-o]

Is it illegal to paintball the MS skaters?

Legal or not, you should never fire a paintball gun at someone not playing paintball.

That's what real guns are for

Re:Vandalizes?

[wilhelm]

sludg-o, you are officially my hero for this Friday. This comment has made my day. :)

Re:Vandalizes?

[amunter]

This would be great. Much better than a bunch of guys in Tux suits showing up and giving them a punching.

Re:Vandalizes?

[prelelat]

I think I would like to see you go to the top of a building in New York. Set up a target on one of the butterflies. Shoot them. Watch the rest piss them selves in fear. And when the cops come to arrest you say "I swear to god there not human".

Now I would definately pay to see that.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

What, you mean like this.

Re:Vandalizes?

[op00to]

Read the article. They're only charging them $50 TOTAL, not $50 per butterfly -- they said they could charge $50 per butterfly, but we all know that would be pretty much useless as MSFT has more money than god.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Soko]

heh.

Sports at 11: The Pittsburg Penguins anhialate the Seattle Butterflies. o_O

Way cool.

Soko

Re:Vandalizes?

[loconet]

Or, They can say those were not butterflies, but butterflyfish , and pengiuns eat fish ...

Re:Vandalizes?

[Deth_Master]

Forgive my obscurity, I meant to say that they should've been charged $50 per butterfly and that would make the money cost only slightly more significant. Once again, reiterating the point you made, M$ has more money than God, so it wouldn't matter.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

The difference is that IBM didn't make any litter?

Seriously, are you being stupid, or is this a trick question?

Re:Vandalizes?

[Guppy06]

"Maybe they should settle this on the 'rink, where fighting only gets you in the penalty box."

And you feel much shame.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Dukebytes]

bull shit - even they said it!!

"It's illegal," she said, "and they're going to get a lot of publicity for it."

That may have been the point. "It's a tremendous opportunity," Ms. Lacter said, "for us to build brand awareness."

I'm going to make up some plastic decals for a LAN party that I would like to have and plaster them on the subway car doors and signs etc... And I would be ARRESTED for doing it. This kind of hand slap crap only happens when you have money and power. Period. Pisses me off. This is the way everything in this whole country is run and everyone just shrugs it off. bull shit.

Duke

Re:Vandalizes?

[wunderhorn1]

You should post the 'l33t j03 FAQ' again. I loved that damn thing.

Re:Vandalizes?

[sirshannon]

spray painting does not peel off. do you know what a static-sticker is? next time you go to mcdonalds, look at the stickers in the window. grab a corner. peel. next time you go by a graphitti'd wall, grab a corner of the graphitti. peel. not the same thing. not even close.

Re:Vandalizes?

[SubtleNuance]

um yes.
i believe all non-consentual commercail communication should be banned (including billboards, junkmail, spam and crap like this.)

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

You know, in light of the sniper attacks in DC and the 500 or so people being held at gunpoint in Moscow, that's really funny. Maybe you could make a follow up joke about Columbine. You really are a card.

Re:Vandalizes?

[gray peter]

They're actually having a big rally in Central Park today. And it's not just a "part" of the city, it's all over MY city!! I was walking around for lunch and they stuck the damn butterflies on every single subway entrance! I personally think it's totally arrogant and in really bad taste. The rollerbladers in costume are funny. But stickers are really rude. It's hard enough keeping NYC clean. Damn Left Coasters. ;-)

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

agreed! villian moderators!

Re:Vandalizes?

[pyrrho]

next time you pass a piece of litter (1000$ fine in california), bend over, try picking it up... wow, look how easily that's done. I guess litter is fine then! Woohoo, no more garbage worry, throw your trash in the street, it's easily picked up... um... by him.

personally I prefer graphiti to thousands of bits of commercial litter.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Ymerej]

Or maybe the beast was representing itself in base16 from the beginning of time. It would be appropriate for the beast to express itself in 'hex' :

"1638 - ya didn't know that it was the number of the beast."

I guess the real question is "how many fingers does the beast have on each paw?"

Re:Vandalizes?

[Kaboom13]

People like you are the reason cops hassle us legit paintball players. I realize you were joking, but kids shooting paintballs at people has seriously harmed the sport's rep. It's very dangerous to fire on someone not wearing a proper paintball mask.

Re:Vandalizes?

[jelle]

Where is the treshold for ease of cleaning it up that defines leaving a mark on a public wall as not being vandalism?

There is none. Gaffiti is graffiti, independent from ease or cost of the cleanup.

Re:Vandalizes?

[SN74S181]

Actually, it's more a case of 'if a street punk sprays crap all over a wall in the city it's a cultural expression and the radical chic people oooh and ahhh.' and 'If a megacorporation sprays/puts something on the wall, they've got bucks and it's time for the city's bureaucrats to start the shakedown.'

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonymous Coward]

200 rounds of ammo: $70

Two ski masks: $24

Two black trench coats: $260

Seeing the expression on your classmates' faces right before you blow their heads off--priceless.

There you guy you whiny motherfucker. Enjoy.

Re:Vandalizes?

[Anonvmous Coward]

Wow, you're full of insightful comments. *Not* heh.

Jackass.

Get rid of them!

[Anonymous Coward]

If only we could get the Microsoft color-painted butterfly people to rollerskate themselves into the Empire State Building a la 9/11 thing, then we'd be all set.
Scrumpdillicious!

And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[scorp1us]

I seem to remember a time when IBM went chalking the streets with Peace, Love, and Linux phrases and logos....

Re:And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[sczimme]

No, it was not okay for IBM. Here is an article that explains why:

IBM caught tagging San Fran streets with Linux ads

Re:And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[fafaforza]

IBM got fined for the cleanup.

Re:And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[FortKnox]

I don't think the grandparent was talking about it being legal, but being 'ok' with the slashdot crowd. He was right.

Go look at the Linux graffiti story. Every is happy that people are learning about linux.

Look at the high scores here. Taking jabs at MS or general complaints.

Re:And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[Melantha_Bacchae]

scorp1us wrote:

> I seem to remember a time when IBM went chalking
> the streets with Peace, Love, and Linux phrases
> and logos....

That may not have been legal either, but at least it was better intentioned. The hearts, peace signs and penguins were supposed to vanish by themselves with the next rain (alas, that did not happen, but they tried).

Microsoft is plastering plastic signs of some size (12 to 20 inches) on walls and pavements. Even if they are easy to remove, that is still a lot of (non-biodegradable?) plastic littering the city. I'd get them for being a bunch of litterbugs. ;)

Today's weather for New York: a stiff tail wind as an angry Moth goddess blows the pretenders on their skates right out of town. ;)

(Don't worry, with those plastic wings and skates, it won't take much of a tail wind at all. Good New Yorkers should enjoy a refreshing breeze.)

On December 14, 1996, Mothra resurrected a charred Apple sapling ("Mosura" 1996).
On December 14, 2001, Mothra returned to see its fruit ("Gojira, Mosura, Kingu Ghidora: Daikaiju Soukougeki").
OS X Jaguar: truly the Apple of Mothra's Aqua eye.

Re:And yet it's ok for IBM and Linux?

[scorp1us]

Not flame bait, just being fair....

And I was refering to the social acceptance of the action, not the legality of it. Sorry if I was not clear.

What were they screaming?

[sczimme]

30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits colored in the Microsoft colors, and carrying MSN banners just rollerbladed by, screaming at the top of their lungs down the middle of Broadway.

Give it up for us! Whoooooo hooooo!

Re:What were they screaming?

[Jucius Maximus]

I've seen sillier ones. Like this one day on Bay Street in Toronto there were these guys and gals walking around in skimpy pyjamas handing out flyers for ... whatever they were advertising.

Re:What were they screaming?

[Rai]

*mumbles something about catching the snipers too soon*

Yeah, I know...bad taste. I beg your pardon, Mr. Sensitivity.

Re:What were they screaming?

[gaudior]

Developers!

Developers!

Developers!

What Else?

Re:What were they screaming?

[xanadu-xtroot.com]

Oh, I think we all know what they were screaming...

Re:What were they screaming?

[teamhasnoi]

Too much acid! Don't take the brown acid! Ahhhhhh! Save us Ellen Feiss save us!

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

NO their are screeming "MS is paying us to goof off!"

Re:What were they screaming?

[Jezza]

Ha HA!

I just got a mental image of a big fat bald butterfly, sweating profusely surrounded by medics on a street corner.

Thanks gaudior, very VERY funny!

Re:What were they screaming?

[TheConfusedOne]

Nah, they were screaming
Give up to us! Whooooo hooooo!

Re:What were they screaming?

[CSG_SurferDude]

Save us Ellen! Save US!
Now THAT'S FUNNY

Re:What were they screaming?

[mustangdavis]

... this took them right near the under construction AOL Time Warner building.

*thinking where are the terrorists when you need them ... *

Ok, this may be even worse than the bit about the snipers, but you have to admit it would be pretty cool to take out a bunch of annyoing butterflies with something as useless as AOL/Time Warner! It is what I call two butterflies with one stone (*ohh .. that may be worse*)

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, I know...bad taste. I beg your pardon, Mr. Sensitivity.

Nah, it was pretty damn funny.

Re:What were they screaming?

[Hittite Creosote]

You sure it wasn't 'Help, there aren't any brakes on these things'?

Re:What were they screaming?

[wazzzup]

Developers! Developers! Developers!

Re:What were they screaming?

[siphoncolder]

You're a sick prick. May the sorrow of 11 victims' family & friends fall on your tasteless head.

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

wait a minute, I'll go get you a ladder so you can get off that high horse

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

Is it just me, or does Ballmer have a glandular problem? Sweat glands, that is.

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

*mumbles something about catching the snipers too soon*

Yeah, I know...bad taste. I beg your pardon, Mr. Sensitivity.

That's Ms. Sensitivity, you insensitive clod!

Re:What were they screaming?

[John Garvin]

They were screaming:
"Developers! Developers! Developers! Developers!"

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, I guess that would explain it then.

Re:What were they screaming?

[ThePlague]

They should have been screaming:

Resistance is futile!

Time for a butterfly borg!

Re:What were they screaming?

[op00to]

I for one am upset the sniper is probably arrested...The media circus made reading the local university newspaper actually interesting -- I loved trying to predict who they would blow away next. Sure it suchs that people died, but you gotta admit that The Sniper really did kick the entire areas ass and that's pretty good -- even if they did screw up in the end.

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

Developers Developers Developers!

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

"*thinking where are the terrorists when you need them ...*
Ok, this may be even worse than the bit about the snipers"

Not really. I think if the 9/11 attack had involved private aircraft crashing into the Pentagon and the White House things would have been pretty different. No way would there be any support for attacking Iraq, that's for sure!

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

Ugh, is that really Ballmer? That's absolutely disgusting!

Re:What were they screaming?

[Cruciform]

It's New York... people walk *around* muggings while they're occuring.

You think they're going to remember some people in butterfly suits? :)

Re:What were they screaming?

[Anonymous Coward]

I just got a mental image of a big fat bald butterfly, sweating profusely surrounded by medics on a street corner.

As far as i can tell, that would just be another completely ordinary saturday in New York.

Ah, the Slashdot double-standards

[EchoMirage]

This is not a troll, but an observation: When it's IBM spray-painting Linux graffiti messages, it's free speech, but when it's Microsoft painting butterflies, it's vandalism?

Ah, wait, I just noticed which editor posted it. Now it all makes sense.

Re:Ah, the Slashdot double-standards

[91degrees]

You clearly aren't aware of Michael's apparent opinions on freedom of speech.

Learned what?

[dnoyeb]

Learned what? How expensive is advertising? How expensive do you expect the fine to be? Do the math.

Now some Jail time would be welcome :D

Re:Learned what?

[Jucius Maximus]

"Learned what? How expensive is advertising? How expensive do you expect the fine to be? Do the math."

There's no such thing as bad publicity. Even if they get a lot of bad press, there will still be a lot of pictures circulated with the butterfly and its association with microsoft.

Re:Learned what?

[Anonymous Coward]

The butterfly is just another Microsoft bug.

Re:Learned what?

[Anonymous Coward]

It's true. Until this week, I hadn't heard of Microsoft. But now I have.

Re:Learned what?

[ceejayoz]

Article says the fine is $50.

I imagine that's gonna bankrupt Microsoft almost as badly as buying X-boxes from them will!

Re:Learned what?

[Jonny Ringo]

There's no such thing as bad publicity.

oh man! that's our problem. MS is doing it to themselves on purpose to get bad articles, it just helps them! Quite posting bad MS aritcles!

Re:Learned what?

[tetro]

No such thing as bad publicity?

What if some executive weirdo plans to spearhead a new campaign by having Bill Gates having sex with underaged donkeys while drinking urine from a empty skull of a dead horse while tweaking the nipples of senior citizen monkeys.

I think anything weirder than that would just scare people away from microsoft.

Re:Learned what?

[Anonymous Coward]

Hahahahaha! Goddamnit, reading at -1 is so fucking rewarding sometimes.

Re:Learned what?

[eam]

As long as their computers are preinstalled with Windows, no one cares what perverse hobbies Bil enjoys.

Re:Learned what?

[WhiteKnight07]

$50 per butterfly so in the end it will probably be several hundred dollars total. Still, it will be much less than the cost of a single TV ad.

Re:Learned what?

[Fig, formerly A.C.]

Was that misspelling of "Bil" intentional, as from the book "Bill the Galactic Hero" (where Bill only rated 1 "l" in his name since he wasn't an officer)?

If so, "+5 Funny, but Obscure". If not, I need to lay off the colas. :-/

Re:Learned what?

[jelle]

Doesn't New York have a three-strikes-you're-out kind of law?

Re:Learned what?

[jelle]

"There's no such thing as bad publicity."

Oh yeah? What about "Company X has cooked the books"?

Ask Enron or Worldcom if that wasn't bad publicity.

Re:Learned what?

[eam]

If I were smart, I'd say, "Why, yes, it was intentional."

It wasn't. Just a typo.

Re:Learned what?

[Anonymous Coward]

Official asspounding of several selected Microsoft executives. That would teach them not doing something like this again. Maybe forcing them having at least one goatse.cx image pinned in every office used by the company too.

Idiots.

But after having seen this, nothing about that company surprises me anymore.

MSJackass?

[cpfeifer]

Perhaps this is just a stunt for MS' new product, MSJackass for their new cable channel MSMTV?

Re:MSJackass?

[$rtbl_this]

...MSJackass...

Please, at least show Mr. Ballmer the courtesy of using his real name.

Re:MSJackass?

[Virtex]

Oh, okay. I'll use MSMonkeyBoy from now on.

I'm Sold!

[BoBaBrain]

30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits colored in the Microsoft colors, and carrying MSN banners just rollerbladed by, screaming at the top of their lungs

What a fantastically compelling ad campaign! I'll take two of whatever it is they are selling.

Re:I'm Sold!

[cmoss]

Or maybe, I'll take two of whatever they are smoking.

Beat y'all to it. :)

[Triv]

Check out my journal on the subject from last week. I was going to submit it, but for the life of me couldn't figure out where it'd go, assumed it would be rejected and blogged it instead. :)

Triv

Steve Balmer

[wilburdg]

Terrible mental image of Steve Balmer wearing a sweat soaked butterfly suit and roller blades, yelling "Developers! Developers!"....

*cringe*

Re:Steve Balmer

[Triv]

Sweat-soaked, skintight, velvet jumpsuit with cute little butterfly wings.

Just a mild correction there to make your nightmares more realistic. :)

Triv

Re:Steve Balmer

[Corporate Troll]

Oh, thank you...now you fried my brain just by making me think of that!

Re:Steve Balmer

[uk_greg]

Is it just me, or do the ads with the silhouette of the guy in the butterfly suit remind anyone else of Patrick Warburton as "The Tick"?

Maybe Ballmer has a new career option.

Re:Steve Balmer

[stefanlasiewski]

Sweat-soaked, skintight, velvet jumpsuit with cute little butterfly wings.

Hey now, whatever Steve does in his personal life is his own business, as long as all activities involve consensual adults.

Re:Steve Balmer

[jspivey]

Well then allow me to to transform your terrible mental image into sordid, graphic reality.

See the video at http://msn.cwusa.tv. The footage you seek is at the 4 minute mark.

This One Time, At Band Camp

[Gimpin]

How old are these marketing nazi's to believe that people actually give two shits about a product or the hype? Sounds all too much like a high school pep rally.

Re:This One Time, At Band Camp

[Corporate Troll]

Insightful? I don't think so. People are by now used to ignore ads because they are everywhere. Now, marketers need to be much more creative in order to get noticed...and doing extravagant (or even illegal) things will get attention in many ways. The main action stirs up dust, with a result that local newspapers will report it (or even non-local). Remember: there is no such thing as bad publicity.

Besides, with a little luck these rollerblading people with butterfly wings are cute girl. And who never fantasized about cute elfs... Oh, wait... that would be just me... did I say that out loud?

Re:This One Time, At Band Camp

[Anonymous Coward]

"How old are these marketing nazi's to believe that people actually give two shits about a product or the hype?"

Go back to school and take some marketing courses before you make stupid comments like that. Advertising is a multi-billion dollar industry so obviously some people give two shits. Dumb ass...

Re:This One Time, At Band Camp

[dnoyeb]

Great. Why not just grab my balls, and when I look down show your add...not much different.

Re:This One Time, At Band Camp

[esper]

...especially if the butterflies are cute girls.

MSN 8?

[moeman]

Anyone notice the comercials that just started playing for the NEW version of MSN, simply called "MSN 8"? Hmmm, now I admit I have no idea what version they were on before, but it seems a little suspiciouse that MSN 8 is being released on the heals of the new AOL version 8.0. My only real question is, why didn't MS go ahead and call it "MSN 9" just to get one step ahead?

Re:MSN 8?

[superwai]

What is good about the MSN 8? I saw their advertisement in many websites. Just curious about what are the features that can make them so proud of their product..

Re:MSN 8?

[Ig0r]

The feature they're so proud of is that they get your money if you subscribe.

Re:MSN 8?

[nicedream]

It's dynamic protocols allow you to harness the synergy of mobile computing, which enhances the web-based nature of digital communications on the infobahn.

Or maybe it just lets you dial up at 28.8 and then switches your home page to msn.com.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

They're just MSN with us.

