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NFL Commentators Still Calling Microsoft's Surface Tablets "iPads"

Posted by samzenpus on from the a-rose-by-any-other-name dept.

AmiMoJo writes: Back in 2013, Microsoft inked a $400 million deal with the NFL to promote the Surface. Unfortunately for Microsoft, commentators and even players couldn't help themselves from referring to the tablets as iPads. Last year, announcers referred to the Surface as an "iPad-like tablet,", while Chicago Bears quarterback called them "knockoff iPads". It happened on more than one occasion, and while you can bet that Microsoft and the NFL have been in talks with announcers and players about the goof, little progress is being made. This year, the problem persists.

175 of 262 comments (clear)

  1. Microsoft still can't win can they? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Maybe they just have bad karma now or something but even this post was put under http://apple.slashdot.org instead of http://microsoft.slashdot.org!

    1. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by TWX · · Score: 4, Interesting

      On the other hand, I wonder if apple is starting to get worried about losing a trademark if it becomes too genericized. The addition of a single letter to a common English word is not exactly a practice limited solely to Apple, esomething and isomething terms have been around for some time. I'm also a little surprised that Microsoft hasn't lost trademark for Office and for Word, though they seem to make a point of using Microsoft Word and Microsoft Office when referring to their own products, and productivity suite when referring to that class of software bundle without regard to originator.

      Apple has now launched a product lacking the "i" with the Apple Watch, they might be worried about trademark, or they might be worried about the various negative implications of iWatch as a term.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    2. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      You're just holding it wrong!

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    3. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Nah, a genericized trademark only happens when products are being marketed as such.

      Like a Kleenex = Tissue. Microsoft isn't encouraging Surface Pro's to be called iPads, and there's nothing on the device to even suggest they are such. It would be pretty hard for anyone to claim something that isn't an iPad is an iPad since there identifying marks on the devices that say exactly what they are. There isn't on a tissue paper.

      Same with "Bandaid brand bandages" People call them bandaids because there is no effective means of knowing if a "bandaid brand bandage" or "generic store brand bandage" is. Aspirin, Escalator, Laundromat are all genericized because there is no effective means of identifying the item from something of a different brand.

      If you went to the Samsung store and asked for an iPad, they won't sell you a Samsung Tablet, because that's not what you asked for, and it doesn't run iOS software.

      Where iPhone and iPad run the risk of genericization is when the device operating system looks too much alike, thus enabling that confusion, which is part of the reason why Samsung is insisting on being such an asshole in the intellectual property department. If they can weaken the IP around the iPad, the more they can copy, and the more "Generic" such items start to look.

      The average person knows what an iPad is, they don't know what a competing tablet PC is.

    4. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No, it becomes genericized when people, not the makers or stores, start calling all items of the type by the brand name of one.

    5. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Your facts are off. Aspirin is a lost trademark because of Bayer's actions, or rather inaction, not because you can't find a way to label an Aspirin tablet, in fact mine are, though being in the US, they have lost their trademark on that word.

      Elsewhere, not necessarily.

      And if I were manager of a Samsung Store, I'd expect them to try to sell a Samsung tablet if you ask for an iPad, they might not succeed, but they should try.

    6. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Noah+Haders · · Score: 1

      What is aspirin, bayer or bandage?

    7. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

      Really? Aspirin is a brand name jackass. It refers to acetylsalicylic acid. Jesus people do some research. And no Bayer did not lose the trademark from inaction. The trademark was stripped from them during WWI because United States confiscated Bayer's US assets and trademarks. Simply using the name cannot lose you the trademark.

    8. Re: Microsoft still can't win can they? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I politely suggest you consider dialing down the aggression a bit. The parent poster may not be American, & things like Band Aid" aren't always used as a generic term internationally.

    9. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 5, Funny

      Aspirin is a brand name jackass.

      I prefer generic donkeys and mules over the overpriced brand name ones.

      What is your position on brand name miniature red-head roosters?

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    10. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by doccus · · Score: 1

      Come on, it's not bad karma. It.s because these commentators are ex jocks themselves, who probably graduated on an athletic scholarship.. but don't have the brains to pass a grade 2 spelling bee. They're just too thick to tell the difference. Probably before Bill Gates returned to M$.. He would never have inked a deal requiring the intelligent participation of ex NFL players

    11. Re:Microsoft still can't win can they? by mythix · · Score: 1

      is bic still trademarked? everybody calls all pens "bic" here...

  2. The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Really, nobody should be confusing the Surface with the iPad. There are many differences:

    1) The Surface has a keyboard and touchpad
    2) The Surface has real USB ports
    3) The Surface runs Windows
    4) You can play games on the Surface. There are no games for the iPad.
    5) The Surface has a kickstand that enables the screen to stand partially upright.
    6) The Surface is more secure than the iPad.
    7) It is easy to use the Surface. The iPad is so complicated my grandma can't use it.

    There really isn't any similarity, and it's really quite embarrassing that people can't tell the difference. For all the promos the NFL announcers have to read, you think they'd get used to calling the tablets used on the sidelines by their correct name, which is, of course, the Microsoft Surface.

    1. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by mark-t · · Score: 4, Informative

      Point 4 is entirely untrue.

      On point 7, that your Grandma may find the iPad harder to use the Surface is anecdotal evidence for your proposition. It remains that the underlying argument that the Surface is easier to use than the iPad is entirely subjective.

      I will not contest the other points, however.

      But really, putting something that can be quite objectively shown to be false in your itemized list of differences really negatively impacts your overall argument. You could have left point 4 out and just listed six points and your argument would have been much stronger than how you presented it.

      --
      File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
    2. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Despite the fact, that I have no love for the MS Surface, but this post is so wrong, it makes me tear up.
      Point 1 is achieved by bluetooth devices for iPad, for MS - they use "cover" as a secondary device that is doubling as keyboard and a touchpad, Point 4 is easily contested by opening iTunes Store and checking out "games" category, 5 is available from 3rd party vendors, 6 is pretty subjective, especially considering the huge bloat of backwards compatibility that windows has been dragging since forever and awkward bugs that go back tens of years seem to pop up from time to time, 7 is also extremely subjective, so subjective, that iPad sales don't support your claim. Heck, for a new user even an android tablet is simpler to master, because is has simplified, mobile interface.

      But the problem isn't that MS Surface is worse that iPad. The problem is that MS Surface is better than an average tablet for laptop usecases and better than laptop for tablet usecases, but yet, fails miserably next to both a laptop and a tablet when used alongside them in appropriate usecases. Laptop with good keyboard and touchpad, with adjustable angle of screen to keyboard is running circles around Surfaces awkward leg stand (good luck using that in a plane, on a bus, or anywhere without a table), flip-flop keyboard and center of mass being in the screen, don't forget the easy swapping out of failed hard-drives, hardware upgrades (yes, SSDs and RAM can be bought not just the first time you order a device, they can be added, and, usually, for a fraction of a price), user-replacable batteries, higher performance due to larger size and more efficient cooling systems. And for surfing and watching movies Surface is overkill for it's price with power consumption and price too high, where even much cheaper counterparts still do the job and sometimes provide extra features (like Sony's waterproof tablets).

    3. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You're kidding.

      1) The surface has a joke keyboard. touchpads suck on all devices.
      2) The surface has a real USB 2.0 or 3.0 port, too bad you can't do anything with it, since it would tether the device to the item attached
      3) The surface "RT" runs a version of windows that doesn't run desktop windows. The Surface Pro runs a full version of windows that consumes half the hard drive.
      4) You can't play games on the Surface, there are few. There are far more games for the iPad. You must be thinking of the Surface Pro which can run shovelware games but forget running any "real" game on it.
      5) The surface has an adjustable kickstand. This is not a selling point, as it's just another part of the device to snap off.
      6) The surface runs windows RT... which is only "more secure" because it doesn't run real windows. The iPad is more secure than the Surface Pro because Malware only infects jailbroken devices.
      7) It's not easy to use any tablet device. My parents and grand parents don't own any. The only people in my family who own tablets are the preteens.

