Microsoft doesn't reveal consumer and retail sales of Windows licenses, only license sales to OEMs. They did the same for Windows XP. Microsoft doesn't want people to know that retail sales are down 60% from Windows XP and that Vista demand is so low, Dell has reinstated XP as an option on its machines.
As for "beating" Mac numbers, Britney Spears also sells more CDs in a year than Mozart concerts do. If that's the kind of victory that Microsoft fanboys want to trumpet, go ahead. Meanwhile, Vista is a flop.
Why would it explain Internet trolls if you can't fucking see their faces? Idiots. I hope you all die in a fire. I'm off to lift weights while my wife cooks in the kitchen.
Leopard's unified interface isn't just about a new theme color. Brushed metal is gone, and Aqua is almost gone, replaced with the darker gray of iTunes 7 in titlebars. Eventually the rest of the widgets will look like iTunes 7 in the WWDC build, like scroll bars and buttons.
I don't see how grabbing the lower-right of a window makes resizing a window take too long. Being able to grab from any border would require a 5-pixel border of wasted space around every window, like in Windows Vista. The unified theme in Leopard will remove all borders, which are a waste of space as the window's edge shadow provides ample contrast.
This has been true of OSX since the beginning, but in iphoto and a number of recent apple apps when you click the red circle it actually exits the program. This confused me the first couple times I used it and is only true with the latest version of iphoto.
That's how single-document apps are supposed to behave. There's no point to keep iPhoto running after you close its main window, so it exits. If it was a document-based app, there would be a reason to keep running because you might want to open a new document.
Not only was Miyamoto instrumental in moving the series to first-person, he was the one who insisted on all the wonderful details like when you see Samus' reflection in her visor when something explodes in front of you.
Metroid Prime 3 is poised to be Nintendo's own Halo. The Wii is already on track to outsell the 360, and it's already crushed it in Japan. If Nintendo does the multiplayer right, they'll have a huge hit (remember that Nintendo's online play is free, unlike Xbox Live).
I heard Halo 2 wasn't that great. I never played it, so I don't know, but I'm not sure Halo 3 is going to be as successful as it's being hyped. The 360 seems to get nothing but first-person shooters now, and the genre risks burnout on that console. Especially if Metroid Prime 3's remote-pointing control scheme turns out to be a huge hit.
I've said this in a previous comment, but Halo wasn't some universally popular hit. For some reason, it was very heavily hyped by the gaming press to give that impression, but the original Xbox tied with the Gamecube at only 15% of the market, so not that many have played it. Probably as many who have played Metroid Prime.
Maybe Halo 3 will be different, but if there's a relatively small fanbase waiting for it (compared to, say, Grand Theft Auto), how big could the third one be?
Off-topic question--has anyone asked Bungie if they're out of touch with Japanese audiences? The 360 is essentially dead there.
Don't be disingenous. Some Slashdot geek's desktop isn't what is meant by "year of Linux on the desktop." What is meant is that Linux becomes a perceivable consumer revolt, a mass switch in the mainstream that affects Microsoft's install base. Everyone thought this was actually going to happen 5 or 10 years ago.
I was a Microsoft fan when I was young, but a decade of uncouth behavior and poor products has removed the veneer on the company's reputation. People are passionate for companies like Apple and Google because they're pushing the envelope and leading the industry to new things, and that's an exciting thing to be passionate about.
In fact, I used to feel the same way about Linux until nothing ever came of the "year of Linux on the desktop" claims every year.
How dare you, Slashdot! You have posted blasphemy in the name of Our Religion. The sins of man have sullied our great Eden, and when the Judgement Day comes and the waters flood and the fires burn, it will fall on your head, so sayeth the Lord Gore. You must repent your sins and pray through ritual recycling, carbon credits to make companies rich, dangerous mercury bulbs, and higher taxes. You damn Christian capitalists and your fundamentalist religion. You're a bunch of Nazis! Now pay the government for the shame of your existence.