Re:MSN 8?

[Neon Spiral Injector]

I've only seen the comercial once, but doesn't someone have a Apple laptop in the commercial? If so, why? MSN only works on Windows, right? Is Apple paying for product placement in other ads now, not just movies and TV?

Of course I could just be seeing things.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

Nice troll.

Re:MSN 8?

[binner1]

Oh for some mod points. That was brilliant!

-Ben

Re:MSN 8?

[MyHair]

Well MSN and AOL are on 8, Mac has gone to OS X, MS Office is on version 10. Nobody's higher than 10. See, what I've done is created a version 11. That's right, no one else has 11. This is one better than anything anyone else can hope for.

Re:MSN 8?

[Masem]

I once heard (this roughtly around 1995) that when one compares the development cost vs profit as a function of version number, the curve typically breaks even on the 7th revision of a program (was this from Mythical Man-Month?).

Mind you, after the browser wars, which completely broke how version numbering should effectively be done, this is probably no longer true. Version numbering has lost out to commercialization; there's a lot of good examples of where software changes over a 'major' version number could really be classified as 'minor' version changes, at least to some people (photoshop, IE, to name a few), but marketing knows that customers are more likely to purchase an upgrade if its from "x.0" to "x+1.0", as oppsed to "x.0" to "x.1". Additionally, there's been a few hokey version jumps in some programs as to keep them on par with a competitors program (as the parent post alludes to) - just as AMD is trying to keep up with the Megahertz Myth with Intel in naming their new chips.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

They cut some sort of content deal with Disney, and they have the Messenger improvements that, I believe, are either a part of XP or a service pack anyway.

Having actually signed someone with MSN (they were poor, paying $20/mo for WebTV anyway, and getting the eMachine for $300 was a good deal for them)... it's "tolerable." Basically as screwed up as AOL, but in "different" ways. It has a bit more than MSN as a homepage- there's a generic pile-of-ActiveX welcome-to-MSN application that's basically like the AOL client (but without the advertising)... and the stability of their servers and points of presence is on-par with AOL in 1999 or so. Mail is provided through Hotmail, rather than Outlook, which I suppose lends some semblence of MS-virus protection.

Anyone purporting to be a 'service' - AOL, MSN, Earthlink, SBC Yahoo! and so forth - is shipping software that takes over Windows/IE in all sorts of ways, so it's pretty much a tossup. The only 'interesting' thing about signing with MSN is that, of course, you end up with a Passport account.... which, given lackluster adoption (eBay's the only non-MS service I've seen that 'trusts' a Passport login), is basically equivalent to having a Yahoo! ID or AOL Screen Name in the grand course of things.

Nothing special here at all, just an attempt to take some wind from AOL's sails, and acquire enough customers to be profitable- something the MSN division has had years of trouble with.

Re:MSN 8?

[Hobophile]

I read an article in the (paper version of the) Wall Street Journal about a week ago that discussed MSN and Microsoft's plans for it. The article said that what Microsoft is largely focusing on in its new version is parental controls and spam filtering.

Among the features I recall is the ability to have weekly emails sent to you detailing the web browsing activities of your household users. Also, if a user, say your child writing a report on breast cancer, happens across a site that is blocked, they can email their parents at work requesting approval to visit the site. The parent can then examine the site and either approve or deny the request.

Again working from my memory of the article's contents, AOL has historically had the best parental controls while MSN has had virtually none. This release puts MSN ahead in that area, so they will likely market it as a more family-friendly ISP.

Another new feature from MSN is spam control, using a system which the article depicted as similar to Spam Assassin, with points assigned to various aspects of a message and a total value computed to indicate the likelihood that a particular message is spam.

As I recall AOL didn't have many new features, though I think spam control may have been one of them as well.

Any inaccuracies in the preceding information are entirely my own. Also, I'm not an MSN user, and don't particularly care about either AOL or MSN or their heavily version-inflated software.

As to why MSN is so proud of their product: I think it's fairly obvious that nothing they provide is that revolutionary; they simply want to steal some of AOL's market share. At the moment the dialup market is more or less saturated, so MSN's customers have to come from another ISP. According to the article dialup accounts are more lucrative than broadband, so it makes sense for Microsoft to try and capture some of this potential revenue.

The relative profitability of dialup is, incidentally, one reason AOL/TW isn't pushing for its existing AOL subscribers to convert over to RoadRunner.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

Oracle has 11 already, sorry.

Re:MSN 8?

[isorox]

That's right, no one else has 11
X11?

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm pretty sure Corel's graphics suite is at 11.

Autocad is at what, r14?

Emacs is at version twenty-something.

Re:MSN 8?

[JackRandom]

These go to 11.

Re:MSN 8?

[el_gregorio]

"my ISP goes to 11."

"is that better?"

"well, it's one better, now isn't it?"

"why didn't you just make 10 better, and call it 10?"

"..... this ISP goes to 11."

Re:MSN 8?

[MyHair]

In response to my version number critics:

Okay, okay, there ARE software packages at 11 or higher. I tried (and apparently failed) to inject some Spinal Tap humor into the version number question posed by the parent post of the parent post. (The grandparent post?)

Re:MSN 8?

[MyHair]

Yes, that's it. That's what I was aiming for.

It's been waaaaaaaay too long since I've seen Spinal Tap.

Re:MSN 8?

[tswinzig]

just as AMD is trying to keep up with the Megahertz Myth with Intel in naming their new chips.

Seems to me like AMD is trying to break OUT OF the megahertz myth. They don't advertise the megaherts of their XP processors. Instead, they give each product a number that allows you to compare it to their prime competitor's products, as well as to their products.

And the benchmarks prove it out. I've got a XP 2000+ which is on par with the P4 2Ghz chip.

If I moved up to an XP 3000+ (when that becomes available), I would expect 50% improvement in speed, irregardless of what the megahertz on the chip is... and isn't that the point of breaking out of the mhz myth?

Re:MSN 8?

[Schnapple]

Mind you, after the browser wars, which completely broke how version numbering should effectively be done, this is probably no longer true

Actually I remember some older cases that rendered it somewhat moot a while back. Not surprisingly they involve Microsoft.

When Microsoft made a version of Word for Windows, they called it 1.0 and the successor 2.0. By the time they were to come out with what would have been 3.0, Word for DOS was 6.0, so they called the new Windows version 6.0 as well "so they would match". Of course the (then winning) competitor was WordPerfect, also at version 6.0 (WP's first Windows release was 5.0 or 5.1, to match their DOS version, but they started at 1.0 on platforms like Macintosh or OS/2). At one point in time a version of Microsoft Office would contain many differing versions of the programs (Word 2.0, Excel 4.0, etc.), but by Office 95 they were all set to the same version (7.0) but of course it didn't matter anymore since the year numbering scheme was in effect.

Microsoft released MS-DOS 5.0 and some time after MS-DOS 6.0. Version 6.0 was the first MS-DOS that Microsoft made after their deal with IBM was over, so when IBM released their new PC-DOS they called it Version 6.1, to "avoid confusion" with MS-DOS 6.0. Microsoft then released MS-DOS 6.2, also to "avoid confusion". IBM countered with PC-DOS 6.3, but it didn't really matter anymore since no one used PC-DOS anyway. Really at work here was the "higher version number = better" myth the public has.

Microsoft's development products aren't immune, either. Microsoft's Visual InterDev was 1.0 with Visual Studio 5.0 (I think), but when Visual Studio 97 was released, it was bumped up to 6.0 to match the other releases. InterDev has pretty much been dissolved into the ASP.NET handling features of Visual Studio.NET.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

an alternate interpretation of the ms-dos 6/6.1/6.2 dance has to do with litigation surrounding their IP theft from a company called Stac (or something like that, basically MSFT lifted the DriveSpace technology from them, 6 had the infringing code, 6.1 didn't, then they bought the company they stole from, 6.2 had it again). You may think I'm being a linux-zealot-hippie by using phrases like "MSFT stole X from Y." but this is all a matter of public record.

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

That's odd. I could've sworn MS Office was up to 2000 at one point (2001 for Macintosh). Why would they go back to 2 digits?

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

These go to 11...

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

emacs 21.2 : now more than just the internet.

Re:MSN 8?

[Masem]

If AMD was truly fighting the MHzMyth, they wouldn't be naming their chips to comparible speeds of the Intel line, and instead, their "AMD Athlon XP 2100+" would be "AMD Athlon XP 1800" (not sure on the numbers, just an example); furthermore, they would also then spend the time to market aggressively that their 1800 line is just as powerful as the Intel 2100 chip.

But instead, AMD has simply decided to try to rank their chips with comparible Intel chips. That's certainly not trying to fight it, but instead simplying succumming to it.

Remember that the MHzMyth is propigated by Joe Six-pack, and not the tech sector.

Re:MSN 8?

[erink42]

I don't recall the exact dates...which came out first, AOL 8 or RedHat 8?

Re:MSN 8?

[tswinzig]

If AMD was truly fighting the MHzMyth, they wouldn't be naming their chips to comparible speeds of the Intel line

I don't think you understand the Mhz Myth. The myth states that the higher the Mhz, the faster the processor. Intel pushes this idea because their chips run at high clock rates.

If a company were going to break out of the megahertz myth, and still sell their products, how would you recommend they do that? AMD's chips run at lower clock rates than comparable P4 chips. So the MhzMyth is working against them, and they had to break out of it.

Their products still need model numbers. Why not give the model numbers some value to consumers? If I want a chip that runs as fast as the Intel P4 2.4Ghz chip, I know that I can get a XP 2400+. The benchmarks have proven this out time and again. If anything, AMD seems to be 'undercutting' their names when compared to Intel's Mhz numbers (perhaps that's why they put a + on the end).

and instead, their "AMD Athlon XP 2100+" would be "AMD Athlon XP 1800"

How exactly are you determining this arbitrary "1800" number? And what would be the point of lowering that number like that? As long as the AMD 3000+ is at least 50% faster than the AMD 2000+, I'll be completely happy with their naming scheme.

Remember that the MHzMyth is propigated by Joe Six-pack, and not the tech sector.

Yeah right, what sector do you work in?

It might not be propagated by the uber-geeks who know better, but the tech sector totally believes it.

Re:MSN 8?

[standsolid]

but everone knows 3.11 is even BETTER! software with a point anything means it's more reliable. especially .11

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually it took M$ 2000 tries before they got some bugs fixed (Windows 2000).

Re:MSN 8?

[Dynedain]

Why not just make 10 louder?

Well, you see, uh, ours goes to 11.

Re:MSN 8?

[kbielefe]

Is this the same spam filtering they use on hotmail that filters almost everything except spam?

Re:MSN 8?

[pben]

Microsoft Office 11 went into beta a few days ago!

Re:MSN 8?

[Anonymous Coward]

beacuse MSN 9 is to close to ASN9

Re:MSN 8?

[AnyoneEB]

You can go and download MSN 7. It will be easy to find I'm sure... just like NetScape 5. :)

Re:MSN 8?

[LX.onesizebigger]

Is this the same spam filtering they use on hotmail that filters almost everything except spam?

Pretty much. You will notice that they recently reduced the number of available custom filters in the free version of Hotmail (your only hope for slightly improving the filter's efficiency) to ten. If you want more, you have to pay now.

In other words, Microsoft's strategy: a) Provide a barely working feature. b) Complement it with another feature. c) Limit the feature in (b). d) Call the original feature in (b) Improved and SELL it.

(marketing strategy) DEVELOPERS! (rip-off) DEVELOPERS! (money-milking) DEVELOPERS!

Re:MSN 8?

[BJH]

Sybase is on 12...

Re:MSN 8?

[SN74S181]

Actually, Word for Windows 2.0 leaped to Word for Windows 6.0 because that was the version number of Word for Macintosh. And they adopted an 'identical user interface' for Word for Windows/Mac 6.0. The user manual served for both the Windows and Mac at that version.

WordPerfect was the dismally losing 'competitor' at the time, not a serious competitor. They produced an absolute disaster of a word processor in their first Windows attempt. They were part of the anti-Windows coalition with Lotus 123 at the time. They were stuck with a userbase of DOS-heads (the WordPerfect jihaad was composed of one secretary in each office who was the 'computer wizard' because she had memorized all the left-flipper/control/alt/f11 to indent arcana necessary do do anything useful with no-visible-menu WordPerfect.

Re:MSN 8?

[compwiz3688]

Nobody's higher than 10.

Uhhh... Drivers for the GeForce series? I think they're at 30.x, with 40.x as beta or something?

Ok ok, they're video drivers, not apps... but still, it's version 30+ :)

Now all we need is Netscape...

[NetRanger]

...to put their army of mascots out there, and then it's Godzilla Versus Mothra all over again.

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh sure, it's a good idea on paper, but have you ever tried rollerblading in a Godzilla costume? It'll all end in tears...

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[McFly69]

This this case it is the happy Penguin (think of the size of the State-Puff Marshmellow Man from Ghostbusters, with his smile) versus the 900 foot Bill Gates (Think of his shoes size beign half of a city block).

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[jkeychan]

I believe that's Mozilla, v. Mothra.

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[stratjakt]

Mothra was the good guy - and the winner, BTW.

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually her name is Masura. I can still hear the japanese twin fairies sing Masara, Masara, why do you cry! Masura is one of the few monsters to defeat Godzilla doing so on 2 occasions i believe. She's worshiped by some island in, i think, the south pacific. Also helped Gozilla defeat the crazy flying turtle who's name escapes me at the moment. So Masura (Mothra) isn't really "good" or "evil". She just kicked Godzilla's ass.

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[Anonymous Coward]

And Yes I'm well aware of the typos. I even proof-read the preview.(i thought)

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[Rich0]

Gammara, I believe?

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[NetRanger]

Certainly not the Good Guy in terms of special effects! :-)

Just think -- MSNthra Versus Mozilla, it couldn't stink any worse than Godzilla in the theaters...

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[default luser]

No, the man we need is...

ULTRAMAN!

Woot, he can grow to insane sizes and shoot fireballs, only problem is he looks like a Power Ranger...hmmm

Did someone say Power Rangers!?!?

Lets make "A fighting force of Extra-ordinary Magnitude!!!!!"

Big Jim Slade, Former Tight-End for the Kansas City Cheifs, will save us!

Re:Now all we need is Netscape...

[BJH]

Not Masura... Mosura. (¥â¥¥é if /. doesn't screw it up.)

Great Performance Art, I guess

[theRhinoceros]

This sort of thing makes for great corporate performance art, but honestly... does it make the average person want to choose them as their ISP? If not, then they might as well make origami out of their money and set it on fire.

Re:Great Performance Art, I guess

[RobotRunAmok]

The average person does not know what ISP stands for. The average person thinks that "AOL" equals "Internet." This is not meant as a slight on the the "average person," most of whom have much more important things to focus upon in their varied, non-tech-obsessed lives.

MS, fast on the heels of just about every major reviewer decalring MSN 8 superior to AOL 8, has just sent the average person a a message that there is another Internet besides AOL. I've never used either AOL or MSN, and have no love for either parent organization, but I see this as a brilliant publicity stunt by MS, no question.

The "average person on SlashDot," who has got his toaster oven connected to a Cisco router and is using it to hack into the SETI distribution, is neither the intended customer for the service nor the intended audience for the stunt.

Re:Great Performance Art, I guess

[Fugly]

This sort of thing makes for great corporate performance art, but honestly... does it make the average person want to choose them as their ISP? If not, then they might as well make origami out of their money and set it on fire.

Sometimes marketting isn't about making people want your product. Sometimes it's about making sure people know your product exists.

Re:Great Performance Art, I guess

[MikeOttawa]

>>The "average person on SlashDot," who has got his toaster oven connected to a Cisco router and is using it to hack into the SETI distribution, is neither the intended customer for the service nor the intended audience for the stunt. I wish I knew someone I could share that with who would find it as funny as I do... I think my Day has officially been Made. Thank you.

Re:Great Performance Art, I guess

[KingOfBLASH]

... does it make the average person want to choose them as their ISP? Think of it this way. The population of New York City is so dense that for every building the butterflies are zooming by, they pass tens of thousands of people - even if they may not all see the butterflies. Even if Micro$oft gets 1 new customer per 100,000 it assaults with advertising, in NYC this ad campaign will pay for itself - even if the "butterflies" aren't interns working for nothing - because every new customer doesn't just plunk down $20 (or whatever MSN costs) a month, but $20 x 12 months = $240 a year - which they will continue paying until AOL interns dress up like something interesting and go rollerblading down the streets of NYC. I'd also like to point out - by way of example - Micro$oft isn't exactly being punished. At my school - SUNY Buffalo - chalk is an often used advertising tool for student organizations. When an organization uses it to advertise, the corridors and pathways will be covered in messages. You can't miss them. The official policy of the school is to turn on a hose and get rid of all chalk drawings. But while any Gay and Lesbian Pride (or other "offensive") drawings scrawled on the sidewalks and walls under cover of darkness will be hosed off by 9am, Proschool chalk drawings (homecoming rallies, fundraisers, etc) will be hosed off by 9pm that night. My point is that while NYC may publicly chastize Micro$oft, they could have done a lot more if they really wanted to. Maybe this is because Micro$oft spends so much money in NYC, or maybe the Commissioner is just a nice guy. But just because Micro$oft broke the law and is paying a $50 fine doesn't mean all that much. In fact, if just 1 moron likes the morons (erm, butterflies) enough to sign up, I would bet money Micro$oft has made it's money back. The good news is that when companies like IBM advertise Linux this way, they probably get encouraged to do it again as well. (at least it's good for every other Linux Junkie in the audience) =) -Dan ___________ "Never let your schooling interfere with your education." Mark Twain

So I'm having a bad day

[Apostata]

Am I the only one secretly wishing all of those butterfly-clad idiots were magically transported to some impoverished shanty-town (like in Bangladesh or Brazil) so they could convince all of the people who are drinking raw sewage in their water how wonderful the benefits of MSN 8 will be?

Re:So I'm having a bad day

[Anonymous Coward]

so they could convince all of the people who are drinking raw sewage in their water how wonderful the benefits of MSN 8 will be?

The question is in a taste test is, could they tell the difference?

Re:So I'm having a bad day

[istartedi]

Not until RMS gives them all GNU CD-ROMS and informs them that Free Software is an inalienable right.