      And I think point 7 nails the real problem. Anyone over the age of 12 doesn't know the difference by virtue of not using the things at home.

    4. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      I'll do you one better: The Surface has 2 places on it where it says "Surface" and 3 if you count the windows bootup startup screen which says only "Surface" on it.

    5. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Woooooosh

    6. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Noah+Haders · · Score: 1

      There is one indisputable point in which Surface is awesome and iPad and android competitors cannot match. If you are going to a conference or a business meeting and you need to do some last-minute edits on your presentation, you can do this on the surface and you cannot on the iPad. The surface has USB support and it has a native version of PowerPoint that is much more compatible with the desktop version.

      I have found that both the iPad and Mac versions of PowerPoint are mostly compatible with files made on the desktop windows, but sometimes breaks things like fonts, photo layouts, or transitions. If you're in a pinch and try to make a change on the iPad, then you need to upload it to "the cloud" or email it to yourself, then try to download it on either the presentation computer or on someone else's computer so it can transferred to USB. It's times like this when I wish I had a surface.

    7. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      If you are going to a conference or a business meeting and you need to do some last-minute edits on your presentation,

      then you aren't properly prepared, this seems to be a pretty common theme of people who use microsoft devices, they expect miracles to bail them out.

    8. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      I'll do you one better: The Surface has 2 places on it where it says "Surface" and 3 if you count the windows bootup startup screen which says only "Surface" on it.

      and microsoft STILL can't get people to say it right.

    9. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Noah+Haders · · Score: 1

      Goodie for you. I wish I lived in your world. Some of us live in the real world which is a dynamic and fast moving place where not everything is under your control. My overall point is, the surface is really good for some use cases. It's only fair to acknowledge this if you're going to call it useless.

    10. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by GodInHell · · Score: 1

      /sarcasm

    11. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      What the hell is this Sureface crap, get me a real iPad not some knockoff.

      lol

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    12. Re:The Surface should be easily distinguishable by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      To be fair it is 7 letters and 2 syllables. Quite a long word for the average NFL commentator. ;-)

  3. That's okay. by buckfeta2014 · · Score: 5, Informative

    My mother still calls a PC tower a modem...

    --
    Buck Feta. You know what to do.
    1. Re:That's okay. by Dusthead+Jr. · · Score: 5, Informative

      My former boss used to refer to it as a hard drive and the CRT monitor was the computer. I upgraded it to a larger size and he asked if I had gotten a new computer. Most people I know seem to call any generic mp3 player an iPod. And before Android became a household name, every smartphone was an iPhone.

    2. Re:That's okay. by fatwilbur · · Score: 1

      The most famous example most kids of the 90s will remember: when your mom referred to every video game system as a Nintendo. Dammit mom for the last time it's my Sega Genesis!!

  4. yeah by Ryanrule · · Score: 2

    they should have went with padd.

    1. Re:yeah by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      They were considering the Max iPad for the new one until they put the two words together...*rimshot*

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  5. Critical mass by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    It's another reason behind why Microsoft will never catch up. I was old enough to have a Sony Walkman, back in the day when it was the thing everyone wanted. It was the same back then - everything, every other copy, was basically a "walkman" for quite a few years.

  6. Re:Sports, their first mistake by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    If you want a great example of this, look at HeadsetGate.

    For those who missed it, the Patriots decided that after being caught cheating to make it to the Super Bowl last year, they'd start the year out by feeding their radio broadcast into the Steelers' headsets so that the coach couldn't communicate with the players. The official explanation for why that happened was "power issues caused by inclement weather."

    First off, it was raining.

    Secondly, the headsets are digital. And encrypted. So all "power issues" would do is disable the headsets - not drown out the audio with other audio.

    So, basically, we have NFL "technicians" who somehow manage to let "power issues" magically take over encrypted headsets.

    Instead of the more obvious option, the Patriots stole the encryption codes and purposely overpowered the real signal with their own.

    Or TLDR: The NFL is run by idiots.

  7. Derp. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    It's a tablet.

    Tablets were introduced to people living outside their parents' basements as 'iPads'. Apple. Has. Won.

    Now let me hand you some Kleenex so you can wipe away those tears. By Kleenex, I mean generic store-brand paper-based facial tissues.

    1. Re:Derp. by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

      Actually it's a laptop masquerading as a tablet.

    2. Re:Derp. by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      Hmm, interesting. I recall many tablets already on the market when the iPad came out. Perhaps you should pay more attention to the world around you.

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  8. This problem really shouldn't exist. by jtownatpunk.net · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The commentators are supposed to be professionals and plugging products is part of their profession. Do they fuck up the "Brought to you by Dodge: Take a stand against ordinary." plugs? No. And, if they did, they'd be getting yelled at during the next commercial break. Can you imagine if they said "Brought to you by the Toyota F-150, heartbeat of America." when the dodge logo popped up on the screen? (I just picked Dodge and their slogan out of thin air. I have no idea if Dodge advertises like that during NFL games but you get what I mean.) The tablets are a product and it's being advertised. Microsoft has paid a ton of money for this product placement and I find it hard to believe that their contract doesn't include assurances that their products will be correctly referenced a minimum number of times per game. And it probably has penalties for misidentification. Like calling their devices by the trademarked name of their biggest competitor. You don't need to be an expert on the product you're plugging to get the name right.

    1. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      They're ignorant footballers, not rocket scientists, what do you expect.

    2. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by slazzy · · Score: 1

      Microsoft should have insisted that each one says Surface in large letters printed on it somewhere, branding 101...

      --
      Website Just Down For Me? Find out
    3. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 2

      Newsflash: announcers aren't really that smart.

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    4. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by jtownatpunk.net · · Score: 2

      They didn't at first. Somewhere along the way, they got the name on them in big letters on the hand-hold strap.

    5. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      As a former announcer, I'm not sure what to make of that. Maybe I'm formerly not that smart?

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    6. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Your last name is "The Mindless"...

    7. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by quantaman · · Score: 1

      No, you are right, it shouldn't exist. They should be able to call their thingies iPads and Microsoft should too. It's stupid that Apple can claim such a short word. IP law is illogical and extremely stupid, just like the politicians who created it. May they burn.

      As many issues as I have with various IP laws this use of trademarks is perfectly fine.

      iPad is a word Apple made up specifically for their product, the use of the trademark is to protect their brand. Hell, the entire point of this story is that people using Apple's trademark iPad is causing brand confusion!

      --
      I stole this Sig
    8. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by quantaman · · Score: 1

      Newsflash: announcers aren't really that smart.

      Or rather they are quite smart (think about hard it actually is to narrate a play as it happens as well as offering interesting commentary) but they're in a habit of not really respecting computers the way they do trucks and other manly-man products..

      --
      I stole this Sig
    9. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Maybe they could turn it into an opportunity and argue that "ipad" has become generic, like "hoover". I'm sure Apple would litigate until the end of time to prevent it, but maybe Microsoft could go the astroturfing route instead.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    10. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      Newsflash: announcers aren't really that smart.

      ...DNS-and-BIND announced.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    11. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      You don't need to be an expert on the product you're plugging to get the name right.

      Especially if you're forced o use the product. I mean Surface is only written on the kick stand, on the keypad, and is also the word present while Windows is booting.

      Mind you this are NFL commentators. I guess 15 years of head trauma does have an effect.

