Microsoft 1990 = "Dude, your code fucking sucks, your girlfriend is fucking ugly, and you fucking stink. Dump that bitch, and spend some of your money from our soaring stock on some goddamn deoderant, you fucker!"
Microsoft 2007 = "Dude, I notice that your code is lacking, your significant other is looking a bit haggard, and you are neglecting your hygiene. Since our stock hasnt moved in 5 years, I think you should seek some personal counseling through Microsoft-Cares, rather than spend your own declining income."
And now, even with HDTV, most folks like me with a DirecTivo or two, or three, are holding onto them like grim death.
I've got the HR20 HDTV DVR; the worst piece of consumer electronics hardware ever devised, just for watching NFL Sunday in HiDef this fall. My 4 year old DirecTivo's blow it out of the water. If DirecTV and Tivo could work out their differences, and I believe this is true for almost all DTV subscribers, they could NAME THEIR PRICE for an MPEG4, twin tuner HDTV DirecTIVO. It will never happen, and I HATE Tivo for it.
Its called competition. DirecTV has every right to try to lockup programming if they are willing to pay the price. That is the future. Look at DirecTV's football package; most subscribers would still pay for it if the price was double, its that good. I have no problem with providers buying up product. If you want it, PAY for it. If not, your choice.
Do the math yourself. Murdock WANTED TIVO. He made the offer. He went elsewhere when Tivo's nutty CEO determined that the price offered would not allow him to retire at the level of wealth he longed for.
But for a greedy CEO, TIVO would have accepted DirecTV's offer, they would continued to provide viewers with the best experience, with the best equipment, and EVERYONE would have been happy.
Now, DTV users are stuck with horrible hardware, TIVO cant make any money and NOBODY is happy.
This is because nobody (except IBM) is dumb enough to go head to head with Exchange.
Citidel would be even MORE foolish to market itself directly as an Exchange alternative, as that would invite the inevitable feature-for-feature comparison.
Bringing Sharepoint into the mix invites just another smackdown, as for those few companies that understand Sharepoint, you just cant beat it. (here come another dozen 60% of Sharepoint mentions)
I am not surprised that most marketing is afraid to take on Exchange directly. The product works as advertised. To convince people that you have something better, on ANY platform, is a massive undertaking.
This leaves marketers open to what you posted; statements that appear to make their product look like a toy, a little unserious applet, rather than an Enterprise solution. (disclaimer, I worked for Microsoft) Anyone who would promote an Enterprise solution with the word 'play', should have their head taken off. Those Citidel folks should fire whoever wrote that garbage line and hire me instead.
"Federated Distributed Messaging Environment?" Holy crap. Explain that to the layperson in an elevator in 30 seconds?
Compare that garbage to "Anywhere access". Kinda makes the point, dont it?
You did exactly what I mentioned, offered up a 60% solution, to go up against the Exchange beast. Citadel may as well be a rock and a sling against Goliath. Why dont so many of you get this?
You gotta KILL the beast, not just piss it off with your impudence. It will only get irritated and smack you down.
Competing OS are not keeping Linux off the desktop in big numbers, EXCHANGE is, period.
Anyone familiar with how Microsoft locks in customers will tell you the same thing.
We have reached a point where neither the desktop OS or the Server OS doesnt matter as much as the apps they run. Exchange is the one app that is almost a must-have. Anyone can list all the non-proprietary stuff that runs 80% of Exchange functionality, or 50%, but does it better, and so on and so on.
Give it up, and start building something that takes Exchange on directly, feature for feature, with better recovery, and message pushing to handheld devices.
Or, maybe just shutup? This has been obvious for years. Microsoft keeps improving Exchange, Enterprises keep buying it, and everything else that goes with it.
Linux cannot exist on its own with a bunch of 50-to-80% solutions, expecting to fill the gap by the temporary pleasure of giving Microsoft the finger from time to time.
Either compete or change the game. Only Google and Apple seem to get this.
And can we stop asking this question over and over again?
IMHO, it is too soon for Apple to be concentrating on the low end. All that will do is hurt sales of the current device in the interim. Those who want the current phone can do with a bit less of other crap to count up their iPhone pennies.