Courts are the better marketing agencies

[nutshell42]

Is there any cheaper method to get screen time and articles in newspapers than getting sued over nonsensical issues?

double standard

[anotherone]

So let me get this straight:

Graffiti is alright so long as it's only used to denote an insecure wifi network where you can download your kiddy porn without being traced? Since geeks invented graffiti, it's not cool when MS does it? (lol M$ lol)

Re:double standard

[Anonymous Coward]

Wifi graffiti doesn't endanger anyone - read the whole article for the dangers MS is creating with this. The idiots put the butterflies on sidewalks, including kerb cuts. Article doesn't say it but kerb cuts also usually include textured pavement (the bumps that tell blind people not to walk into the street).

MS will sure get a lot of publicity if a wheelchair slips on a butterfly and slides into the road, or a blind person blunders into the street because she can't feel the pavement change texture.

Re:double standard

[gwizah]

That's wrong... G[r]eeks invented graffito.

Is that what you meant to say?

I just saw twelve dead 4 color butterflies on the grill of a mack truck whizz by. I think they were

Microsoftus annoyingus

No Registration Link

[brunes69]

Why these people dont post the no registration required links provided by Google news I don't know

Re:No Registration Link

[Thorin_]

Because its really not that hard to get a registration. I mean you don't have to use real info and once you get it you can have it set a cookie so you never have to log in again. Quit being such a whiner.

Re:No Registration Link

[brunes69]

No, it's the principal of the thing. Why does /. not allow posting of articles from sites that require registrations to view the articles EXCEPT New York Times? THey say they are protesting the need for registrations, yet they make an exception for them why? It is so hypocritcal. Just like most of the other stuff that goes on around here.

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

thank you. i yearn for the olden days on /. when people would just post the entire text of NYTimes articles.

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

What, like this?

Two days after city inspectors ripped up illegal Nike advertising decals glued to sidewalks along Central Park West, Microsoft unleashed a swarm of large adhesive butterflies in Manhattan.

They settled yesterday morning on sidewalks and doorways; traffic signals, stop signs and planters. They alighted on the bluestone paving around Grand Army Plaza and the granite corners around Grand Central Terminal.

Their blue, green, orange and yellow wings had spans of 12 to 20 inches, the larger ones accompanied by a caption -- "It's better with the Butterfly" -- advertising Microsoft's new MSN 8 Internet service.

"This is nothing more than corporate graffiti," said Vanessa Gruen, director of special projects for the Municipal Art Society, a civic organization that has long battled commercialization of public space. "It's no better than all those kids out there tagging subway cars."

And no more legal, city officials said.

"We intend to hold your firm directly responsible for this illegal, irresponsible and dangerous defacing of public property," wrote Cesar A. Fernandez, assistant counsel of the Transportation Department, in a letter sent yesterday to the Microsoft Corporation.

His letter instructed Microsoft to remove the decals from city property immediately and warned that further placement might lead to "legal proceedings which may include, but not be limited to, a request for injunctive relief and additional monetary damages; and criminal prosecution."

"I trust and hope that these offensive activities are not the authorized acts of your organization's employees and agents," Mr. Fernandez wrote, requesting a reply from Microsoft with assurances that its promotional staff and agents would be directed "to avoid such illegal conduct."

A single summons was issued, with a $50 penalty, though each butterfly could have been subject to a $50 fine, said Tom Cocola, the assistant commissioner for public affairs at the transportation agency. He said the city's chief goal was seeing to it that the decals are removed.

Microsoft, for its part, insisted that it was authorized to place the decals.

"There are permits for everything," said Colleen Lacter of Waggener Edstrom, a public relations firm representing Microsoft, emerging from a tent at Wollman Rink in Central Park after an MSN 8 promotional event.

"This is not a repeat of Nike," she added. But she would not tell a reporter what agency had issued the permits. After a brief huddle with two people whom she identified as being from McCann-Erickson, the advertising firm handling the account, Ms. Lacter said: "There's nothing else to say. They didn't want to get into a discussion about the details."

The law, Section 19-138 of the New York City administrative code, states: "It shall be unlawful for any person to deface any street by painting, printing or writing thereon, or attaching thereto, in any manner, any advertisement or other printed matter."

The butterflies found on vertical surfaces were made of flimsy plastic, held in place by static electricity and easily removable. The sidewalk decals were a heavier plastic, with a roughly textured surface. Though they were stuck to the pavement, they too could be lifted off fairly easily.

And that is what the Grand Central Partnership set out to do yesterday afternoon as it confronted butterfly decals on some of the special pink granite sidewalks it has installed at 172 intersections from Fifth to Second Avenues, 38th to 48th Streets. These include curb cuts for the disabled.

"Anything that impairs the ability of someone to move on those accessible corners is a concern," said Marc A. Wurzel, general counsel to the partnership, which runs the business improvement district. "It's a unique form of guerrilla advertising."

In a state of some astonishment, Ms. Gruen took in the scene outside the Municipal Art Society office at the Villard Houses, Madison Avenue and 51st Street. There were butterflies on building facades, a telephone booth and a Grand Central Partnership newspaper vending machine.

"It's illegal," she said, "and they're going to get a lot of publicity for it."

That may have been the point. "It's a tremendous opportunity," Ms. Lacter said, "for us to build brand awareness."

Re:No Registration Link

[ckedge]

Because the NYT is such a fine piece of journalism, so *frequently* full of good stories.

Re:No Registration Link

[gimpboy]

because when slashdot started there was no registration required at the nyt. when they started requiring registration they were grandfathered in. dont get your panties in a wad.

Re:No Registration Link

[GnomeKing]

Why these people dont post the no registration required link provided by making minor modifications to the ones provided byGoogle news, I dont know ;)

Re:No Registration Link

[RobotRunAmok]

It's the New York Friggin' Times, Bunky. Quit whining, register, and get on with your life.

jeezus...

Re:No Registration Link

[Rooktoven]

NY Times does won't spam you. (As stated in an earlier post)

Further, other News pages are asking for registration as well; the Washington Post and ABCnews are two examples. Really, the information asked for is usually minimal, and once you register once (per browser/machine) you don't get the reg message.

If registration is such a big deal pretty much everyone here would be an A.C., no?

Re:No Registration Link

[brunes69]

What about the Washington Post or ABC news, these didn't have registration required when /. started and they weren't grandfathered in.

Re:No Registration Link

[imadork]

Hey, I registered for the Times. It's free, and they never spam me. Why not register?

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

"and they never spam me"

Hey you're right. I didn't realize that until you said it. Pretty good.

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

Becasue NYTimes is the finest newspaper in the country. Because time and again, NYtimes has interesting articles found no where else. Because the NYTimes reg is FREE.

Grow up, idiot

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

it's spelt "principle," douchebag.

Re:No Registration Link

[Anonymous Coward]

user:10101 password: 10101
some sites: cipherpunks:cipherpunks
everyhting else: bob@hotail.com
Poor bob. I knoew several people that always register as bob@hotmal.com. Oh well, I guess it's my own little way of contributing to the MS spam-DDOS If anyone ever figures out a way to trick both AOL and MS servers to reply to eachoer's error messages, you know it'd be about 5 minutes before AOL and MS we DOSing the living snot out of eachother.

Obligatory bug on windshield joke

[Shillo]

*splatt!*

--

Sounds like the Ad agency's fault from the article

[upstateguy]

From the article, the PR firm's lackey said they had a permit, but..

After a brief huddle with two people whom she identified as being from McCann-Erickson, the advertising firm handling the account, Ms. Lacter said: "There's nothing else to say. They didn't want to get into a discussion about the details."

So it might not be MS's directive, but the PR/Ad agency screwing it up. Though *that's* a bit difficult to swallow that they didn't know you could get away with that. Probably more of a 'hey this will get *great* pr, be on the news for shaking up NYC, and we'll pay some crappy little fine at best (or offer MS XP to schools at a discount and thereby intrenching themselves more :-).

what I don't get

[inteller]

Is why these butterfly outfits are so "frumpy". If they really want to sell they need something that competes with the iMac girl. I want my (female) human butterfly wearing nothing but wings and a smile.

Re:what I don't get

[will_die]

That would a huge improvment.
Currently I just flashbacks of various 'The Tick' episodes.

Re:what I don't get

[MyHair]

But then no one would notice the wings. See? They think these things through. Besides, fat guys work cheaper in advertising.

Re:what I don't get

[SyntheticTruth]

....but....that would be a fairy then, wouldn't it?

And we know that MS avoids any word with the word 'fair' in it.

Re:what I don't get

[bujoojoo]

Fine, if that's what you want.

I don't think Janet Reno is doing anything at the moment...

Re:what I don't get

[Anonymous Custard]

Is why these butterfly outfits are so "frumpy". If they really want to sell they need something that competes with the iMac girl. I want my (female) human butterfly wearing nothing but wings and a smile.

I know a lot of guys (myself included) who'd pay 20 bucks a month to get to watch sexy naked butterfly girls skate around the streets of NYC during their morning commute. :-) The money saved by walking instead of taking the subway would more than pay for the monthly fee...

Re:what I don't get

[Anonymous Coward]

Shit, I'd move to NYC *and* switch to Windows XP for that!

Okay, maybe not switch to Windows XP.

Maybe if they can get hot naked chicks with swords...

Re:what I don't get

[superyooser]

Ellen Feiss in a butterfly suit. Woohoo!

Re:what I don't get

[vrt3]

You mean like this?

Re:what I don't get

[Anonymous Coward]

not work safe

Can't Microsoft do anything original?!!!

[aquarian]

Is there a single, original idea at Microsoft? Can't they come up with *anything* themselves? You know you suck when you're looking to IBM for "hip" inspiration...

Re:Can't Microsoft do anything original?!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

I think the guys in butterfly costumes is very original.

Oh, wait. You are just trying to get karma by bashing MS. My bad.

You know... being narrow minded happens at both ends of the tunnel, right?

Re:Can't Microsoft do anything original?!!!

[telstar]

IBM invented stickers?

Re:Can't Microsoft do anything original?!!!

[FortKnox]

What are you talking about? Graffiti marketing has existed for years. IBM's Linux ad campaign comes to mind, because you read it on Slashdot.

The butterfly guys in costume isn't original either, but its on a scale much larger than I've ever heard about (for an ad, at least).

Re:Can't Microsoft do anything original?!!!

[Capt Dan]

No, but they own the patent.

They need a punching

[pubjames]

30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits colored in the Microsoft colors, and carrying MSN banners just rollerbladed by, screaming at the top of their lungs down the middle of Broadway.

I would love to see an equivalent number of guys in penguin suits go beat them up. I'd pay good money to see that.

Re:They need a punching

[radja]

>I would love to see an equivalent number of guys in penguin suits go beat them up. I'd pay good money to see that.

hell, I'd pay to wear one of those penguin suits ;) //rdj

Re:They need a punching

[BilldaCat]

I *have* a penguin suit. let me at them.

it draws women like you wouldn't believe. shame I don't have any photos of when we headed out to this club in baltimore. best $ I ever spent, for sure.

Re:They need a punching

[Anonymous Coward]

The equivalent number being around 10.

Re:They need a punching

[cscx]

Hmm, let's see, people on rollerblades in skintight suits vs. CowboyNeal-esque folks waddling down the street? I don't think so. Now, if there was snow on the ground, that would be a different story.

Re:They need a punching

[ErikRed1488]

I would love to see an equivalent number of guys in penguin suits go beat them up. I'd pay good money to see that.

It wouldn't take an equivalent number. We could do it about half the number. Microsoft is weak.

Re:They need a punching

[ibennetch]

Yeah; once Tux gets on the snow (tuxracer) there's no stopping him. He'd be able to catch up to any silly butterflies.

Re:They need a punching

[kenp2002]

Oh god I can see it now a rabid Pengiun mascott jumps up the stairs from a subway entrance and jumps 4 of em doing all sorts of Judo and smashing their faces. Then as they lay there bleeding grabbing their faces in horror the pengin throws a few red hats down then escapes down the stairs to flee via the subway.

But down in the murky depths a cute 4 foot tall devil mascot with sneakers waits in the shadows. As the Penguin passes the demon jumps the penguin stabbing the penguin to death with a pitch fork. All is good.

But as the devil tries to get on the subway the police catch up and shoot him dead because they confused him for the pengiun.

Then, as they all lay dead the mascots merge and become one, it shall be called LinBsoft.

Then the super powerful LinBsoft lumbers onto the street where it is promptly hit by a fruit colored Beetle with some goatee sporting graphics designer killing both the driver and LinBsoft. All that was found at the carnage was a single apple that was eaten by a passing dog.

Thee End

Re:They need a punching

[pubjames]

Hmm, let's see, people on rollerblades in skintight suits vs. CowboyNeal-esque folks waddling down the street? I don't think so.

Ah, but you're not taking into account that the penguins would fight with different strategies to the butterflies.

The butterflies would all work together and would fight in exactly the same way. But some of the penguins would stand at the top of flights of stairs and throw things. Others would spread pointy gravel on the ground then give the butterflies a good kicking when they fall over. Pairs of penguins would waddle together holding ropes close to the ground and making the butterflies smash face first into the pavement. Then give them a good kicking. It would be great.

Re:They need a punching

[zio pera]

1) Find someone willing to pay to see guys in penguin suites;

2) Find someone willing to pay to wear penguin suite;

3) Profit !

(Sorry, couldn't resist ;-)

Re:They need a punching

[frp001]

What would be the point in that?
Having Linux people pointed at as pirate and thugs. As has been mentionned before cleaning up could have been a good idea.
Besides, penguins eat fish not butterflies.

Re:They need a punching

[Reziac]

No, no, no. The penguin group comes along afterward and *cleans up* after the messy butterfly group. Now there's a marketing opportunity going to waste even as we speak!

Re:They need a punching

[arthurs_sidekick]

Obviously, you've never seen an angry penguin charging at you in excess of 100mph. You'd be a lot more careful if you had.

this should explain what you may not understand.

Re:They need a punching

[cscx]

And herring.

Re:They need a punching

[Anonymous Coward]

Then, as they all lay dead the mascots merge and become one, it shall be called LinBsoft.

'scuse me, shouldn't that be GNU/LinBsoft?

Re:They need a punching

[maxconfus]

how about those penguins just sit down at a computer and compete with MS? MSN may not have the geek you need but I am thinking that a lot of people will who are not geeks will like it a lot. they will be eating up this new service from MSN and now Disney too all the way to the bank. Isn't ironic that the penguin is a bird that can not fly. what a great image to portray in a mascot.

Re:They need a punching

[Keith Russell]

I would love to see an equivalent number of guys in penguin suits go beat them up.

Well, I know a few guys in penguin suits, and they can skate, but they won't be around NYC until December.

Re:They need a punching

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, I'd like to see Primus dressed in penguin suits beating them up. I know Primus has the suits...

Re:They need a punching

[Liza]

Those pictures are hysterical. I especially like the sword-wielding penguin on the mall escalator. But I have to admit, I can't actually imagine it drawing women. The kids in the other pictures, yes. Post-puberty women...harder to imagine.

Liza

Re:They need a punching

[BilldaCat]

thanks. i wish i had a camera when I went to baltimore with my roommate this past weekend.. I can't begin to explain it. the power plant area there (general open area with a bunch of nightclubs) is always packed with bachlorette parties, and they -ALWAYS- want a picture with the penguin. we weren't able to walk 5 feet without being stopped by someone with a camera.

i'll have to get some more photos and actually start my own website with it. get some from this coming halloween.. add a toga, sword, and ivy leaves -- emperor penguin. :D

if anyone is wondering, i am a huge pittsburgh penguins fan, so that's why I got the costume.

Re:They need a punching

[seanb]

Penguin suits tend to be a bit bulky for melee combat.

Now, daemon suits on the other hand...

Re:They need a punching

[Alsee]

Babe alert!

-

Re:They need a punching

[Anonymous Coward]

BWAHAHAHA!!!!!

Re:They need a punching

[SN74S181]

The penguin is a bird that forgot how to fly. That's a horrible mascot, besides the fact that Tux in particular looks like a penguin stoopid just after a big bong hit. It's really only the Linux mascot as a joke, because Linus was publicly bitten by a penguin at an early Linux-related social event.

They've done this before, and should know better

[Zeddicus_Z]

You really think Microsoft would have learned after doing this before and having it backfire on them.

When the Xbox launched here in Australia, Microsoft spent obscene amounts of money on the advertising campaign (it actually began a few months prior to launch). Part of this was to spraypaint the green Xbox X on the sidewalk at pretty much every bus stop in central Sydney. Needless to say, the relevent local councils were not amused.

As far as I know, the responsible parties were ordered by the court to pay for council workers to clean every single spray. However, Microsoft is nothing if not careful, and instead of doing the original grafitti themselves, they'd contracted it to a local, well-known (in the industry) PR company.

Last we heard, poor [company name omitted] were stuck not only with the bill for councils to clean up the Microsoft grafitti, but also the responsability to clean it off themselves (the more they got to, the less council had to do and thus the less they paid).

Penguins eat Butterflies for Breakfast

[Anonymous Coward]

What they really needed was a group of people dressed up as Tux on rollerblades chasing the Butterflies out of town. :)

Re:Penguins eat Butterflies for Breakfast

[Darth RadaR]

What we really need is a bunch of people dressed up as Tux on rollerblades chasing the Butterflies with fly-swatters. :)

Re:Penguins eat Butterflies for Breakfast

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a whole swarm of people dressed as bugs hounding them all over town? Seems to me that would be a more acurate "performance art" interpretation of the MSN 8.0 launch.

Re:Penguins eat Butterflies for Breakfast

[Anonymous Coward]

What we really need is somebody handing out free 'Tux' rubber buttplugs to people coming out of Discos downtown at night. You know the rubber Tux buttplug that I refer to if you got one free in your Corel Linux retail box.

No registration required here

[Anonymous Coward]

NYT without the registration

posted anonymously so i don't look like a karma whore.

Best one I saw...

[telstar]

I saw about 50 of these yesterday ... but the best one had to be a 1'x1' sticker that had been pasted onto the front windshield of a car that had been abandoned on Houston Street. The thing completely obstructing the passenger's view. If it was my car, I'd be pissed, but it's a hell of a lot better than being flooded with those damn AOL CDs.