    12. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

      The tablets are a product and it's being advertised.

      But unlike your Dosge example - it is not openly disclosed as advertisement. There is no "brought to you by MS surface". There wouldn't be a problem if MS just bought people to say "And our sponsoring partner Microsoft wants you to have a look at their products called "The surface"". Every moron could read that.

      Trying to hide the fact that this is paid-for advertising my letting it creep into commentary and interviews that should be about the subject people are tuning in to see is what is happening here.

      --
      bickerdyke
    13. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by JonBoy47 · · Score: 1

      This... More so than any of the other American major league sports, the NFL has inked sponsorship deals for product placement. As an example, Colin Kaepernick was famously fined $10k by the NFL last year for wearing a pair of pink Beats headphones during a post-game press conference. The only reason he's not blowing a gasket over this is that he's too busy deluding himself into believing he'll win the Deflategate appeal.

    14. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by geeknotnerd · · Score: 1

      There is a word for those thingies: tablets.

    15. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 1

      Just like Smokey the Bear.

      --
      If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
    16. Re: This problem really shouldn't exist. by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 1

      Does the iWatch have a microphone too?

      http://www.apple.com/watch/

      I don't know if it does. Who makes it? We'll check their website.

      --
      If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
    17. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 1

      Hoover is only generic in one country. Well, maybe two; I don't know what the Scots say. Here in the US we say "vacuum". Hoover is still a brand name of vacuum cleaners.

      --
      If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
    18. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Scutter · · Score: 2

      NO. Do not excuse them by saying "well, they're just athletes". They are PAID PROFESSIONALS who should be held accountable to the paid profession in which they are engaging. If they are incapable of doing the job, they should quit or be terminated.

      --

      "Tell me doctor, with all of your defenses, are there any provisions for an attack by killer bees?"
    19. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      In other news, NFL professionals still calling Hand-egg game 'football', says Rest of World.

    20. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by BitZtream · · Score: 2

      Yea, because Apple doesn't like when people make fun of Surface and imply that they'd rather have an Apple device instead of the shitty Microsoft version.

      Apple LOVE it.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    21. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by thegarbz · · Score: 4, Funny

      They're job ... is to announce the game, not sell product.

      The Surface IS JUST A SHITTY IPAD KNOCK OFF

      You're just an ignorant prick that has no clue what he's talking about

      The irony hurts so very much.

    22. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      They are ludicrously overpaid PAID PROFESSIONALS who should be held accountable to the paid profession in which they are engaging.

      FTFY

    23. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Cajun+Hell · · Score: 2

      What do you think a "Steeler" or a "Ram" or a "49er" is?

      Talking about products is all those people ever do. This is commercial entertainment, not a real sports game between the people on your street. Go outside and play some sports. And then tell me if any of the other people you were with, said "ooh, ooh, can I be the announcer?" Sports don't have announcers.

      This a field of professional entertainers and professional announcers whose job is to sell. They're paid to sell you the teams, the players, and whatever else the media outlet got paid to promote. If that includes Dodge or Microsoft, then their job is to sell you Dodge and Microsoft.

      --
      "Believe me!" -- Donald Trump
    24. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by mrzaph0d · · Score: 1

      Years ago I realized that while the members of the US version of The Office were using the same Cisco Phones I had at the office, except that the labels on all of them were ridiculously huge.

      --
      this is just a placeholder till i send back my real sig from the future.
    25. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      In other, other news, all those people from other countries that make stuff for us still confuse soccer with football.

    26. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by _anomaly_ · · Score: 1

      Colin Kaepernick isn't involved with deflategate, that's Tom Brady. However, Kaepernick has voiced his support of Brady.

      --
      "I have no special gift, I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein
    27. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by edtice1559 · · Score: 1

      Maybe it's actually part of the campaign. Give people the idea that Surface and iPad are interchangeable things. When you're a secondary brand, you don't mind being confused with the market leader!

    28. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

      The commentators are supposed to be professionals and plugging products is part of their profession. Do they fuck up the "Brought to you by Dodge: Take a stand against ordinary." plugs? No.

      That's because, despite the jokes everyone here will make, the announcers aren't illiterate. They have no problem doing the sponsorships when it's on a piece of paper in front of them.

    29. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      The commentators are supposed to be professionals

      Unless microsoft is paying them to do it right, I don't see your point. They are supposed to "Call them as they see them" and they see ipads.

    30. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      Mind you this are NFL commentators.

      Who are not being paid by microsoft. This is actually a smart move, maybe they can convince microsoft to pay them to say it right.

    31. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      They are PAID PROFESSIONALS who should be held accountable to the paid profession in which they are engaging.

      they are paid to announce a football game

      they are not paid to announce what toys people are using

    32. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      Hoover is only generic in one country. Well, maybe two; I don't know what the Scots say. Here in the US we say "vacuum". Hoover is still a brand name of vacuum cleaners.

      hoover is also a brand of "blankets" if you are old enough to remember

    33. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

      Maybe it's actually part of the campaign. Give people the idea that Surface and iPad are interchangeable things. When you're a secondary brand, you don't mind being confused with the market leader!

      Except when people go to the store, they ask for what they know. They ask for an ipad, they get an ipad, they don't get a surface. The TV announcers may be confused but the salesman at best buy will get the customer what they ask for.

    34. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by edtice1559 · · Score: 1

      Yes I see your point. But I also see the possibility of people Googling for the "Surface iPad" and getting hits for the Surface tablet. Remember, the announcers are *saying* iPad but people are *seeing* the word Surface. There could also be Best Buy conversations where people say "I want the iPad that the NFL coaches use." BB drone will sell them whichever has the higher profit for BB!

    35. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anomalyst · · Score: 1

      Fortunately I have absolutely no interest in either and the incompetence is of no matter to me.

      --
      There is no right to feel safe thru security vaudeville at the expense of everyone's freedom, privacy and tax money.
    36. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by Anomalyst · · Score: 1

      How to identify a commodity from quite a long way away
      No. 3
      The Larch

      --
      There is no right to feel safe thru security vaudeville at the expense of everyone's freedom, privacy and tax money.
    37. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by guruevi · · Score: 1

      The thing is that they're not plugging them. Microsoft gave them to the NFL not as a sponsored media campaign but in order to surreptitiously market their product in the viewers' eyes so that if they went to the store, they would subconsciously choose Surfaces over iPads.

      The problem is that Surfaces are indeed "iPad-knockoffs". They look very similar but they are a lot worse when it comes down to the OS and the "apps" or even the ecosystem surrounding them. They feel like you just bought a Chinese iPad-knockoff with an Android version made to look like iOS but it won't run either Android or iOS software and the built-in apps barely work and there is no "app store" to speak off.

      The worst thing about the Surfaces I think is that whenever you want to change something, you get dropped into the Windows 8 environment. Want to set up a network that deviates from the standard WEP/WPA2? Better get your glasses and a keyboard/mouse. Want to set up Bluetooth? Again, Config Panel. Oh, I have to install drivers for this gadget to work?

      --
      Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
    38. Re:This problem really shouldn't exist. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Who are not being paid by microsoft.

      $400million dollars exchanging hands along with the Surface tablets says otherwise.

  9. You can't expect them to learn right? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    These guys are all chosen for physical attributes, not critical thinking.

  10. Although the mind-share is good for Apple... by mark-t · · Score: 1

    I would think that if this is allowed to continue for too long, it could endanger Apple's trademark, as the term may be eventually be taken as a synonym for any tablet-like computer.