You have to keep in mind that the gaming press is biased, misleading, and easily duped into marketing. They're the worst segment of the online press besides political blogs. They're the reason everyone was once obsessed over "8-bit" and "16-bit," because those amateur journalists didn't understand what the terms actually meant, so neither did we. They bought Sony's PS2 hype, and they made Halo out to be the greatest game ever played by the entire world (even though the XBox only tied with the Gamecube at 15% marketshare). Now they're having to take notice with the Wii and come to grips with the realization that they really are a small, hardcore segment of the market that is outnumbered by everyone else.
The original NES used an old 6502 chip, a cheap processor that came out in the 1970s. The NES was underpowered compared to some of its competitors but was so well-designed that it got the good games. It appealed to the wider, mainstream market like the Wii. Remember the track pad? The educational games? The Zapper games, the puzzle games, the side-scrollers, the RPGs, and so on? It appealed to everyone, not just sugar-high kiddies playing a neverending series of XBox 360 first-person shooters.
No, they don't. Gameplay is what you do in the game, not what special effects are drawn to the screen.
What amuses me about the Wii is that 360 and PS3 fans will mock Nintendo for catering to kids, yet it's the Wii that has all the adults playing while the audiences for the 360 and PS3 are made up of adolescent Grand Theft Auto and Halo fans. It's weird how the gaming press hasn't caught on that it's the 360/PS3 that is played by sugar-charged kiddies while Nintendo systems are played by adults who grew up with the NES and SNES.
Why post it? So that Slashdot can take yet another anti-copyright position even as it trumpets the GPL philosophy, which relies on copyright. It doesn't matter if it's a double-standard as long as a bunch of morons can spew hot air in the comments section for a while.
We'll see that when Linux developers start marketing to people that they have "the most secure version of Linux yet" and that people should spend hundreds of dollars on a new version, and if they spend a couple of grand on a new PC to run it, even better.
Most American neoconservatives favor an open-border policy because they like to use illegal and legal immigration to suppress wages.
Huh?
First off, liberals don't know anymore what "neoconservative" actually means. It referred to Jews in the 1980s who supported Reagan. They use it today in short form, "neocon," because it sounds evil and war-like.
Second, conservatives in America are opposed to illegal immigration and want to build a big wall, while liberals want open borders and no screening.
A server in every home? People want less to deal with, not more. Why have a home server if you can just connect to one online? This is why I laughed when Microsoft introduced its home server edition of Windows, because it's so contrary to current trends.
I think you're missing the point, which is that the OSS philosophy that someone will just come along and pick up the project is quite different from reality, as evidenced by the cratering of ReiserFS since this happened. If you're using a product from a business, it's a different story since a business can hire someone experienced enough to replace the previous developer. You're right that a business could pick up the project since the code is out there, but then why isn't that happening with ReiserFS?
Maybe I'm wrong, but I get the impression that Slashdot, and the majority of its readers, are on the side of the Pirate Bay. I know Digg is--it's full of high school age readers who do nothing but download music and games all day while bashing the RIAA to justify it. But why do so many Slashdotters seem to be in favor of ripping off artists, programmers, writers, directors, and so forth? All I ever see in response are lame critiques of copyright law (especially since the GPL relies on copyright law) or more bashing of the RIAA ("The RIAA made me do it!").
Am I alone in actually paying the programmers, musicians, and directors for their work? Or am I outnumbered by the freeloaders who contribute nothing back to the artistic community, furthering its descent into homogenization and sequel-itis as studios are forced to rely on tried-and-tested money-makers because piracy makes risky investments not worth the cost? Haven't you guys made the connection as to why popular music today sounds the same, movies are sequels or generic snoozefests, and software is the same repackaged sports game from EA or expansion pack for the B-level game you already bought last year?
Then why do I get great battery life running Aqua on OS X even on an older machine? Nothing about Aero looks better than Aqua, so what is it about Aero? The usual shitty Microsoft programming?