Re:Best one I saw...

[operagost]

Who drives an abandoned car?

MSN Jackass?

[Rai]

"Hi. I'm Johnny Knoxville and this is MSN..." *CRASH!* (BSOD)

Re:MSN Jackass?

[EaTiN cOfFeE bEaNs]

They would be advertising M$ products quite well: Lots and lots of crashes...

Microsoft Forms

[BoBaBrain]

Q: How did you hear about our products?

A:
[] Recomended by a friend
[] Saw ad in magazine
[] Screaming butterflies spoke of them

Re:Microsoft Forms

[thilmony]

Q: How did you hear about our products?

A:
[] Recomended by a friend
[] Saw ad in magazine
[] Screaming butterflies spoke of them
[] Slashdot postings about butterflies

Re:Microsoft Forms

[Ymerej]

• Karma: Ecxelant (mostly affected by moderation done by Slashdot editors)

...who spell about as well as you do.

Re:Microsoft Forms

[Anonymous Coward]

...who spell about as well as you do.

That's the point. Duh.

Re:Microsoft Forms

[Anonymous Coward]

wow... thats the second time a low UID pointed out an obvious joke and didn't get it. If ( UID < 10,000 ) NoSenseOfHumor = true;

Re:Microsoft Forms

[Anonymous Coward]

wow... thats the second time a low UID pointed out an obvious joke and didn't get it

Maybe they did get it, and YOU didn't get the fact that the poster is a terrible speller. Note how he misspelled 'recommended'.

Re:Microsoft Forms

[Ymerej]

Carma: Fscked up (its mostly effected by my lack of a sence of humer.

Re:Microsoft Forms

[BJH]

And 12280 is less than 10000 exactly how?

Re:Microsoft Forms

[BoBaBrain]

Bugger. I missed that one.

I'll change my sig with all due humility.

A Peace Offering to the Radical Islamists

[FreeUser]

Am I the only one secretly wishing all of those butterfly-clad idiots were magically transported to some impoverished shanty-town (like in Bangladesh or Brazil) so they could convince all of the people who are drinking raw sewage in their water how wonderful the benefits of MSN 8 will be?

Quite possibly you were the only one dreaming of that particular scenerio, but now there are a bunch of us enjoying the image as well. :-)

Several colleagues of mine and I are not-so-secretly wishing all of those butterfly-clad candy-asses would be magically teleported into "Taliban Country" (Northern Pakistan or Chechnya), where they could live to fullfillment the roles of "Harem Bitch" they've so obviously aspired to. OK, it isn't Billy Boy's Harem, but still, its a leg up in the business...and they have to start somewhere.

Re:A Peace Offering to the Radical Islamists

[SN74S181]

You live a bitter unhappy life, it seems.

Here's something exciting for you to try: There are actually people out there, in the world, who don't hate Microsoft as their hobby. People who don't dream up new and horrible scenarios for their arch-nemesis to endure. Go out and meet some of them. Maybe even do something not involving Bill hatred.

Just a suggestion.

Re:A Peace Offering to the Radical Islamists

[Grishnakh]

I'll do that as soon as Bill does something with his life besides trying to force his insecure, bug-ridden crap down my throat whether I want it or not, using any means (legal or not) possible.

Re:A Peace Offering to the Radical Islamists

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow. You've got one hell of a conceit.

Mr. Gates doesn't even know you exist.

And his company will charge you money to use their software. I think if you refuse to pay, you won't find it forced down your throat.

That explains it...

[Anonymous Coward]

I saw a lot of these in lower Manhattan the other day, and all I could think was "since when does M$ have punk kiddie followers that do this?" Good to know it is adult PR firms just acting like them...

You People Are Playing Right Into their Hands

[Pave Low]

Looks like there just playing the old game of "no publicity is bad publicity". All this whining and discussion of this "vandalism" (how's running around times square vandalism?) just raises more awareness for MSN which is exactly what they're trying to do.

I would expect slashdot to show some common sense, but with michael sims at the helm, any opportunity to bash microsoft can never be turned down.

Re:You People Are Playing Right Into their Hands

[Anonymous Coward]

raising awareness of MSN?

anyone who would be a customer of MSN is already aware of MSN.

how is a bunch of prancing butterflys going to help that other than a getting thousands of confused looks? but of course a passing confusion where they dont care enough to actually check it out

Double-standards?

[EchoMirage]

This is not a troll, but an observation: When it's IBM spray-painting Linux graffiti messages, it's free speech, but when it's Microsoft painting butterflies, it's vandalism?

Re:Double-standards?

[Rascalson]

No both were vandalism, one was just from a less evil company, spreading a less evil message :) Which one is which of course depends on your point of view.

Re:Double-standards?

[Anonymous Coward]

Hello and welcome to Slashdot.

Re:Double-standards?

[FortKnox]

Its what I've been saying for a long time. Zealotous Linux users are just as bad as complete MS supporters. Closed mindedness happens at both extremes.

But the only replies you (and I) will get is how slashdot is biased and to go elsewhere if you don't like it.

Honestly, Slashdot is a news for nerds site that SUPPORTS Linux. The users are the ones that make it either "Linux, or else". I use both. That means I'm the enemy.

Re:Double-standards?

[Kenshiro]

> I use both. That means I'm the enemy.

That's funny - I can read your msg as easily as anyone else's. Sounds fair to me.

Re:Double-standards?

[Anonymous Coward]

That's my opinion (sort of), yes. Just like that the voting campaign signs in the grass are voting campaign signs but unlicensed advertisement signs on sticks at the same or similar locations are vandalism.

And by the way, if you don't like it you're welcome to voice your opinion.

Re:Double-standards?

[megaduck]

Zealotous Linux users are just as bad as complete MS supporters. Closed mindedness happens at both extremes.

Actually, as a long-time MS basher, I know I ceded the moral high ground long ago. You know what? I don't care.

MS has effectively declared war on my favorite technologies, and I feel obliged to retaliate. This isn't about right or wrong, or how open-minded we all are. This is about tarring and feathering MS until they get out of town or reform. This is war, Skippy, and we can all be tolerant and nice to each other when it's over.

Any publicity is good publicity.

[mini me]

"It's illegal," she said, "and they're going to get a lot of publicity for it."

I think that was the whole point of all of this.

Re:Any publicity is good publicity.

[stratjakt]

Think it hurts to appeal to the 'bad-ass anti-establishment' gen-y'ers?

So now IBM is the 'laid back hippie' company, and MSFT is the 'bad assed party guy' company.

Apple is still the "Mack-in-what?" company.

Re:Any publicity is good publicity.

[FreeUser]

"It's illegal," she said, "and they're going to get a lot of publicity for it."

I think that was the whole point of all of this.

And, as another observed, "do the math." It is a very cheap way to gain notoriety (exposure), which serves their purposes exactly.

Now, if the city of New York really wants to stop this sort of thing (IBM was somewhat innovative and original when they did it a couple of years ago, Nike and Microsoft are merely a tired, repeated cliche at this point), they will probably need to start suspending or revoking the business licenses of the advertising firms that do this sort of thing, and/or throwing the employees doing this in jail for a night or two.

Fines, even fines that a single human being would find enormous, are nothing to the almost bottomless coffers of corporate america, and Microsoft in particular, and will certainly do little to deter this sort of thing in the future.

Re:Any publicity is good publicity.

[Anonymous Coward]

Apple is the french-coffee-drinking beret-wearing finger-snapping poetry-reading communist/anarchist-government-studying turtleneck-sporting gay-relations-with-other-men-having frequently-orgy-having-without-inviting-me, (colon-dash-open-parentheses) company.

Re:Any publicity is good publicity.

[Anonymous Coward]

I think corporate fines should be based on a percentage of their annual REVENUE. If MS was fined 5% of their revenue for this, fuck yeah they'd sit up and take notice! Keep the dollar amount for the humans.

Re:Any publicity is good publicity.

[FreeUser]

I think corporate fines should be based on a percentage of their annual REVENUE. If MS was fined 5% of their revenue for this, fuck yeah they'd sit up and take notice! Keep the dollar amount for the humans.

Good luck.

Clearly NYC politicians were paid off generously (an examination of their portfolios would no doubt be very revealing), in that the city only charged Microsoft a $50.00 fine (much less than IBM was charged before) and graciously "accepted" Microsoft's "Apology".

That was a $50.00 fine in total, not per count, making a laughingstock of the entire anti-graffitti law, and sending a clear message: we in the NYC government like corporate graffitti if our portfolio members or campaign contributors do it, but if individuals (or non-bribing companies) do it, watch out!

What an utter farce.

Google entrance

[Midnight Thunder]

And here is Google's entrance to the NYT article

A $50 Fine??

[TooCynical]

>>A single summons was issued, with a $50 penalty,

Erm... isn't that the bill Bill uses to wipe his ass?

Re:A $50 Fine??

[Anonymous Coward]

That's an outrageous and libelous untruth, and Bill should sic his lawyers on you for promulgating such baseless rumors.

He uses $10s.

PR makes no sense!

[timdorr]

Just yesterday there was an XBOX giveaway at my school. It had something do with Microsoft from what I heard, but besides that there was no indication as to what they were trying to sell to me. Now they have men in butterfly suits running around town screaming at the top of their lungs. Yeah.....

I seriously wonder if there's a single person at MS with a clue. (well, maybe the guy that designed solitaire. I love that guy :)

Advertorial?

[Zeddicus_Z]

Does anyone else find it suspect, that *smack bang* in the middle of that New York Times article is a 10cm by 10cm advertisement for MSN 8, "it's better with the butterfly".

Kinda makes you wonder if the article is "news" at all, or whether the NYT's subscription model is starting to show some cracks.

Re:Advertorial?

[Anonymous Coward]

I have to aggree on this here. This isn't a troll either. I too was shocked when they put that ad up. I thought they did it to show what a fat guy in a butterfly suit spewing MS propaganda looks like, until I moused over the ad to find out that it was indeed a link and not a static picture...

Perhaps we will start seeing MS ads here complete with fatass guys wearing butterfly costumes?

Re:Advertorial?

[Anonymous Coward]

Um...are you just now realizing that "journalism" is simply veiled information from PR flacks? Duh.

how different is this from graffiti?

[2000 Britneys]

I mean there are laws out there against such things as painting on public buildings and such. Why should MS (tm) be exempt from that? Just because they are a corporation that has oodles of money doesn't mean they are above the law, or does it?

Re:how different is this from graffiti?

[Anonymous Coward]

no, it doesn't. read the article, dumbass. it says that nyc is going to press charges.

Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Anonymous Coward]

it's not just SF, here in Chicago as well. you can still see the faint image of Tux at the Jackson street subway entrance to the Blue line.

Yeah, but tux is cool. Also, the graffiti was in black (against white concrete), not candy colored.
Most importantly, perhaps, IBM did it first. When they did it it was an original, innovative idea. Microsoft's gaudy re-run is simply so much tasteless, derivative kitch.

It is one thing to do something radical first, and to do it with a little style. It is another thing to copycat with little imaginatino and no style (a garish, gay butterfly logo no less). Promoting a network service even AOLers are smart enough to avoid doesn't help either.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[wheany]

It is one thing to do something radical first

I know: Microsoft could buy ad-space from gravestones. Or they could pay someone to change his name to MSN 8.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Anonymous Coward]

Most importantly, perhaps, IBM did it first.

IBM did graffiti advertising. They weren't the first to do this. Just the one that got the most exposure from it.

And MS's advertising is more geared to the guys in the butterfly costumes, not the stickers they are putting up.

So, are you all upset cause its a good idea from your arch nemisis, or because you wish IBM did it this way when they did their ad campaign??

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Thud457]

"It is one thing to do something radical first, and to do it with a little style. It is another thing to copycat with little imaginatino and no style (a garish, gay butterfly logo no less). Promoting a network service even AOLers are smart enough to avoid doesn't help either."

Ripping off other's clever ideas is what MicroSoft is all about. Hence their "switch" ad written by a golem.

And it's common wisdom in the low end advertizing business that annoying sells. Just look at used car ads on the radio. When you're selling a online service to idiots who don't value their rights, yelling "ME TOO!" as loud as you can is probably an effective strategy.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[npietraniec]

Is that dumpy looking penguin really that cool or do we just like Linux. I always thought the BSD demon was cool... Tux on the other hand...

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Anonymous Coward]

There needs to be a new penguin logo. Tux right now looks kinda lame. The BSD daemon is actually cute.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[RobotRunAmok]

Oh, stop! That ridiculous-looking penguin is *NOT* cool, by any stretch of the imagination. What it represents may be cool, but it is the dorkiest symbol in the IT industry.

It was a dorky symbol when it was used by a satellite porn channel in the late-eighties, and you've gotta be pretty weak to symbolize *THAT* and still come across nebish-y.

The charm, such as Tux may have any, lay in its obvious anti-corporate, anti-status symbolism, inasmuch as any company with more than five hundred dollars in its coffers could hire someone to devise a better logo. Tux sort of has that snarky frat-boy, movie-posters-on-the-wall, lamps-made-from-beer-kegs charm.

What, that's not what the Linux movement was going for...?

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Anonymous Coward]

It'd be awesome being stuck in an elevator with Ellen Feiss and the Dude you're getting a Dell guy. But only if Ellen brought a few joints. And you know she would. Imagine getting into a 3-way with those two. It'd be totally awesome!!!

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Spirilis]

Kind've like this?

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Publicus]

I beg to differ, and I am shocked, SHOCKED at such an assault on our beloved Tux.

I think his appeal is as much visual as it is idealogical. I especially like the IBM interpretation, in fact, I have a banner on the side of my cube with the IBM "peace love linux" design.

I quote Lyle Lovett:

Penguins are so sensitive to my needs.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[EnderWiggnz]

i'd be much more interested in a switch campaign written by Gollum.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[jonmay]

I have a Linux Fund mbna credit card that I got at LWE 3 years ago. It has a picture of tux on it. I'm not much of a linux advocate, and I have no idea if the fund is doing any well, but I like the credit card because about 20% of the time I make a face-to-face purchase I get this reaction:

"Oh, isn't that cute!"

So that doesn't necessarily make the logo cool, but it does make it somewhat attractive.

Only once have I gotten this reaction:

"Oh, cool, linux!"

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Alan Partridge]

why do you want to fuck that Dell idiot? I'd give Ellen a shot, she's not really my type, but she seems pretty funny and she's YOUNG...

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Kikaid.]

Ripping off other's clever ideas is what MicroSoft is all about. Hence their "switch" ad written by a golem.

I'm sure MS was trying to leach off the success the Apple stickers had for so many years.

Microsoft reminds me of this bitch I used to work with. She would never bring any ideas to the initial design reviews. She would just sit there and berate everyone's work. And then in the follow-up review she would unleash all her work on us, which was usually just a rehashing of all the ideas the rest of us turned in during the previous review with a few superficial changes (like the buttons would now have rounded corners). Lame ass.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Wakko Warner]

Most importantly, perhaps, IBM did it first. When they did it it was an original, innovative idea.

Yeah, nobody had thought to write on shit that didn't belong to them before IBM did it.

Ever visit a ghetto?

- A.P.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Suppafly]

Ellen is great.. If you look for "stoned chic" and other similar search strings, one of the first sites to come up mentions her. There is is even a "Think About Ellen" Wallpaper that is kinda applish looking with pictures of her looking stoned adorning the bottom of it.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[imadork]

Oh, stop! That ridiculous-looking penguin is *NOT* cool, by any stretch of the imagination. What it represents may be cool, but it is the dorkiest symbol in the IT industry.

Yup, that's exactly why I wear a Tux hat. Because it's dorky, and I'm a dork!

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[SEWilco]

"MSN..eight...my preciousss...new. Gollum switch. My precious MSN eighhhhhhhht...."

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[IamTheRealMike]

Sure, tux is a great mascot! He is cute, we've probably just got too used to seeing him. He is also capable of "actions", ie you can dress him up in a suit for business, and he can do things that the regular Windows or MacOS logo cannot.

Of course we like Linux too, but Tux as a logo is pure genius - who can resist asking what the cute penguin is?

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[spudnic]

The BSD demon may be cool to college kids and back room admins, but as far as corporate acceptance is concerned it is a big hinderence to BSD. I have actually had clients who would refuse to allow it into their business.

I'm not a fanatic about it, but I could see how it might offend some people.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[stevejsmith]

Nope, I don't think I have. Might be because most of the people to ever set foot in one were gassed by the Nazis over fifty years ago. I don't know what ghetto you're talking about...

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[susano_otter]

According to the dictionary, "ghetto" has nothing to do with concentration camps, and quite a lot to do what the parent poster was talking about. Perhaps you meant to say you've never been inside a school.

The amazing part is how pedantic you are, for someone so ignorant.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[stevejsmith]

It has much to do with concentration camps. The Nazis first put the Jews and other minorities into ghettos, and later transfered them to concentration camps where they would be gassed. Eh?

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[RAMMS EIN]

Demons are cool? Now that's new to me...

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[susano_otter]

And yet the Nazis weren't the first to implement ghettos, ghettos aren't exclusively--or even primarily--related to Nazi concentration camps, and finally, ghettos have long been associated with exactly the kind of neighborhood the parent was referring to.

Thus your argment, "stevejsmith has never been in a ghetto, because ghettos were a Nazi tool for exterminating Jews, and that was all before stevejsmith's time", seems quite senseless.

It's the middle clause that does it, really. Nazi use of "ghettos" to concentrate undesireables is really a minor footnote on the history of these neighborhoods (which probably goes back over 400 years).

The word "ghetto" has been in use as a valid term for a particular kind of neighborhood since long before the Third Reich. The word is still in use today as a valid term for a particular kind of neighborhood. Does your knowledge of the world really begin and end with the Second World War?

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[stevejsmith]

Although it is not exclusive to Nazi camps, it is primarily used to describe them. When somebody says ghetto, most people think Nazi camps. I know that's what I thought of. I just don't like people referring to bad neighorhoods as ghettos, I feel it's demoralizing to those who really did suffer in ghettos (whether they be during the Holocaust, in Rwanda, Bosnia, Yugoslavia, Chechnya, or anywhere else).

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[Wakko Warner]

Although it is not exclusive to Nazi camps, it is primarily used to describe them.