As one waiting for the second generation, expecting better connectivity speeds without Wi-Fi, better compatibility with Exchange Push and Active Sync, Voice Dialing, and more, this news pisses me off. Let the cheap bastards by Razr's and LG Chocolate phones, dammit.
Apple could discover that by creating an iPhone that does EVERYTHING, many people would be happy to leave the laptop in the bag and carry ONE device with them, and pay almost what you would pay for a decent laptop.
Who would not pay $999 for an iPhone that did everything except scratch your balls(assuming they could fix that later in software)? Listen up, Apple bitches, I want a phone that works WELL with Exchange, works WELL on the Internet when there is no Starbucks for miles around, and I want a phone that I can dial without taking one or both hands off the wheel! Add THAT to your current 8G phone, and I can personally guarantee you 500 unit sales at a $999 TOMORROW!
Goddammit.
Leave the poor bastards to fuckin CRICKET, and give us something we can USE!
For companies like Merck, who can determine the software purchases for literally thousands of feeder companies, they will get deals from Microsoft that amount to BETTER than free, just like the deals Microsoft makes with the Government.
You just cant beat Microsoft at this game, you have to start playing something else, and get others to realize that the old game just aint fun anymore.
Apple gets this. Google gets this. Linux vendors? Not by a long shot.
As Laura Roslin said: "The war is over, we lost."
If you dont know who Roslin is, leave Slashdot immediatly, for you do not belong here.
As long as people maintain the attitudes like the one you shredded, Microsoft has nothing to fear. Microsoft has some of the worlds brightest technical people, who get beaten down on a regular basis when they try to get all 'geeky' with the software. Eventually, really good technology makes its way into the products, especially in the case of Office 2007, but only when the "user experience" is taken care of. It has to look good, feel good, install and uninstall with ease, and become second nature to the user in a short amount of time.
Linux people need to understand what they are up against. I work with a group of small medical research companies. When Merck decides to move to Office 2007, guess what all these companies have to do in order to continue working with Merck? Ya think they are going to take a moments look at Open Office? Nope.
You see, Microsoft understands that they can focus all their sales attention at a group of select companies, and the rest of the market has no choice but to follow, just to stay in business. Suppose you are a small manufacturer, trying to get your product sold at Walmart? Try sending them a financial forecast on anything but Excel, and see how far you get?
You dont beat this kind of lock-in with technical superiority. Steve Jobs understands this, and has restructured Apple accordingly. Linux vendors should follow his lead, but they dont. In no way is the IPod, or IPhone the most technically superior solution in its space, but both will be market leaders on the cool-factor alone.
Geeks dont like it, but tough shit, that is how the world turns.
In every industry, and in every marketplace, marketing determines who wins. I say it over and over again on Slashdot, but until Geeks relinquish the direction of their creative inventions to people who understand how to SELL something, the folks at Microsoft will lose no sleep.
I USE computers to make money helping Corporations USE computers to do business.
We could just as easily be discussing which oil to use to keep a pipe wrench from squeaking. Would that make using pipe wrenches a hobby?
Look, I just think we take these things a bit too seriously. Whether playing a game, or writing a proposal, a computer is just a means to an end, and something we should not become so enamored with that we blow good money after bad ideas, like nuts who put $1000+ rims on a $1000 dollar car.
Yeah, I think moding is a bit silly, but nothing harmful, except maybe in the extreme.
I am overclocked with passive gear, but I used to be one of those 9-fan fools. Silent fans, psu, etc. No problems except maybe after an hour in Call of Duty with all the settings maxed out. And yeah, my psu has a variable speed control, but I just dont talk about it.
I just dont want to reach a point where I know more about cooling down a computer, than about warming up a vagina. Ya dig?
Under certain conditions, the motor oil in your car can literally cook itself into a solid, and stop lubricating an engine.
If you are lucky, your radiator overheats before you blow a gasket separating oil from water. Get water into a place where oil goes and all kinds of things can go wrong.
The answer? Synthetic oil only. It does prolong engine life, especially in older cars with lots of miles on them. No matter how hot they get, they dont cook off and stop lubricating an engine. Also, the best synthetics dont have to be changed as often, along with the oil filter which does not get as dirty as with regular motor oil.