    --
    File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
  11. Other brand names that Americans use ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    It seems to be mostly an American thing to call things by brand or company names instead of using generic terms...
    Jacuzzi - hot tub
    Crock pot - pressure cooker
    Chapstick - lip balm
    Kleenex - tissue
    Q-tips - cotton swabs
    Rollerblades - roller skates
    Scotch tape - adhesive tape
    Sharpie - permanent marker
    Realtor - real estate agent
    Tupperware - plastic containers
    Weed eater - string trimmer
    Wite-out - correction fluid
    Band-Aid - adhesive bandages
    Dumpster - waste container
    Xerox - photocopier
    Post-it - sticky note
    Plexiglas - acrylic glass
    Styrofoam - polystyrene
    etc etc etc....

    1. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by mark-t · · Score: 2

      Not exclusively American at all.

      Hoover - Vacuum

      --
      File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
    2. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 3, Informative

      A crock pot is not a pressure cooker. (Try "slow cooker".)

      And my wife calls them Tupperware. She's from China, has never lived in an English-speaking country, and only made her first visit to the US about 4 years ago.

      Here in Sweden, I hear the terms "rollerblade"; "Xerox", "Post-It", and "Plexiglass" used even in Swedish.

      Rollerblades, BTW, are specifically *inline* skates, not any roller skates.

      And nobody's had a need for White-Out in about 30 years; do they even still make that stuff?

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    3. Re: Other brand names that Americans use ... by oobayly · · Score: 1

      PTFE tape is adhesive?

    4. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      What? Why do you think that it's "mostly an American thing"? It's not at all mostly an American thing.

      I'm going to go out on a limb and hypothesize that you're American and are simply not aware of what brand names people in other countries use to call things, and then erroneously conclude that because you've not heard of it, therefore it doesn't exist. :)

    5. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      Sellotape.
      Post-It Note.
      Portacabin.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    6. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      No it's not, you just watch too many American movies to realise that every nationality has a tendency to do this. At least half of those are common in Australia and the UK too. Heck even Chinese don't call post-its sticky notes.

    7. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

      Fön (Hair dryer)
      Dixie (portable toilet)
      Tipp-Ex (White Out)
      Styropor (Styrofoam)
      Jenaer Glas (Pyrex)
      Tempo
      Edding

      getting slightly awkward when you don't only have to learn regular vocabulary but also brand names

      --
      bickerdyke
    8. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Scotch tape - adhesive tape

      clear adhesive tape

      Weed eater - string trimmer

      We call them weed whackers now.

      Plexiglas - acrylic glass

      It's not glass. You're calling everything which is clear "glass", while you complain about Americans calling everything by the wrong name. Hooray!

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    9. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by berberine · · Score: 1

      A crock pot and a pressure cooker are two very different things. A crock pot is also called a slow cooker. I can turn it on, leave the house for hours and when I return I have a nice meal to eat. If I did that with a pressure cooker, it would explode if it was unattended and I did not periodically release the valve to lower the pressure and let steam out.

    10. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by Chris+Mattern · · Score: 1

      And there have been cases where it lead to the loss of the trademark, as with aspirin and escalator.

    11. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      Some corrections:

      Because every brand name you mentioned is the largest most well known brand who did it first. In most cases people use the brand name because the brand name they are referring to is the one that isn't a shitty cheap copy of the brand name. People actually want Kleenex, not shitty 'tissue' that hurts when you use it, as an example.

      A crock pot is not a pressure cooker in any way. Its just a brand name for a large ceramic pot with its own built in heating for slow cooking stews and such. A pressure cooker is entirely different.

      No one calls roller skates roller blades any more than they call a motorcycle a Chevy. You're mixing two different though related things. Rollerblades are in-line skates.

      Realtor is a job description and was before the website existed.

      Acrylic is not glass, thats why its plexiglas with ONE s, its not glass.
      Oh: And this happens everywhere in the world, but hey welcome to showing exactly how you don't know about the rest of the world.

      These things happen because the brand name is the most popular and its what everyone uses or prefers to use.

      JUST LIKE THE IPAD.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    12. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by flink · · Score: 1

      I believe Bayer lost its trademark to aspirin as part of reparation for WWI, not as a result of the name becoming generic.

    13. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by PPalmgren · · Score: 1

      Notice the syllables. A vast majority of those brand generics are shortening mechanisms. Brand names that become commonplace enough and are easier to say or shorter to write tend to become generics.

    14. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by Solandri · · Score: 1
      You have most of those backwards.

      Kleenex - tissue
      Scotch tape - adhesive tape
      Band-Aid - adhesive bandages
      Xerox - photocopier
      Post-it - sticky note
      Plexiglas - acrylic glass
      Styrofoam - polystyrene

      All of those were products originally available exclusively under the brand name before knockoffs became available. The company making the brand name item then had to fight and advertise to get people to use the generic name for the product, lest they lose their trademark protection (as happened to aspirin, escalator, thermos, etc). That is, the brand name came first, the generic name came later.

      It's mostly an American thing because the products were originally introduced in the U.S. By the time they were introduced in other countries, the knockoffs were already available, and thus the strong association between the brand name and the type of product never developed. The opposite happened with Hoover. While the company was American, knockoffs quickly became available in the U.S. but not in the U.K. So the British tend to refer to vacuum cleaning as "hoovering" while Americans use the generic "vacuuming".

      Realtor - real estate agent

      This one has a similar history as the above, except it wasn't an invention. It was an overly successful attempt by a group to create a new licensed profession (like doctors and lawyers are licensed).

      Rollerblades - roller skates

      The generic term for Rollerblades is in-line skates. To distinguish them from roller skates which used 4 wheels in a rectangular configuration like a car.

    15. Re:Other brand names that Americans use ... by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      It's hardly an American thing. Off the top of my head, I recall that British folks have Hoovers, Brevilles, and Sellotape, and who can blame them? After all, companies or people with those names got there first, so the name stuck over there, just like Rollerblade stuck in the US.

      But in most of your examples, the generic names were only coined years after the brand name when competing companies tried to enter the market, so it's hardly a surprise that the original names have stuck, given that for the first several years of those product's existences, the brand name was the only name for that type of product. For instance:
      - Jacuzzi was the original jetted hot tub when it was introduced in 1968
      - Crock-Pot was the original electric slow cooker when it was introduced in 1971
      - Chapstick was the first commercial lip balm when it was introduced in 1880
      - Kleenex was the first (modern) facial tissue when it was introduced in 1924
      - Scotch tape was the original cellophane tape when it was introduced in 1930
      - Weed Eater was the original string trimmer when it was introduced in 1971
      - Band-Aid was the original adhesive bandage when it was introduced in 1924
      - Dumpster was the original garbage-truck-loadable garbage bin when it was introduced in 1936
      - Xerox was the original xerographic machine when it was introduced in 1949
      - Post-It Notes were the original repositionable notes when they were introduced in 1980
      - Plexiglas was the first acrylic glass to market when it was introduced in 1933

      Moreover, with the exception of Jacuzzis, all of the ones I listed were first invented or introduced in the US, so it's hardly a surprise that the original brand names continue to have traction here in the States, given that the original names predate the existence of the generic terms. That competitors were able to establish generic terms or their brand names (e.g. Sellotape, introduced 1937) elsewhere is not a surprise either, nor is it a cause for derision by either side.

      Additionally, many of your cited brand names are not used synonymously in the American public with the generic terms you provided. Jacuzzi is used specifically when referring to jetted hot tubs, not to hot tubs in general. Crock-Pot is used when referring to slow cookers, not pressure cookers. Chapstick is used specifically when referring to lip balm packaged like lipstick, not to lip balm in other form factors (e.g. in tins). Rollerblade is used specifically when referring to inline skates, not to roller skates in general. And so on. As often as not, the brand name is used to refer to their specific style of the generic product, rather than to the generic category as a whole.