Yes, I'm sure that, when Method Man describes himself as hailing "from the ghetto", he means he was born 60 years ago in a Nazi prison neighborhood.

Holy fuck, man...

- A.P.

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[stevejsmith]

And I'd scold him, too, if I got the chance. ;-)

Re:Yeah but at least tux is cool

[gfim]

It's a grand old flag
It's a high flying flag...

But getting rid of Woey... now that's not cool!

Graham

Imagine a beowulf cluster of these!

[Duds]

no wait... that's not right.

Re:Imagine a beowulf cluster of these!

[Anonymous Coward]

no wait... that's not right.
--
Karma :Karma Cameleon (It comes and goes)

Well, perhaps it "goes" now... That must have been some sort of off-topic record. :-(

Video of Bill Gates in butterfly outfit...

[httpamphibio.us]

I've read on a couple sites that during the video Gates showed at the MSN8 release he was in a butterfly costume doing something... anyone have a link to this?

Re:Video of Bill Gates in butterfly outfit...

[Anonymous Coward]

get him in a ring with McNealy, and I think you could have a pay-per-view

Butterfly Effect

[seven89]

A butterfly flapping its wings in Manhattan can cause a hurricane in Redmond, Washington.

Pardon?

[sehryan]

MSN, the "Microsoft operating system required" internet service

As opposed to AOL, the "Microsoft operating system required" internet service.

Re:Pardon?

[Evan927]

AOL works on Macs.

Re:Pardon?

[Anonymous Coward]

Or, you know, neither, since AOL is available for Macs now, and MSN has recently announced support for the platform.

Re:Pardon?

[duplicate-nickname]

In fact, AOL was available on Macs before Windows.

Re:Pardon?

[StarFace]

Weird, I wonder what this jaguar print AOL CD that says "Macintosh 10.2 required" does?

Re:Pardon?

[Anonymous Coward]

This is true, IIRC AOL started out as some sort of "personal" version of AppleLink.

Little-known fact: The AOL logo used to be a coppery color, but was changed to blue because Windows systems at the time couldn't reproduce the coppery color without dithering the logo and making it look like shit.

You know Windows is a piece of shit when a company has to change its corporate identity to work around a Windows shortcoming.

Re:Pardon?

[GutBomb]

microsoft makes Mac OS X?

Re:Pardon?

[Anonymous Coward]

that's the dumbest fucking thing i've ever heard

first off, it's AOLs fault for choosing a logo that they must have known wouldn't show up properly on the machines that it's installed on.

secondly, if anyone's computer couldn't properly display the icon, it's because their display depth was set too low. and guess what? it's easy to design icons that show up correctly in all sorts of display depths!

not everything is microsofts fault you know.

Re:Pardon?

[IamTheRealMike]

I seem to recall reading Jeremy White of codeweavers saying that the Sherman act prevented them from tying a non monopoly product to a monopoly product. If they explictly block people who don't use Windows, isn't that an anti-trust violation?

Reminds me...

[Tsali]

.... of that Blind Melon "Bee Lady" they had in one of their videos way back when. That video (and this advertising campaign) is annoying. They should pull her a55 out of retirement and have her buzz around and do ads.

I think its a toss up between Clippy and the Butterfly boys as to who is more annoying.

Leave it to Microsoft to take butterflies and paperclips and make them utterly annoying.

If I saw one of those ads on the street, I'd have to urge to urinate on it.

Not exactly vandalism

[nicedream]

From the article:

The butterflies found on vertical surfaces were made of flimsy plastic, held in place by static electricity and easily removable. The sidewalk decals were a heavier plastic, with a roughly textured surface. Though they were stuck to the pavement, they too could be lifted off fairly easily.

Since the article specifically says the butterflies can be easily removed, I don't know if I'd call this vandalism. It's certainly less damaging than what IBM did in San Fran. Typical /. anti-MS sensationalism.

Of course, it is dispicable for a company (MS, IBM, whoever) to just take over public property for the purpose of their advertising campaigns. There are proper ways of advertising, and this isn't one of them.

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[IIci]

Just like dropping bags of chips, mars wrappers, old newspapers, a bit of your sandwich isn't vandalism. But it sure is covered by anti-littering laws! Just because something can be easily removed doesn't mean it costs the city nothing!

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[TheConfusedOne]

IIRC, the IBM Linux ads were "painted" using chalk. This meant that they'd wash off after the next rain storm. I think the bigger problem was that they were sticking these things up all over the place including on stop signs and other traffic signs.

That's the big no-no.

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[Anonymous Coward]

Since the article specifically says the butterflies can be easily removed, I don't know if I'd call this vandalism.

So it's littering then. Still illegal.

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, obviously it's illegal. I don't think anyone was saying it wasn't illegal. It just isn't vandalism.

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[greenhide]

Yes, it was vandalism.

They may be "easily removeable" in the sense that it doesn't require crowbars or solvents to remove, but that doesn't mean that it still doesn't require labor -- workers that the city must pay for to remove these buterflies.

The article states that the stickers obstructed travel for those in wheelchairs or similarly physically disabled. They had to be removed to ensure the safety of those people. Thus, in a sense, the stickers obviously were a threat to public safety, although that threat was limited in its scope and damage. Possibly the worst thing that would have happened is someone would slip and break a hip, but hey -- wouldn't that be great advertising for Microsoft, too? They could offer the poor invalid a laptop with a complimentary 3 month subscription to MSN 8.

Also, let's compare Microsoft to, say, some activist who puts up a bunch of leaflets protesting the war in Iraq.

Do you honestly think the activist would receive a letter saying, "We hope this was just a misunderstanding"? Would the activist pretend that they had received authorization to put up the signs?

From the article:

A single summons was issued, with a $50 penalty, though each butterfly could have been subject to a $50 fine, said Tom Cocola, the assistant commissioner for public affairs at the transportation agency. He said the city's chief goal was seeing to it that the decals are removed.

I say, make them pay for each one. They can certainly afford to.

What infuriates me about Corporate "guerilla" advertising is that it appropriates the methods of groups who use them because they don't have the money for traditional advertising, and because even if they did they would probably not want to support the corporate media system by running commercials on TV or buying full page ads in Newsweek. On the other hand, Microsoft and other companies are resorting to guerilla advertising because people are so jaded and don't respond to traditional Corporate advertising anymore.

Advertising used to be (way back before I was born) about letting consumers know about a product, and what it offered to the consumer in and of itself (Got Dandruff? Try Listerine! I'm not kidding -- that was in an ad from the forties or so). Nowadays, Corporate advertising is attempting to do nothing less than sell us our identity. Our choices, from the soda we drink or the car we drive to the shirts we wear or, yes, the ISP we use -- reflect not simply the need or desire for those products, but rather who we are as people (I'm a Chevrovel Cavalier Dr. Pepper Macintosh myself). However, this is backfiring these days because really most of the identies they offer are pretty much the same. Hence, the need to explore new forms of advertising, such as guerilla advertising.

Suddenly Microsoft, with a 90%+ market share of all software and the biggest, richest corporation in America is seen as rebellious, as deviant, as non-conformist. You just can't pay for that kind of advertising -- you also have to plan it carefully and then make sure the media propogates it.

Microsoft should use its money and influence to introduce positive forms of publicity. How about offering free MSN 8 to various charity organizations?

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[Blob Pet]

How about offering free MSN 8 to various charity organizations?

What have you got against charitable organizations?

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[Anonymous Coward]

What if somebody trips over one of these decals on the street. Would the city (read: taxpayer) be liable?

If not, what right does MS have, do they own the sidewalk (yet?)?

Re:Not exactly vandalism

[adavidw]

Since the article specifically says the butterflies can be easily removed, I don't know if I'd call this vandalism.

Picture this: I saunter up to your house, drop my pants, and take a shit on your front porch. This too is easily removed. Wouldn't that be vandalism?

-Aaron

Place all bug on windshield jokes here.

[jbridleman]

What's the last thing that goes through a bug's mind when it hits your windshield?

It's Ass!

Re:Place all bug on windshield jokes here.

[Anonymous Coward]

No,
its "bum".

(say it out loud, and you'll get the double meaning

Lets go the whole way

[dazdaz]

Let's kick Microsoft out of America, not just off a temporary billboard. Their starting to destroy America's credibility, all it stands for is starting to become a joke.

Is Ben Edlund aware of this?

[velcrokitty]

Copywright lawsuit pending?

Re:Is Ben Edlund aware of this?

[Anonymous Coward]

It's good to know that I wasn't the only one who thought that this instantiation of "Microsoft Innovation" looked suspicously like Arthur/Mothman from "The Tick"

Another obligatory bug v windshield joke

[TheConfusedOne]

Well, with the ever increasing use of tinted windows in cars these days maybe they could have turned the corner and ran into... ...wait for it... ...the blue windscreen of death.

Sorry.

How to make them scream louder, and blade faster..

[hero]

Suppose that a spanish-inspired Merrill-Lynch advertising campaign is following them down broadway...

-hero.

gay microsoft?

[peter303]

Those human butterflies all over the IE browser look like faeries with wings to me. Is there another message? :-) (This isnt childish name-calling.)

The ripoffs just keep on rolling.

[phillymjs]

First, they steal the Switch campaign.

Now, they bite off The Bugaloos to advertise MSN.

What next, "Sigmund the C# Monster"?

Better yet, there used to be a kids' show called "The Great Space Coaster," and there was an 'evil' character on it who went by the name M.T. Promises-- that seems about right for Microsoft marketing.

~Philly

ironic bug on my cyber windshield

[kraksmoka]

hahahahha! went to take a look and there was this unobtrusive ad on the article about the butterfly brigade. they're really putting on an Xbox style blitzkrieg for this one.

grant

Time for a battle.

[D4M4DH477X0R]

How about about 12 people get in Tux suits, put on some roller blades and fight the MS Butterflys? Now that would be interesting.

How about a whole new sport, Software Mascot Wars?

Apple did this first...

[writermike]

Perhaps this is more of an opinion than fact, but I really believe this is/was Apple's un-stated marketing campaign. Apple has always handed out stickers of various types and these things do show up in a lot of places.

Perhaps the difference here is that MS (and, maybe, to some degree, IBM) actively promotes spreading the message with the stickable items. To my knowledge, Apple never said, "Hurry to your local bus stop and stick up your Apple logos."

I never minded the Apple or IBM stickers. But, as usual, someone has to push moderation into excessive.

Interestingly, on I-95 around Boston, there is a train bridge that advertises a show on a local radio station. What's different here, however, is that it's SPRAY-PAINTED on the bridge. It's not just graffiti, it's graffiti with marketing chutzpah!

Oh

[dimension6]

I just TRIPPED on one of these (you know, the slick surface) in Times Square...now Microsoft has not only hurt me mentally (and socially), but PHYSICALLY!

Re:Oh

[Anonymous Coward]

if you read the article youd see that the stickers are on the SIGNS, not the fucking ground.. you fucking retard

Re:Oh

[Capt. DrunkenBum]

Better hurry up and call your lawyer.

MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[MyHair]

Did anyone else get the MSN ad with the silhouetted guy with the MSN butterfly suit IN the linked NYT article?

I did.

What's sad is that the extra publicity given by the NYT article, an angry NYC and Slashdot may be perceived as good. What's that marketing saying? There's no such thing as bad publicity? Makes me sick.

Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[misterhaan]

in a related note, my girlfriend experienced a freaky butterfly icon chasing her mouse cursor around the weather channel site last night. i was annoyed that they sell about half their page real estate for advertising, but after this i'm going to have to find a different source of weather!

Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[Winterblink]

Annoying ads on the internet? That's hardly new. Check out ign.com. Some days you'll click a link to view a story and get an interstitial that executes a pop-under when it continues on to the article which puts a pop-up on the screen in addition to a massive flash ad covering half the document window. The story itself is 80% advertising banners, mostly flash. Horrible, horrible site.

Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[MyHair]

my girlfriend experienced a freaky butterfly icon chasing her mouse cursor around the weather channel site...

I checked and got nothing, but then realized I was using Mozilla and tried again with IE 6. No cursor-chasing butterfly for me, but the big Flash ad was the same MSN fat guy butterfly silhouette.

Plus in the upper-right corner it says "Sponsored by MSN 8". However, the lower-right corner says "Partner All-New AOL 7.0 1000 FREE Hours!" and the lower-left corner says "Powered by WorldCom". Sheesh!

Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[misterhaan]

yeah it seems the cursor-chasing butterfly is gone, but yeah it's nice how they have a flash ad that covers up the weather i'm trying to look at!

Re:Sounds like the Ad agency's fault from the arti

[Cutriss]

It wouldn't be the first time Microsoft has blamed others for their own mistakes in marketing...

Ellen Feiss

[Anonymous Coward]

Imagine if Apple did the same thing, letting these kind of living forms crawling around screaming! Buz.

NYC Anti-Graffiti Official Makes Offer

[spoonyfork]

NYC Anti-Graffiti Official Makes Offer

Friday October 25, 2002 1:30 PM

NEW YORK CITY (AP) - The top New York City Anti-Graffiti official Friday guaranteed the lives of MSN advertisers holding hostages in a New York City theater if they release their estimated 600 captives - including 30 children and 75 foreigners.

It was New York City's first known offer to the advertisers since they took the hostages as they watch a popular musical production Wednesday night. The advertisers, including women who claimed to be widows of ethnic insurgents, freed eight children Friday, but negotiations broke down over the promised release of the foreign captives, including three Americans.

Nikolai Patrushev, head of the New York City Anti-Graffiti division, made the offer after a meeting with Mayor Bloomberg, Russian news agencies reported. "We are conducting talks and will conduct talks, hoping that they will bring positive results in freeing the hostages," Patrushev was quoted as saying by the Interfax agency. Details of Patrushev's statement were not immediately available and it was not clear if the guarantee had been transmitted to the approximately 50 armed MSN advertisers.

The advertisers have demanded that New York City withdraw its troops from the sidewalks of Broadway. Earlier, a Web site linked to the advertisers said they would blow up the theater if the New Yorkers did not withdraw in seven days.

MSN 9 Will be out in a few weeks no doubt...

[Eu4ria]

...probaly due to some incredibly large security holes

Unlucky click?

[arestivo]

I find it funny that when I read the article the huge ad on the page was exactly the 'It's better with the Butterfly' from Microsoft.

Coincidence, maybe not.

Or...

[tunabomber]

...MSN 2002 to be many, many steps ahead. I mean 8 ? Romans still roamed the earth then.

Someone Call PETA

[fire-eyes]

Hey! Someone needs to call PETA, Microsoft and the City of New York are abusing butterflies!

A single summons was issued, with a $50 penalty, though each butterfly could have been subject to a $50 fine, said Tom Cocola, the assistant commissioner for public affairs at the transportation agency. He said the city's chief goal was seeing to it that the decals are removed.

Poor things.

Damn GeoCities!

[phillymjs]

Here's a link to pics of M.T. Promises that will hopefully continue to work (he's in the two pics on the left).

~Philly

You are the mouthpiece for MSN...

[Vermy]

I like the title of this article. Vandlizing. Very "professional" journalism. LOL. Anyway.

For everyone in here having a little fit about "this is stupid" and "does this work" is falling into the whole genius of the marketing ploy. This isn't to persuade someone to buy the product, this is an effort to generate mass press for next to free (minus some self dignity). They are getting you to TALK ABOUT THEIR PRODUCT. Now you guys will run around to your fellow coworkers "Did you see the stupid Microsoft butterfly thing?". And they will tell another employee, who actually isn't technically savy, and might find it interesting, go look it up, and sign up for it. In effect, you, who disdain microsoft, are being used to help them secure customers.

Let's think about it, they have an entire article on slashdot, a pretty pro Linux group, to discuss the matter about them dressing up a bunch of people for a few bucks and putting them on rollerblades. But the old saying is true, the only bad press is no press at all. The IBM/LINUX graffiti thing proved that. They received TONS of press for just a few, inexpensive pictures of the Tux.

Marketing 101. Take a course, you may like it.

Re:You are the mouthpiece for MSN...

[Anonymous Coward]

I like the title of this article. Vandlizing. Very "professional" journalism. LOL. Anyway.

They must have caught and changed it because less than ten minutes later, it's spelled correctly.

Re:You are the mouthpiece for MSN...

[Anonymous Coward]

I like the title of this article. Vandlizing. Very "professional" journalism. LOL

I feel you are being unreasonable in your criticism. It was posted by michael, which is to say, you can have good spelling/grammar, or out-of-nowhere MS bashing, pick one.

Geez, there is no pleasing some people...

Re:You are the mouthpiece for MSN...

[zBoD]

> they have an entire article on slashdot,
> a pretty pro Linux group

Herm... I believe the major part of the readers of slashdot use Internet Explorer. I remember the slashdot staff saying this in the irc interview thing, but the log is not here anymore.

BoD

Re:You are the mouthpiece for MSN...

[0xdeadbeef]

And they will tell another employee, who actually isn't technically savy, and might find it interesting, go look it up, and sign up for it.

Yea, I'm sure these people are thinking "fat guys in rainbow butterfly suits, putting their stickers all over Manhattan? Oh man, I got to get in on that action..."

Actually, easy targets for any city sniper

[Anonymous Coward]

Let's face it, they have caught this guy too soon. Could we just hold a bit on reading his Miranda rights, and allow him some shopping on Madison ? Waddayasay ? You know, a lot of butterflies are stepped on, and nobody whines about them ! The horror !

getting of so light

[cposs]

"A single summons was issued, with a $50 penalty, though each butterfly could have been subject to a $50 fine" (emphasis mine)

what?! good lord! if any individual had done this, say with something as simple as a "hello, my name is:" sticker with an email address, they would be fined thousands. sure, it's not as permanent as ibm's spraypaint, but it's not like microsoft can't afford the fines.

Funny that...

[rogue ronin]

hmm.... Microsoft is advertising by using bugs. Ironic, isn't?

Re:Funny that...

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow what a refreshment to see the word ironic used in a correct way. The music industry has caused so much damage to meaning of that word that this is a very rare occurrance.

Well, at least it grabbed some attention...

[MoThugz]

not to mention the fact that it is environmentally friendly. Why did I brought up this point?

Well, because I've seen some poor form of advertising from a rising star of the PC industry . Why do I call it poor? Because they think that it is a good idea to include a pamphlet of their latest offering on every issue of free daily newspapers in Singapore. Basically it's an ad sleeve covering the paper.

