[ale] Forbes trashes Micro$soft

Fri Jan 4 10:54:49 EST 2013

Hi Jay, and all,

As you all know from my other posts, I'm a Windows user.  I have been, 
forever, since it's been in existence.  It was what came with your 
computer, or just about the only option to upgrade a DOS machine, back 
in the day.  It was there, it ran the system, generally did the job, 
generally worked, and generally stayed out of my way.  If it can help me 
do what I need to do, so much the better.  The main things I want the OS 
to do is run the computer, stay out of my way, and make the features of 
the system available and accessible to me.  Even though I like Windows 
and use Windows OK, I am not a fan in the sense of a fanatic screaming 
at a football game.  It's there.  It does what I need most of the time.  
It allows me to use the PC to get NON TRIVIAL work done.  I routinely 
have 50 browser tabs open and, sometimes, 6 or more windows open on the 
screen.  I neither love it, nor hate it.

I've been a Ubuntu user since 10.04 (2010), I think.  So, for the last 
couple of years, I could say the same things about Ubuntu.  I try to 
keep my computers functionally identical or close to the same no matter 
which OS they're booted into.  I can do 90% of all the same stuff 
whether I'm running Windows or Ubuntu at any given time.  I can still 
have lots of Firefox tabs open.  I can still have 50 browser tabs open 
and 6 windows open.  Right now, I'm typing this on my Vista machine.  
Right next to me, the other machine is booted into a Ubuntu live CD and 
yesterday that one was running 4 terminal windows doing badblocks tests 
on 4 separate HDD's.  All the while, I could browse the web, write email 
(if I enter the credentials while the live CD is running), write 
documents, etc.  I like Ubuntu OK.  I neither love it, nor hate it.

I will acknowledge and do appreciate the benefits of a free software 
culture that you guys rave on about.  I will also acknowledge that I 
don't like the cost of Windows.

So, I neither love nor hate Windows; and I neither love nor hate 
Ubuntu.  They're tools.  I use them to get things done, and sometimes 
have fun.

UNTIL ...

Unity!

and

Metro!

I can now comfortably say, having used Unity for less than a few hours 
in the last year, that I hate it; and that I won't use it, unless I'm 
forced to kicking and screaming from a live CD, etc.  In fact, every 
time I use it, I find myself saying I hate this, I hate this.  (Yes, I 
know I can change it.  At least that's an option.)

And, you wouldn't expect to hear ME saying this ...

I can now comfortably say, NEVER HAVING USED WINDOWS 8 AT ALL, BASED 
SOLELY ON HEARSAY, that I hate Windows 8, and solemnly plan NEVER to use 
it in its current form as long as I have a choice.

(I think it can support multiple windows in the Desktop "mode", contrary 
to a quote in the video, but it's far from obvious.)

That video was amazing, and mind boggling, and it NAILS it!  I do wish 
he'd avoid the foul language, but he NAILS it.

  This is the most incredible epic fail I've ever seen of a business 
ticking off a very large percentage of it's core customers.

It is also the most incredible epic fail I've ever seen of a business 
throwing PRODUCTIVE COMPUTER USERS under the bus.  YES, there are far 
more consumers out there than heavy producers of content, but SOMEBODY 
has to produce it!  Somebody has to do video editing, sound track 
mixing, simulations, server administration, weather analysis, etc.  
These systems say to the serious amateur users, the professional users, 
and the extremely geeky users, like people in forums like this - screw 
you.  We don't care if you're productive any more.  Everyone can just be 
a simplistic, CONSUMER of content, and so what if nobody can produce.  
Not only that, these systems make it harder for even the simple users to 
do anything but the most basic and obvious tasks.

This is an epic example of the new pups not knowing or caring about the 
knowledge that the old farts have accumulated for 20 - 30 years, 
reinventing the wheel, and coming up with a square tire.  Whether it 
will be a financial success is unknown, but I stand by may statement.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I can't imagine the billions of dollars of lost productivity and / or 
training costs to work AROUND the Windows 8 UI that businesses will 
suffer ... IF they even allow this thing to be deployed.

Don't get me wrong, good change is good, but bad change it bad.

OK.  End of rant.

Thanks for posting the video link.

Sincerely,

Ron

On 1/3/2013 10:44 PM, Jay Lozier wrote:
> On 01/03/2013 07:15 PM, Bob Toxen wrote:
>> Forbes Magazine article calls Micro$oft:
>>
>>    "A failing giant that only survives by charging prices that 'bleed
>>    customers dry'"
>>
>>
>>    http://news.yahoo.com/microsoft-called-failing-giant-only-survives-charging-prices-151012820.html
> Running down the original article
>
> http://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerkay/2013/01/02/microsoft-is-fast-turning-into-a-sideshow/ 
>
>
> he references a very scathing You-Tube video about Windows 8 by Brian 
> Boyko (its about 24 minutes)
>
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTYet-qf1jo
>
> The video's main theme is that M$ broke the 4 basic rules for a good 
> UI design without any valid reason. This gives a very poor user 
> overall experience because it frustrates users. He actually stated 
> that as UI a command line was superior because it obeys 2 of the rules.
>
> Back to the article, apparently M$ has many serious internal problems 
> and once people start migrating away from M$ they could be in very 
> serious financial trouble. Apparently many of their products try to 
> force a vendor lock and once people find other solutions they lose the 
> vendor lock in. The article appears to reference Linux in that he 
> referred to alternates to Windows that were cheaper.
>>
>> NOTE: if you have my"bob at cavu.com"  email address it now is
>> "bob at cavu.info"  as I sold cavu.com on 12/31/2012.
>>
>> Bob Toxen
>> bob at verysecurelinux.com                [Please use for email to me]
>> http://www.verysecurelinux.com         [Network&Linux security consulting]
>> http://www.realworldlinuxsecurity.com  [My book:"Real World Linux Security 2/e"]
>> Quality Linux&  UNIX security and SysAdmin&  software consulting since 1990.
>> Quality spam and virus filters.
>>
>> "One disk to rule them all, One disk to find them. One disk to bring
>> them all and in the darkness grind them. In the Land of Redmond where
>> the shadows lie...and the Eye is everwatching"
>> -- The Silicon Valley Tarot Henrique Holschuh with ... Bob
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>>      
>
>
> -- 
> Jay Lozier
> jslozier at gmail.com
>
>
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-- 

(To whom it may concern.  My email address has changed.  Replying to former
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Ron Frazier
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