Digg users just "dugg" an item from Silicon Valley Sleuth to the top of their queue. The article asks boldly, "is Windows Vista really vapourware?" Although the article discounts some legitimate strides Microsoft is making with things like IE7, Least-Privileged User Account, and Windows Defender, there's little doubt that Windows Vista is a far cry from what we were promised a few short years ago.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Member since:2005-11-10
You over-generalise the iPod generation. A six year old can Sync an iPod fully, no clicks required. A child can use an iPod without any difficulty. Even now, and before the iPod no such hardware + software stack existed that was powerful and simple.
Vista is also about trying to simplify Windows as a whole, I've not had a chance to use the Beta yet so do not know how successful that has been.
Vista seems a much more consumer orientated release, and thus an Opus-like file manager baked in is paramount to suicide. Don't underate basic, simple features considering 90% of the market don't even know what a file-manager is, and they have the most combined money to spend.
edit: changed 'it' to unconfuse context
Edited 2006-01-28 15:49
Member since:2006-01-04
"I wonder which of the third party applications out there can rewrite the audio stack and put it into user space, so that individual applications can take control over their own audio settings."
Off topic, but, this is one of the features I can't wait for on Windows Vista. It should hopefully increase stability, and almost certainly make doing audio work as a non-admin usable.
ALSA on Linux is not directly in userspace but it supports changing nearly all the config in userspace and the kernel space is the minimal part... unfortunately Linux's audio software currently doesn't compete with Windows audio software...
Back on topic: This article is a bit of a flame, but it does bring up good points. WinFS, that new console stuff, etc. was what I was looking forward to most, but they've been yanked...
Member since:2005-07-06
There's no "etc". WinFS and Monad were the only things "pulled" from being released WITH Vista. That's it. The end. I'm not sure why people don't understand this.
Vista is not what they "promised" many years ago, but you're kind of an idiot if you believed it would be. Does it suck? yeah. Should you get all up in arms over it? No. Just take what Microsoft promises with a grain of salt and reserve judgement until they release the product and you try it.
Also, a good place to find out information on new MS products with a bit less of the marketing crap is channel9. It's still MS employees, which are usually very enthusiastic about what they are working on. But still, they are not profressional marketers, and give a much better and realistic view of the products than marketing.
Edited 2006-01-28 17:56
Member since:
2005-11-13
In the end, Vista won't do anything that Windows XP can't do already with a little help from third party vendors.
I wonder which of the third party applications out there can rewrite the audio stack and put it into user space, so that individual applications can take control over their own audio settings.
But in general, he's right, though that happens to be one of Windows's strengths, IMHO. There are so many third party apps out there that do so much, you'd be hard pressed to find much that can't be done already.
It's true that a lot of the new features in Vista that are touted the most tend to point out all the 'shiny' new things about the GUI, but I blame that more on Generation iPod, who seem to value style over substance. Even if MS put a bad-ass Directory Opus-like file manager into the OS, it probably wouldn't fair as well as a new WMP because a) It's too much power for the average user and b) It doesn't sparkle and look 'stylish' enough.
It's just too bad that most people tend to ignore all the changes under the hood, such as a new protected admin user type.