On an unrelated note, it's going to be amusing when OS X Leopard comes out with its unified interface and Windows ends up being the most toy-like in appearance while OS X looks the most clean and professional.
In fact, the idea that Vista is significantly slower than XP is FUD.
No, it's not. Benchmarks have proven that XP is faster. One of Vista's own devs called the Windows codebase overly complicated, bloated, and full of circular dependencies. It's a mass of crufty spaghetti code dating back to 1985.
Again, there is a LOT of FUD out there. I can see why it would be hard to sort through.
Not only do Microsoft fans call everything they disagree with "FUD" because they can't address it, but they're being very ironic by using a Microsoft-coined term.
Even if you don't count the deferred sales, Vista did extremely well and *still* beat expectations.
No, it didn't. It's not doing "extremely well" at all. Demand is so low that Dell has reinstated Windows XP on their PCs.
Maybe, just maybe, you're all wrong about Vista. Maybe, just maybe, Vista is a really damn good OS. Stop regurgitating the FUD and try the OS for yourself.
Just because you've bought into the MSDN marketing brochure doesn't mean other people's opinions are "FUD." I've tried Vista. It's not a damn good OS. It's damn shitty. The interface is a hilarious disaster, and the whole thing is much slower. I had so many apps crash that I had to go back to XP.
Well, that's true, they're not. Especially Vista. The XBox is outsold by Nintendo now, and they have zero presence in Japan.
All of Microsoft's product have been "losers", which is why they are where they are today.
100% true. The reason they're here today is that IBM gave them a braindead contract in the 80s that put their software on every commodity PC sold. Nobody chose Windows, it was put on all their machines by luck.
Their development tools suck. Their office suite barely sells. The picture is clear. Thanks for bringing that up.
Office 2003 was a flop, the last Visual Studio had so many bugs that there was an outcry, and Office 2007 had to have its revenues inflated by the accountants to make it look like it was selling.
Your wonderful little Digg isn't looking so wonderful now - is it?
Uh, Digg has always had a policy of removing illegal posts to avoid legal consequences for the site. Kevin Rose posted and said they hear the users and have decided to allow those posts, facing whatever legal battles will inevitably hit them.
Slashdot, on the other hand, will happily censor without telling you. I'm sure many of you out there still remember The Post(tm). They also post Slashvertisements (gotta love the "Opinion Center").
Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft doesn't reveal consumer and retail sales of Windows licenses, only license sales to OEMs. They did the same for Windows XP. Microsoft doesn't want people to know that retail sales are down 60% from Windows XP and that Vista demand is so low, Dell has reinstated XP as an option on its machines.
As for "beating" Mac numbers, Britney Spears also sells more CDs in a year than Mozart concerts do. If that's the kind of victory that Microsoft fanboys want to trumpet, go ahead. Meanwhile, Vista is a flop.
Why would it explain Internet trolls if you can't fucking see their faces? Idiots. I hope you all die in a fire. I'm off to lift weights while my wife cooks in the kitchen.
Leopard's unified interface isn't just about a new theme color. Brushed metal is gone, and Aqua is almost gone, replaced with the darker gray of iTunes 7 in titlebars. Eventually the rest of the widgets will look like iTunes 7 in the WWDC build, like scroll bars and buttons.
I don't see how grabbing the lower-right of a window makes resizing a window take too long. Being able to grab from any border would require a 5-pixel border of wasted space around every window, like in Windows Vista. The unified theme in Leopard will remove all borders, which are a waste of space as the window's edge shadow provides ample contrast.
That's how single-document apps are supposed to behave. There's no point to keep iPhoto running after you close its main window, so it exits. If it was a document-based app, there would be a reason to keep running because you might want to open a new document.
Not only was Miyamoto instrumental in moving the series to first-person, he was the one who insisted on all the wonderful details like when you see Samus' reflection in her visor when something explodes in front of you.
Metroid Prime 3 is poised to be Nintendo's own Halo. The Wii is already on track to outsell the 360, and it's already crushed it in Japan. If Nintendo does the multiplayer right, they'll have a huge hit (remember that Nintendo's online play is free, unlike Xbox Live).