Dont worry, most geeks dont know anything about cars, so you are excused.
Microsoft has given you another opportunity to show us your great anti-Microsoft wit.
On a serious note: Has another company come close to supporting it's developers better than Microsoft?
So, they cancel a PDC. So what?
I keep reminding people that Microsoft is a MARKETING driven organization. No doubt, when they schedule the next PDC, it will be for THEIR benefit, not yours.
When I am traveling, the last thing I want to do is meet people, except those buying rounds, and paying for my services.
I tend to gravitate towards anything that will help me forget that I am stuck in a cylinder for hours at a time with other people's germs, children and boring life-stories. Better to check out ESPN, SciFi or Discovery when waiting for a plane than to be limited to the fat chick on CNN telling me how America sucks.
No more being a slave to whatever is playing in my hotel room. With a fast connection, I can watch and control my own DirecTV from wherever I happen to be. Either on my laptop, or my Treo, I can watch what I want, when I want. Slingbox ought to hire me, because I help sell a few units everytime I connect up waiting at an airport gate. People cant believe I am watching my own DirecTV on my phone.
The sheer arrogance displayed by the majority of us who want the world to take a look at Linux is miles beyond what is going on by those pushing Windows or even Macs. To most of the world, we come off as intemperate assholes who hate anyone dumb enough to not agree with us. Never mind that the world has managed to function pretty well in spite of Linux not running everything, we act as though all wisdom and knowledge reside strictly with us.
Hate Microsoft, hate Apple, but those organizations do not treat potential customers as primordial slime until they have evolved into dual booting at the very least. We talk down to our audience, we cringe at the thought of making adoption the slightest bit easier for noobs, and if you are a hardware vendor that balks at creating a driver for our benefit, well, we just might shoot your mama in the head.
Someday, our community may figure out that Marketing wins, period.
Nope, we wont, we have had enough time and evidence to know this, and we have rejected that argument.
Microsoft has another record quarter, while we just stay pissed off.
Take your best shot, I've got karma to burn, bitches.
Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft 2007 = "Dude, I notice that your code is lacking, your significant other is looking a bit haggard, and you are neglecting your hygiene. Since our stock hasnt moved in 5 years, I think you should seek some personal counseling through Microsoft-Cares, rather than spend your own declining income."
And now, even with HDTV, most folks like me with a DirecTivo or two, or three, are holding onto them like grim death. I've got the HR20 HDTV DVR; the worst piece of consumer electronics hardware ever devised, just for watching NFL Sunday in HiDef this fall. My 4 year old DirecTivo's blow it out of the water. If DirecTV and Tivo could work out their differences, and I believe this is true for almost all DTV subscribers, they could NAME THEIR PRICE for an MPEG4, twin tuner HDTV DirecTIVO. It will never happen, and I HATE Tivo for it.
Can you buy an iPhone from Microsoft?
Its called competition. DirecTV has every right to try to lockup programming if they are willing to pay the price. That is the future. Look at DirecTV's football package; most subscribers would still pay for it if the price was double, its that good. I have no problem with providers buying up product. If you want it, PAY for it. If not, your choice.
Do the math yourself. Murdock WANTED TIVO. He made the offer. He went elsewhere when Tivo's nutty CEO determined that the price offered would not allow him to retire at the level of wealth he longed for.
But for a greedy CEO, TIVO would have accepted DirecTV's offer, they would continued to provide viewers with the best experience, with the best equipment, and EVERYONE would have been happy.
Now, DTV users are stuck with horrible hardware, TIVO cant make any money and NOBODY is happy.
Tivo, I love your stuff, but FUCK YOU!
Citidel would be even MORE foolish to market itself directly as an Exchange alternative, as that would invite the inevitable feature-for-feature comparison.
Bringing Sharepoint into the mix invites just another smackdown, as for those few companies that understand Sharepoint, you just cant beat it. (here come another dozen 60% of Sharepoint mentions)
I am not surprised that most marketing is afraid to take on Exchange directly. The product works as advertised. To convince people that you have something better, on ANY platform, is a massive undertaking.