      And, in the case of Styrofoam, Americans don't even use the brand name itself correctly, since the stuff that we call "styrofoam" (lowercase s) usually isn't actually Styrofoam (uppercase s). For instance, the standard, white coffee cups made of expanded/puffed, molded polystyrene beads, which most Americans would call a "styrofoam cup" are not actually made of Styrofoam at all, since Styrofoam refers specifically to a type of extruded polystyrene that is typically used for craft purposes. I mention all of this, not to make a point, but just because it's something interesting. :)

      All of which is to say, your implication seems to be that Americans are using the wrong terms for these items, when in many cases (Styrofoam notwithstanding) the history of the products does not substantiate that stance. In many cases, we're simply using the original names for those things.

  12. Yep by Sycraft-fu · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It is actually a bad thing, overall for Apple. The last thing they want is for every tablet to be an "iPad" because it then makes it much harder to market and differentiate their own products. While I'm sure MS isn't pleased, Apple is likely non to pleased either. Having your brand turned generic isn't something any company wants. Even if you still technically control the trademark, if it is a generic term in the mind of the ordinary person, you've lost.

  13. Microsoft has tablets right... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Sure an SPN can't learn new tricks. That's a given. But the reason they should try is probably important.

    I hate to admit it, but Microsoft tablets are a full OS. That's a full arsenal fuck you to Google's (tacit fauxpenness), and Apple's (prison) gilded cage app store. I would never go back without treating the device as a sandbox layer. Cant wait for the true Linux/ Open source tablets (Kernel + distro based on hardware), Jolla will do perfect to test the waters until they get major mainstream heat. Its OK to break things I own, as long as I can use them as I so choose.

    No OS that changes UI on update will matter long term. UI || UX. . Microsoft tablet (as low as 179 at wallmart) = what already works + more than an app store with sand boxed app perks. I am rooting for MS (sadly) on this one. Also Kudos for apple realizing the Jobba was wrong about device utility: Stylus has a a value : Hence apple made a stylus (that isn’t worth the cost) This is a sloppy catch up measure since MS partnered wacom for the original surface, but it should be nice to drive down prices as the competitive market expands. Drawing on the "paper" makes sense to most people. But then again, that second mouse button was a hurdle for apple users too.

    My device = my ability OR convenience. The more I am aware of your interference the less I value your updates.

    Oh right!: Sports guys with brain damage! Um is there any way to get the one ipad button to, you know, um be easier? Which one was that one button again? Do I push it or just talk into it? Hi mom. Hello?

  14. Who the fuck can remember all those stupid names? by Taco+Cowboy · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No matter how good, how useful a product is, if the name is stupid, it won't be remember

    Take toilet paper - what brand of toilet paper can you think of?

    Take sport drinks - other than Gatorade, what are the other brands you can remember?

    Ice tea ... can you pronounce 'loo-zee-ann'?

    Microsoft Windows successfully toppled OS/2 because the 'OS/2' name was too fucking awkward

    iPad, iPhone, iPod are popular not only because of their functionality - they have crispy clear sounding name

    As for Microsoft Surface? Who the fuck can remember that?

    --
    Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
  15. Re:Kleenex, Xerox, Band-aid by mwvdlee · · Score: 1

    This. In the end this may be good for Microsoft, as it may ruin a successful competitor's brand name.

    --
    Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
  16. Re:nobody remembers by behrooz0az · · Score: 1

    Orville and wilbur wright
    Buzz aldrin
    I don't think multiple people build X or Y. They're letters. unless we're talking encoding.

    --
    Moderating "-1, Disagree" is simple censorship. Have the guts to post your opinion. -- Spazmania (174582)
  17. Re:GAY NIGGERS need maxipads to catch felch by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    I've watched GNFOS, much funnier than you.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  18. But The Noisy *Surface* IS easily distinguishable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    a) Noisy fan -- reminds you it isn't a tablet --- at least not the kind of tablet the iPad and Android are on.

    b) The kind of tablet that needs anti-virus. Weeeee!

    c) Battery life requires you be near a power outlet. Versus an iPad that can do several days.

    d) The kind of tablet with really low market share, again reminding you it isn't an iPad.

    e) The Surface, unpopular enough, the average joe thinks it is iPad.

    The Surface has more in common with the kind of tablets Moses brought down from the mountain, than the energy efficient and touch oriented tablets that real people are using.

  19. Re:Well of course... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    What do you expect from these low life who enjoy hitting each other/watch others ram into each others, making millions of dollars for doing it, and getting to sleep with models and pop stars.

    TFTFY.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  20. Seriously!? Microsoft expected them to call it... by EzInKy · · Score: 1

    ...a Surface? Both are iPad and Surface are stupid names either way. What is wrong with personal digital assistance anyway? Tired of playing the name game.

    --
    Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
  21. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by davester666 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Are you talking about a tablet, the table, or the wall-mounted device?

    --
    Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
  22. Well my mum still calls a vacuum cleaner a hoover by Chrisq · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Well my mum still calls a vacuum cleaner a hoover. That isn't worthy of a slashdot article either

  23. Oh shock and horror! by GeekWithAKnife · · Score: 1


    Some people do not know the actual brand of their toaster. they call it "toaster" rather than the "Skynet 9000 turbo bread bronzer".

    It's a fucking toaster. The fact they confused it with the most widely known brand of toaster just happens. Like how "Centrino" was a CPU in some people's minds.

    --
    A 'singular oddity' is an event that cannot be explained and only happens when you are alone.
    1. Re:Oh shock and horror! by cdrudge · · Score: 1

      Some people do not know the actual brand of their toaster. they call it "toaster" rather than the "Skynet 9000 turbo bread bronzer".

      I don't know the brand of my toaster, but then again the manufacturer didn't pay me $400m to advertise it for them. If they did, I'd use the product name in every sentence I spoke and I'd have it tattooed prominently on my body. Now perhaps $400m is a lot more significant to me then it is to the NFL, but it's not like this is some 10 second read on Fargo's sports talk show either where if they screw it up, it's not like anyone noticed or cared.

    2. Re:Oh shock and horror! by GeekWithAKnife · · Score: 1


      Yeah we both know you're right...but if you task a some football knuckle-heads with something don't be surprised if they fumble.

      Actually, don't be surprised if they take your tablet/iPad/Surface and shake it, sniff it and then take a bite.

      --
      A 'singular oddity' is an event that cannot be explained and only happens when you are alone.
    3. Re:Oh shock and horror! by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

      Like how "Centrino" was a CPU in some people's minds.

      Wow, have you actually met both of them?

  24. Microsoft Maxipad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Pad is too generic and leads to brand name confusion.

    To differentiate the product and highlight the capability differential, it should have been called the Microsoft Maxipad.

  25. Dominant brands by xMonkey · · Score: 2

    Weed Eater, Kleenex, Super Glue... Dominant Brands enjoy being the general term. They gotta be careful though to not lose their trade names.

    --
    Now I've seen Everything
  26. Re:Kleenex, Xerox, Band-aid by Nyder · · Score: 2

    All the same concept. Generic terms for what is and used to be specific brands. A 'tablet looking thing' will be refereed to as an "iPad". Same as if they were using Dell, Asus, Samsung tablet looking things.

    iPad.

    Tablet.

    A word you used both times describing the objects. My guess is this will be what everyone will be calling them.

    --
    Be seeing you...
  27. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    Everyone. They've recycled the product name 3 times now, and it's written in big letters on the back of the device as well as on the front cover of the keypad. If you have the device and you can't remember the name then it speaks volumes for how much pay attention to your surroundings in life.

