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Windows is the Most Open Platform There is, Says Satya Nadella (zdnet.com)

On Tuesday in a conversation with Gartner analysts, Satya Nadella talked about the future of AI, the cloud, Windows, and what his company plans to do with LinkedIn. But the most notable remark from Nadella was when he said this, "Windows is the most open platform there is." ZDNet adds: It came in the context of Nadella talking about Microsoft's mission to unite the three big constituencies in the technology world. "That's the approach we've always taken," said Nadella, "bringing users, IT, and developers together... When you bring them together, that's where the magic happens." He reminded the audience of several thousand technology leaders that Microsoft began by making tools, then it made apps, and now it makes platforms. Or, it buys them.

169 of 287 comments (clear)

  1. All those guys writing Malware couldn't agree more by MikeDataLink · · Score: 5, Funny

    That's why its so easy to infect a Windows system. Open holes every where you look! ;-)

    --
    Mike @ The Geek Pub. Let's Make Stuff!
  2. Sigh by MightyMartian · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well yes, if you're willing to just simply invent whole new definitions for words, you can make any claim you want. After all, I'm the strongest human being who ever lived, if you define human being as being a group of which I'm the only member.

    --
    The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    1. Re:Sigh by NotInHere · · Score: 5, Funny

      This post is the first one in this thread.

    2. Re:Sigh by daboochmeister · · Score: 1

      ... or if you define "strongest" as referring to, oh, odor or something. Hey, this is fun! Let's call this "NewSpeak"!

      --
      "Ahh! I see you're in that indeterminate Schrodinger state where - oh, uh ... never mind." Dave Bucci
    3. Re:Sigh by somenickname · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I dunno. "Open" and "porous" are somewhat related words. If he actually meant, "Windows is the most porous platform there is", I would tend to agree with him.

    4. Re:Sigh by Holi · · Score: 4, Funny

      His argument is solid. What other PC operating system supports as many hardware devices, has as much software developed for it? Regardless of the OS being open, Windows as a platform has been a very open to anyone who wants to develop for it.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    5. Re:Sigh by fbobraga · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Think in the server domain: Windows is very inferior to other alternatives in this matter (and by a huge margin)

    6. Re:Sigh by Hylandr · · Score: 1

      Think in the server domain: Windows is very inferior to other alternatives in this matter (and by a huge margin)

      +1

      --
      ~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
    7. Re:Sigh by postbigbang · · Score: 1

      The propagandist at work, attempts to shed decades of not-invented-here, reminiscent of the Reality Distortion Fields of Steve Jobs, and hopes, no prays that the Gartner audience will swallow it whole.

      Such tortious, mind-numbing blather is uncharacteristic of an organization that desires to be judged by its actions, not its lapdog propaganda.

      The secret hope: The Stock Price Soars!!!

      --
      ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
    8. Re:Sigh by jedidiah · · Score: 2

      > His argument is solid. What other PC operating system supports as many hardware devices,

      Anything that doesn't choke as soon as you move away from x86.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    9. Re:Sigh by number6x · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I don't quite follow the point you are trying to make. How much software is written for a platform, or how much hardware the OS supports seems to not be related to how open the OS is. It is kind of like relating how the vast amount of shag carpeting in the Atlanta suburbs in the 1970's is related to the juiciness of peaches shipped from Georgia. Atlanta is in Georgia, but the subjects of the statements are unrelated. Your comment just doesn't really make much sense to me.

      I would also disagree with the hardware support statement. Whenever I plug a new device into a windows machine, windows goes and searches for a driver somewhere on the internet. If it doesn't find one, it asks me to load one. Windows seems to have almost no support for hardware built in and must rely completely on manufacturer's drivers. Windows isn't supporting the printer, the printer manufacturer is writing software (called drivers) that let Windows use the printer. That is hardware manufacturers supporting Windows, not Windows supporting hardware.

      Linux supports a vast amount of hardware right out of the box, and almost never requires a manufacturer's driver.

      It often surprises me at how little hardware Windows supports, out of the box, because the install footprint of Windows is measured in Gigabytes. Most Linux installs take up a few hundred Megabytes and yet include the drivers for tens of thousands of software devices. Just what is Microsoft doing with all that extra code, if Windows can't utilize most hardware until a driver is found, installed and configured?

      In Linux, plug most hardware in and it just works. having to find a driver is a rare event. Yes I know, people are going to comment that they have a 'Lucky Panda collective # 5' (put name of obscure hardware here) touch pad that needed a driver, or that the latest version of some nVidia graphics card that only has beta-drivers for Windows is not supported. But those are the odd occurrences.

      I just re-built a Windows 7 machine for my uncle a few months ago. To get his HP all-in-one printer working I ended up with a download from HP that was over 300 MB! I know the drivers for the printer/scanner/fax/copier were probably just a few thousand kB at most, and that most of the other crap was wasted on HP software that he'll never use. Just for fun I connected my Linux laptop to the printer via the wifi network and my laptop recognized the printer and I could print and scan without loading any additional software. Windows had no support without installing additional driver software. The printer was a brick to Windows without third party drivers, and yet Linux needed absolutely nothing else to use the printer, just plug and play. The printer was fully supported by Linux right out of the box.

      The amount of software developed for Windows is due to the fact that Windows is the dominant OS in the PC market place today. Nothing comes close. Mac has 5%, maybe 6 or 7 % on a good day. Of course developers are going to write for the dominant platform in the marketplace, but that has nothing whatsoever to do with 'openness'. It's like juiciness and shag carpeting again, just completely unrelated.

    10. Re:Sigh by Christian+Smith · · Score: 1

      His argument is solid. What other PC operating system supports as many hardware devices, has as much software developed for it? Regardless of the OS being open, Windows as a platform has been a very open to anyone who wants to develop for it.

      Most open though? More open than Linux? Seriously? Not a chance.

      Vendors (hardware, software) supporting Windows is not the same as Windows supporting the vendors. Linux supports more hardware than Windows out of the box. Linux supports all those non-out of the box pieces of hardware just fine, the vendor just has to write the drivers for them.

      Windows is proprietary to Microsoft and doesn't implement an open standards backed API. Linux supports proper open standards, such as POSIX, and provides all the source so it can be extended.

      By any definition of open, Windows does not meet it.

    11. Re:Sigh by RonVNX · · Score: 1

      The Gartner audience, by definition, swallows anything.

    12. Re:Sigh by Holi · · Score: 1

      Name me something that exists on the Linux BSD platforms that does not also exist for the Windows platform? I am not going to get into an argument as to which is better , the discussion is how open is the Windows platform. Anyone can develop software for Windows with no restrictions, up until recently, anyone could develop hardware for Windows with no restrictions. That is by definition an open platform, we are not talking about whether the OS is open as that is a completely different thing.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    13. Re:Sigh by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      ejaberd.im, for instance (and there's several software that "is not for production use on Windows", like PostgreSQL). I've only mentioned software that I'm use daily: the list of software that fits in to the category only grows, each day...

    14. Re:Sigh by Insanity+Defense · · Score: 1

      Name me something that exists on the Linux BSD platforms that does not also exist for the Windows platform? I am not going to get into an argument as to which is better , the discussion is how open is the Windows platform. Anyone can develop software for Windows with no restrictions, up until recently, anyone could develop hardware for Windows with no restrictions. That is by definition an open platform, we are not talking about whether the OS is open as that is a completely different thing.

      A dedicated swap partition with a custom file system optimized for that use.

    15. Re:Sigh by espenskaufel · · Score: 1

      As a Linux and Windows user this makes for about the funniest read I have had for a while... Everything is backwards... Of course drivers are written by the manufacturers. They know how the hardware works. It would be ridicules if Microsoft where to write drivers for the hardware producers. It works exactly the same way in Linux, the hardwareproducers make the driveres. Some drivers are included and some has to be downloaded. As most drivers takes a while to get into the kernel (if they even get there) or there are newer and more stable versions available. I have compiled and loaded modules for most of my laptops get the optimal performance and remove annoying bugs for as long as I can remember. It would be stupid to add lots of drivers to the install-media.

    16. Re:Sigh by walterbyrd · · Score: 2

      > What other PC operating system supports as many hardware devices

      I don't think that is the standard definition of being "open."