This leaves marketers open to what you posted; statements that appear to make their product look like a toy, a little unserious applet, rather than an Enterprise solution. (disclaimer, I worked for Microsoft) Anyone who would promote an Enterprise solution with the word 'play', should have their head taken off. Those Citidel folks should fire whoever wrote that garbage line and hire me instead.
"Federated Distributed Messaging Environment?" Holy crap. Explain that to the layperson in an elevator in 30 seconds?
Compare that garbage to "Anywhere access". Kinda makes the point, dont it?
Citadel? Please.
You did exactly what I mentioned, offered up a 60% solution, to go up against the Exchange beast. Citadel may as well be a rock and a sling against Goliath. Why dont so many of you get this?
You gotta KILL the beast, not just piss it off with your impudence. It will only get irritated and smack you down.
Citadel, huh?
Thanks for the laugh.
Anyone familiar with how Microsoft locks in customers will tell you the same thing.
We have reached a point where neither the desktop OS or the Server OS doesnt matter as much as the apps they run. Exchange is the one app that is almost a must-have. Anyone can list all the non-proprietary stuff that runs 80% of Exchange functionality, or 50%, but does it better, and so on and so on.
Give it up, and start building something that takes Exchange on directly, feature for feature, with better recovery, and message pushing to handheld devices.
Or, maybe just shutup? This has been obvious for years. Microsoft keeps improving Exchange, Enterprises keep buying it, and everything else that goes with it.
Linux cannot exist on its own with a bunch of 50-to-80% solutions, expecting to fill the gap by the temporary pleasure of giving Microsoft the finger from time to time.
Either compete or change the game. Only Google and Apple seem to get this.
And can we stop asking this question over and over again?
As one waiting for the second generation, expecting better connectivity speeds without Wi-Fi, better compatibility with Exchange Push and Active Sync, Voice Dialing, and more, this news pisses me off. Let the cheap bastards by Razr's and LG Chocolate phones, dammit.
Apple could discover that by creating an iPhone that does EVERYTHING, many people would be happy to leave the laptop in the bag and carry ONE device with them, and pay almost what you would pay for a decent laptop.
Who would not pay $999 for an iPhone that did everything except scratch your balls(assuming they could fix that later in software)? Listen up, Apple bitches, I want a phone that works WELL with Exchange, works WELL on the Internet when there is no Starbucks for miles around, and I want a phone that I can dial without taking one or both hands off the wheel! Add THAT to your current 8G phone, and I can personally guarantee you 500 unit sales at a $999 TOMORROW!
Goddammit.
Leave the poor bastards to fuckin CRICKET, and give us something we can USE!
I know. I wasnt kidding. This is the future.
No lines, no waiting, free food and drinks, but the windows are replaced with screens showing advertisements 100% of the time.
All it takes is a clear understanding of just who wears the condom, and who bends over and assumes the position.
Its just like the Borg Tractor beam, the thing that stops you in your tracks while they scan you for weaknesses.
Microsoft's lawyers are just now downing the protein shakes and raw beef, getting ready to be let out of their cages.
I need to stock up on popcorn for this......
$50M, and the best lawyers anywhere?
I'm channeling Q asking Picard: "Do you really think you know what you are doing? They are relentless!"
For companies like Merck, who can determine the software purchases for literally thousands of feeder companies, they will get deals from Microsoft that amount to BETTER than free, just like the deals Microsoft makes with the Government.
You just cant beat Microsoft at this game, you have to start playing something else, and get others to realize that the old game just aint fun anymore.
Apple gets this. Google gets this. Linux vendors? Not by a long shot.
As Laura Roslin said: "The war is over, we lost."
If you dont know who Roslin is, leave Slashdot immediatly, for you do not belong here.
As long as people maintain the attitudes like the one you shredded, Microsoft has nothing to fear. Microsoft has some of the worlds brightest technical people, who get beaten down on a regular basis when they try to get all 'geeky' with the software. Eventually, really good technology makes its way into the products, especially in the case of Office 2007, but only when the "user experience" is taken care of. It has to look good, feel good, install and uninstall with ease, and become second nature to the user in a short amount of time.
Linux people need to understand what they are up against. I work with a group of small medical research companies. When Merck decides to move to Office 2007, guess what all these companies have to do in order to continue working with Merck? Ya think they are going to take a moments look at Open Office? Nope.