  28. Re:Well of course... by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

    Anyone who's jealous can take some comfort from the fact that ten years later, they won't be able to remember any of it.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  29. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by bickerdyke · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Or on how much you care about being turned in an advertisment spewing sock puppet.

    --
    bickerdyke
  30. Re:Sports, their first mistake by bickerdyke · · Score: 2

    Or TLDR: The NFL is run by idiots.

    I wouldn't go that far, but it definitly is run by people who care more about product placement than football. Being run by idiots would not harm football to the extent that is doing to it.

    --
    bickerdyke
  31. tell them ... by Skapare · · Score: 1

    ...that the players' pads are being replaced with ipads.

    --
    now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
  32. Some folks don't care by sjbe · · Score: 1

    Some people do not know the actual brand of their toaster. they call it "toaster" rather than the "Skynet 9000 turbo bread bronzer".

    Toaster, hell. Ask my wife the brand of car we own. To her they are the silver pickup and the grey truck. This is a woman with a doctorate so I'm not insulting her intelligence - she's arguably smarter than I am. She just doesn't care about the differences. At all.

    Folks here on slashdot might give a crap about the fine distinctions between an iPad and a Surface tablet. Lots more folks really don't care even a tiny bit. To them the differences are purely academic.

    1. Re:Some folks don't care by Flavianoep · · Score: 1

      Folks here on slashdot might give a crap about the fine distinctions between an iPad and a Surface tablet. Lots more folks really don't care even a tiny bit. To them the differences are purely academic.

      That's mostly because people on /. knew what a tablet computer was before rumors about the iPad existed.

      --
      Linux is for people who don't mind RTFM.
  33. Re:nobody remembers by bickerdyke · · Score: 2

    Honestly: You only remember "first man on the moon" because that was the only event in the space race that the US came out ahead (and the USSR haven't really tried)

    First object in space? In orbit?
    First living beings in space? returning safely? First human?
    First woman in space? First EVA?
    First unmanned landing on the moon? On Venus? On Mars?

    So it's not only the first X and Y you remember, human nature tends to remember only the Xs and Ys that we were first in and not only ignores second X and second Y, but first A, first B, first C, first D and so on.

    it's worse for technologies that are not a single, atomic (as in undividable) invention - depending on who you ask you will hear lots of different names as "The Father Of X". "Inventor" of the telephone? Marconi, Reiss, Bell, depending on who you're asking. Not even possible to agree on a single "first" here.

    By the way: The wright brothers were by no way first in flight. Their "first flight" in 1903 is predated by at least 10 years by Otto Lilienthals who (according to Wikipedia) managed to log over 2000 flights before his death. And even his death in 1896 predates the Wrights flight. Without doubt the first maneuverable motorized flight was a HUGE achievement, but calling it "the first flight" is plain wrong.

    https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    --
    bickerdyke
  34. Why with the surprise here? by Chas · · Score: 2

    And why are we stunned that a bunch of overpaid, undersocialized steroid-sozzled jock dopes can grasp anything other than their playbook?
    And, especially, the commentators? They're all a bunch of football-heads. Computers are for fuckin' nerds man!

    Everything's an iPad right?

    Just like, down south, all cola is "A Coke".

    --


    Chas - The one, the only.
    THANK GOD!!!
    1. Re:Why with the surprise here? by Rainbow+Nerds · · Score: 1

      Those are incredibly ignorant comments. I'm sure there are some lazy idiots on teams. But there are also some pretty smart people out there. I was always amazed at how Peyton Manning would read the defense and call audibles on just about every play. There's a lot of practice involved, but it also takes a lot of intelligence to do that.

      There are also some really smart coaches out there. Whether you like him or hate him, Bill Belichick is a really smart guy, finding ways to bend the rules and, probably quite often, break them without getting caught. He's hardly the only smart coach. And the front offices? They're filling up with nerds. Statistics and biometrics are taking over sports.

      Many teams make their player personnel decisions based largely on advanced metrics. They also are making their way into in-game decisions. There's a LOT of money to be made from winning, and teams are willing to spend a lot of money to hire some really smart people to find ways to gain an edge, legal or otherwise. It's a far cry from a bunch of jocks who only know their playbooks. Baseball is probably the most advanced of the four major sports in this respect, but the others aren't that far behind.

      And don't even get me started on sports like racing, which are even more advanced. Some of the more financially well-off Formula 1 teams employ a pretty large number of engineers to monitor the performance of their drivers and cars, to gain even a tiny edge over their competitors. I'd bet for every driver, you have at least 50 nerds working behind the scenes for an F1 team. It's really quite impressive.

      Oh, and the announcers? The guys doing play-by-play tend to be people who went to college and studied journalism or broadcasting. They're not idiots, either. And it takes a lot to do decent PBP, especially for football, basketball, and hockey. Hell, I'd even call a few of those guys nerds. Bob Costas is definitely a baseball nerd, and it makes the games he calls really enjoyable to listen to.

      --
      M-I-Z
      kU still sucks!
    2. Re:Why with the surprise here? by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      Wow, could you have shown any better just how ignorant you were?

      undersocialized

      By definition of what these people are doing, they are more socialized than you, someone no one outside your house probably even remembers your name.

      steroid-sozzled jock dopes

      The NFL has been steroid testing players for almost 30 years, so no, no steroid's involved in the NFL.

      dopes can grasp anything other than their playbook?

      Another years pay says you couldn't memorize and understand their playbook given 6 months time to do so. I'd bet my life you're too slow to even come close to executing one of the simple plays against actual NFL players.

      And, especially, the commentators?

      Comms are generally retired quarterbacks, the smartest people on the field. As I've said before, I'd bet a years pay that every starting NFL quarterback on the field is at least twice as smart as you are. You're a fucking idiot who doesn't know anything about a whole bunch of shit making ignorant statements about people you've never met ... and acting like you're better than others.

      Just like, down south, all cola is "A Coke".

      No, moron. 'down south' people drink Coke, not other cola's. Just because you're too stupid to pick up on the fact that when people ask for a coke, they mean a fucking coke, not a pepsi, or an RC, or some shitty knock off.

      Take your ignorance and STFU, you're nothing more than a douche who thinks he knows way more than anyone else, and in reality all your post did was show exactly how little you do know about things.

      Everything is an iPad because thats what people prefer. But hey, don't let reality get in the way of your own stupidity.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    3. Re:Why with the surprise here? by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      And why are we stunned that a bunch of overpaid, undersocialized steroid-sozzled jock dopes can grasp anything other than their playbook? And, especially, the commentators? They're all a bunch of football-heads. Computers are for fuckin' nerds man!

      Everything's an iPad right?

      Just like, down south, all cola is "A Coke".

      So, either I didn't go into college with 21 credits due to high school AP classes, make Honor Roll in College for my school, team, and conference every year, and get a Master's degree in International relations; or I didn't play football for 12 years including at the collegiate level. I must have completely imagined one of these things, because clearly smart people can never have an interest in sports.

      On another note, damned straight all soda is called "coke" down here in the South. Because America.

      (Hopefully the sarcasm is evident here. But seriously, coke is definitely a generic term for soda here, but I do live in Atlanta)

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
  35. Re:nobody remembers by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

    Orville and wilbur wright

    It could only carry one person at a time. They were second and third respectively.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  36. Re:Seriously!? Microsoft expected them to call it. by Overzeetop · · Score: 1

    Or they'd all call them our personal PDAs or out PDA Assistants. Just as bad.

    But, seriously...you get two syllables for a marketable name. Even the acronym is three.

    --
    Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
  37. That's a funny thing, by pecosdave · · Score: 5, Funny

    because I've been calling the new iPad Pro the Apple Surface Tablet.

    --
    The preceding post was not a Slashvertisement.
  38. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Or that there might actually be something to all these head injury law suits.

