Linked by Thom Holwerda on Wed 18th Jul 2012 21:12 UTC
The moment Microsoft announced it would lock other browsers out of being installed on Windows RT, we all knew regulatory bodies the world over were wringing their hands. Today, this has been confirmed: in the wake of an investigation into Microsoft not complying with the existing antitrust rulings regarding browser choice, the EU has also announced it's investigating Windows 8 x86 and Windows 8 RT (ARM).
Thread beginning with comment 527377
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
RE[6]: Comment by Drumhellar
by Alfman on Thu 19th Jul 2012 20:47
in reply to "RE[5]: Comment by Drumhellar"
Member since:2011-01-28
tomcat,
"Bullshit. Having x86 monopoly power doesn't give Microsoft any leverage to extend its dominance into the ARM market. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Microsoft can't strong-arm OEMs to tie x86 and ARM together. It can't force consumers to buy ARM machines."
Watch that temper! I think the post you responded to was right, actually. Microsoft isn't forcing consumers to buy ARM machines, but they've already used their power to negatively influence ARM UEFI specs to the detriment of competitors. And there's certainly room for microsoft to pressure ARM OEMS by using their status as a x86 monopoly.
I'm not asserting that they ARE doing it, but clearly they COULD. I am not privy to the backroom deals, but hypothetically MS might give additional x86 discounts to OEMs who bundle only Windows with their ARM products. This is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities and it's clearly within the realm of anti-trust.
RE[7]: Comment by Drumhellar
by tomcat on Thu 19th Jul 2012 21:20
in reply to "RE[6]: Comment by Drumhellar"
Member since:2006-01-06
Microsoft isn't forcing consumers to buy ARM machines, but they've already used their power to negatively influence ARM UEFI specs to the detriment of competitors.
Not at all. UEFI doesn't prevent OEMs from installing any other operating system. The OEM gets to decide what gets installed on a device (Linux, Windows, etc); and, by extension, the consumer gets to decide which device they want. The consumer is under no pressure to choose any particular device.
And there's certainly room for microsoft to pressure ARM OEMS by using their status as a x86 monopoly. I'm not asserting that they ARE doing it, but clearly they COULD. I am not privy to the backroom deals, but hypothetically MS might give additional x86 discounts to OEMs who bundle only Windows with their ARM products. This is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities and it's clearly within the realm of anti-trust.
You have a strange definition of "pressure". Offering OEMs a financial incentive to install Windows everywhere isn't banned by the consent decree. What is banned is (1) charging per-processor royalties even if the OEM doesn't install Windows, and (2) charging the OEM more than other OEMs if they don't install Windows (punitive terms). But Microsoft isn't doing either one of those things. OEMs are under no pressure to accept Microsoft's financial incentives; in fact, they're free to accept counter-proposals from any other OS vendor (Red Hat, Google, etc). That is the very essence of competition and, while Microsoft's size certainly gives them an advantage in offering lucrative financial terms, the court doesn't guarantee that competitors will be able to match all others. And nobody is asserting that Microsoft is "dumping" its software in the market at below-cost. So, quite frankly, you're wrong.
Edited 2012-07-19 21:22 UTC
RE[7]: Comment by Drumhellar
by MollyC on Thu 19th Jul 2012 21:26
in reply to "RE[6]: Comment by Drumhellar"
Member since:2006-07-04
Oh please.
The ARM UEFI specs aren't relevant.
Android tablets are still going to be produced by those OEMs. What do the UEFI specs of WindowsRT ARM devices have to do with Adroid ARM devices? Nothing.
And if you want to boot linux or BSD or Solaris or whatever random OS on an ARM device, but you can't do it on a Windows RT device because of UEFI, then just get an Android or ChromeOS ARM device and install your random OS on that.
WindowsRT ARM decices are complete solutions. They are complete integrated hardware/software devices. They are not meant to be able to run random OSes, just like the iPad isn't meant to run random OSes. Such devices run with the OS they come with, because the OS is part and parcel of the device as a complete integrated hardware/software solution. You don't like it? Then get different ARM device; they'll be plenty available for you to play with.
News
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:33 UTC
Official Apple statement on PRISM and privacy: "Regardless of the circumstances, our Legal team conducts an evaluation of each request and, only if appropriate, we retrieve and deliver the narrowest possible set of information to the authorities. In fact, from time to time when we see inconsistencies or inaccuracies in a request, we will refuse to fulfill it." This is basically Apple re-publishing their earlier statement in a more official manner. You either believe it, or you don't.
