They try and try so hard to win us over with one or the other, that neither wins. And the next generation technology (past Blu-Ray or HD-DVD) that isn't as stigmatizing to consumers is the one we take home.
I think that most of us can deal with progressive scan DVDs for quite some time, especially since 1080p televisions are more than 10 years away from being the norm. Hell, most people, believe it or not... don't have HDTV sets in their home yet. And that technology has been out a LONG time.
I love Windows, but Vista with its DRM restrictions, "big brother" type of mentality makes me wish that Linux and OS X overtake Windows as the dominant OS in the CORPORATE world. Corporate world shows true acceptance. Right now Linux is total crap to use on the desktop because it's just not user friendly, and OS X has no applications that make it worthwhile. Vista has hopefully given OS X and Linux an edge here in time.
We have all seen Independence Day on repeat on TBS like eleventy billion times, so there's no need to worry about finding intelligent life. It finds us, duh!
I could be an alcoholic. I could be abusive. I could be a prick. I could be an asshole. I could be any combination of the aforementioned, or even more that I haven't mentioned.
All that said, I come home after work, turn in Counterstrike: Source (don't give me shit about 1.6!), and play for about an hour. After this my mind is at ease. I'm relaxed. I make dinner, clean the house, and a lot of the crap that I deal with during the day disappears.
There is an obvious escape from reality, and the bonus is that when you are done playing, the reality you HAD is put in the back of your mind. You're fresh off a high from 20 kills straight, or you got the high score. Your mind is happy, and happy thoughts ensue.
And the only thing I did was burn a little electricity and time. And I'm still not an asshole. Yet.
Imagine serenading your love interest, and calling her out to the balcony and holding up the radio to her room, hit play, and get a "Authorization Required, please contact RIAA"
Sorry entertainment on a boring work day, my apologies:)
Attorneys battling the RIAA turn to the geeks and nerds of the world who know the ins and outs of most every technology.
They use the facts, logic to support those facts, proof of inconsistency and inaccuracy, and common sense to start dealing blows to the RIAA.
Next up, Microsoft and HDCP/Driver Signage, Sony and Blu-Ray (Blu-Ray Plus in particular) and 'remote activation' of Blu-Ray drives, etc.
We are in the information age now folks... and a few years will start to show the signs of how quickly information is going to be used (and misused) by all parties. The RIAA is the easy one on the block to chop, because any signs of resistance and they stick their heads into the sand.
Just shows how slow the government is to correct any errors it produces. Hell, if it took THIS long to correct inaccurate gas mileage numbers, how long will it take to correct our deficit?
It's not worth buying for me. Already all Verizon customers are going to be out because Apple won't make the phone work with older technology. Sucks for you Verizon fans.
However since I have Cingular, the phone will probably be available to me... if it's 3G capable then I'll give it a look (and it's why I'm waiting now), since I want a PDA type of phone to organize myself... if the Apple phone can't be a PDA and work on the 3G network (which is in big swing around my area) then it's kind of moot... I'll get the Cingular 8525 which is a Windows Mobile device.
Time will tell... let's see if it's worth the hype.
Microsoft software has long built on the "suite" of products. The culmination of this is really going to show in Vista more than it ever did for XP or any other OS they released. It's the core of the company, and it's why people hate them.
First, let's point out their strong points. Microsoft has taken administration of domains, web sites, mail servers almost to the point where they are trivial to support. Their extensive API allows developers to write plugins and third party software EASILY and as such, there's a lot of Windows support.
But why do people hate Microsoft? Simply put, they are the best, and people tend to hate the guy on top.
Let's elaborate. I think a great time to start is WordPerfect or Lotus 1-2-3. Microsoft's Office suite was a very immature product, and Word paled in comparison to WordPerfect, Excel paled to 1-2-3. However, each successive version Microsoft made strides, and blew out the doors of WordPerfect with ease of use, quality of software, and a host of features. The same is true of Excel and 1-2-3. The Office suite at this point became a cash cow for Microsoft, and will continue to until another company can release a decent product.
Let's go off to the server side. Windows server could be compared to Novell in the early days. And let's be honest, Novell back in "the day" had some really cool features, NDS being one of them that is now emulated entirely by Active Directory. However, Active Directory FAR surpasses anything on the market like it. Now see it's one thing to introduce a way to manage a domain using Active Directory, but Microsoft didn't stop -- they implemented a Remote Installation Server, that automatically created Business Based Images for a corporate rollout of an operating system, using a common file library. Along also came Sharepoint, a document repository which in the 2007 version will be quite nice (as I'm reading). And of course, there's Exchange.