      I think that is the standard definition of being "standard."

    17. Re:Sigh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Name me something that exists on the Linux BSD platforms that does not also exist for the Windows platform?

      WINE

      Ironically, I can get my old windows software to work on Macs & Linux boxen via WINE easier than I can get it to work on Windows 7/8/10.

      ... the discussion is how open is the Windows platform. Anyone can develop software for Windows with no restrictions

      Lotta folks seem to think Microsoft is going to embrace, extend, extinguish sales channels outside of their store. Steam, in particular, looks to be hard hit. This has been discussed on Slashdot before...

      Your entire argument seems to boil down to whether or not you are allowed to use the product you have purchased. I seem to recall a lot of people who lost Video Skype when Microsoft decided to break their camera drivers in a mandatory forced upgrade. You keep using this word "Open". I don't think it means what you think it means.

    18. Re:Sigh by number6x · · Score: 1

      Its not a knock against Windows in any way. Microsoft designed it that way for a specific reason. Why should MS pay good money to hire a bunch of people to write drivers for a bunch of obscure manufacturers.

      Microsoft creates and publishes a stable set of API's for hardware interface, and all of those myriad of manufacturers take the cost and responsibility of producing good drivers. It makes perfect sense. Microsoft Windows has the market share. All of the hardware manufacturers that want substantial sales will support Windows.

      It doesn't work exactly the same in Linux. Yes, many of the hardware manufacturers do write drivers for Linux, but they get included in Linux. The Windows drivers do not ship with Windows. Saying 'Windows supports all of this hardware' is backwards. The hardware supports Windows.

      Just try it. Buy a piece of hardware and plug it in to a Windows machine.

      1. Do not let Windows download a driver from the internet.
      2. Do not install the driver that shipped with the hardware manually..

      Then try to use the hardware. It won't work because Windows does not have the driver software needed to support the hardware unless someone installs it.

      The hardware manufacturer supports Windows.

      Try the same thing with almost any major Linux distro, and the hardware will most likely just work. And it is often volunteers who write the support into Linux, not the manufacturer. The manufacturers are often way too slow.

      This is not a knock against Windows, it is a design choice by Microsoft that is pure genius and saves them tons of money and effort.

    19. Re:Sigh by Anonymous+Brave+Guy · · Score: 1

      Anyone can develop hardware for Windows (and until recently publish drivers with no interference from MS, that has changed and going forward Windows as a platform has and will become less open)

      I think that's the kind of issue that some developers are concerned about.

      Windows 10, with its automatic updates and push towards everything-as-a-service, gives Microsoft as much control of the distribution chain as it choses to claim, including retrospectively. Developing for Windows 10 is therefore no more future-proof than playing the Apple App Store approval lottery.

      The development tools for Windows are increasingly falling behind other platforms as well now. You can't even run the free version of Visual Studio without logging in (seriously, WTF?) and accepting creepy phone-home possibilities in the terms of use any more.

      --
      If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.
    20. Re:Sigh by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      Yes, but his audience was Gartner analysts. To reach that audience you have to make ridiculous claims. If you tell the truth they will dismiss you as not being innovative enough and stick you into one of the other three quadrants. The analysts themselves have shown over the years that they don't really understand computers and they have to call up their kids to get help when they act up.

    21. Re:Sigh by dbIII · · Score: 1

      They get around that by defining the server environment as things that run MS Exchange and Microsoft Active Directory (their version of LDAP). By that stroke of a pen they are leading the pack.

    22. Re:Sigh by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Name me something that exists on the Linux BSD platforms that does not also exist for the Windows platform

      Seriously? Quite a few specific applications have never been ported to MS Windows. It's as simple as that. The geophysical software that runs on cluster nodes in my workplace does not have an MS Windows version so that's why the nodes do not run MS Windows.
      There are dozens of reasons why the application was never ported, why MS windows is a very poor environment for such an application and the licencing costs of an MS Windows cluster would be insane - but what really matters is you chose the OS to fit what you want to run and not the other way around.

    23. Re:Sigh by tepples · · Score: 1

      "Up until recently" is a big one: ability to develop, test, and deploy drivers for low-volume hardware that you have built as an individual hobbyist. Linux and *BSD allow this; Windows doesn't because as of Windows 10, all new drivers must be signed with an EV code signing certificate, which is available only to established companies, not individuals.

    24. Re:Sigh by tepples · · Score: 1

      WINE

      APPS LISTED AS GARBAGE

      Ironically, I can get my old windows software to work on Macs & Linux boxen via WINE easier

      That's fine if you want to run old user mode software. To run anything newer or which needs a bespoke driver, such as recent versions of the client for the iTunes Store or the Fitbit client, you need genuine Windows or something else that replicates its driverBI, not just its ABI. Have you tried ReactOS, which claims to support Windows binary interfaces more thoroughly than Wine does? If so, have your experiences been useful?

    25. Re:Sigh by tepples · · Score: 1

      How does MinGW or Clang fail on Windows?

      And please don't bring the GNU tools in to this -- they wouldn't exist in a meaningful form without Linux.

      GCC and GNU Binutils would exist on *BSD and Solaris, and Linux probably would not have existed, were it not for the AT&T lawsuit.

    26. Re:Sigh by stooo · · Score: 1

      >> His argument is solid. What other PC operating system supports as many hardware devices, has as much software developed for it
      Linux.

      --
      aaaaaaa
    27. Re:Sigh by stooo · · Score: 1

      Nadella makes good jokes :)

      --
      aaaaaaa
  3. You keep using that word by sjbe · · Score: 5, Funny

    But the most notable remark from Nadella was when he said this, "Windows is the most open platform there is."

    You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

    1. Re:You keep using that word by Coisiche · · Score: 1

      I'm sure it's a tactic that has been used in other fields although I can't name a specific example. You change a definition of something so it's not the same as the meaning anyone else would use and apply some convoluted logic so that the altered definition applies to your product\brand... actually it's probably politicians that do that.

    2. Re:You keep using that word by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      Yes, Office Open XML as an example. Suspiciously by the same company now claiming Windows is the most open.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    3. Re:You keep using that word by omnichad · · Score: 1
    4. Re:You keep using that word by Holi · · Score: 1

      What? Platform? Maybe he understands the word better then you. Windows as a platform has supported more hardware and software then anything else in the PC market.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    5. Re:You keep using that word by in10se · · Score: 1

      He never said "open source", just "open" then went on to say that the platform is open to users, IT, and developers. By that definition, Windows is more open than Linux because no matter how hard you want it to be true, Linux is not open to normal users. The "year of the Linux desktop" still hasn't arrived.

      --
      Popisms.com - Connecting pop culture
    6. Re:You keep using that word by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      I want the same shit as he's smoking!

    7. Re:You keep using that word by CastrTroy · · Score: 1, Funny

      Office Open XML is so open that there's 6000+ pages of documentation explaining how everything works. I don't see 6000 pages explaining how OpenOffice formats work. See how open Microsoft is being here. It must be open if they produced so much documentation.

      --

      Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
    8. Re:You keep using that word by number6x · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Windows supports very little hardware.

      Go buy a printer and set it up. Then connect it to your windows machine. Do not allow windows to search for a driver on the internet and do not load the drivers that shipped with the printer.

      Try to configure the printer and print. Windows won't be able to. Windows does not support the hardware.

      The truth is pretty much the exact opposite.The hardware manufacturer supports Windows. The hardware manufacturers write software drivers that allow Windows to use their hardware. The cost of the support is paid for by the hardware manufacturers. The distribution of the support software is paid for by the hardware manufacturers.

      Microsoft supports almost no hardware, hardware supports Microsoft.

      Try the same printer with any major Linux distribution. You will probably just have to plug the printer in and configure it. You won't have to download anything. Linux will already have support for the printer built in. This is true of almost all hardware for Linux. You usually don't even have to do any configuring in most hardware, just plug and play.

    9. Re:You keep using that word by theinfamousgeek · · Score: 1

      But the most notable remark from Nadella was when he said this, "Windows is the most open platform there is."

      You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

      Now see if he had said something to the effect of, "Linux is the most open platform there is." or if he had stated, "Windows is the most used platform there is." then sure, yeah, this would be more accurate. I cringe at how people misinterpret the word "Open" under generalized context.