I heard Halo 2 wasn't that great. I never played it, so I don't know, but I'm not sure Halo 3 is going to be as successful as it's being hyped. The 360 seems to get nothing but first-person shooters now, and the genre risks burnout on that console. Especially if Metroid Prime 3's remote-pointing control scheme turns out to be a huge hit.
I've said this in a previous comment, but Halo wasn't some universally popular hit. For some reason, it was very heavily hyped by the gaming press to give that impression, but the original Xbox tied with the Gamecube at only 15% of the market, so not that many have played it. Probably as many who have played Metroid Prime.
Maybe Halo 3 will be different, but if there's a relatively small fanbase waiting for it (compared to, say, Grand Theft Auto), how big could the third one be?
Off-topic question--has anyone asked Bungie if they're out of touch with Japanese audiences? The 360 is essentially dead there.
Don't be disingenous. Some Slashdot geek's desktop isn't what is meant by "year of Linux on the desktop." What is meant is that Linux becomes a perceivable consumer revolt, a mass switch in the mainstream that affects Microsoft's install base. Everyone thought this was actually going to happen 5 or 10 years ago.
I was a Microsoft fan when I was young, but a decade of uncouth behavior and poor products has removed the veneer on the company's reputation. People are passionate for companies like Apple and Google because they're pushing the envelope and leading the industry to new things, and that's an exciting thing to be passionate about.
In fact, I used to feel the same way about Linux until nothing ever came of the "year of Linux on the desktop" claims every year.
How dare you, Slashdot! You have posted blasphemy in the name of Our Religion. The sins of man have sullied our great Eden, and when the Judgement Day comes and the waters flood and the fires burn, it will fall on your head, so sayeth the Lord Gore. You must repent your sins and pray through ritual recycling, carbon credits to make companies rich, dangerous mercury bulbs, and higher taxes. You damn Christian capitalists and your fundamentalist religion. You're a bunch of Nazis! Now pay the government for the shame of your existence.
You have to keep in mind that the gaming press is biased, misleading, and easily duped into marketing. They're the worst segment of the online press besides political blogs. They're the reason everyone was once obsessed over "8-bit" and "16-bit," because those amateur journalists didn't understand what the terms actually meant, so neither did we. They bought Sony's PS2 hype, and they made Halo out to be the greatest game ever played by the entire world (even though the XBox only tied with the Gamecube at 15% marketshare). Now they're having to take notice with the Wii and come to grips with the realization that they really are a small, hardcore segment of the market that is outnumbered by everyone else.
The original NES used an old 6502 chip, a cheap processor that came out in the 1970s. The NES was underpowered compared to some of its competitors but was so well-designed that it got the good games. It appealed to the wider, mainstream market like the Wii. Remember the track pad? The educational games? The Zapper games, the puzzle games, the side-scrollers, the RPGs, and so on? It appealed to everyone, not just sugar-high kiddies playing a neverending series of XBox 360 first-person shooters.
No, they don't. Gameplay is what you do in the game, not what special effects are drawn to the screen.
What amuses me about the Wii is that 360 and PS3 fans will mock Nintendo for catering to kids, yet it's the Wii that has all the adults playing while the audiences for the 360 and PS3 are made up of adolescent Grand Theft Auto and Halo fans. It's weird how the gaming press hasn't caught on that it's the 360/PS3 that is played by sugar-charged kiddies while Nintendo systems are played by adults who grew up with the NES and SNES.
Why post it? So that Slashdot can take yet another anti-copyright position even as it trumpets the GPL philosophy, which relies on copyright. It doesn't matter if it's a double-standard as long as a bunch of morons can spew hot air in the comments section for a while.
People don't think about privacy or performance. They think about convenience.
We'll see that when Linux developers start marketing to people that they have "the most secure version of Linux yet" and that people should spend hundreds of dollars on a new version, and if they spend a couple of grand on a new PC to run it, even better.