Most of the time people simply pull it out and throw it into the bin. Which is OK in my opinion except that 1/2 an hour later, almost all the bins in the MRT (mass rapid transit) station gets filled to the brim and adverts are flying everywhere. And those marketing guys from that company doesn't seem to bother, or perhaps they are all so bloody rich and never use public transport anyway.

Before you mod my rant as offtopic, think of the essence of this post which is about advertising (what MS and hyperlinked company are doing) and it's implication on people and the environment.

P/S: I do not work for neither company, and all opinions expressed are my own.

Butterfly

[Anonymous Coward]

Come my lady, come,come my lady.
You're my butterfly, sugar baby.
Come my lady, come, come my lady.
I'll make your legs shake, you make me go crazy.

Yeah, yeah, one-hit wonder, rest of album sucks,blah, blah, blah.

But for once I am ON-TOPIC. Bwaa Haa!

BTW, is this fair use? Seriously, not trolling

Re:Butterfly

[Anonymous Coward]

Fair enough! Who gives a crap?! Bahahaha!

The Tick

[jck2000]

Yes, you beat me to it. Or his moth friend (Arthur?)

Re:The Tick

[uk_greg]

Perfect! Gates as the Tick and Ballmer as the sidekick.

Re:The Tick

[ellboy]

The more I think about it, the more the symbolism of this is frighteningly perfect.

Re:The Tick

[Keith Russell]

That was my first thought when I saw a "butterfly man" ad on TV last night: The Moth on acid. I expected MSN's new slogan to be "Not in the face! Not in the face!"

Re:The Tick

[__aaahtg7394]

Spoon! Spoon! Spoon!

(see above Developer posts)

Bug on Windshield jokes?

[dbretton]

I think it would be more like Place all bug on Windows jokes here

or perhaps: Place all bugs in Windows jokes here

Re:Bug on Windshield jokes?

[c1pher]

I think it would be more like Place all bug on Windows jokes here
or perhaps: Place all bugs in Windows jokes here

..bugs crawl through open Windows? :)

Re:Bug on Windshield jokes?

[Jhan]

..bugs crawl through open Windows? :)

OpenWindows? There are no bugs in SunOS/Solaris! Well, except... And that... Mumble...

I guess the sun shining through our open windows reveal the bugs all to well. ;-)

just out of curiosity...

[zerodvyd]

has anyone yet wondered how much these roller-blading buffoons were paid to dress up like that?

sure, excellent advertising...ppl will be talking about this for a long time...

however, will it be: 'what a great product' or 'what a bunch of idiots' ???

I certainly hope these ppl got a good cut of $, it'd be hilarious if they got cited by NY's finest for breach of peace ;)

quick! 2000 bonus points if you can hit the bug in the front...you'll get an extra play if you can nab all 40 of them in this wave! /me preps his quarters for a good old game of Galaga! lol :D

American credibility?

[sh4na]

What? Does that exist?

I'm sorry, you've just dialed the wrong universe. Please try again. Thank you.

Re:what I do get

[Anonymous Coward]

What I do get is that I saw a commercial of the butterfly hatching and CRASHING to the ground, never flying as butterflies do.

Maybe his primary color is blue for a reason?

SPOOOOOON!

[Waab]

30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits

They're not butterflies...they're moths.
And they're on their way to fight the Uncommon Cold.

Re:SPOOOOOON!

[poot_rootbeer]

If only a 30-foot Grace Hopper were roaming the streets of Midtown with a giant can of Flit...

Re:What were they thinking

[Anonymous Coward]

Just saw a friggin' flash pop-up ad for M$N8.

Great! How many of our pet peeves will they hit on? What's next, M$ flash SPAM?

Is it just me, or does the butterfly look like a gay Arthur from the Tick? Possibly redundant I know.

Despite all my rage I'm still just a bat in a cage

[sporty]

At least they didn't try to use the Smashing Pumpkins song, "Bullet with Butterfly Wings".

Maybe they would have wanted that :)

soundex

[Anonymous Coward]

"MSN 8" sounds just a wee bit too close to "inseminate" for me...

Where's the Linux retort?

[dbretton]

Tomorrow I want to see 60 fat little circus midgets dressed up like penguins skateboarding through downtown NYC, screaming at the top of their lungs, and throwing rocks at all the windows:

"We're short! We're fat! We can't fly! We're pissed! And Windows sucks!"

Re:Where's the Linux retort?

[miffo.swe]

*laughing*

Hey, you made me squirt cofee all over my monitor!

I imagined it, that was stupid considering i had just taken a mouthful och cofee.

Re:Where's the Linux retort?

[Vann_v2]

It's already been done. Does nobody remember IBM and the Peace, Love, Linux thing?

Re:Where's the Linux retort?

[Ziviyr]

I can hear the penguins shouting...:

"Don't place faith in Microsoft things
Microsoft things will fail you

A hurricane triggered by a butterfly's wings...
Conspirators betray you." :-)

Despite all my rage I'm still just a RAT in a cage

[sporty]

yes. i know. rat in a cage. mental fart.

Re:They've done this before, and should know bette

[GutBomb]

i would have to say that this has nothing to do with microsoft but a stupid ad agency. the ad agency was not forced to go with microsoft's idea (if it was even their idea). The ad agency are the ones that painted the Xs and they should have known the local laws first.

I'm not a butterfly, I'm a moth

[muddafunkinit]

Is it just me, or did they steal Arthur's bunny suit and paint it??

Re:Microsoft is evil

[wheany]

I meant positive karma...

What's worse...

[airrage]

On Several web-sites, most notably www.weather.com, if you get to certain page(s), your icon turns to an MSN(tm) butterfly. I have no problem with Microsoft per se, ip so facto, but that's annoying.

Re:What's worse...

[LinuxHam]

On [..] www.weather.com, [..] your icon turns to an MSN(tm) butterfly

Which is funny considering it's a Linux cluster.

NYC Cries "It's Illegal!"

[zentec]

Since when has Microsoft obeyed laws?

Media attention

[FireMotion]

Whatever Microsoft is doing this time, it's WORKING. It's attracting media again and gives them even more free publicity. Smart.

MorphOS...?

[Anonymous Coward]

Heh. Maybe the recently Slashdotted MorphOS will fulfill your dream when they start their marketing effort.

I'm still counting on Amiga to make a comeback, so we can see some supermodels in Boing! bras. ;)

Story Title confusing

[jeeryg_flashaccess]

Boy oh boy. The title of this news story is sooooo misleading. Taking shots at Microsoft is fun, but leading people to believe Microsoft vandalized NYC puts certain images in my head of destruction and tagging. BYE!

MSN advert irony

[headwick]

As I read the the NYT article discussing the irritating MSN ad stickers, I notice a large obtrusive advertisement, "It's better with the butterfly Find out why>> MSN 8", in the middle of the article. I had to laugh, I don't even live in NY and I can't get away from MSN8's butterfly.

Stupidity

[limekiller4]

From the article:
"I trust and hope that these offensive activities are not the authorized acts of your organization's employees and agents," Mr. Fernandez [Assistant counsel of the Transportation Department] wrote..."

Does Mr. Fernandez perhaps believe that Microsoft employees paid for thousands of 20" Microsoft butterflies with Microsoft advertising out of their own pockets?

OF COURSE IT WAS AN AUTHORIZED ACT YOU TWIT!

Re:Stupidity

[Darth RadaR]

OTOH, I wonder if MS is going to find a sneaky way to make the promotion company take the fall.

Re:Stupidity

[limekiller4]

Darth RadaR writes:
"OTOH, I wonder if MS is going to find a sneaky way to make the promotion company take the fall."

Oh, perish the thought!! =P

Re:Despite all my rage I'm still just a RAT in a c

[cjpez]

I don't know... I kind of dig the image of a "bat in a cage." I get the image of this content little fruit bat munching on a nectarine or something. :P

bills not a puff

[pretzel_logic]

then goto http://msn.com and you will be shocked to see a man in a butterfly suit

bill gets in his bullet proof butterfly suit and no one is allowed to call him a puff. so he runs around NY with his merry men and decided to pose for the msn 8 release on the web site swf intro. the editor added the shadow later

this was all after his trip to afghanistan where he was introduced to pure opium

Aha!

[Smidge204]

So that's what David Burke has been up to! I thought that logo looked familiar!

=Smidge=

Andre the Giant

[Flamesplash]

Is /. going to report on all the Andre the Giant stickers around the entire country next? :)

The other boroughs...

[Elvisisdead]

I'm envisioning a group of 50 beat down, tattered and torn butterflies that got the short straw and had to skate through the Bronx and Queens.

Re:The other boroughs...

[Anonymous Coward]

And Brooklyn.

We can forget about Staten Island altogether. The residents there probably wouldn't notice anyway. I'm sure they have already seen worse mutated bugs coming out from the city dump.

Damn I hate driving through there...

And the best part

[JJAnon]

Was when I clicked on the story's link, and was confronted with a huge "Its better with a butterfly" ad right in the middle of the page. :)

Truth in Advertising

[cordrg]

Does anyone else find it appropriate that microsoft is using a bug as the icon for their new promotion?

Re:Truth in Advertising

[pben]

Yea the catapiller ate it's way throught the PC OS world and the adult form is off to infect the internet.

Re:Truth in Advertising

[Niles_Stonne]

Does anyone else find it appropriate that microsoft is using a bug as the icon for their new promotion?

Right, and Linux has a round flightless bird...

Re:Truth in Advertising

[Anonymous Coward]

...that can swim like a motherfucker.

Brand awareness?

[TrekCycling]

Anyone catch this line?

That may have been the point. It's a tremendous opportunity, Ms. Lacter said, for us to build brand awareness.

Microsoft's brand being doing illegal and annoying things, right? Mission accomplished.

MSN 8 vs. .mac

[redherring22]

Yes, this advertising campaign is a very cheap, very troll way to get lots of people to notice you. But does anybody see similarities to this service and Apple's '.mac' that people get so worked up about?
check it out (yay, give MS more attention!):
MSN 8 - Software Only
Their cheapest MSN 8 service costs almost as much as a new .mac account, a little cheaper if you pay for a whole year, but what does it offer? Hotmail with virus protection? Does MS actually have a better SPAM filter than Hotmail's (which does about nothing). And do you get ad-free e-mail?

...suddenly, .mac ain't looking so bad!

Re:MSN 8 vs. .mac

[Utopia]

Does MS actually have a better SPAM filter than Hotmail's

Yes it does.
They implemented some new AI technology form MS Research to figure out what is spam.
Since junk mail for some people might not be junk mail for others the programs learns your preferences and adjusts itself as you keep using it.

Microsoft defense....

[Anonymous Coward]

MSN butterfly ? It's not a bug, it's a feature

You'd reckon that AOLTW bulilding...

[afflatus_com]

...would screen-print a giant appropriate response mozilla advertisement about butterfies and drape it down the side of the building.

My recommendation:
http://inconnu.isu.edu/~ink/new/humor/mozilla1280. jpg

Re:You'd reckon that AOLTW bulilding...

[FrankNputer]

Or perhaps this one?

Re:Courts (MS should know)

[gosand]

Is there any cheaper method to get screen time and articles in newspapers than getting sued over nonsensical issues?

Or monopolistic practices? Or railed on by the U.S. Department of Justice, or a group of U.S. States? When you have some of the deepest pockets around, I guess you don't really care. It would be the same as someone suing me for pocket lint.

Subvert the message

[puppetluva]

I live in New York. They put all of their selfish trash around my living space and I've decided to use it against them. I'm turning their advertisment vandalism into word-of-mouth sabotage. (word-of-mouth is the best way to get the message out, right?)

I have gone from disliking Microsoft to hating them for spoiling my living environment so to retaliate. . . Everytime someone brings up this abject vandalism in conversation, I make a very specific, understandable point about how Microsoft vandalizes the economic environment and acts as a regular sabateur and law-breaker when it serves their petty interest. It may be annoying to them (heck, I may seem annoying to them by doing it), but these people know that I know what I'm talking about and they start hating Microsoft too. They are reminded of it everytime they see that butterfly trash too. . . hundreds of times a day. I've even heard some people spread the word (of disgust) ;)

Is this the intended effect? Just because we remember it and talk about it, does that serve their intentions? Everyone recognizes and talks about swastikas at some time in their lives, but I wouldn't call that "buzz" positive.

In a related story...

[Telecommando]

6 people in butterfly costumes were struck and killed by a large truck today downtown. Police say that the truck driver's vision was obscured by a large, multi-colored, butterfly sticker on his windshield. No charges have been filed.

Ahhh, justice.

This NYTimes article brought to you by...

[c.derby]

Funny.. the advertisement on the page w/ he article is the "Its better with the Butterfly" MSN 8 add.

Fun?

[PhotoGuy]

Man, it almost makes me physically sick when I see a cut-throat and ruthless corporate monopoly like Microsoft, dumping money into stunts like this to try and appear "fun" and "hip."

It's like Mr. Burns trying to improve his image. Gates should just hire a stunt monkey like Homer, tossing money at him to rob him of his dignity, instead. Baby make boom boom.

MSN/Disney in cahoots - to spy on kids

[gosand]

I submitted this story but it got rejected. It details more about the Disney/MSN deal, and the service they are offering. (Disney themed IE - wheeee). This is a total deal with the devil, except nobody can figure out who is who. A couple of choice quotes:

"It's a real coup," Gates said, sharing a stage in the autumn-tinged park with Eisner and a pair of extras in Mickey and Minnie Mouse suits.

"We're going to gain a lot of share here," Gates said. "We're going to make a lot of consumers happy."

Somehow the first parts of that overshadow the last sentence.

And this one pretty much tells it all...

Microsoft intends its new software to cater to parents, who can receive a weekly e-mail detailing their children's online activity, including Web sites they visited or tried to visit and the e-mail addresses and MSN Messenger accounts of people with whom they corresponded.

Re:MSN/Disney in cahoots - to spy on kids

[teamhasnoi]

Microsoft intends its new software to cater to parents, who can receive a weekly e-mail detailing their children's online activity, including Web sites they visited or tried to visit and the e-mail addresses and MSN Messenger accounts of people with whom they corresponded.

Hey kids! Mom reading your diary? Dad recording your phone conversations? Get back at them by installing MSN 8! Thanks to Microsoft's new partnership with Disney and the general cluelessness of your parents, you can spy on them like never before! Have emails sent to you detailing your Mom and Dad's web activities! Worried Dad might send you to military school? Mom having an affair with her 'aromatherapist'? Find out for sure with Microsoft's new spyware - MSN 8!

They'll never know because *you're in charge* of installing software, reinstalling Windows, and upgrading the family PC!

It's never been so easy!

Act now, and you'll get a Digitally Restricted copy of 'Mickey Mouse's - How I Fucked Hollywood, and Lived to Squeek About It'. A sordid tale of government corruption, Congresswhores, Copyright Extentions, and the Legal Defense of Public Domain works as if Mickey himself wrote them!

Hurry! Sign up now, before Linux is ready for the Desktop!

Re:MSN/Disney in cahoots - to spy on kids

[Anonymous Coward]

Hurry! Sign up now, before Linux is ready for the Desktop!

Hurry? What's the hurry?

Re:MSN/Disney in cahoots - to spy on kids

[pyrrho]

keeping 'Mickey Mouse's - How I Fucked Hollywood, and Lived to Squeek About It' from being published is Disney's only reason to keep having copyright protection extended.

Same story, different slant

[Anonymous Coward]

My favorite MS fanzine Activewin.com
has another debate about the same issue here

Re:Same story, different slant

[Anonymous Coward]

Moderators!
Mod this troll down to -1!

it's an infestation!

[misterhaan]

hmm, i think you have to be "lucky" to get the butterfly chasing your mouse--try the local weather for madison, wi

Bill Gates

[Reziac]

[inserts Bill Gates into same image]
[adds cream pie for authentic Bill Gates look]
[runs away screaming]

Spraychalked?

[Gerry Gleason]

I've never heard of this type of thing, although it would be perfect for this application.

The cluster of them around the CDW in Chicago is still there over a year later, so I think it was actually paint at least in this case. None of the reports I heard about this said it was chalk, which makes it a bit more of an aggressive act toward people with homes and businesses in the immediate area.

Re:Spraychalked?

[gimpboy]

you're right about the chicago stuff. evidently it was supposed to be done with biodegradable chalk:

http://www.internetnews.com/IAR/article.php/7549 71

perhaps the local advertising folks screwed up, or perhaps ibm is blaming them to cover their asses.

personally i dont appreciate either technique. i'm sick of seeing advertising everywhere i go-even if it is for linux. i would like to step outside and not see anything being advertised, but that is just me.

Re:Spraychalked?

[CoolVibe]

Fine, you don't like seeing adverts evereywhere you go. Fine, that's nice. But...

Why do you advertise in you sig then?

Re:Spraychalked?

[CoolVibe]

whoops, wrong parent... mod the parent *WAY* down please...

Whooops...

Re:Spraychalked?

[jazman_777]

i'm sick of seeing advertising everywhere i go-even if it is for linux. i would like to step outside and not see anything being advertised, but that is just me.

I agree. Although I love how the Houston Astros had to scramble to rename Enron Field.

Brand Awareness

[Big Sean O]

"It's illegal," she said, "and they're going to get a lot of publicity for it."

That may have been the point. "It's a tremendous opportunity," Ms. Lacter said, "for us to build brand awareness."

So they intend to make Microsoft synonymous with breaking the law? Sorry, it's been done. Anyone ever hear of their illegal monopoly?

I think they've succeeded. Dilbert says Microsoft is the weasleiest [sp?] company, so Ms. Lacter's strategy must be working!

At a $50 fine per ad, if there is one ad per every man woman and child in NYC (say 10 million), it will be $500,000,000. I think Bill Gates made that before breakfast...

Re:Brand Awareness

[Ziviyr]

So they intend to make Microsoft synonymous with breaking the law? Sorry, it's been done. Anyone ever hear of their illegal monopoly?

Never mind all the illegal operations their OS has performed. :-)

Re: High School P(r)ep Rallies

[i_am_nitrogen]

You know, if pep rallies had no influence on some people, they wouldn't be held...

It's kind of like that old saying, "Simple minds are easily amused," except in this case its, "Simple minds are easily advertized to." Too bad it's not as funny with the second wording.