    10. Re:You keep using that word by higuita · · Score: 5, Informative

      you are kidding, right? or just ignorant? or maybe one more shill?

      ODF is a official standard, older than OOXML, simple, consistent and very well documented:
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
      https://docs.oasis-open.org/of...

      OOXML on the other hand, was heavily pushed by MS to be a standard and only got approved by using very shady tactics. The format have fields of "closed binary" blobs for "compability" reasons and is not even correctly used by MS office, as their documents fail to pass the standard validation tools. The format is also extremely complex (that is why it needs 6000+ pages spec) and have patents (MS promises to not sue anybody due to this... but this is MS and history show that it can be trusted). Finally, it uses embedded objects in several formats that only exist in windows, instead of already existent standard format objects. Everything to lock up the format to windows and MS office, even if the format is (almost) "open"

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

      --
      Higuita
    11. Re:You keep using that word by thebullshitpatrol · · Score: 1

      You mean "open" in that users, IT, and developers are all allowed to use it? Is someone keeping Linux and macOS sheltered from any of these groups?

    12. Re:You keep using that word by ewibble · · Score: 1

      The word would be popular not open. It is not even the most popular if you include mobile. But your argument seems to arguing which is more accessible. The word "open" has a very specific meaning here and he is trying to dilute it.

      Linux is more accessible to developers, (no need to buy anything to write drivers), any develop can download it and write for free.
      Linux is more accessible to IT and even users, it is free do download and install for anybody, windows is not. Since linux very popular for servers, which IT have more control over I would say IT think linux is more accessible.

      Linux desktop will never catch on until it comes pre-loaded the computer and games run on it. The average user just doesn't care what OS is loaded, they can still run their applications. IT professional actually need advanced operating system functionality that is why they take the time to install Linux.

    13. Re:You keep using that word by higuita · · Score: 1

      just do not buy a cheap "win-printer", those that have as little hardware as possible and totally dependent of software to work...very hard to support without the manufacturer support. You get what you paid for... junk
      If possible, choose printers with postscript support... if not possible, then PCL support. This printers have hardware and work always.

      --
      Higuita
    14. Re:You keep using that word by DickBreath · · Score: 1

      That may be, but Comcast has customer service!

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    15. Re:You keep using that word by number6x · · Score: 1

      Oh god, I forgot about those monstrosities! Do they still make them?

      I would suggest that Windows users never buy a cheap 'Win-Printer' either. Why slowdown your computer doing all the rendering and layout computation on your main CPU when a relatively cheap completely functioning printer could do it faster?

      Win Printer!

    16. Re:You keep using that word by CrashNBrn · · Score: 1

      Oh come on now. You expect documentation with anything Open Source? Good Luck with that.

      Fortunately there is probably a man page that will list every single possible flag under the sun... but not a single example of common usage.

    17. Re:You keep using that word by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      Even Microsoft Office is not compliant with OOXML.

    18. Re:You keep using that word by donaldm · · Score: 1

      Office Open XML is so open that there's 6000+ pages of documentation explaining how everything works. I don't see 6000 pages explaining how OpenOffice formats work. See how open Microsoft is being here. It must be open if they produced so much documentation.

      Actually, that was sarcasm

      The best way to obscure information is to embed it in massive amounts of documentation. You can even go one better if you wrap your information in legalese or cite particular relationships that don't exist in the documentation or are vague references. Another trick to obscure information is to make sure it is vague or chatty and if you are sneaky, display the writings in a sans-serif font (fine for magazine captions) such that the reader's eyes start to glaze over after the first sentence.

      BTW. Your reply was very informative.

      --
      There ain't no such thing as proprietary standards only proprietary formats. Standards are by definition open.
    19. Re:You keep using that word by in10se · · Score: 1

      Was Nadella trying to twist the word "open" in the context of an IT talk for his own benefit? Probably.

      You mean "open" in that users, IT, and developers are all allowed to use it?

      Neither I nor the article said "allowed".

      Is someone keeping Linux and macOS sheltered from any of these groups?

      Sure, capitalism and the free market is.

      • Linux is free and people still choose Windows over it. I'm not saying it's better, but anyone can use Linux yet they don't.
      • Businesses would rather spend their budgets on Microsoft/Windows licenses than use a free product.
      • I'm sure they exist, but I've never seen a company (outside of graphic design and some IT departments) that used anything other than Windows machines for their workstations.
      • While their network/web may run Linux, most business/productivity platforms run on Windows servers. You want to make sure your network stays up, use Linux. You want your employees to get work done, you use Windows. It's not the best option, it's the only option.

      Also keep in mind that Nadella was speaking to CEOs and upper management IT, so he was speaking to a business audience. Linux barley even has a foothold, let alone a platform for business users outside of the IT department. You can argue why, or talk about how evil Micro$haft is, but people are still choosing Windows over Linux by huge margins. So what's more open in this context? Something that everyone uses, is familiar with, has at home and at work, or something when you bring it up, the person says, "What's Linux?"

      --
      Popisms.com - Connecting pop culture
  4. "Open" by Tablizer · · Score: 1, Funny

    Open in the Goatse sense.

  5. Open.... by tekrat · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't think that word means what you think it means...

    Unless I can download the source code to the current version of Windows, make modifications and recompile, it's not really "open"...

    --
    If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
    1. Re:Open.... by freeze128 · · Score: 1

      Not to mention all the "Hidden API's" scattered throughout Windows. That doesn't seem really open to me.

    2. Re:Open.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I think Nadella means "transparent" instead of "open" - as in, transparently abusing user privacy and forcing their customers to hate them.

    3. Re:Open.... by AndroSyn · · Score: 1

      I don't think that word means what you think it means...

      They mean Open as in the 1980s-1990s version of "Open" like Common Open Software Environment or the Open Software Foundation. None of these have anything to do with Free Software(as in you get the source), but with open specifications. In that sense, Microsoft does have an "Open" platform, most of their protocol specs are available even if they are bastardized versions of standard protocols, same with most of their APIs, they tend to be fairly well documented.

    4. Re:Open.... by unixisc · · Score: 1

      Wonder whether he'd put Windows 10 under GPLv3? Followed by a dance w/ RMS

    5. Re:Open.... by ausekilis · · Score: 1

      You aren't a government agency. What do you expect? ;-)

    6. Re:Open.... by firewrought · · Score: 2

      I wouldn't be completely surprised if they did open source Windows, but in a way that leaves out key drivers, subsystems, and applications.

      We've entered the age of OPINO: open-source in name only. Android teeters on this boundary, because you've got to install the Google Play spyware to access most applications. (Tip-o-the-hat to the F-droid guys here... they almost make it possible to avoid Google.)

      --
      -1, Too Many Layers Of Abstraction
    7. Re:Open.... by RightSaidFred99 · · Score: 2

      I see you've confused "open" with "open source". Would you like help with that?

    8. Re:Open.... by Lodragandraoidh · · Score: 1

      open system

      n

      (Computer Science) computing an operating system that is not specific to a particular supplier, but conforms to more widely compatible standards

      Bingo! - The key word in that definition is 'compatible' - which is not the case when you're talking about Microsoft Windows.

      More on 'Open Systems' can be found here: Wikipedia.org:

      The definition of "open system" can be said to have become more formalized in the 1990s with the emergence of independently administered software standards such as The Open Group's Single UNIX Specification.

      Although computer users today are used to a high degree of both hardware and software interoperability, in the 20th century the open systems concept could be promoted by Unix vendors as a significant differentiator. IBM and other companies resisted the trend for decades, exemplified by a now-famous warning in 1991 by an IBM account executive that one should be "careful about getting locked into open systems".

      However, in the first part of the 21st century many of these same legacy system vendors, particularly IBM and Hewlett-Packard, began to adopt Linux as part of their overall sales strategy, with "open source" marketed as trumping "open system". Consequently, an IBM mainframe with Linux on z Systems is marketed as being more of an open system than commodity computers using closed-source Microsoft Windows—or even those using Unix, despite its open systems heritage. In response, more companies are opening the source code to their products, with a notable example being Sun Microsystems and their creation of the OpenOffice.org and OpenSolaris projects, based on their formerly closed-source StarOffice and Solaris software products.