Huh?
First off, liberals don't know anymore what "neoconservative" actually means. It referred to Jews in the 1980s who supported Reagan. They use it today in short form, "neocon," because it sounds evil and war-like.
Second, conservatives in America are opposed to illegal immigration and want to build a big wall, while liberals want open borders and no screening.
A server in every home? People want less to deal with, not more. Why have a home server if you can just connect to one online? This is why I laughed when Microsoft introduced its home server edition of Windows, because it's so contrary to current trends.
I think you're missing the point, which is that the OSS philosophy that someone will just come along and pick up the project is quite different from reality, as evidenced by the cratering of ReiserFS since this happened. If you're using a product from a business, it's a different story since a business can hire someone experienced enough to replace the previous developer. You're right that a business could pick up the project since the code is out there, but then why isn't that happening with ReiserFS?
Maybe I'm wrong, but I get the impression that Slashdot, and the majority of its readers, are on the side of the Pirate Bay. I know Digg is--it's full of high school age readers who do nothing but download music and games all day while bashing the RIAA to justify it. But why do so many Slashdotters seem to be in favor of ripping off artists, programmers, writers, directors, and so forth? All I ever see in response are lame critiques of copyright law (especially since the GPL relies on copyright law) or more bashing of the RIAA ("The RIAA made me do it!").
Am I alone in actually paying the programmers, musicians, and directors for their work? Or am I outnumbered by the freeloaders who contribute nothing back to the artistic community, furthering its descent into homogenization and sequel-itis as studios are forced to rely on tried-and-tested money-makers because piracy makes risky investments not worth the cost? Haven't you guys made the connection as to why popular music today sounds the same, movies are sequels or generic snoozefests, and software is the same repackaged sports game from EA or expansion pack for the B-level game you already bought last year?
Wow, I haven't heard from one of you anonymous losers in a long time. Frustrated that your modbots failed and I have max karma now? Haha.
Then why do I get great battery life running Aqua on OS X even on an older machine? Nothing about Aero looks better than Aqua, so what is it about Aero? The usual shitty Microsoft programming?
On an unrelated note, it's going to be amusing when OS X Leopard comes out with its unified interface and Windows ends up being the most toy-like in appearance while OS X looks the most clean and professional.
No, it's not. Benchmarks have proven that XP is faster. One of Vista's own devs called the Windows codebase overly complicated, bloated, and full of circular dependencies. It's a mass of crufty spaghetti code dating back to 1985.
Not only do Microsoft fans call everything they disagree with "FUD" because they can't address it, but they're being very ironic by using a Microsoft-coined term.
No, it didn't. It's not doing "extremely well" at all. Demand is so low that Dell has reinstated Windows XP on their PCs.
Just because you've bought into the MSDN marketing brochure doesn't mean other people's opinions are "FUD." I've tried Vista. It's not a damn good OS. It's damn shitty. The interface is a hilarious disaster, and the whole thing is much slower. I had so many apps crash that I had to go back to XP.
Well, that's true, they're not. Especially Vista. The XBox is outsold by Nintendo now, and they have zero presence in Japan.
100% true. The reason they're here today is that IBM gave them a braindead contract in the 80s that put their software on every commodity PC sold. Nobody chose Windows, it was put on all their machines by luck.
Office 2003 was a flop, the last Visual Studio had so many bugs that there was an outcry, and Office 2007 had to have its revenues inflated by the accountants to make it look like it was selling.
Did I leave anything out?
I'm sorry things aren't going well in Redmond, Mr. Ballmer. :(
Uh, Digg has always had a policy of removing illegal posts to avoid legal consequences for the site. Kevin Rose posted and said they hear the users and have decided to allow those posts, facing whatever legal battles will inevitably hit them.
Slashdot, on the other hand, will happily censor without telling you. I'm sure many of you out there still remember The Post(tm). They also post Slashvertisements (gotta love the "Opinion Center").