Microsoft is simplifying the processes via which its PC-maker partners will be able to provide 'downgrade' rights from Windows Vista to Windows XP for their customers. Microsoft will implement the first of the policy changes for its Gold Certified (top-tier) OEM partners within the next couple of weeks. The company will streamline downgrade-rights policies and procedures for the broader channel somewhat later, said John Ball, general manager of Microsoft's US Systems Group.
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Member since:2005-07-06
"Dropping Windows Vista as a flop."
So what you're saying is that the billions of dollars you invested in this 'flop' mean nothing, and are expendable? Your shareholders would eat you alive (and almost decidedly vote you out of the company), and you'd personally piss off the 10,000 employees who poured their blood sweat and tears into this product...they'd leave in droves as they'd have zero confidence in management.
"Ending the Product Activation requirement"
Thus opening up the floodgates for piracy. It's funny how no one who has actually purchased a license has any qualms with PA.
"but a license of my own making that allows for continued proprietary software developemnt on the system as well as full open development rights for what would become the Windows XP community."
Just what we need, YALC (Yet Another License Scheme). You seem to forget that most of the MS MVP's have full access to Windows source code, and regularly submit bug fixes.
"Continuing to make money off of preloads of non OS software such as Office for computer systems"
Let's offer up our bread and butter, our core workhorse upon which all of our other software is built upon, for free?
"I believe that Microsoft is really missing out on a stratagy that could LEGITIMATELY beat Linux"
MS is already beating Linux...they've actually never been losing.
Member since:2005-09-14
The term is "sunk cost." If you were an investor, would you rather the company stop now, after spending several billion dollars, or stop in a few years, after spending several billion dollars more on top of what they've already spent? I admit there's no real "good" way to go about that, but at some point you've got to cut your losses.
Not that I think Microsoft should do that. In time, Vista will be a success, simply because at some point, they'll stop offering XP, and most people won't realize they have any other choice.
Member since:2007-05-01
"MS is already beating Linux...they've actually never been losing."jayson.knight
MS is trying to keep that from happening with empty threats, bought politicans, etc... Linux will be a problem for MS and MS knows this.
By the way I have a retail version of Vista Home Prem. Installed the 32bit version first. I ordered the 64 bit version and deleted the 32 bit version. I had to activate Vista 64 several times for some reason. Then I had to call MS about the activation. I updated the firmware to my DVDR, updated to the latest VIA drivers, and disabled onboard 10100. BONK.....the activation message hit again! I called MS..... Keep in mind this was the same system but MS could not stand it that I unistalled the 32 bit Vista and installed the 64bit on that I had ordered.
It's crap like this that makes me wonder why in the world I wasted $$$$ on Vista!
Member since:2005-07-22
Member since:2006-04-07
> I believe that Microsoft is really missing out on a
> stratagy that could LEGITIMATELY beat Linux and give
> the company the good name it had in the late 1980s by
> not following a stratagy like this now that their
> proprietary OS treadmill is at an end.
Microsoft had a good name?
Member since:2007-02-22
Back then, Microsoft was considered the plucky young visonary upstart sticking it to the no-result daydreamers and imaginationless old stodgy businessmen alike... sort of the way George Lucas was considered back when he made THX 1138.
Heck, to illustrate the kind of competition they fought against: I had an IBM PC from the early 90s once. Their cases were kept locked by special keys that only Authorized IBM Distributors could open, so if as much as a cable came loose, you'd have to go back to them and pay to get it repaired -- and they typically would only repair it for a few years, after which you were expected to upgrade again. The case had a single point of control (somehow, they tied all the connectors to that one key), and if you tried to open your case any other way, you would not be able to get your computer repaired. Freedom from this sort of hardware lockin was revolutionary.
Not to mention they made software that other companies used to grow and thrive. How many companies used some form of MSBasic, or implemented the MSX standard?
Evil as Microsoft is considered nowadays, they slew far greater evils in the marketplace.
Member since:2006-06-24
Member since:2005-07-06
And where do you get these figures from ?
Did you magically pluck them from your head ?
Vista might indeed be sold on a lot of new machines, but can anyone here tell me exactly how many people (who are IT savvy), actually run Vista ?
I know 1
I know 2 others that use it as it came with the new PCs and they do not know how to change.
Everyone else removed it and reverted back to XP
I have also noticed an increase in the amount of people asking for install discs for Ubuntu or LinuxMint.
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The new WebKit Opera for Android has been released. "Opera 14 for Android is built on top of Chromium 26, with a total overhaul of the UI in native code, making it fit well with the latest Android design guidelines. Go get the build from Google Play or point your browser to m.opera.com, and give it a spin!"The Verge pointed me to a blog post by Leap Motion - which reveals how their Kinect-like motion control works with Windows 8. "From the second you plug in your Leap Motion Controller, you'll be able to browse the web and interact with your computer just by moving your hands and fingers in the air. With Leap Motion technology and Windows, you can do everything that's possible with multi-touch inputs - without actually touching anything. This also means that existing applications in Windows 7 and 8 will respond to your natural hand and finger movements. Soon, we'll show you how Leap Motion will work with Mac OS X." Quite cool.PocketNow interviews Marc Dillon, and there's an interesting note about why Jolla is keeping the display properties under wraps: "We're leaving some of those details out because we do understand that there are a lot of really big players in the market and they tend to take certain components in the market and dominate them. We created the ability to actually be able to run Sailfish on multiple hardware displays and be able to swap components, so this is part of the demand and supply planning phase. We are committed to this industrial design which is a 4.5-inch display, an 8 megapixel camera on the back and a front-facing camera at the front, and the exact specs of the display we'll provide when we're close to delivery." Something you rarely hear anything about.
"This is my NeXTstation Turbo Color booting the Mac System 7.1 Operating System using a hardware add-on called 'Daydream'. The Daydream has a Mac ROM and a few custom ICs in it and hooked up to the NeXTs DSP port. Turns your NeXT into a full fledged 68k powered Mac." So cool.
"The NetBSD Project is pleased to announce NetBSD 6.1, the first feature update of the NetBSD 6 release branch. It represents a selected subset of fixes deemed important for security or stability reasons, as well as new features and enhancements. Please note that all fixes in the prior security/bugfix updates (NetBSD 6.0.1 and 6.0.2) are also in 6.1."
Member since:
2005-07-07
I think it is high time for Microsoft to admit that their upgrade treadmill in proprietary operating systems has ENDED. If I were running MS now I would seriously consider:
1. Dropping Windows Vista as a flop.
2. Ending the Product Activation requirement in and open sourcing Windows XP and the development systems for it under NOT the GPL but a license of my own making that allows for continued proprietary software developemnt on the system as well as full open development rights for what would become the Windows XP community. I would also open source some MS legacy software like Visual Basic 3 and 6, Visual C++ 1 and 6, Windows 9x, Windows 3.1 and DOS 6.2 under the same licensing terms to revive legacy computers rather than dumping them while they can still work reasonably well. Windows XP would continue to be the main preload OS for commercial computers but WITHOUT the infamous Microsoft Operating System tax.
3. Continuing to make money off of preloads of non OS software such as Office for computer systems intended for workstations and MS games for ported from X Box to Windows for computers intended as gaming/multimedia platforms.
I believe that Microsoft is really missing out on a stratagy that could LEGITIMATELY beat Linux and give the company the good name it had in the late 1980s by not following a stratagy like this now that their proprietary OS treadmill is at an end.