      --

      Lodragan Draoidh
      The more you explain it, the more I don't understand it. - Mark Twain
    9. Re:Open.... by mmell · · Score: 1

      Nope. IBM did it for them. How do you suppose the Samba team was able to figure out the SMB protocol? Come to think of it, where do you suppose the name "Samba" came from, a couple of dance school dropouts?

    10. Re:Open.... by Lodragandraoidh · · Score: 1

      Until the sewage pipe springs a leak and spews fecal matter all over your bread.

      --

      Lodragan Draoidh
      The more you explain it, the more I don't understand it. - Mark Twain
  6. Too bad I was not there by negrace · · Score: 1

    I would have laughed so hard in his face.

  7. Cloned Jobs' reality distortion field by CrankyOldEngineer · · Score: 1

    Nadella did.

    --
    COE
  8. Clearly, he thinks "open" means... by mark-t · · Score: 1

    ... something like "large", you know.... like an open field or an open office plan, or something.

    I'd suggest that somebody sit Nadella down to explain what "open platform" ordinarily means, but I am unfortunately skeptical that somebody who would make a statement like this is likely to ever admit they were wrong.

  9. Maybe he was misquoted... by Dega704 · · Score: 2

    "Windows is the most open platform to cyber attacks there is." -Fixed that for you.

  10. Arthur Dent Says... by geminidomino · · Score: 3, Funny

    Ah, this is obviously some strange usage of the word 'open' that I wasn't previously aware of.

    1. Re:Arthur Dent Says... by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

      Or "platform".

  11. What I told you was true; from a certain point... by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Well, kinda-sorta-ish... If you adopt a definition of 'platform' that somehow excludes Linux and the BSDs, which, while certainly not the best option for all purposes, are trivially more 'open' than any proprietary platform; he might have a more reasonable point.

    Despite some unpleasant attempts in that direction(Windows RT, the exciting new Windows Store, Cortana-integrated-into-all-sorts-of-things, etc.), MS isn't nearly as control-freaky as Apple is; and, while they have gotten worse about it, aren't quite as ruthless about terminating everything that isn't the most current version. They are also arguably less enthusiastic about lock-in than Oracle(because who could be more enthusiastic?); and offer compatibility with a much wider selection of 3rd party stuff than IBM; but that's hardly the same as 'most open'. It is true that they are hardly the least open; but 'most open platform' isn't really something you have a shot at when you ship many of your core products as binaries only under proprietary licenses.

  12. Open? Open season perhaps... by evolutionary · · Score: 4, Informative

    Uh, Linux is open. MS is more like, "open season" for hackers since MS leaves so many holes and doorways it's like open season especially with Windows 10.

    --
    "Imagination is more important than knowledge" - Einstein
  13. While not open source by fred6666 · · Score: 1

    At least you don't need Microsoft's approval to distribute a software and they don't tax you 30%. So yes, not fully open but there is far worse.

  14. Re:*cough* bullshit by bfpierce · · Score: 1

    "because you are slowly fading away, and no one really cares anymore."

    I lol'd

  15. Satya Nadella is an arrogant ass by Rick+Schumann · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This sounds about like some authoritarian dictator, after staging a successful military coup and executing everyone in the previous government, claiming what a 'benevolent ruler' he is, that 'his administration will be open and transparent', and 'any citizen may contact me directly at any time with any concerns they may have'. In other words: Unbelievable bullshit. You literally FORCE your spyware-laden 'operating system' on people who were perfectly happy with what they already had, hide spyware in updates to previous versions of your software, use trickery to get Windows 10 onto people's computers, then make wildly inaccurate claims about the 'adoption rate' of your crappy malware/spyware 'operating system' and your 'installed user base'. Then you proceed to systematically annex the Linux world or lock them out of platforms completely, and likely have some sort of plans to destroy Apple, which will be the only other commercial OS available to anyone. Microsoft can go to hell. I'd rather not own a computer anymore than put up with bullshit of this magnitude.

    1. Re:Satya Nadella is an arrogant ass by ghoul · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Did you just defend Apple vs Microsoft in a discussion about openness of platforms? Great I have this Brooklyn Bridge App I would like to sell you (30% will go to Apple)

      --
      **Life is too short to be serious**
    2. Re:Satya Nadella is an arrogant ass by Rick+Schumann · · Score: 1

      LOL no, with the possible exception that if Microsoft managed somehow to destroy Apples' OS and became the only commercial desktop OS, everyone would suffer. I do not have and do not want any Apple products either, but there has to be some sort of competition or it's a bad thing for everyone. Personally I'd prefer a free and open-source OS like linux.

    3. Re:Satya Nadella is an arrogant ass by Skip666Kent · · Score: 1

      After switching to OSX/NextStep for day to day use, I must say it is the most comely and consistent UNIX window manager I've ever experienced. More than happy to pay for the privilege of using it. Windows is a great gaming system and that's the only thing I will ever use it for.

      --
      **>>BELCH
  16. It's a joke... by fbobraga · · Score: 1

    ... right?

  17. Open in the "Welcome" Sense by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Linux people would sooner gut you.

  18. Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever made by Futurepower(R) · · Score: 4, Informative

    Network World article: Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever made. Quote: "Buried in the service agreement is permission to poke through everything on your PC."

  19. Re:What I told you was true; from a certain point. by Holi · · Score: 1

    More hardware and software has been developed for Windows then any other OS period, I would think that makes the platform as a whole quite open.

    --
    Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  20. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by linear+a · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Actually, it seems to be pretty effective spyware.

  21. Re:*cough* bullshit by ghoul · · Score: 1

    You are aware that stock price notwithstanding Microsoft still makes more real money than Apple ? I would take that kind of fading away anyday

    --
    **Life is too short to be serious**
  22. He is right by aepervius · · Score: 1

    This windows version is the msot "open" version of all windows, it even leaks your data and stuff you do not want to Redmond.

    --
    C. Sagan : A demon haunted world:
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345409469/
    visit randi.org
  23. Right by nightfire-unique · · Score: 2

    I mean, Windows (in the server room) has slowly gotten better over the past 20 years.

    But even today, 20 years after I started my career on Solaris, Linux, HPUX (ugh), and Windows NT, it's a nuisance. The OS will still disobey a direct order due to licensing configuration issues. It is still difficult to manage over a low-latency link. It's still insecure. It still doesn't play nicely with other OSes.

    Clearly these guys are paid to write what they're writing, so whatever. But it is interesting that the same complaints we - who actually do this for a living - had 20 years ago are mostly valid today.

    --
    A government is a body of people notably ungoverned - AC
    1. Re:Right by nightfire-unique · · Score: 1

      ... high-latency. sigh.

      --
      A government is a body of people notably ungoverned - AC
    2. Re:Right by RightSaidFred99 · · Score: 1

      Why would it be difficult to manage over high latency, when you can use powershell or even SSH for everything? And it plays quite nicely with other OS's these days in my experience.

      I think the main issue is for people who don't do it full time or don't have a lot of experience. It's not any worse, it's just different. And once you've spent 20 years working with bash, shell, perl, etc...and lately puppet and similar tools then of course you're going to find the experience of managing a Windows environment foreign.

      Used to be back in the day you could find any old schlub to manage a "Windows Environment" and it was hard to do and they did a shitty job, while finding a Linux admin was hard but they tended to be high quality. Now if you find a good, experienced Windows administrator they can manage a Windows environment very efficiently, but it needs to be someone skilled and experienced not just a click and drooler.

    3. Re:Right by spire3661 · · Score: 2

      >The OS will still disobey a direct order

      I think this is what frustrates me the most. I had a .exe that Win 10 refused to run under any circumstances. Windows 10 pretty much said 'Im sorry, i cant let you do that'

      --
      Good-bye
    4. Re:Right by nightfire-unique · · Score: 1

      I manage Windows hosts every day. It's all well and good to drop powershell or ssh refs, but you and I both know that's disingenuous.

      Windows software, by and large, is still largely GUI based. Every single Windows admin I know spends more time in mstsc than anything else.