  39. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by tompaulco · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I would bet that if the NFL had bought Surfaces intentionally with their own money they would remember what they are called. Maybe Microsoft shouldn't give people who have plenty of money free toys, and then teach them the value of a dollar instead.

    --
    If you are not allowed to question your government then the government has answered your question.
  40. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Maritz · · Score: 1

    Do you know what make/model of car you own? If yes, does that make you an adverisement-spewing sock puppet..? Just curious. I agree that not knowing the name of something you bought is potentially something to be concerned about.

    --
    I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
  41. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    So I have two questions for you:

    1. If you had an Apple device, would you know it's an Apple device, or do you run around calling it a Samsung?
    2. If your job depended on being an advertisement spewing sock puppet, would you do what's written on your job description? I mean it's not like these are back office workers we're talking about. It should be as second nature to them as talking about the "Citibank line camera", or the "refreshing Gatorade" the players are drinking, or the "KFC instant replay system". These people are literally being paid to do just that. If they didn't want to play along then they should find themselves another job.

  42. Re: Who the fuck can remember all those stupid nam by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Are you talking about a stone tablet with engraving on it, a medicinal pill, or an electronic display with some smarts?

  43. Re:GAY NIGGERS need maxipads to catch felch by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    There is not one single black person anywhere on this planet who is not better than you in every conceivable way.

  44. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    Are you saying companies shouldn't advertise?

    And no I don't believe for one second that someone using a device every day for work which says "Surface" on it in 3 places including taking up most of the screen while booting can't "remember" what it's called. Either they are really that stupid (likely), or they are willfully ignoring it (equally likely), or they are directed to ignore it (highly unlikely).

    Point is these people are paid to know what things are called according to their advertising contracts. Calling out Microsoft for this is disingenuous. ... Unless you legitimately think that Microsoft is somehow at odds with the rest of the corporate world for this tactic in which case you can be lumped right in with the NFL people in the "I don't have a clue what's going on around me" crowd.

  45. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

    They'd think you were an idiot...

  46. Maybe MS should drop support... by wardrich86 · · Score: 1

    Maybe Microsoft should just pull their support and force them all to downgrade to iPads?

  47. Re: Sports, their first mistake by jmac_the_man · · Score: 1

    Instead of the more obvious option, the Patriots stole the encryption codes and purposely overpowered the real signal with their own.

    Stealing the encryption key isn't necessary. "League officials" in a room at Gillette Stadium are monitoring the transmissions anyway (on equipment set up by the Patriots.) The radio broadcast of the game could easily have been fed into the coach's feed at that point.

  48. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by operagost · · Score: 2

    Sorry, but your list is ridiculous. I don't live in my parents' basement, thus I must buy my own sport drinks, T.P., and iced tea. Everyone knows Charmin-- they have great marketing. There are also Angel Soft, Quilted Northern, Marcal, Panda, and Scott. Lipton and Nestea are big brands here. Powerade is probably #2 to Gatorade. What's your point?

    And the OS/2-Windows war had much bigger issues than OS/2's "awkward" name.

    --

    Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
  49. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Gonoff · · Score: 1

    They'd think you were an idiot...

    Why? For stating such a simple fact?
    It's certainly a knockoff something. Apple is not exactly known for originality - just for tweaking other peoples inventions and then suing other people for it,.

    --
    I'll see your Constitution and raise you a Queen.
  50. And still... by MitchDev · · Score: 1

    It's just as funny now as it was when this story originally broke.

    Pisses off M$ AND Apple at the same time, LOVE IT

  51. And here by MitchDev · · Score: 1

    I thought most folks thought the iPad was Apple's entry into the field of feminine hygiene...

  52. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

    Do you know what make/model of car you own?

    Since 3 years: none. But for the sake of the argument: I would know it

    If yes, does that make you an adverisement-spewing sock puppet..?

    Knowing it? No. Mentioning it each time I'm referring to it? Sure so! "Honey, where is my coat?" "Oh It's still in the back of our Toyota Foobar 310. I'll fetch it later". "What#s for dinner tonight?" "Walmart Great Value Mac'n'Cheese. Wanna watch some Samsung TV while having diner?"

    Who would talk like that? That only happend in "The Trueman Show"!

     

    Just curious. I agree that not knowing the name of something you bought is potentially something to be concerned about.

    Of course you know it. That#s why you don't keep on mentioning it to others.

    And if you haven't bought it, you probably don't know or don't care for the brand you're using. If you're currently at the office a quick test, no peeking: What's the brand of your desk or your desk phone?

    --
    bickerdyke
  53. Chicago Bears quarterback by xxxJonBoyxxx · · Score: 2

    >> Chicago Bears quarterback called them "knockoff iPads"

    To be fair, Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is a "knockoff quarterback."

    1. Re:Chicago Bears quarterback by AustinSlacker · · Score: 1

      My first thought exactly. Thanks, xxxJonBoyxx, for articulating that.

  54. Ignoramus information break by operagost · · Score: 1

    Football is descended from both rugby and soccer. Early in its development, kicking was a greater part of the game.
    - It was once legal to advance the ball by kicking it along the ground.
    - Once the system of downs was implemented, the snap could be made with the hands OR feet.
    - Field goals once scored more points than touchdowns.
    - The game originally did not allow the forward pass, as in rugby. The ball's shape (which was similar to the rugby ball) was elongated slightly to facilitate overhand passing.

    Australian rules football uses a ball similar to rugby/early gridiron football. So why don't you geniuses call that game "Australian handegg"?

    The goals in basketball haven't been baskets since the formative days of the sport. Why don't we call it "Netball"?

    There aren't any crickets in cricket, barring a few incidental ones present in the field. Why don't we call it "batwickets"?

    --

    Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
  55. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

    "If I had an Apple device" is not unambigous: If I bought it, picked it, wrote about it in my letter to Santa, I would know it as it was a conscious descision. If I had been given it as a tool to simply do my daily job, I probably couldn't care less.

    Oh and did I mention that I would always prefer KFC over McD when going to a fast food restaurant as they have the much better replay system!

    --
    bickerdyke
  56. Re:But The Noisy *Surface* IS easily distinguishab by mark-t · · Score: 1

    iPad battery? Several days???? Uh, what?

    I get about 4 hours off an iPad battery. The battery only lasts for days if I don't use it that much.

    Not that I'm suggesting Surface is any better, I haven't used it so I wouldn't know.

    --
    File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
  57. Re:nobody remembers by imnotanumber · · Score: 1

    it's worse for technologies that are not a single, atomic (as in undividable) invention - depending on who you ask you will hear lots of different names as "The Father Of X". "Inventor" of the telephone? Marconi, Reiss, Bell, depending on who you're asking. Not even possible to agree on a single "first" here.

    The "inventor" is most of the time wrongly attributed. It is so common that there is a law (Stigler's law of eponymy) for that:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

  58. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Holi · · Score: 1

    Umm this is the NFL we are talking about, the are the epitome of the " advertisment spewing sock puppet".

    --
    Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  59. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by FranTaylor · · Score: 1

    Are you saying companies shouldn't advertise?

    Maybe they could think it through instead of being surprised when the obvious happens.

    Calling out Microsoft for this is disingenuous

    Yeah it's not their fault the NFL is using them, oh wait, it is.

  60. Makes sense by morgauxo · · Score: 1

    People with repetitive blunt trauma brain injuries prefer iOS devices so much they can't talk about anything else. I really don't see anything surprising about that!

  61. Where is Apple in all this. by Holi · · Score: 1

    Apple should start to get worried when their trademark is being used as a generic term for tablets, That is how you lose your trademark.