You see, Microsoft understands that they can focus all their sales attention at a group of select companies, and the rest of the market has no choice but to follow, just to stay in business. Suppose you are a small manufacturer, trying to get your product sold at Walmart? Try sending them a financial forecast on anything but Excel, and see how far you get?
You dont beat this kind of lock-in with technical superiority. Steve Jobs understands this, and has restructured Apple accordingly. Linux vendors should follow his lead, but they dont. In no way is the IPod, or IPhone the most technically superior solution in its space, but both will be market leaders on the cool-factor alone.
Geeks dont like it, but tough shit, that is how the world turns.
In every industry, and in every marketplace, marketing determines who wins. I say it over and over again on Slashdot, but until Geeks relinquish the direction of their creative inventions to people who understand how to SELL something, the folks at Microsoft will lose no sleep.
I USE computers to make money helping Corporations USE computers to do business.
We could just as easily be discussing which oil to use to keep a pipe wrench from squeaking. Would that make using pipe wrenches a hobby?
Look, I just think we take these things a bit too seriously. Whether playing a game, or writing a proposal, a computer is just a means to an end, and something we should not become so enamored with that we blow good money after bad ideas, like nuts who put $1000+ rims on a $1000 dollar car.
Yeah, I think moding is a bit silly, but nothing harmful, except maybe in the extreme.
So relax junior, its an opinion, that's all.
I just dont want to reach a point where I know more about cooling down a computer, than about warming up a vagina. Ya dig?
Under certain conditions, the motor oil in your car can literally cook itself into a solid, and stop lubricating an engine.
If you are lucky, your radiator overheats before you blow a gasket separating oil from water. Get water into a place where oil goes and all kinds of things can go wrong.
The answer? Synthetic oil only. It does prolong engine life, especially in older cars with lots of miles on them. No matter how hot they get, they dont cook off and stop lubricating an engine. Also, the best synthetics dont have to be changed as often, along with the oil filter which does not get as dirty as with regular motor oil.
Dont worry, most geeks dont know anything about cars, so you are excused.
Check it out, baby. Silent as it gets.
2. You rearrainge your workspace to see the built-in temperature guage no matter where you are.
3. You have a variable speed control for the fan on your power supply, and adjust it based on weather conditions.
4. You believe that the fan on top of your workstation blowing out actually does anything worthy of the added cost.
5. Your workspace sounds like a 747 on approach because of all the fans in your workstation.
Nobody ever got laid over their ability to keep their computer cool. Cool is out, QUIET is in, bitches.
On a serious note: Has another company come close to supporting it's developers better than Microsoft?
So, they cancel a PDC. So what?
I keep reminding people that Microsoft is a MARKETING driven organization. No doubt, when they schedule the next PDC, it will be for THEIR benefit, not yours.
Dont like it? There are other options available.
Why bitch, bitches?
When I am traveling, the last thing I want to do is meet people, except those buying rounds, and paying for my services.
I tend to gravitate towards anything that will help me forget that I am stuck in a cylinder for hours at a time with other people's germs, children and boring life-stories. Better to check out ESPN, SciFi or Discovery when waiting for a plane than to be limited to the fat chick on CNN telling me how America sucks.
Get one, bitches.
The sheer arrogance displayed by the majority of us who want the world to take a look at Linux is miles beyond what is going on by those pushing Windows or even Macs. To most of the world, we come off as intemperate assholes who hate anyone dumb enough to not agree with us. Never mind that the world has managed to function pretty well in spite of Linux not running everything, we act as though all wisdom and knowledge reside strictly with us.
Hate Microsoft, hate Apple, but those organizations do not treat potential customers as primordial slime until they have evolved into dual booting at the very least. We talk down to our audience, we cringe at the thought of making adoption the slightest bit easier for noobs, and if you are a hardware vendor that balks at creating a driver for our benefit, well, we just might shoot your mama in the head.
Someday, our community may figure out that Marketing wins, period.
Nope, we wont, we have had enough time and evidence to know this, and we have rejected that argument.
Microsoft has another record quarter, while we just stay pissed off.
Take your best shot, I've got karma to burn, bitches.