      --
      A government is a body of people notably ungoverned - AC
    5. Re:Right by RightSaidFred99 · · Score: 1

      True to some degree, but less and less so with 2012+ and 2016. In fact they almost discourage even installing the desktop experience now. Managing via gui doesn't really scale to large environments.

    6. Re:Right by camperdave · · Score: 1

      Not to worry. It is difficult to manage over either.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    7. Re:Right by tepples · · Score: 1

      Was it a 16-bit executable on 64-bit Windows? If so, use DOSBox and a set of Windows 3.1 install diskettes.

  24. Nadella has finally lost it by OneHundredAndTen · · Score: 2

    Once you start spewing nonsense like that, you really must have lost contact with reality.

  25. This is bullshit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Donald Trump is open. He is the most open platform ever. He stands open to everything and everyone. Except critics who need to shut the hell up.

  26. Open by phorm · · Score: 2

    Yup. Consumers "open" their wallets, their private information becomes more "open", and then whenever MS decides to change something the customer can bend over and "open" something else too.

  27. Open-ness doesn't matter by zerofoo · · Score: 1

    Microsoft is a business software company. They've utterly failed in consumer and mobile markets (with the exception of game consoles). Most businesses don't care how open or restricted software is. Businesses only care that the software helps them get business done and that the costs are worth the benefits.

    There is no shame in taking billions of business dollars to the bank every quarter.

    Even if Nadella's claim of open-ness was true, Apple/Linux/Android/iOS customers simply wouldn't care.

  28. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Ravaldy · · Score: 1

    Here we go again!!!

  29. Wow by ilsaloving · · Score: 4, Funny

    Well, Microsoft has a tendency to copy everything Apple does. It was only a matter of time before they started copying Apple's Reality Distortion Field as well.

    1. Re:Wow by YukariHirai · · Score: 2

      And, as always, they don't make a good enough copy to actually work properly. Steve Jobs managed to convince at least some people that his version of reality was true, no-one believes this.

  30. Stand up comedian? by mufflon · · Score: 2

    Sounds like a great stand up act, I wonder why I haven't seen him on netflix with any other of his sketches

  31. Um... by Caviller · · Score: 2

    If ever this phrase was true:

    "I want what he is smoking..."

    Because it would be nice to be that far our of reality sometimes.

  32. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by hairyfeet · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Ya know what? Lets just ignore the spying for a moment, all the nasty hidden shit that requires 41 pages of switches, GPOs, and reg hacks to get rid of not to mention that most of which will ONLY work on Win 10 Enterprise, AKA "the one you have to rent for all eternity", lets just pretend all of that doesn't exist,mmmkay?

    What I want to know is this.....WHAT MORON THOUGHT BSODs NEEDED TO MAKE A COMEBACK!?

    When people came to me to get rid of Windows 8 it was strictly because of the UI and when I showed most of them classic shell? They were happy, but Windows 10? People are coming to me saying "OMFG this thing just keeps crashing GET THIS THING OFF MY PC!!!", I swear I haven't seen so many hangs, crashes, and outright BSODs since Windows 95! I know 90s nostalgia is a thing but I seriously doubt anybody was saying "Ya know what I miss? I miss my PC just throwing a BSOD at random intervals"

    Can we get Bill Gates back PLEASE? They replaced a moron whose idea of running the company was "Hey lets just ape Apple without knowing why people like Apple" with a complete dipshit who thinks moving the company forward is "hey lets just ape Google without knowing why people like Google, oh and lets take out flagship product and make it so fucking buggy and crashy it gives people Windows 3.1 flashbacks, yeah thats the ticket"....Say what you will about Bill Gates, he may have been a douchebag but he was a douchebag that had focus, and he sure as hell didn't put out 3 stinkers in a row!

    --
    ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  33. CEO's lie, and we're expected to believe them by hyades1 · · Score: 2

    "Windows is the Most Open Platform There is, Says Satya Nadella"

    "What a steaming, smelly pile of pure, unadulterated bullshit!"

    says everybody in the world with a three-figure IQ and knowledge computers/software.

    --
    I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
    1. Re:CEO's lie, and we're expected to believe them by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

      "Windows is a steaming, smelly pile of pure, unadulterated bullshit!"

      That was actually their initial tag line.
      Then they tweaked it.

    2. Re:CEO's lie, and we're expected to believe them by hyades1 · · Score: 1

      Thanks for that. I really did LOL when I read your comment.

      --
      I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
  34. Re:*cough* bullshit by pagej97 · · Score: 1

    Say what, now?

    AAPL
    Period Ending: 9/26/2015
    Total Revenue: $233,715,000
    Gross Profit: $93,626,000

    MSFT
    Period Ending: 6/30/2016
    Total Revenue: $85,320,000
    Gross Profit: $52,540,000

  35. Windows is the platform most open... ly hostile. by Futurepower(R) · · Score: 2

    Okay, an attempt at a translation:

    Nadella: "Windows is the most open platform there is"

    Translation: Windows is the platform most openly hostile to users.

    I doubt that Nadella is actually CEO of Microsoft. He seems far too socially inept. I'm guessing he was chosen as a kind of front man because he was less obviously annoying than others who were considered.

    I also doubt that the former CEO, Steve Ballmer, was actually CEO. Business Week Magazine called Steve Ballmer "Monkey Boy" on the cover of the magazine. Could someone called Monkey Boy run a technology company?

  36. ESXI and linux are big for base level but hyper V by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

    ESXI and linux are big for base level bare metal but hyper V is very little.

  37. Not a mistake by sjbe · · Score: 1

    I'd suggest that somebody sit Nadella down to explain what "open platform" ordinarily means...

    I have no doubt whatsoever that he knows exactly what the term means and is trying to twist it to his own purposes. Nadella is not a dumb guy and I think he chose his words very carefully. I'm sure he has some rules-lawyer definition of the term so he can plausibly make that claim knowing full well that it overlaps with the more common meaning of the term.

  38. What a Circus..... by LVSlushdat · · Score: 1

    I used/supported Windows for close to 20 years, starting back in the Windows 3.11 era. I retired in 2010, and at that time, I decided I was done with MS products.. Now all of my personal systems run one Linux distro or another. Its too much fun to sit back and watch/listen to the daily stories about the bullshit that MS now inflicts on those who, for whatEVER reason, *still* use MS products.. I laugh my ass off daily at these stories about how Windows 10 crashes, forces crap drivers onto systems, and shoves itself down unwilling users throats, and constantly vacuming up everything one does on *their* computer. I get the distinct feeling that MS now believers that *my* computer has become *their* computer, and they magnanamously let *me* use it.... Let me just say this: FUCK YOU MICROSOFT!!!

    --
    THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
  39. Windows? by ooloorie · · Score: 1

    It comes on floppies and CDs? That's what old people use, right?

  40. Yeah, Windows is open by Trailer+Trash · · Score: 3, Funny

    I mean, it's open in the same way that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is "Democratic", "People's", and "Republic".

    1. Re:Yeah, Windows is open by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      Could be a Canine's Republic, or a Kitten's Republic.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
  41. BS meter off the charts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Incredible what Microsoft says these days. Windows 10 to me is nothing more that a huge data miner for Microsoft with a conduit for ads. The whole model for Windows 10 is all about selling, marketing, and monitoring for Microsoft. Something I never thought I would see Microsoft do considering their popularity with enterprise. Of course if your smart you will buy the enterprise version so at least you can turn off much of this stuff. Otherwise, avoid at all cost using anything Microsoft in Windows 10. By all means use a different browser than Edge and never sign in with a Microsoft account.

  42. "Windows is the most open platform there is" by JustNiz · · Score: 1

    Cool! Where can I download the source code?
    What? I can't? I thought you said....

    1. Re: "Windows is the most open platform there is" by Holi · · Score: 1

      A computer platform is a system that consists of a hardware device and an operating system that an application, program or process runs upon. An example of a computer platform is a desktop computer with Microsoft Windows installed on it. A desktop is a hardware device and Windows is an operating system.

      So when have you ever been unable to run whatever software you want in Windows? Use what ever hardware you want?

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    2. Re: "Windows is the most open platform there is" by JustNiz · · Score: 1

      >> So when have you ever been unable to run whatever software you want in Windows? Use what ever hardware you want?