I will say this much about Exchange, that Notes was ahead of it when Exchange was first launched. And now, Notes pales in comparison. Of course this is Slashdot, so I'm sure we will have our Notes fans here, but when you're talking ease of use, clusterability, and such beautiful integration with active directory, AND the MS Office suite... it's simply great.
And with all the MS products on the market, and how they tie into one another so well, is why Microsoft is hated. Because nobody can create a Windows based email server better than Microsoft, FOR WINDOWS. Notes runs under Windows, but it doesn't run as well as Exchange. Tivoli runs under Windows, but it doesn't run as well as SMS. OpenOffice runs under Windows, but it's not as good as Office. Oracle runs under Windows, but not as well as SQL Server.
And therein lies the rub -- people hate Microsoft because indirectly, they can't get all the products they want from other companies. There's a very high cost of entry to be totally integrated with Microsoft and it has shown that the market doesn't compete as quickly as we all would like. Of course, Microsoft has had its fair share of security problems, and we as consumers have been very quick to point that out. Slashdotters here will in great number say how "bad windows is" compared to linux or unix, or even OS X. And to a great number of them, I can nod in agreement with certain things. Linux is more stable than Windows -- but it has no applications like Office, Sharepoint, and SMS that tie in all together. OS X is easier to use, but again, hasn't near the suite of products to make it viable on a corporate level.
Simply put, it's always easy to find the flaws of the biggest software company in the world. But the key to Microsoft has always been to cater to the developers -- this is their strength. Their API and documentation, and even their support and development TOOLS are great. And the ability to be able to code for Office, Windows, SQL server and Sharepoint in a single application (.net) gives developers a lot of room for creativity.
Maybe eBay will actually get a GOOD user interface. Say what you will about Microsoft, but their products are pretty slick looking, even if they don't work that great.
The problem will really come when Microsoft tries to port eBay into.NET:)
Spend the money, get yourself a good scanner. My preference is NOD32 (http://www.eset.com) because it uses VERY little system resources and goes an exceptional job of catching viruses. Kaspersky is also very good.
I cannot imagine skimping on a utility that is essentially the difference between a working, and a nonworking computer. $30 is a small price to pay to cover your investment that may be worth thousands, depending on what you actually have on it.
Offer $3500 for a redesigned site to somebody else... submit all the good designs you get. Then take the $1000 difference and stuff it in your pocket. Well.. it might be hard with a laptop but you can do it.:)
Spending nearly $3000 on a computer that isn't nearly as powerful as $3000 would buy me otherwise? No thanks... I'm waiting for a sub-$1000 Mac so I can just have a Mac... I'm not going to spend obscene money on something that quickly will be outdated. Even if it is a Mac.
I will still crack the DRM and make my files in MP3 format. I like OGG too, but most devices don't play it.
It's really not the POINT of this article....
on
Why Windows is Slow
·
· Score: 1
I find myself smiling, because articles now are coming out showing the reasons for the speed (or lack thereof) of development of Windows Vista. However, Vista has been in development since OS X was first introduced. OS X has had 4 upgrades since then.
Unfortunately, these articles might have airs of truth in them, however given the fact that Microsoft has done a *horrible* job at managing their developers, motivating and innovating, they are producing Vista, that even their own employees, and I quote "Wouldn't buy with somebody elses money." Comon folks, I understand the necessity for Microsoft to provide legacy support... but the speed of this development isn't because of the legacy support... it's because Microsoft is a far too overmanaged company, with developers that are underpaid and mistreated. People aren't leaving Microsoft because Google is so much cooler... it's because there's more money to be made doing what they do, and brilliant engineers should be greedy and sell their skills to the highest bidders. If that happens to be Google, then so be it. Microsoft's pay scale (and raise/bonus structure) is horrendous, as I've heard from friends within MS (two of whom have left to Yahoo!).
Unfortunately the saying is not "if you build it, they will come" but rather, "If you pay them, they will build it." Short of really motivating their troops, money is a great motivator as well, especially if you encapsulate it into a bonus structure.