The butterfly logo ...

[dougmc]

You know, every time I see that logo, I think of Arthur from The Tick.

(You can't see it in these pictures, but yes, he does have wings. Good pictures of him seem to be hard to find. images.google.com found a few, but none were really good ...)

Re:The butterfly logo ...

[CashCarSTAR]

Heh.

I do a little more than think of Arthur.

I smell lawsuit!

They come into your HOME

[Jonny Balls]

Thats not all the microsoft vandalizes... they come into your HOME and vandalize your PC with their OS!

No outside to ideology . . .

[MisterSquid]

nor marketing for that matter.

You deride the ignorance of all those debating the effectiveness and legality of this marketing scheme by arguing (quite rightly) that such speculation is precisley the object of that scheme.

But do you think for a New York second that your meta-analysis is outside of this ploy? Think again.

You might consider taking to heart the your own derisive, condescending reference to Marketing 101. Take a course, you may like it.

Don't get me wrong. This post, too, means that the marketing campaign is green as go. I don't deny it. But at least I'm not so arrogant to believe I'm above the fray.

Marketing is like the unconscious. There is no negation in the unconscious. Everything just accretes, contraries and oppositions just all glom together.

Anyway, It's nice to know that

[Anonymous Coward]

Arthur was able to get a job after "The TICK" was cancelled on Fox...

Contrast in priorites

[clone22]

Microsoft pastes butterflies as IBM builds supercomputers.

When the music's over, turn out the lights

[el_gregorio]

"Before I sink
Into the big sleep
I want to hear
I want to hear
The scream of the butterfly...."

--Jim Morrison

I saw a picture of one of the butterfly suits

[krinsh]

a couple days ago on CNN or Yahoo... I just figured that's the punishment the PR lady got for getting caught during Microsoft's last advertising scheme (i.e. the 'anti-switch' campaign...)

Not for long

[alernon]

> "Microsoft operating system required" internet service.

Not for long

Here in Montreal

[TheTomcat]

They had coccoons hanging around the city.. the next day (launch, yesterday), they mysteriously turned into the MSN butterfly.

And they have goons handing out magnets.

S

Geesh

[wcbrown]

My dad was a rollerblading butterfly, you insensitive clod!

Doom Wad?

[edward.virtually@pob]

The MSN Butterfly Man would seem an ideal subject for incorporation into a Doom Wad . . .

Is this wierd??

[ianjk]

"STEP 3: Cancel your previous account
If you currently have an AOL account, the TrueSwitch service will be able to cancel your account for you -- just follow the simple instructions. "

MSN comes with a service that cancels your aol account for you... I wonder what else it can do?

Re:Is this wierd??

[Utopia]

It can also inform all people in your address book (or your selection) about the email address change.

Re:Is this wierd??

[Anonymous Coward]

With or without consent?

Re:Is this wierd??

[Anonymous Coward]

With. Of Course.

No, just 1 and I have the perfect actor

[hey!]

Wallace Shawn.

Could there be a better Linux spokesman?

Re:No, just 1 and I have the perfect actor

[Surak]

Wallace Shawn.

Hmmmm... Yeah, I mean he's already involved with Mozilla. :-P

Better wheelchairs needed

[Call Me Black Cloud]

Though they were stuck to the pavement, they too could be lifted off fairly easily.

And that is what the Grand Central Partnership set out to do yesterday afternoon as it confronted butterfly decals on some of the special pink granite sidewalks it has installed at 172 intersections... These include curb cuts for the disabled.

"Anything that impairs the ability of someone to move on those accessible corners is a concern,"

Just how thick are these stickers? Are they like those Roadrunner/Wile E Coyote holes you can pick up and move around?

Maybe that's where the skating butterfiles came from - people in wheelchairs were metamorphosed by falling into the stickers. "Yes, I once was like a caterpillar, crawling around town in my wheelchair, but now I can fly thanks to MSN!".

Hmmm...could be used as the next "switch" campaign. "Using AOL I wasn't ambulatory, but now with MSN..."

Re:Better wheelchairs needed

[Junta]

Well, other things aside, they may be thin enough to not cause a bump problem, but making the sidewalk a slicker surface might be an issue, especially if one wheel of a chair is on a surface with a different friction coefficient than the other wheel...

But this is a wild stab at rational, the stickers may be non-trivially thin, or there could be other reasons. The point is when certain areas are engineered for accessability, people shouldn't mess with them, and it is even more unacceptable for a company to be this irresponsible. They don't find it acceptable for people to do spraypainting, SF fined IBM for the peace, love, linux grafitti, and even with all these precedents, MS goes out and marks everything in sight.... AOL carpetbombs the US with CDs, now MS bombards the US with butterflies (since MSN ships with Windows already, a CD is rather pointless).

Jeezuz...

[Anonymous Coward]

Now they've resorted to putting their bugs on walls and windows as well as computers?

What is wrong with this company?

How appropriate

[SteveBoker]

The MS mascot is a BUG!

Glad to see that Arthur found some work...

[Anonymous Coward]

Notice the resemblance to Arthur from The Tick?

Pics of Arthur

Correction

[azizlumiere]

Hey michael a good troll would have written "Microsoft terrorize New-York".
At least when you do a partisant article do it to it's fullest.

Fuck Karma.

They May Have Won

[waldoj]

So, if we don't stop talking about MSN, then we're letting the MSFTerrorists win?

-Waldo Jaquith

Come again?

[tswinzig]

Are you sure about that?

It most obviously is a troll, but I'll bite

[ACNeal]

No news media outlet is in business to educate.

Specifically, slashdot doesn't educate, it just points to places that aren't in the business to educate.

Slashdot, and those participants that acutally have a clue, know that slashdot sole business model is to get people see their advertising. Although they do get people to respond to news about the latest breakthrough in particle accelerators, they realize that more people view pages if they are encited.

So they bait the lesser intelligence among us (and I post a lot, so I am obviously in this group) with baseless flattery (news for NERDS). Then they keep us around by offering less than stimulating, but generally highly charged religious discussions.

In other words, your post was obviously a troll. What aren't obvious trolls, but are definitely trolls, are the majority of articles that make the front page. Welcome to every newspaper, tv news program, or radio program that is profitable.

I understand this, and I still show up daily to get my blood pressure up about a bunch of shit that doesn't matter. One of these days I will burst my aorta, or get a clue. Either way, I will stop reading slashdot... One of these days.

GET ON YOUR FEET!

[mekkab]

"I didn't say stop! I only have 4 words to say,
I LOVE THIS COMPANY!!!!!

I never get tired of ballmer's antics. NEVER.

Let them advertise in Washington DC! (sniperfood)

[wwwssabbsdotcom]

While I dont think its amusing that the sniper took the lives of so many innocents in DC, shame MS didnt take to a different town than NYC. They weren't fluttering colorful MSN butterflies running around a few weeks ago in DC, shame.

Either that or get a nice 50 foot flyswatter.

the tick?

[fermion]

First, I think this advertising reeks of lame attempt of mainstream corporation attempts to be edgy. The result is uninteresting, derivative, and insulting.

Speaking of derivative, is Ben Edlund getting paid for this, or do you think he will sue. The 'butterfly' is so clearly a fusion of the The Tick and Arthur.

Has Anyone Seen Butterfly Man?

[NeuroManson]

I think the guy who owns The Tick needs to contact a lawyer, other than the coloration of the wings, and the style of antennae, one would think him to have more than just a passing resemblance to Arthur (AKA The Moth)...

First 9/11, now this...

[LittleGuy]

Haven't the citizens of New York City suffered enough?

Personally, the MSN Butterfly Guy reminds me of a multi-colored Arthur from The Tick.

photos?

[mario]

has anyone photos of those butterflies?

Re:photos?

[Kredal]

Butterflies in Seattle

Microsoft OS *NOT* required

[jpmahala]

I'm running FreeBSD at home and connecting to MSN just fine. (Yeah, I sold my soul to them for a $200 Circuit $hitty Gift Certificate in exchange for a two year contract.) Hey, I needed an ISP, so I figured I may as well profit from giving someone my business...

It's better with the Butterfly

[triptolemeus]

Microsoft has finaly acknowledged that you need an animal. Needless to say that a bug is not as nice as a tux.

That same thing over and over again...

[Anonymous Coward]

I really just dont understand what's so newsworthy about a regristrations page.

About 5% of the articles on slashdot seem to be about that same registration page over and over again

eBay

[Anonymous Coward]

One word - eBay. Collect as many as you can and wait a few weeks. Post them on eBay then retire.

ac

Oh but for a gigantic jar of ether and a net....

[Bvardi]

Hmm... makes me wonder as well, would penguins eat butterflies? :)

Here's a Link

[Compulawyer]

From the Washinton Post - an article that discusses M$'s new marketing blitz for MSN.

Can anyone imagine that there is still a market for people who need their hands held as they walk along the Information Superhighway? Nonetheless, I have GOT to get a clip of Billy G. in the reported "Butterfly Suit."

Re:Here's a Link

[Anonymous Coward]

There was one at the company meeting this last year, him and Ballmer. Hopefully it'll be leaked soon, it was pretty funny.

MSN Butterfly on toilet paper

[Anonymous Coward]

Someone should mass produce toilet paper with MSN logo on them....

Summary

[Anonymous Coward]

The world's largest criminal organisation breaks another law.

No Surprise Really

They are a bunch of crooks.. It's been proven in a court of law.

Here in Cupertino...

[newestbob]

...I see Apple Logo stickers everywhere. What's the difference?

Disregart that last remark please (was Re:Spraych

[Anonymous Coward]

Damn, I just woke up... Uugh.. I shouldn't post without having had coffee yet!

(posting anon to protect the karma burn somewhat)

Easy solution

[Chainsaw76]

Just throw one of the stickers in front of the front skaters as they fly by.

Re:what I do get

[smyle]

I never saw one of a butterfly, but I did see a Novell-sponsored parody of Microsoft's "fly free" commercials (Real format).

They have lots of marketing materials (some funny, some anti-MS, some pretty boring) on their Promotions & Events Videos page.

Re:Microsoft sux

[Anonymous Coward]

Well said.

Utter Arrogance

[whereiswaldo]

The city of New York (imagine the lawyers they could unleash) was nice enough to only fine Microsoft $50 and tell them to clean the mess up. Microsoft, in all of its infinite arrogance, "... insisted that it was authorized to place the decals.

"There are permits for everything". Uh huh - does that mean filling someone's pocket with money so they'll turn the other way? Why can't we know who it is?

This is very a bad show of sincerity given Steve Balmer's statement regarding the Microsoft Switch Campaign fiasco. I am fully expecting more events like these to take place. Microsoft's dirty tactics are alive and well.

I LOVE YOU

[Anonymous Coward]

Please drop your pants, as I find myself drawn to sucking your cock.

Mmmmmm... man meat.

Slightly OT

[MrEd]

I'd just like to take this opportunity to suggest that publicists are evil. Just a theory. ;-)

It's funny to watch the rhetoric that comes out when a drunk, enraged, (wealthy) person injures *16* people, (one at least with a broken hip!) and gets 60 days. What's the minimum sentence for a marijuana possession charge?

Anyhow, go back to your butterflies. ;-)

He cares about your speech

[Anonymous Coward]

As long as he recognizes you as a person.

Careful, or he'll de-person you. He's done it before, and he won't hesitate to do it again.

did my part

[consumer]

I work in Soho, and I ripped about 8 of these off the sidewalks around my building the night they were put up. If our own Department of Justice has found Microsoft to be a criminal organization, why should I have to look at their crap when I go out for a cup of coffee? It's offensive.

Re:did my part

[Compulawyer]

I'd love to get one of those from you - if you care to part with it, email me at compulawyer@NOSPAM.yahoo dot com -- removing the obvious anti-spam measures from the address, of course.

Our turn!

[Anonymous Custard]

Ok, Bill Gates sent his beautiful minions to deface NYC, so to all you NY slashdotters, let's gather together and raid Bill's mansion, and paste up Apple and Tux stickers all over his walls! We'll also run through his house screaming at 4am about the greatness of open source development.

Visually, it doesn't bother me that they put the butterflys around, they're pretty. But morally, this is a blatant slap in the face at NYC's regulations, and it's a company saying "we're above the law, we're more powerful than you." If a hacker deface the NYC website and got caught, how many years would he get in jail?

I've seen the bastards

[Superfreaker]

They had at least 30 rollerbladers (i.e. fruitbooters) skating around dressed like purple butterflies holding signs. Apparently no one liked them as they said "no one likes us".

Then one got clipped by a taxi.
Damn butterflies.

Hmmmm

[Apreche]

1. Print butterflies
2. Paste all over every major city
3. Microsoft gets in trouble
4. weeeeeeeeee!

profit!

just go away

[scarface2600]

i wish microsoft would just go away and let linux take over

Someone got even

[YoDave]

Just try 'whois microsoft.com | more'

The Linux butterfly

[kitzilla]

If NY had been papered with *Linux* butterflies, we'd be applauding.

Whether or not it's imitative, this is a brilliant bit of marketing. They're getting millions of dollars worth of free press, risking only tiny fines.

I doubt the sidewalk butterflies are particularly dangerous to anyone--even wheelchair users. Given the real hazards of New York living, indignant city officials should probably find something more productive to angst about.

I'd never subscribe M$N or use Window$ on my own machines, but credit where it's due. Effective marketing.

Butterfly Hideout

[Superfreaker]

FYI,
They have two HUGE semi trucks on 59th (central park south) between 5th and 6th just at the bottom of Central Park. The trucks are very shiny with butterflies all over them. I bet all of the other trucks make fun of them.

(in case anyone has a can of repellent)

MS Pride?

[Anonymous Coward]

30-40 guys and gals in butterfly suits colored in the Microsoft colors, and carrying MSN banners

I've heard of gay pride parades, but you'd have to be awfully queer to promote Microsoft products while doing it.

A bad reputation will put you out of business.

[twitter]

"It's Miller Time, let's go get a Bud." is what millions of beer drinkers did with a Miller ad campain. Miller, now SABMiller, was not very happy.

Kind of like this current flap. Those that know will tell you they are both pisswater anyway, but it's much easier to switch your pisswater than it is to change your email address. That and your beer won't try to take over your fridge, your mail, your air conditioner and so on ad nauseum.

Bad publicity will kill your business. A good reputation takes years to build. A bad reputation can be made in a day, it only takes one lie. Micrsoft has a really really bad reputation and it's well deserved. This well deserved lack of trust will kill them as others are more trusted and have better reputations.

Paintball Guns and NYC

[CharlieG]

Paintball guns are illegal in NYC, just like BB guns, and any firearm without a permit

Want to take a felony rap?

Coming soon to a region near you...

[bobdotorg]

"It's a tremendous opportunity," Ms. Lacter said, "for us to build brand awareness."

Build brand awareness through pollution. Great. What's next? MS Sniper?

Faking grassroots

[InodoroPereyra]

Ok I am late to the party, but hopefully someone will read this :-)

IMHO what they are really looking for is to fake some grassroots soport for MS. For one thing, the common view of MS is as a huge monster representing the darkest part of the corporate US. They are trying to change this and show some kind of (paid-for) street presence, grassroot support, a popularity that they will never get acting the way they do. In short, they are trying to clean up their public image. Yeah, like when astroturfing.

At least people knew what they were this time

[snowberg]

I saw a bunch of these butterfly guys rollerblading in seattle about two years ago. I just thought it was some sort of cult thing. It wasn't until days later that I realized it was failed guerilla marketing.

Penguin's turn

[scharkalvin]

Lets plaster those RedHat bumper stickers all over the place. Cover up the MS butterflies with RedHats!

Re:Penguin's turn

[Chris Johnson]

Please don't :)

How're you going to ask THEM to stop it, if you're doing the same thing?

Re:Penguin's turn

[Anonymous Coward]

I want you to squat over my chest and take a big shit on me, then sit down on my chest and rub the shit all over me with your ass.

hmmm...

[antistuff]

i have to go to court on tuesday for grafiti, maybe i can mention this and get off?

I use MSN and I have Linux

[Zebbers]

No problem at all. Straight PPP. My MSMessenger pumps through gaim.

Am I just lucky?

Re:I use MSN and I have Linux

[Anonymous Coward]

No luck involved; there are plenty of us who use MSN with Linux. We just keep a low profile, because its not cool to say that you don't use any Microsoft products but then pay Microsoft every month for internet access. :)
The local access numbers here are ran by Sprint and used for a bunch of ISP's. You just have to put MSN/ in front of your MSN user name to log in, and away you go. I've been using wvdial to do this under Linux for at least three years.

Creative 'modifications'/'defacement' of the ads?

[stefanlasiewski]

The sidewalk decals were a heavier plastic, with a roughly textured surface. Though they were stuck to the pavement, they too could be lifted off fairly easily.

I'm curious how people will 'creative modify' the Microsoft ads. Any pictures?

We get these annoying sidewalk decals in San Francisco all the time. Usually they're on private property, but too often they're on the public sidewalk in hard-to-ignore locations.

The most annoying ads are in the public train stations. The ads are usually placed at the top or bottom of the staircases (and in some cases, ON the staircases), or in some other location that is hard to ignore. For example, imagine a group of people travelling down in an escalator. Where are people looking? 95% of the people will looking at the base of the escalator at some point. So, the clever ad companies place these annoying ads at the base of the escalator, where it's almost impossible to ignore them.

This is why that whenever I pass one of these sidewalk stickers on public areas, I always make sure to take an extra few seconds to discretely lift up one of the corners of the sticker-ad with the sole of my shoe. The stickers are usually made of a heavy plastic, and it's difficult to tear them up without a sharp object.

As large groups of people pass through the train station and walk over the sticker, some individuals will eventually step on the torn up corner, and the advertisement will become even more torn up over time. Many people hate the ads as much as I do, and will also make an effort to kick up the sticker a little bit more. As the advertisement comes off the sidewalk, it becomes uglier and dirtier, wish tarnishes the image that the advertiser is trying to promote.

MSN is not a MS operating system required service

[Anonymous Coward]

MSN has both Winows and Mac clients. While the Mac client is pretty new, it is still there.

Just my .02

and without mother nature to clean up...