      Your question is irrelevant and a a non-sequitur to the claim that Windows is the most open platform there is. Open does not mean it can just run everything.
      I want to be able to at least see exactly what IS running on my computer. With Linux not only can I do that, but I can also modify it if I choose. ...and to answer your question, I just had to buy a new printer because Windows 10 does not work properly with my (still working perfectly well under Linux) HP PSC 950.

    3. Re: "Windows is the most open platform there is" by Ash-Fox · · Score: 1

      when have you ever been unable to run whatever software you want in Windows?

      Yesterday.

      Use what ever hardware you want?

      Today.

      --
      Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
    4. Re: "Windows is the most open platform there is" by JustNiz · · Score: 1

      ...and another point, theres components of Windows 10 on my PC that I can see are using up significant amounts of CPU and network bandwidth for god knows what. I cannot tell what they are doing, and I am not allowed to uninstall them, or even delete their files even though I have so-called admin rights.
      THAT IS NOT AN OPEN SYSTEM.

    5. Re: "Windows is the most open platform there is" by YukariHirai · · Score: 1

      So when have you ever been unable to run whatever software you want in Windows? Use what ever hardware you want?

      For software, my mum wanted to play an earlier version of FreeCell on Windows 10. Windows outright refused to run it, no matter what we did. For hardware, my spare PC has a sound card that will not work in Windows 7 or later, but works just fine with Linux.

  43. ROTFL! by higuita · · Score: 1

    i also want what he is smoking!! GOOD stuff!!

    --
    Higuita
  44. Re:What I told you was true; from a certain point. by fbobraga · · Score: 1

    More hardware and software has been developed for Windows then any other OS period

    In the past you had a point (your statement use, correctly, verbs in past tense), but consider a few years from now (Android beats Windows easily in last, let's say, 3 years... most of the software nowadays are HTML5/Javascript [and not "windows-only", like in the past], you know...)

  45. Re:What I told you was true; from a certain point. by fbobraga · · Score: 1

    I've not seem a single piece of hardware made specifically for Windows from several years now...

  46. Should have been as good as VMS by emil · · Score: 1

    The funny thing is that VAX VMS is the "parent" of the Windows kernel, and many approaches between the systems are very similar (to the extent that Digital sued Microsoft and won). The ACL permission scheme is the most striking.

    VMS had very good security - the best in the business. It's hard to understand how that went so very wrong for Windows. There has been commentary that Dave Cutler himself practically threw the issue overboard.

    1. Re:Should have been as good as VMS by poofmeisterp · · Score: 1

      The funny thing is that VAX VMS is the "parent" of the Windows kernel, and many approaches between the systems are very similar (to the extent that Digital sued Microsoft and won). The ACL permission scheme is the most striking.

      VMS had very good security - the best in the business. It's hard to understand how that went so very wrong for Windows. There has been commentary that Dave Cutler himself practically threw the issue overboard.

      The best I can figure (and I've been thinking since win-vs-anything began) is that MS made the $ decision to make a change to their OS to accommodate for a large international-sized corporation. That lead to rush, poor debugging and safety testing. Heck, security wasn't a BIG deal back then, it was just localized. That was the proverbial gun. Once changes were introduced to accommodate something someone wanted to make MS more money, there were bugs introduced where some were discovered quickly and others not for years. Then hacking to try and find the bugs became a "I'm the coolest 3133t on the planet" game. Some were taken advantage of, others patches released for.

      In between those times, people complained about things changing in the OS that they didn't like or that they didn't have time to write "all new software" for. MS decided to ensure their foothold by making those users happy with leaving legacy things in place while adding new options and functions. Then came the kernel explosion - DOS to NT. DOS code had to be used to keep users satisfied enough to not abandon, while NT was being expanded upon simultaneously. Once the company reached a certain size and the number of developers exceeded the number that could maintain any sane communication, the company forked. Each fork controls something completely or more than another part. Decisions became difficult - agree that three forks leave something crappy while throwing something new in to compete with other OSes now becoming the desktop war. 32 to 64-bit. Servers and workstations. The code is so full of holes and bugs that it would have to be rewritten from near scratch to cover them, and there isn't enough time to do that to keep up with the expansion of other OSes.

      Security is only a concern when it harms the company image, not its primary driver that overrides decisions of GUI improvement, speed, functions to cove all buzzword crud of the day (e.g. "The Cloud").... They are in a place where they can't recover unless they take full control while at the same time making things work the way consumers want them to. But, with their advantage, they can slack on the consumer happiness now. Now it's Windows 10. They are only hanging on because of their initial success in business. Home consumers like Apple sometimes; Linux others. It's just a mess now and the consumer is the one who gets to be in the middle of the battle while "feeling" that all of these things are "for their own good and nothing else". Bullshit. Every company and Human does what's best for themsel[f|ves]. Anyone who says they don't is lying or blind to the fact given their own over-justification.

      Anyhow, I believe what went wrong was greed and competition, both seen as the same thing in the company's eyes - success. Security was overlooked, sometime hacked to appear that it was there and filled in later, while at the same time making up their own version of a security standard or failing to meet others. In my eyes, as long as they can keep the workstation where I work using their OS, they have control via fear of change and failure (of companies to switch to another OS or screw something up royally in the process).

    2. Re:Should have been as good as VMS by unixisc · · Score: 1

      Windows NT 3.1 and 3.5 were like VMS. They were also the only versions that were multi platform - were there on x86, Alpha and MIPS. But in version 4.0, Microsoft decided to move more stuff into the kernel to make it run faster, and that's where Windows NT went wrong.

      But from what I read, Windows 8 reversed that trend and moved as many things as possible into userland, making it as close to a microkernel OS as possible. Problem really was them trying to pack both the Tablet mode and Desktop mode in the same system. That's something that uniquely suits the Microsoft Surface, but nothing else.

    3. Re:Should have been as good as VMS by dbIII · · Score: 1

      VMS had very good security - the best in the business. It's hard to understand how that went so very wrong for Windows

      It's easy, WinNT was no more VMS than MSDOS was CP/M. There are similarities, blatant ripoffs of parts but nowhere near the feature set.

    4. Re:Should have been as good as VMS by camperdave · · Score: 1

      The funny thing is that VAX VMS is the "parent" of the Windows kernel.

      I thought Windows was the colorful clown suit that Microsoft threw over MS-DOS, the illegitimate son of CPM, when they saw how well the first Macintosh was selling.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    5. Re:Should have been as good as VMS by wonkavader · · Score: 1

      You're thinking about Windows 95, 98, etc.

      He's talking about NT.

  47. Re:What I told you was true; from a certain point. by Holi · · Score: 1

    me neither, but how does that change the fact that they all work on Windows as well. Other platforms are catching up, but that does not reduce the openness of Windows. What does though, is signed drivers.

    --
    Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  48. Re:What I told you was true; from a certain point. by Lodragandraoidh · · Score: 1

    Read this , and come back and tell me if you think Microsoft Windows is really an open system.

    --

    Lodragan Draoidh
    The more you explain it, the more I don't understand it. - Mark Twain
  49. Psych by poofmeisterp · · Score: 1

    I like how he chose the words "open platform" rather than "secure platform", "stable platform", "reliable platform".

    1. Re:Psych by donaldm · · Score: 1

      I like how he chose the words "open platform" rather than "secure platform", "stable platform", "reliable platform".

      Windows 10 is an Open operating system. Open to viruses and Malware . Wait I take that back Windows 10 meets the very definition of malware and a software virus.

      --
      There ain't no such thing as proprietary standards only proprietary formats. Standards are by definition open.
    2. Re:Psych by poofmeisterp · · Score: 1

      I like how he chose the words "open platform" rather than "secure platform", "stable platform", "reliable platform".

      Windows 10 is an Open operating system. Open to viruses and Malware . Wait I take that back Windows 10 meets the very definition of malware and a software virus.

      Daz what I'm sayin'!

  50. Re:*cough* bullshit by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

    Clueless ad hominem is clueless.

  51. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    My HP desktop came installed with Windows 10.
    The display driver crashes hourly (thanks for telling me, Windows!), but at least that doesn't cause a reboot.