Ah well... Here's to seeing Microsoft Vista some time in 2009.
Two or three days... which is why everybody gets a travel charger and puts it into their car or suitcase when travelling. I can't say I know much about the Windows Mobile devices though, as we only have one floating around from the 'bleeding edge' guy who is suffering now, because the Goodlink software hasn't updated to support the new Treo properly yet.
So hostile by the way? Did Microsoft steal one of your children? I am not even talking about the Windows devices, yet you seem intent on going back to a conversation that I'm not even engaging you in.
Sorry to say, but Windows Mobile runs a helluva lot better than Blackberry. I am *not* referring to older Blackberries... I have a 7250 (all I do is read messages, never really send any), and the deleting items is a problem when you have a lot of messages. It takes a LONG time.
That said, I wasn't even referring to the Windows Mobile Treos... I don't like the new one, I prefer the 650 to it, however your comment makes it very apparent your disdain for Microsoft in general. I can't say I'm suprised, I am on the most zealotous Linux site there is -- it's just entertaining how many people can't give MS a bit of credit for producing some nice stuff. They do in the end, have smart engineers, as does Google and Yahoo, even if they are led by Bill Gates.
Blackberries SUCK. They are slow, delete messages with the swiftness of molasses, have few applications, can't use the screen for any interaction, and more. With the combination of GoodLink for email syncing to Exchange, the Treo is a winner. RIM's solution is really FAR in the past. Just because you are the biggest, doesn't mean you're the best. With RIM's legal troubles they have let open the floodgates to let others see that there are better solutions than the 'market leader'.
This, coming from a person who managed both Goodlink (with Treos) and a Blackberry Enterprise Server. People get so touchy with their devices that they don't want to switch (NO, I LOVE MY BLACKBERRY NO TREO FOR ME! -- and vice versa).
Slashdot Mirror
They try and try so hard to win us over with one or the other, that neither wins. And the next generation technology (past Blu-Ray or HD-DVD) that isn't as stigmatizing to consumers is the one we take home.
I think that most of us can deal with progressive scan DVDs for quite some time, especially since 1080p televisions are more than 10 years away from being the norm. Hell, most people, believe it or not... don't have HDTV sets in their home yet. And that technology has been out a LONG time.
I have a Macbook, use Ubuntu on and off :)
I love Windows, but Vista with its DRM restrictions, "big brother" type of mentality makes me wish that Linux and OS X overtake Windows as the dominant OS in the CORPORATE world. Corporate world shows true acceptance. Right now Linux is total crap to use on the desktop because it's just not user friendly, and OS X has no applications that make it worthwhile. Vista has hopefully given OS X and Linux an edge here in time.
We have all seen Independence Day on repeat on TBS like eleventy billion times, so there's no need to worry about finding intelligent life. It finds us, duh!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8559768703 059919910
LOL... that's a good one, but I'm an MP5/M4/AK kinda guy :)
I'm a gamer.
I could be an alcoholic. I could be abusive. I could be a prick. I could be an asshole. I could be any combination of the aforementioned, or even more that I haven't mentioned.
All that said, I come home after work, turn in Counterstrike: Source (don't give me shit about 1.6!), and play for about an hour. After this my mind is at ease. I'm relaxed. I make dinner, clean the house, and a lot of the crap that I deal with during the day disappears.
There is an obvious escape from reality, and the bonus is that when you are done playing, the reality you HAD is put in the back of your mind. You're fresh off a high from 20 kills straight, or you got the high score. Your mind is happy, and happy thoughts ensue.
And the only thing I did was burn a little electricity and time. And I'm still not an asshole. Yet.
Gave me a funny mental image...
:)
Imagine serenading your love interest, and calling her out to the balcony and holding up the radio to her room, hit play, and get a "Authorization Required, please contact RIAA"
Sorry entertainment on a boring work day, my apologies
Attorneys battling the RIAA turn to the geeks and nerds of the world who know the ins and outs of most every technology.
They use the facts, logic to support those facts, proof of inconsistency and inaccuracy, and common sense to start dealing blows to the RIAA.
Next up, Microsoft and HDCP/Driver Signage, Sony and Blu-Ray (Blu-Ray Plus in particular) and 'remote activation' of Blu-Ray drives, etc.