[Vesuvius_2]

and without mother nature to clean up it means that thousands of people are going to have to remove every single damn sticker that microsoft litters.

This is not New!

[Anonymous Coward]

This campaign is not new. Microsoft has been doing it for a couple years. They have a group of butterfly outfits they ship around the country and hire skaters to wear to promote the latest happenings with MSN.

About 4 months ago I was hired at 40$ an hour to skate in 4 different locations in my city. We were given cue cards with different songs and or slogans to shout out, and lots of promotion materials to hand out. Although I'm not a MS fan, I am a fan of easy money.

At the time I was hired, they were promoting a new partnership with MSN and Verison Wireless.

Cheers

Intersting quote...

[Anonymous Coward]

"We've been looking for a safer environment to take Disney to the next level," said Eisner.

I bet this "safer environment" he refers to is MS's DRM.

I've got one, taking suggestions

[circletimessquare]

On my way to work, I walk up 5th Avenue. I found one affixed by static electricity on 53rd and 5th to a construction site temporary wall. It's here at my desk, at my mercy.

I am taking suggestions about what to do with it. Pluck it's wings out one by one? Put it in the microwave? The more evil the suggestion, the more likely I am to do it. ;-P

At least not dreams

[stankyho]

Well, at least we don't get advertising beamed into our dreams. Only on TV and radio and movies and billboards and the internet and clothes and on cars and magazines and newspapers and coffee cups and fruit. But not in our dreams, no way.

passing by

[Alejo]

they barely escaped the CD shooting from the AOL building. damn!

Draws women???

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, but it looks like all the women it draws are under the age of 8... of course, if that's what you're into...

escentric billionair?

[Anonymous Coward]

that is what the press would say, assuming anything other then lifestyles of the rich and famous would show it...

You're right

[0x0d0a]

That says that the fines aren't in line.

What they need to do is add a penalty for vandalism done in the name of a profit, and fine them the amount of money estimated made.

It's obviously getting more widespread, as advertising agencies realize that the damages are "worth the action".

What's the last thing...

[spun]

to go through a butterfly's mind when it hits your windshield?

It's rollerblades!

Come on guys!! Now's our chance!

[nooch]

Let's all go out and buy butterfly costumes and stickers and go through every town we can find, plastering every surface with MSN sweetness. Maybe your town will follow NY's cue, and put the smack directly down on our good friends at MS. Plus, then we'll all have cool butterfly costumes (and halloween's just around the corner)! Whoo hoo!

-J

Pics of the mutant butterfly freaks

[CaptainFlyingToaster]

Warning: Visting the link below might lead to Ark-of-the-Covenantesque melting of flesh, hair loss, emesis, and a sudden urge to buy every Michael Bolton CD ever published:

http://www.portlandskate.com/bfly2001.htm

Works Here: Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article!

[thefatz]

http://www.weather.com/newscenter/topstories/02102 5tornadoTX.html

IE5.5 SP2/WIN2K SP3

Fatz

bunch of multicolored Arthurs....

[Anonymous Coward]

SPOON!!

I love New York!

[Cheese Cracker]

Why does all terror organizations love New York? I
mean... first Al Qaeda, and now Microsoft... when
will this madness end?

yeah, its obvious...

[dAzED1]

ok, so, like...a bunch of bugs run through the streets screaming about how wonderful Microsoft stuff is.

Everyone else sees the irony in that, right? I mean, I guess if I were to give a happy home for cats, cats would love me...

Bias

[CAIMLAS]

Why is it called marketting when IBM does it, but vandalism when MS does? Does monopoly status have any play in the determining?

Yup

[sulli]

Still there in my 'hood! Even after they "tried" to wipe them out.

On the MSN thing: doesn't that guy look like The Tick - and just as ugly-as-sin?

Stupid butterflies better not pass me on Sat.

[Anonymous Coward]

I am going to clothesline all of these gay butterflies if they pass me on Sat.

REVs COST?

[Anonymous Coward]

REVs COST == life

MSs COST == $50

this is deplorable

We Have No Balls

[carney1979]

As long as our country doesn't have the balls to deal properly with M$, they are going to do exactly as they please for as long as they please.

It's kinda like trying to raise an unruly child.

The child disobeys, so you draw a "line in the sand" and tell them never to cross it again. So they test you and they cross it. And all you do is back up a step, draw another line, and issue the same warning. And you've just lost the war, buddy.

We should have really "smacked" M$ the first time, and each time there after until they get the message. They need to know they're boundaries. Right now, they have none, and they know it.

Guys in costume

[pommiekiwifruit]

When I walked around some computer games show, I saw some Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles running around, fully done up in foam costume. Also I saw Mario walking around. I kept thinking, you've got to jump on their shells man, you might get a gold coin... I guess he wasn't being paid enough.

OTOH some football mascots have had punch-ups.

MSN Sailboat Crashes into 520 Bridge

[Boxcarwilli]

The 520 Floating bridge takes you to and from Seattle accross Lake Washington, and is a literal rock skip from Bill Gates home.

The day of the launch, they had this sail boat with a massive sail with MSN 8 and the butterfly logo on it, it was very foggy that morning and windy. Too windy it cuased him to run into the bridge and a mad rush having to take down the sail.

I wish I had my camera. :-)

Butterfly Man already Copyrighted?

[Jedi Holocron]

Is it me or does the butterfly man shown on all the MSN 8 spam look an awful lot like the character of Arthur in The Tick?

Sure does to me...

Fox and Sony might like to look into this ;-)

Wrong.

[SvnLyrBrto]

Walk into any rave; especially a massive with lots of cheezy trance, or pretty much ANYTHING this time of year (closer to halloween, the better).

You'll fine PLENTY of people running around and dancing with butterfly wings on (and even whole butterfly costumes too). Ditto for angels, fairys, dragonflys, and just about ANY winged creature.

Oops... there goes ANOTHER claim for gates' so-called originality.

cya,
john

Re:Works Here: Re:MSN Butterfly Ad On this Article

[MyHair]

Yup, I saw it that time. It still has the large MSN 8 ad on the side AND the Partner AOL 7.0 link in the bottom right.

What's funny is this link won't even load in Mozilla 1.1 for me. The main page loaded fine, but this one just has the spinning "page loading" icon for a couple of minutes before I get bored and stop it.

I was curious how they did this becase I thought you had to use a plugin like Comet Cursor (=spyware) to do this. But they did it in Javascript. The 3rd <script> tag from the bottom is the group of functions that does it.

This page is a 58KB compilation of Javascript that does thing like manipulate many cookies and tries to figure out if it's your birthday. (I assume you have to have a user account/profile of some sort with them for them to know that.) The function name for the greeting (birthday, day of week, etc) is called function hugMe(); I thought that was cute. I can't quite figure out what function doIntercept does, though. I suppose all this Javascript is why Mozilla won't load it for me.

Cheap Ripoff

[kputnam]

We all know Microsoft hasn't "innovated" a single thing since DOS, the GUI, Internet Explorer, etc... but are they really so uncreative that they need to copy IBM's advertising techniques?! And the whole thing about people dressed in butterfly suits rollerskating around screaming at the top of their lungs would be straight off the Comedy Central show Trigger Happy if it only had a guy in a penguin suit beating the living crap out of them... if I lived in NYC and had a penguin suit I know I would.

yet another use for aol cd's?

[frankm_slashdot]

i wonder how well butterflies take to aol cd's comming at them...

heh, this solves two problems... gets rid of those damn cds - and finding something good and lightweight to throw at them damn butterfles!

Somebody call a freakin'...

[mtec]

exterminator.

Re:Paint Tree

[low-k]

IBM didn't do it first. I lived in Manhattan from 1994-1998, and I saw spray painted ads on the sidewalks back then (and it was certainly *not* chalk!). That's not to mention all of the other crazy stuff that people paint on the sidewalks. (I don't know if it's there anymore, but there used to be painted footsteps that went on for blocks in the east village, and then a few weeks or months later, someone painted tools (yeah, like hammers and wrenches) along side the footsteps.) I think the first ad I ever saw painted on a NY sidewalk was from a sneaker company or shoe store, but it definitely wasn't nike.

Reminds me of the SNL skit with Guiliani which was a fake commercial about his new crack down on graffiti. If they saw your tag on a wall or somewhere, a special police anti-graffiti division would spray paint the word "sucks" under your tag. (and for multiple-time offenders, they'd have a special police artist paint "sucks" in the same exact style as your tag.) It'd be funny if someone painted or even just sharpie'd "sucks" onto all of the butterflies.

Weather.com

[nlinecomputers]

Even more annoying then the stickers was the Weather.com site. Yesterday (10/24/02)It had a damn MSN butterfly that followed the mouse cursor everywhere. (at least on IE6. I didn't try it on my Linux box with mozilla.) I wrote to the advertising email address to complain and they must of had a bunch of complaints because today it's gone.

Re:Weather.com

[Jedi Holocron]

Actually, it's still there. Just not on the main page.

Interesting note: it goes behind the MNS 8 add, so as not to obscure it. It will cover any other add/graphic on the page.

Fun...

Where's the Raid?

Re:Weather.com

[Jedi Holocron]

Added Note: There is an AOL promo on the bottom of the pages.

Re:Weather.com

[nlinecomputers]

Hmm, I'm not seeing it today. I just checked. Maybe Its cookied me and its blocked...

Re:Microsoft sux

[Anonymous Coward]

I agree. To bad the moderators of your post work for Microsoft.

4th Street San Francisco

[billstewart]

You can still see remains of them around 4th & Harrison (SouthEast corner), and around 4th & Folsom. They cleaned up a lot of them, but some of it just didn't come off.

Im as anti-microsoft as the next guy but

[Hott of the World]

Im sure Im not the only one typing on this site using MSN. I heard of other companies such as IBM or AT&T doing things like this a while back, anyone here remember better?

Re:Im as anti-microsoft as the next guy but

[Ziviyr]

I lost any interest in considering MSN as not being totally evil when I was emailing a user and was getting multi day delays along with the occasional server out of memory bounce.

I'm also easily ticked off whenever a windows update resets the default page to MSN...

Did anybody else do the math?

[dbCooper0]

350/35=10. The article is saying that M$ is spending $10 million per user to get AOL lusers to switch. Does this please the stockholders?

Re:They've done this before, and should know bette

[Anonymous Coward]

"responsibility"

"halon"

douchebag.

Predate them!

[oever]

This is what a lizard would do to a butterfly.

M$ would be wiser to choose a seal as a logo animal.

Re:Predate them!

[Anonymous Coward]

A seal, eh? Let the clubbing Bill Gates' Kids jokes begin...

Re:They've done this before, and should know bette

[Anonymous Coward]

Last we heard, poor [company name omitted] were stuck not only with the bill for councils to clean up the Microsoft grafitti, but also the responsability to clean it off themselves

Knowing the sorts of lazy socialistic fuckups who would work for the 'Local Council' rather than get out and find a REAL job, it was probably cheaper to do it themselves. I'm surprised some Union Boss didn't get involved in it and MANDATE they use Union slackers to do all the cleanup.

It's the worst of Internet advertising

[Anonymous Coward]

Go to weather.com.. An irritating flash ad and to top it off a butterfly follows your pointer around the rest of the time you are there. I was so disgusted I wrote weather.com and complained. Why force this on normal web browsers. Intrusive ads that violate my web surfing privacy. Reminds me of used car salemen and high pressure telemarketing..Shame on Microsoft and Weather.com.

Re:It's the worst of Internet advertising

[pair-a-noyd]

I had the same problem, I configured Konqueror to identify itself as Lynx when visiting weather.com

I was offended.
1. The butterfly is, well, shall we say "effeminate"
2. It bogs my poor little cely450 way down.

I would rather sandpaper a bobcat's ass in a phonebooth than use ANY M$ product or service.

This thing at weather.com smacks of comet cursor.
What the hell are they thinking spamming a Linux user with thier trash?? Yeah, like I'm going back..

Well duh

[Anonymous Coward]

it was a rethorical question now who is the dumb ass?

Re:What were they thinking

[jkovach]

There's full-screen Flash intersitials for MSN 8 on washingtonpost.com, if not other sites... Just one of the many reasons I don't have flash installed.

They are on skates....

[sineltor]

We all know microsoft won't need help to crash :p

==

Re:Paint Tree

[wideBlueSkies]

The footsteps you mention were funded/painted by a group of artists who wanted to raise awareness about nuclear proliferation.

The footsteps were supposed to represent vaporized people.

They're still around in Tribecca, and I've seen them near Carnegie Hall too.

I have no idea what the tools are about.

Other mass-painted stuff in NYC includes Andre The Giant and Gary Coleman. There's also that Revs and Cost debate... but that seems to have died down in the last few years.

Microsoft, Love and Linux

[troff]

Step 1:
- Peace, Love, Linux
<http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/industry/04/1 9/ibm.g uerilla.idg/>

Step 2:
- "We're learning, if you will, from the Linux World." - Steve Ballmer,
<http://news.com.com/2009-1001-961354.html>

Step 3:
- Profit! :-)

Re:Microsoft, Love and Linux

[troff]

Re: The mod: did the smiley not tip you off that this was a joke? For crap's sake, some people...

Re:Paint Tree

[BinxBolling]

It'd be funny if someone painted or even just sharpie'd "sucks" onto all of the butterflies.

The stickers I've seen up close have been defaced in roughly this manner.

I want my

[ces]

DDT

That's funny

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder how the windows trolls that call linux user gay are going to take this.

Damned butterflies

[Alien Being]

Anyone have a .NET?

Don't knock it.

[JKConsult]

When GNN was purchased by AOL (fall of 1996), AOL grandfathered me at $9.99 for 6 months. Once my dorm got ethernet, I called to cancel AOL. I wish I had had a program to do it for me. It took me an hour (!) to convince them that yes, I really was serious, and no, a free month wouldn't change my mind.

Yeah.. And campus harassment.

[sg_oneill]

Yeah. I work at the Murdoch Uni student union (Australia), and MS contracted some sort of campus-marketing PR firm to go and poster up the Uni.
Yeah. All fine. We aproved, and let em use the tavern for a demo.
Concurently a bunch of activist dudes did there own poster-up basically telling people to boycot the "X-BUX". We where cool on that too. Perhaps even more, since we are a linux/mac organisation.
However we got word that some of those kids had been personally harrassed by people , *possibly* associated (Don't sue me!) with the campaign.
Angry phone calls. All that. It appeared that much of this was *not* done by MS but, apparently, by the marketing company. I tell you, the demo went ahead, but we'll think twice before letting em on campus again. Not verry nice.
(Oh and campus-marketing people;- f*k off!)

Apple stickers?

[caseyc]

Maybe MS "stole" the GUI concept (yeah, i'm aware of how the whole story goes) from Apple. Are they trying to take the hip rainbow-colored sticker idea, now?

Bug on windshield

[jdubdelts]

Q: What's the first thing that goes through a bug's head when he hits a windshield?
A: His ass.

Fascinating...

[Chris Johnson]

This, and the related rollerbladers, are an amazing picture of Microsoft psychology.

If someone is just starting out, desperate, trying to promote their thing, they may do things like this- law be damned. The idea is partly to somehow GET attention, and partly it's a guerrila, "we're tiny and desperate and cool" sort of thing. The idea is, someone sees your schtick, is shocked, and then thinks, 'whoa, that's pretty edgy, they could get arrested and they're in my face anyway. Do I blow the whistle or listen to what they have to say?' It's a _danger_ trip, the idea is it's a struggling little company trying for attention, who could easily be busted for their shenanigans, but they have so much balls they're doing it anyway. It's very punk, in its way.

This is why Microsoft is particularly drawn to this sort of thing. They see themselves as the struggling little startup.

The problem is, they are NOT. They can vandalize anything they want, have hired rollerbladers going anywhere they want (including 'no rollerblading' zones), and they're running no risk. Any fine means nothing compared to the scale they try to operate on. The risk of vandalism and 'anti-authority' behavior is absolutely nil, for them.

As such, it is particularly obnoxious for them to be doing this. Nobody has any refuge from them. You can even pass laws and the Microsoft people will just completely ignore them and do whatever they want anyway. The City of New York basically has to ASK them not to harass the city- nicely and firmly- and hope to hell they listen, this time.

It could be worse. They could just as easily put stickers all over your private home- or your car- or put a sticker on your window to surprise you... on an upstairs window, using a pole to place it. Then it's your problem to get the sticker off while not falling out the window. It's only a streak of basic sanity that keeps them from using permanent adhesives, too. There is NO LIMIT on what these people will do, except what THEY think is appropriate. That's not a very equitable situation.

So, currently they're vandalizing, hiring people to rollerblade in prohibited areas, and hiring people to disturb the peace by screaming loudly.

Wonder what they'll be up to next year?

Re:Fascinating...

[Anonymous Coward]

I want you to squat over my chest and take a big shit on me, then sit down on my chest and rub the shit all over me with your ass.

Microsoft apologizes

[LR_none]

Today's Times has a story to the effect that Microsoft has apologized and is going to begin removing the decals.

In other news....

[dacarr]

The city of Chicago took a pre-emptive strike and installed giant bug zappers in strategic locations throughout the central city and outlying areas where the El and Metra trains ran, in hopes of snaring rollerblading butterflies and butterfly decals before they were otherwise settled into the area. It is rumored that Los Angeles is doing this on their inter-city Red, Blue and Green rail lines as well, and Orange County Transportation Authority is installing mobile bug zappers on their busses for the next few weeks.

(disclaimer for legal reasons: this story is utter bull$#|+.)

MSN 8 will be HUGE success!

[Anonymous Coward]

and the features, service and usability of it will matter nothing... NOTHING.

Why? because a large percentage of the population is too wrapped up in superfluous crap. (like the jelly crap that MAC and winXP touts) Also of import, is the fact that with all the marketing hype that will catch the aforementioned morons, it is then a given that it will catch the PHB idiots in suits at various companies. Hell they will figure some way to force the IT department to use MSN because it looks neat. Happens all the time with government and corporations run by empty headed shitheads. Then the poor admins and users are stuck with crap that crashes, doesn't do what they want and generally frustrates the crap out of them when using.

Re:The First Worm Written By a Microsoft Lawyer...

[error0x100]

When they did it it was an original, innovative idea. Microsoft's gaudy re-run is simply so much tasteless, derivative kitch.

You just described pretty much any MS product ever made.