  52. Re:Why is there Apple? by Skip666Kent · · Score: 1

    Apple is there because Steve Jobs managed to put together a UNIX based OS that developers, hackers, artistes and grandmas alike can use and enjoy with relatively little fuss.

    But they have to pay a bit extra for the privilege. Worth every penny in my book.

    --
    **>>BELCH
  53. Re: *cough* bullshit by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

    So what exactly has MS innovated in the last 10 years ... ?

  54. Re:Why is there Apple? by Skip666Kent · · Score: 1

    Time is money and Apple saves me time. I would rather spend money at this point then time figuring out how to do something in Linux or removing malware from Windows. I loved learning and hacking Linux in the past when I was single and had plenty of empty hours where I could do as I pleased, but nowadays not so much. With OSX I get a stable and consistent desktop experience, tons of software compatibility without a goose chase of broken dependencies AND a UNIX command line that is integral to the system and not just tacked on as an afterthought.

    --
    **>>BELCH
  55. And now, a word from Pinocchio by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 2

    Gartner: Is Windows the most open system?
    Pinocchio: It wouldn't be inaccurate to assume that I couldn't exactly not say that it is or isn't almost partially incorrect.
    Gartner: So it isn't an open system?
    Pinocchio: On the contrary, I'm possibly more or less not definitely rejecting the idea that in no way with any amount of uncertainty that I undeniably do or do not know how it shouldn't probably be, if that indeed wasn't how it isn't. Even if it wasn't what I knew it was, that'd mean I'd really have to know what it wasn't...

  56. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Aighearach · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Upgrades never works properly regardless of the OS(Windows, OSX, Linux, BSD).

    You're obviously not a linux or bsd user! LOL

    Upgrades rarely cause an application to fail. They do not routinely cause system crashes, freezes, etc. Even application failures are years between. And that is linux. Over in BSD-land, it is very rare indeed because they're basically allergic to adding new features in a bug fix.

  57. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The problem is that Windows 10 won't let you just be with a stable system, it is constantly forcing buggy, untested patches and drivers down your throat. That is why it's an unstable piece of shit on top of being a massive pile of spyware and adware.

  58. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by unixisc · · Score: 1

    I happen to disagree w/ you here. While you are right that people hated Windows 8 b'cos of the UI, Classic Shell did not fix things like hot corners, or getting the Metro UI out of your face. Windows 10 still had the big icons when you hit the Windows button, but Classic Shell is a better add-on to Windows 10 than it ever was to Windows 8. I have made it look absolutely like Windows 7, and it couldn't be better

    I had my issues w/ Windows 10 when I was working as an insurance agent a year ago. I had an application that sometimes needed to be on overnight, and the problem at the time was Windows 10 doing a restart on its own, w/o asking. That was tremendously annoying, but since the application in question was a Windows application, not much could be done, given how Microsoft has been determined to get people to upgrade. But I have rarely experience BSOD issues.

    That being said, due to all the spying and other issues I've read about, I no longer do any financial transactions on WIndows. I have a PC-BSD laptop where I do that, although I have had to give up on upgrading it to 'TrueOS' 10.3 or 11. Or else, I do it on an Android tablet. In fact, whenever Windows 10 is EOL'ed or goes rent only, I plan to migrate to either TrueOS or SteamOS, depending on what I want. Currently, this laptop that I'm working on is TrueOS, while the other one which I bought only for that job (at $250) runs Windows 10. Whenever Satya decides to go into full extortion mode, I plan to dump his OS on the one laptop that it still runs.

  59. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

    It d/t f/x the th/g where ra/om let/s get rep/d w/ a / though.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  60. Re:He is right by bn-7bc · · Score: 1

    Wow I must be lucky then, I have the exact oposite experience eith r"the linux communery", I find them helpfull when I have questions, well I tend to stay away from the political issues of what license is open/free or not, rhe guestion is probably important, but I do not have sufficient knowledge on the subject so way add to the noise on an already noisy issue? I will have ro agree un the Ui part (at least the GUI part), it needs work, and for one reason or the other few seem willing to do it. Maybe the unpaid contributers (yes i know a lor of linux devs are allso paied put payed to develop what? I need to find out hmm) tink thet their time is better spent on nun gui stuff, gui design mght not be interesting to them whitch is fair enught really, it's their time snd effort after all

  61. Re:All those guys writing Malware couldn't agree m by Trax3001BBS · · Score: 1

    That's why its so easy to infect a Windows system. Open holes every where you look! ;-)

    April 4th 2015 a Microsoft update installed GWX which then recorded 24 hours of a persons computer usage then sent it off to a third party all within 26 hours of being installed. It took all the AV programs cooperation to allow it out (my guess, as one should of stopped a strange file from a strange program, the only exception is Windows Firewall).

    I caught it, and while reported it to any that would listen, it was too late, yet there were three more config.cnf files (actions) still left.
    Apparently I'm the only person in the world with the file that was to of been sent, and a hard sell - my hosts file blocked it from leaving.

    That was the point I quit Windows and am now running Linux Mint, and it's a fine system, no regrets.

    I still have Win7 installed but I don't allow it to call out, I go as far as pulling the network cable when booting into it. Playing games will require a different strategy.

  62. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Trax3001BBS · · Score: 1

    Network World
    article:
    Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever made. Quote: "Buried in the service
    agreement is permission to poke through everything on your PC."

    I was (am?) a "Windows Insider", I was able to download Win10 6 months before it's release, I read the ToS which said the same thing, they would have control over hard drives, Web Cams and if it wasn't covered by name the " and anything attached to the computer" clause covered it.

    I refused to install Win10 under those conditions, and it sat until it disappeared - making no claims, just I don't delete anything I've downloaded; they become outdated and worthless but keep them I do.

  63. The junk is the installation idiocy by dbIII · · Score: 1

    just do not buy a cheap "win-printer"

    I had this happen about three weeks ago with an expensive Fuji-Xerox network printer. Their web site was down for a rewrite or something over a weekend so no MS driver for me until Monday.
    The linux desktops could use it.

    1. Re:The junk is the installation idiocy by higuita · · Score: 1

      all xerox printers i know support postscript, so any generic driver that outputs postscript will make that printer work :)

      --
      Higuita
  64. Re:Windows is the closedest platform by tepples · · Score: 1

    The licensing cost for the client version of the Windows operating system is subsidized by trialware publishers. The end user does not see this cost.

  65. Whats this guy smoking? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    If its that good, I want some of it, it has to be the most way out stuff around. And I quite cold turkey 27 years ago.

  66. Does the app dictate the HW physical size? by tepples · · Score: 1

    you chose the OS to fit what you want to run and not the other way around.

    And you choose the hardware to run a particular operating system. The trouble is that a lot of hardware form factors, such as laptops smaller than 12 inches, don't have an offering by an X11/Linux-specialist company such as System76.

    1. Re:Does the app dictate the HW physical size? by dbIII · · Score: 1

      I have one of those things that apparently don't exist - it's a "netbook" that came with linux on it.

    2. Re:Does the app dictate the HW physical size? by tepples · · Score: 1

      Came, past tense. Used Linux netbooks exist. New ones do not.

  67. Developing Windows drivers requires EV cert by tepples · · Score: 1

    So when have you ever been unable to run whatever software you want in Windows? Use what ever hardware you want?

    I can't use hardware that lacks a Windows driver, such as hardware that I developed myself. Developing device drivers for Windows 10 requires paying a recurring fee for an EV code signing certificate and the corporation or LLC to become eligible for said certificate.

  68. Proprietary control is the trouble with Windows by jbn-o · · Score: 1

    The problem isn't the trouble of having to read and modify so much, it's that even if you do all that you can't trust what you have; you can't be sure those "41 pages of switches, GPOs, and reg hacks" will grant you the privacy you seek even on the Enterprise variant of Windows. Anyone who tells you otherwise is speculating from ignorance. You can't stop any variant of Windows from tricking users into "upgrading" to some more recently-released variant (like the trouble Windows users had with Windows 10 "upgrades" recently). That's the thing about proprietary software; you're never in charge of what it does. Even if you think you've set the switches the right way, programmers can make a UI that looks like it is doing what the user wants but actually does something the user does not want and does this without the user's permission or control. No configuration of switches can fix this. Users need software freedom to fix this.