We are in the information age now folks... and a few years will start to show the signs of how quickly information is going to be used (and misused) by all parties. The RIAA is the easy one on the block to chop, because any signs of resistance and they stick their heads into the sand.
Just shows how slow the government is to correct any errors it produces. Hell, if it took THIS long to correct inaccurate gas mileage numbers, how long will it take to correct our deficit?
:(
Nevermind... I'm reaching
It's not worth buying for me. Already all Verizon customers are going to be out because Apple won't make the phone work with older technology. Sucks for you Verizon fans.
However since I have Cingular, the phone will probably be available to me... if it's 3G capable then I'll give it a look (and it's why I'm waiting now), since I want a PDA type of phone to organize myself... if the Apple phone can't be a PDA and work on the 3G network (which is in big swing around my area) then it's kind of moot... I'll get the Cingular 8525 which is a Windows Mobile device.
Time will tell... let's see if it's worth the hype.
Microsoft software has long built on the "suite" of products. The culmination of this is really going to show in Vista more than it ever did for XP or any other OS they released. It's the core of the company, and it's why people hate them.
First, let's point out their strong points. Microsoft has taken administration of domains, web sites, mail servers almost to the point where they are trivial to support. Their extensive API allows developers to write plugins and third party software EASILY and as such, there's a lot of Windows support.
But why do people hate Microsoft? Simply put, they are the best, and people tend to hate the guy on top.
Let's elaborate. I think a great time to start is WordPerfect or Lotus 1-2-3. Microsoft's Office suite was a very immature product, and Word paled in comparison to WordPerfect, Excel paled to 1-2-3. However, each successive version Microsoft made strides, and blew out the doors of WordPerfect with ease of use, quality of software, and a host of features. The same is true of Excel and 1-2-3. The Office suite at this point became a cash cow for Microsoft, and will continue to until another company can release a decent product.
Let's go off to the server side. Windows server could be compared to Novell in the early days. And let's be honest, Novell back in "the day" had some really cool features, NDS being one of them that is now emulated entirely by Active Directory. However, Active Directory FAR surpasses anything on the market like it. Now see it's one thing to introduce a way to manage a domain using Active Directory, but Microsoft didn't stop -- they implemented a Remote Installation Server, that automatically created Business Based Images for a corporate rollout of an operating system, using a common file library. Along also came Sharepoint, a document repository which in the 2007 version will be quite nice (as I'm reading). And of course, there's Exchange.
I will say this much about Exchange, that Notes was ahead of it when Exchange was first launched. And now, Notes pales in comparison. Of course this is Slashdot, so I'm sure we will have our Notes fans here, but when you're talking ease of use, clusterability, and such beautiful integration with active directory, AND the MS Office suite... it's simply great.
And with all the MS products on the market, and how they tie into one another so well, is why Microsoft is hated. Because nobody can create a Windows based email server better than Microsoft, FOR WINDOWS. Notes runs under Windows, but it doesn't run as well as Exchange. Tivoli runs under Windows, but it doesn't run as well as SMS. OpenOffice runs under Windows, but it's not as good as Office. Oracle runs under Windows, but not as well as SQL Server.
And therein lies the rub -- people hate Microsoft because indirectly, they can't get all the products they want from other companies. There's a very high cost of entry to be totally integrated with Microsoft and it has shown that the market doesn't compete as quickly as we all would like. Of course, Microsoft has had its fair share of security problems, and we as consumers have been very quick to point that out. Slashdotters here will in great number say how "bad windows is" compared to linux or unix, or even OS X. And to a great number of them, I can nod in agreement with certain things. Linux is more stable than Windows -- but it has no applications like Office, Sharepoint, and SMS that tie in all together. OS X is easier to use, but again, hasn't near the suite of products to make it viable on a corporate level.
Simply put, it's always easy to find the flaws of the biggest software company in the world. But the key to Microsoft has always been to cater to the developers -- this is their strength. Their API and documentation, and even their support and development TOOLS are great. And the ability to be able to code for Office, Windows, SQL server and Sharepoint in a single application (.net) gives developers a lot of room for creativity.
I'll leave you with this...
That with ALL the global warming going on, and ALL our glaciers melting (I'm SUPER SERIAL!)... we'd have plenty of water for these purposes.
Just ask Al Gore.
You know somebody is going to videotape it...
*sigh*
I guess I know why I'm against the death penalty.