    --
    Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  62. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Solandri · · Score: 2

    I remember a post similar to this in the early 1990s, claiming we won the first Gulf War because we had Cruise missiles while Iraq had Scud missiles. Would Tom Cruise's career be where it is today if he had been named Tom Scud?

  63. We have the technology to fix this by RevWaldo · · Score: 1

    Use image recognition to flash "Microsoft Surface - the official tablet of the NFL" on the screen whenever one appears on camera.

    Use voice recognition to drop the word "iPad" from the audio feed whenever it's uttered. Whether they also want to deliver mild electric shocks to the commentator's headphones at the same time would be up to the NFL and the broadcasters.

    .

    --
    Prisencolinensinainciusol. Ol Rait!
  64. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by sims+2 · · Score: 1

    I get to explain to several people each week that android tablets are not ipads...Then I have to explain why an ipad costs more than the android tablet that is the same size sitting next to it.

    --
    Minimum threshold fixed. Thanks!
  65. Re:Well my mum still calls a vacuum cleaner a hoov by Anomalyst · · Score: 1

    Any critter can tell you ...
    he's Vax, she's Vex.
    ref: https://geekandsundry.com/show...

    --
    There is no right to feel safe thru security vaudeville at the expense of everyone's freedom, privacy and tax money.
  66. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Metabolife · · Score: 1

    In my house my parents would always refer to our cars as "The Buick", or "The Honda" to differentiate between them if we needed to do something with one or the other. Years after the Buick ceased to exist, my dad called our Subaru "The Buick" by accident. It's not necessarily marketing so much as habit. These commentators have Surface tablets on set, but they probably don't own them or use them at home. More than likely they have iPads. There is nothing to see here.

  67. People forget Apple didn't invent the term iPad by Cito · · Score: 1

    This was actually hilariously used in court in the Apple vs Samsung case.

    When the iPod was first invented. Long before there was any apple phones, the only new device was their mp3 player to compete with Sandisk

    MadTV made fun of the iPod ccommercial, and invented the name iPad many many years before apple created the iPad.

    https://youtu.be/lsjU0K8QPhs

  68. In an other, completely unrelated news... by GuB-42 · · Score: 1

    The NFL received $800 million from Apple, for no apparent reason.

  69. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by GodInHell · · Score: 1

    You think MS Windows beat out OS/2 because of the name? Not because IBM established MS-DOS as _the_ PC OS?

  70. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Coren22 · · Score: 1

    Really? I have no problem searching for Microsoft Word, as that is the name of the product. .NET has never given me issues either. Maybe you are doing something wrong?

    --
    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  71. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Coren22 · · Score: 1

    While the Android tablet has more memory, storage expansion and a faster processor for less money?

    --
    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  72. Re:nobody remembers by Coren22 · · Score: 1

    Is that why no one remembers that Apple made the iPad? Cause there were many tablets that beat it out.

    --
    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  73. Re:Seriously!? Microsoft expected them to call it. by im_thatoneguy · · Score: 1

    Public Display of Affection?

  74. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by khellendros1984 · · Score: 1

    If I had been given it as a tool to simply do my daily job, I probably couldn't care less.

    I think that the point here is that it's part of the commentators' daily jobs to mention the tablet by its proper brand name, as part of a promotional deal between their employer and Microsoft. By referring to it by the name of a competing product, they aren't holding up their end of the marketing deal.

    --
    It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
  75. MaxiPad is the iPad Pro by tepples · · Score: 1

    The Pocket PC was original the Palm PC, and Microsoft got in trouble with Palm for that. So I don't see Microsoft making a product whose name incorporates the entirety of Apple's iPad mark.

    The iPad Pro, on the other hand, now that's a MaxiPad.

  76. Bob Scheifler, first to build X by tepples · · Score: 1

    first to build X

    That would be Bob Scheifler.

  77. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Gibgezr · · Score: 1

    Microsoft Windows successfully toppled OS/2 because the 'OS/2' name was too fucking awkward

    Uh, say what? "O-ESS-TOO" was not that awkward to say, and that had absolutely nothing to do with OS/2's low adoption rate. OS/2 died because no one bought it for home use, and that was because no major games were being released for it. The reason no one could make games for it was because you had to reboot the OS to change the 256 indexed colour palette.

  78. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    I agree, that guy sounds like a jackass.

    However, does he have a wife or girlfriend? What is she like? It's possible his jackassery is successful for him.

  79. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    Are you saying companies shouldn't advertise?

    By getting NFL commentators to mention your product casually by name? No. It's stupid and fake.

    If you want to advertise by having an actual commercial that you produce, and then pay to have aired during the NFL game, that's fine. For those 30 seconds, you can tell people whatever you want about your crappy product, and there's no deception going on (besides whatever lies or distortions you may be saying in the ad itself), because it's obvious that the ad is from your company, and has the goal of getting viewers interested in buying your product. You pay $$$M for those 30 seconds to say what you want, and that's it.

    But paying some former sports stars to mention your crappy product and make it sound real? No. That's not advertising, it's marketing, and one of the worst kinds of marketing.

  80. Re:Well my mum still calls a vacuum cleaner a hoov by Beerdood · · Score: 1

    Maybe because iPads and Surface Pros have just a wee bit more to do with current tech than a Hoover? Of course, maybe you don't realize that an article about tablet branding might be more appealing than vacuum cleaner branding on a site attempting to display "News for Nerds"

    --
    Global warming and other natural disasters are a direct effect of the shrinking number of pirates - Gospel of the FSM
  81. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by dryeo · · Score: 1

    In Canada, any brand of macaroni and cheese is called Kraft dinner, to the point that my mind stumbles on Mac'n'cheese as it is meaningless here. Another example of a brand name becoming a generic description

    --
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
  82. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by sims+2 · · Score: 1

    Most are willing to accept it's the brand name as an explanation most android tablets have a lot nicer features than iPads.

    Except RCA android tablets your better off with something with no name on it I have never seen one that the screen did not look like crap.

    --
    Minimum threshold fixed. Thanks!
  83. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    So you think companies shouldn't be marketing or advertising. Right got it.

  84. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    By getting NFL commentators to mention your product casually by name? No. It's stupid and fake.

    And yet the practice has existed for longer than the NFL has. Microsoft is definitely not the first, heck Microsoft may not even be the most recent, typical leagues have multiple concurrent such contracts running all at the same time. I kid you not I once watched a NRL game in Australia where there was an overhead shot of the stadium while a video referee decision was pending. The announcer said "And here's a wonderful view from the 'Telstra' Spidercam showing the nearly sold out 'Suncorp' Stadium", of course the biggest thing visible in the picture was the giant screen everyone was watching which said "KFC Video Referee Decision Pending" on it.

    The only really thing surprising about this whole Surface advertisement is that they weren't drinking a refreshing Coca Cola at the same time.

  85. Re:Who the fuck can remember all those stupid name by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    The other thing to remember is that these guys are former sports stars. They're not the brightest tools in the shed, and tech stuff is definitely not their strong suit.

  86. It's all in the name by RH434 · · Score: 1

    I've invented a new type of tissue that has an additional fold in it that makes it unique. I call the tissue "Nosies" and paid the NFL $400 million to have them sitting on the announcer desks and in the coaches areas during the games. Now I'm pissed they keep calling them a "Kleenex". Maybe it was a stupid idea to waste that much money promoting a product that is easily interchangeable with the market leader and expect everyone to take notice? While the Surface is a totally different product than an iPad, (I have a Surface Pro 3) the app that the NFL uses probably works the same on either one so to them there is no difference. I wouldn't expect a non technical jock to know. Some dumbass at Microsoft should be fired for screwing this up, but $400 Mil to them is like $5 to you or me, so who cares?