    Satya Nadella and Bill Gates before him focused on what's important for modern proprietors—spying on the user because that's profitable and secures powerful friends. Consider that Microsoft tells the NSA about bugs before fixing them. This doesn't help most Windows users, but it helps the NSA know to devalue those bugs. And it tells you to devalue proprietary software. With proprietors, you're the product: all the data you generate including what you run, when you're using the computer, and where you take the computer (for computers with cell phone capability or GPS units) can and is spied upon. You don't get out of that trap without software freedom either.

  69. Lenovo, chromebooks etc by dbIII · · Score: 1

    To be technically correct those chromebooks that are alive and well have linux on them (under the google stuff).
    If you want Ubuntu or whatever Lenovo and I'm sure others support it on netbook sized machines:
    http://support.lenovo.com/au/en/documents/pd031426

  70. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Waccoon · · Score: 2

    I assume you're talking about the kernel and the userspace. The constantly fluid desktop environments are no better than Windows. At all.

  71. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    I'm sure the XCFE users disagree with you about that.

  72. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    Whenever Satya decides to go into full extortion mode

    I seriously look forward to that day. I'm already having a great time watching the fireworks with all his moves so far, and enjoy watching users suffer with debacle after debacle.

  73. Re: Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

    ????

    Fanboy cheerleaders coming up .... FYI Freebsd 11 is a freaking nightmare upgrading. My Hyper-V guests running your bsd have issues seeing the hard drive after upgrading. Differencing disks do not function and even bare metal as the host OS the ports do not work for at least 3 programs.

    Freebsd 10.3 worked fine from your beloved OS before upgrading.

    Never ever upgrade is a common SOP of IT since things always break. Sorry but just because you like BSD doesn't mean it's magical and laws of complexity do not apply.

  74. Re: Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

    So hairy you want MS html, MS Css, things that only work on win32, etc?

    Bill Gates is what caused MS to focus on being proprietary and monopolistic! He was the one who broke ASCII so you needed dos2unix and unix2dos on purpose to make porting hard. He made Sco Xenix broken so it would be harder to port apps to solaris and irix.

    You may hate the new CEO but he is open sourcing things, supporting Freebsd and Linux to azure, porting PowerShell to Linux and Ubuntu to Windows, creating ms code editor to Linux and Mac OSx, and Android and mono development to visual studio 2015.

    Bill Gates would reverse this.

    Personally MS is making much better applications. Windows is the only issue based on 2 things which a QA team and less spyware can fix. Keep in mind your phone and Browser do the same things. If MS needs to fund this they should sell different versions

  75. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    Do you watch any entertainment at all? TV? Movies? Books even?

    Is your life meaningless because you are entertained by them?

    Why are you even here in this thread? Is your life so meaningless you have nothing better to do than read a discussion about Windows? I find it entertaining to read this and laugh at all the problems and misery people are experiencing, entirely of their own doing.

  76. "Open" depends on perspective by dingleberrie · · Score: 1

    Nadella speaks the truth.
    From the perspective of Microsoft looking outward, the Windows 10 platform has definitely opened up visibility and authority to access almost every user's actions and files at a level that no other platforms ever has.

  77. Showstopper by emil · · Score: 1

    Well, then, the author of this book must also be a moron. Should I beg a thousand pardons for reading it?

  78. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by doom · · Score: 1

    Over in BSD-land, it is very rare indeed because they're basically allergic to adding new features in a bug fix.

    It could be I'm a natural-born BSD-user, and I just don't know it.

    It's got to be the worst thing about the modern software scene: "You've got to accept automatic upgrades for the security fixes! Oops, did we just change your entire UI? Well you know, consistent user experience! Everyone loves it-- *except for you*."

  79. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

    No, you're getting all of your entertainment sitting here writing dumb comments, apparently. Why should I believe that you have any friends, and do any kind of travel?

    Or do you really think I spend all my time laughing at people complaining about problems with Windows?

  80. Chromebook: developer mode or OS verification? by tepples · · Score: 1

    Thank you for bearing with me on this line of discussion.

    To be technically correct those chromebooks that are alive and well have linux on them (under the google stuff).

    Likewise, to be "the best kind of correct", Android devices run Linux, and many DVRs and "smart" TVs run Linux. Perhaps Richard Stallman was right that "Linux" is too ambiguous as the designation of a personal computing platform.

    I was referring to X11/Linux because not all applications that I regularly use under Xubuntu on my Dell Inspiron mini 1012 netbook have been rewritten in JavaScript as Chrome Apps to run under Chrome OS, which is the only "Linux distribution" that a Chromebook in OS verification mode can run. In fact, with the announced deprecation of Chrome Apps in Chrome for Windows, macOS, and X11/Linux, the Chrome App platform has become less attractive to developers because they can no longer target both Chrome OS and traditional desktop and laptop platforms with one development effort.

    Or do you consider it practical to buy a Chromebook, put it in developer mode, and use Crouton or similar to install an X11/Linux distribution in a chroot? In that case, the bootloader of a Chromebook makes it too easy for anyone who touches the machine to switch from developer mode back to operating system verification. It in fact encourages the user to press Space then Enter rather than allowing developer mode to boot, and because switching modes wipes the machine, it puts my uncommitted changes and the use of applications installed on the machine at risk.

    So let's start from square one, as you mentioned earlier: Given apps, you choose an OS, and then you choose hardware to run that OS. The apps I want to run are a web browser, a text editor, Python with Pillow Imaging Library and IDLE, ca65, GNU Make and Coreutils, and FCEUX debugging version. All run on Xubuntu: FCEUX debugging version in Wine and the rest natively. But all also run on Windows, as MSYS provides GNU Make and Coreutils on Windows. And as far as I can tell, more 10-11 inch laptops manufactured in 2016 are warranted to run Windows than to run a version of Linux that supports GNU, X11, and Wine.

    If you want Ubuntu or whatever Lenovo and I'm sure others support it on netbook sized machines

    Which machines in the list you cited are netbooks that are still manufactured? Or do I need to go find a list of all Lenovo netbooks and Ctrl+F for each in the list you cited?

    1. Re:Chromebook: developer mode or OS verification? by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Quite a few of those Lenovo's are current models which is why I provided that link.
      Nowhere near the same as just getting a pre-installed linux ASUS eeePC before ASUS was "encouraged" in the middle of a trade show to suddenly drop them, but the support and drivers are all there. I've set a few Lenovo laptops up with linux for the purpose of running scientific software in the field.

  81. Re: Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever by hairyfeet · · Score: 1

    If it makes Windows solid, with no crashes and spyware? Sure bring it on, can't be any worse than what Google and Apple are doing.

    And if you are saying this "cuz Linux" I honestly do not care, Linux can DIAF because for 20+ damned years we have watched the Linux community fuck themselves up and shoot themselves in the face over and over AND OVER with one dumb as fuck move after another. I swear after dealing with Linux for the better part of a decade I am now sure its run from bizzaroland, where the devs go "quick things am starting to get stable and users am happy! We must rip out major subsystem so the OS is sent backwards half a decade and will take years just to get back to where it was, then users will feel they am 'leet' if they can just get the thing to run! Aren't we am smart?"

    So at this point I have zero fucks to give, if Billy came back and put out an OS that run was well as XP X64 or Win 7 X64? He could be as big a douchenozzle as he wanted, I have zero doubt you'd have hundreds of millions lining up to sing his praises after 3 stinkers in a row. Again couldn't be any worse than Google with their rigging search results to support their political investments and putting more and more APIs behind the Playwall or Apple hiring companies to make its products that treat workers so badly they had to put suicide nets outside the factories to keep visitors from being hit by falling workers.

    --
    ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  82. Re:Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever m by ElizabethGreene · · Score: 1
    >> .WHAT MORON THOUGHT BSODs NEEDED TO MAKE A COMEBACK!?

    It's worth noting that in Windows 10, most display driver crashes are automatically recovered and don't cause blue screens anymore. This is a welcome change, as my preferred video card vendor seems unable to produce a card/driver combo that isn't rubbish for the first 2-3 years after initial release.

    Full disclosure: I work for Microsoft but this is my opinion, not paid shilling.