Smartphones Reignite the OS Wars
Linked by Howard Fosdick on Sat 19th May 2012 08:59 UTC
PDAs, Cellphones, Wireless Smartphones have become the preferred computer of the masses. Sales surpassed those of personal computers in 2010, having grown over 50% per year for several years. Nearly 500 million smartphones shipped in 2011. This radically shifts the terrain in the consumer operating system competition that was, for years, firmly decided in favor of Windows. This article analyzes the New OS Wars.
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RE[3]: Good old days
by Valhalla on Sat 19th May 2012 16:06 UTC in reply to "RE[2]: Good old days"
Valhalla
Member since:
2006-01-24

But isn't that how most people use their "general purpose" computers as well?

I'll certainly grant you that most of those who has computers (by my definition) at home do not actually need these general purpose computers but can do fine as long as they can surf the web, play some games and do instant messaging and this is what we are seeing now with the decline of general purpose computers versus smartphones,pads etc. I am not arguing against that. I'm arguing about labeling them as 'computers'.

I think your definition of 'communication' is much more apt, and as such we can say that portable communication/gaming devices is being largely preferred over general purpose computers these days, which in turn is because the possibilities offered by a general purpose computer far exceed the needs of most end users.

Reply Parent Score: 2

RE[4]: Good old days
by zima on Sat 19th May 2012 16:42 in reply to "RE[3]: Good old days"
zima Member since:
2005-07-06

You and your new-fangled meaning of "computer" ;)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_computer

The term "computer", in use from the mid 17th century, meant "one who computes": a person performing mathematical calculations


Edited 2012-05-19 16:43 UTC

Reply Parent Score: 4

RE[4]: Good old days
by Bill Shooter of Bul on Sat 19th May 2012 19:09 in reply to "RE[3]: Good old days"
Bill Shooter of Bul Member since:
2006-07-14

I just don't like how you change the name of the whole system based on how its used. If I use a hammer to tenderize a steak, its still a hammer, not a meat tenderizer. I actually use my smart phone to do general purpose computing. I write (simple) python scripts, open ssh sessions to remote computers, edit photos and music, use the calculator to solve algebraic problems, create todo lists, save and retrieve recipes, in addition to all of that communication stuff. For me it is a general purpose computer. There isn't much I couldn't do on or with it ( except those that require communication with incompatible hardware)

Reply Parent Score: 3

RE[5]: Good old days
by tomcat on Sat 19th May 2012 23:00 in reply to "RE[4]: Good old days"
tomcat Member since:
2006-01-06

I just don't like how you change the name of the whole system based on how its used. If I use a hammer to tenderize a steak, its still a hammer, not a meat tenderizer. I actually use my smart phone to do general purpose computing. I write (simple) python scripts, open ssh sessions to remote computers, edit photos and music, use the calculator to solve algebraic problems, create todo lists, save and retrieve recipes, in addition to all of that communication stuff. For me it is a general purpose computer. There isn't much I couldn't do on or with it ( except those that require communication with incompatible hardware)


There's even a website for you now...

http://www.bing.com/Dictionary/search?q=define+pedantic&qpvt=pedant...

Edited 2012-05-19 23:17 UTC

Reply Parent Score: 0

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