Linked by Anonymous on 06/18/13 22:26 UTC
The open source Contiki operating system and its commercial Thingsquare distribution are making strides towards the connected home. According to a Computerworld article, a new LED light bulb manufacturer is putting small computers into their light bulbs. Each computer runs the Contiki OS, which gives each bulb an IP address and allows them to be controlled with a smartphone application. To connect the bulbs to the application, the bulbs use both Wi-Fi and the much lower power IEEE 802.15.4 mesh technology.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:25 UTC
"Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it's forced to give the government. The legal filing, which cites the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech, is the latest move by the California-based tech giant to protect its reputation in the aftermath of news reports about sweeping National Security Agency surveillance of Internet traffic." Draining the ditch after the cow has drowned in it.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:45 UTC
"I can't find one person who has been using the Nexus 7 for an extended period of time, and hasn't seen a massive downgrade in performance. Just what kind of downgrade are we talking here? I cannot pick up my Nexus 7 without experiencing problems like a lag of ten seconds, or more, just to rotate the display; touches refusing to acknowledged; stuttering notification panel actions; and unresponsive apps." Fully and utterly agreed. My Nexus 7 was blazing-fast and awesome for a few months, and at some point, it just started sucking. Just like that. I've tried loads of ROMs, and nothing helps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:32 UTC, submitted by poundsmack
A new release of the hobby operating system MenuetOS! The release notes are a bit non-descript, but you'll have to take what you can get: "updates and improvements (picview, httpc, ehci, ...)".
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:58 UTC
"The Internet is one of the most transformative technologies of our lifetimes. But for 2 out of every 3 people on earth, a fast, affordable Internet connection is still out of reach. And this is far from being a solved problem. There are many terrestrial challenges to Internet connectivity - jungles, archipelagos, mountains. There are also major cost challenges. Right now, for example, in most of the countries in the southern hemisphere, the cost of an Internet connection is more than a month's income. Solving these problems isn't simply a question of time: it requires looking at the problem of access from new angles. So today we're unveiling our latest moonshot from Google[x]: balloon-powered Internet access." Insane.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:52 UTC
"MineAssemble is a tiny bootable Minecraft clone written partly in x86 assembly. I made it first and foremost because a university assignment required me to implement a game in assembly for a computer systems course. Because I had never implemented anything more complex than a 'Hello World' bootloader before, I decided I wanted to learn about writing my own kernel code at the same time. Note that the goal of this project was not to write highly efficient hand-optimized assembly code, but rather to have fun and write code that balances readability and speed. This is primarily accomplished by proper commenting and consistent code structuring." Just cool.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 21:03 UTC
Jon Rubinstein, former CEO of Palm: "Well, I'm not sure I would have sold the company to HP. That's for sure. Talk about a waste. Not that I had any choice because when you sell a company you don't get to decide that. Obviously, the board and shareholders decide that. If we had known they were just going to shut it down and never really give it a chance to flourish, what would have been the point of selling the company? I think the deal we had with Verizon really hurt us, but who knew that at the time? These things are all hindsight."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 20:46 UTC
"And so it is with Dell's Alienware X51 R2, a small form factor gaming PC in console digs. It's shaped similar to Microsoft's Xbox 360 Slim, and though it's slightly larger than either a 360 or PlayStation 3, the X51 R2 would be right at home in a living room setting nestled next to a large screen TV. Indeed, it's adept at running Steam's Big Picture mode, and if your primary objective is to play games in the living room, go ahead and consider the X51 R2 a hybrid game console." This is obviously not the only machine like this - still, these are very valid console alternatives even for those that don't like being hunched over with a cramped WASD-claw. Also, PC gamers among us: could you get away with the $699 model for gaming?
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 17:32 UTC
From Bloomberg: "Microsoft, the world's largest software company, provides intelligence agencies with information about bugs in its popular software before it publicly releases a fix, according to two people familiar with the process. That information can be used to protect government computers and to access the computers of terrorists or military foes." The lid has officially been blown off.More News »
Sponsored Links
Member since:
2006-01-06
You're erecting a strawman. Nothing I said contradicts that point.
Bullshit. Having x86 monopoly power doesn't give Microsoft any leverage to extend its dominance into the ARM market. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Microsoft can't strong-arm OEMs to tie x86 and ARM together. It can't force consumers to buy ARM machines. It's an entirely separate market and category. Go back and read the market definition for the antitrust trial. It's specifically for "x86-based operating systems". Not ARM operating systems. Furthermore, apps written for x86 won't run natively on ARM. The apps need to be ported/recompiled for ARM.
I'm sure that you'll come back with some nebulous statement about how the common Metro interface, itself, somehow magically transforms into market power on ARM. But that's complete bullshit. The interface gives Microsoft no more power than, say, Google's standardization on the Java runtime on Android gives it power over the ARM market.