Maybe eBay will actually get a GOOD user interface. Say what you will about Microsoft, but their products are pretty slick looking, even if they don't work that great.
.NET :)
The problem will really come when Microsoft tries to port eBay into
Spend the money, get yourself a good scanner. My preference is NOD32 (http://www.eset.com) because it uses VERY little system resources and goes an exceptional job of catching viruses. Kaspersky is also very good.
I cannot imagine skimping on a utility that is essentially the difference between a working, and a nonworking computer. $30 is a small price to pay to cover your investment that may be worth thousands, depending on what you actually have on it.
Offer $3500 for a redesigned site to somebody else... submit all the good designs you get. Then take the $1000 difference and stuff it in your pocket. Well.. it might be hard with a laptop but you can do it. :)
I would, but it can't run Windows... so it's useless to me. I need a laptop I can use for work still... not *just* a mac :)
Carrying that around isn't really a feasible solution, as I'd have to carry a small LCD as well.
Spending nearly $3000 on a computer that isn't nearly as powerful as $3000 would buy me otherwise? No thanks... I'm waiting for a sub-$1000 Mac so I can just have a Mac... I'm not going to spend obscene money on something that quickly will be outdated. Even if it is a Mac.
I will still crack the DRM and make my files in MP3 format. I like OGG too, but most devices don't play it.
I find myself smiling, because articles now are coming out showing the reasons for the speed (or lack thereof) of development of Windows Vista. However, Vista has been in development since OS X was first introduced. OS X has had 4 upgrades since then.
Unfortunately, these articles might have airs of truth in them, however given the fact that Microsoft has done a *horrible* job at managing their developers, motivating and innovating, they are producing Vista, that even their own employees, and I quote "Wouldn't buy with somebody elses money." Comon folks, I understand the necessity for Microsoft to provide legacy support... but the speed of this development isn't because of the legacy support... it's because Microsoft is a far too overmanaged company, with developers that are underpaid and mistreated. People aren't leaving Microsoft because Google is so much cooler... it's because there's more money to be made doing what they do, and brilliant engineers should be greedy and sell their skills to the highest bidders. If that happens to be Google, then so be it. Microsoft's pay scale (and raise/bonus structure) is horrendous, as I've heard from friends within MS (two of whom have left to Yahoo!).
Unfortunately the saying is not "if you build it, they will come" but rather, "If you pay them, they will build it." Short of really motivating their troops, money is a great motivator as well, especially if you encapsulate it into a bonus structure.
Ah well... Here's to seeing Microsoft Vista some time in 2009.
Two or three days... which is why everybody gets a travel charger and puts it into their car or suitcase when travelling. I can't say I know much about the Windows Mobile devices though, as we only have one floating around from the 'bleeding edge' guy who is suffering now, because the Goodlink software hasn't updated to support the new Treo properly yet.
So hostile by the way? Did Microsoft steal one of your children? I am not even talking about the Windows devices, yet you seem intent on going back to a conversation that I'm not even engaging you in.
Reading comprehension is FUN!
Sorry to say, but Windows Mobile runs a helluva lot better than Blackberry. I am *not* referring to older Blackberries... I have a 7250 (all I do is read messages, never really send any), and the deleting items is a problem when you have a lot of messages. It takes a LONG time.
That said, I wasn't even referring to the Windows Mobile Treos... I don't like the new one, I prefer the 650 to it, however your comment makes it very apparent your disdain for Microsoft in general. I can't say I'm suprised, I am on the most zealotous Linux site there is -- it's just entertaining how many people can't give MS a bit of credit for producing some nice stuff. They do in the end, have smart engineers, as does Google and Yahoo, even if they are led by Bill Gates.
Blackberries SUCK. They are slow, delete messages with the swiftness of molasses, have few applications, can't use the screen for any interaction, and more. With the combination of GoodLink for email syncing to Exchange, the Treo is a winner. RIM's solution is really FAR in the past. Just because you are the biggest, doesn't mean you're the best. With RIM's legal troubles they have let open the floodgates to let others see that there are better solutions than the 'market leader'.
This, coming from a person who managed both Goodlink (with Treos) and a Blackberry Enterprise Server. People get so touchy with their devices that they don't want to switch (NO, I LOVE MY BLACKBERRY NO TREO FOR ME! -- and vice versa).