“Have you ever wondered how new technologies get developed in Microsoft? Wonder how a cool idea goes from incubation to release? Well, we’re excited to announce that we’ve started a blog designed to bring you closer to the process with the Gadgets blog and we’re kicking it off at the PDC,” Microsoft’s “Microsoft Gadgets” website reads.
MacDailyNews Take: No, we never wondered how new technologies get developed or how a cool idea goes from incubation to release at Microsoft. We even know the address from whence such cool ideas and technologies come: 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014.
Microsoft’s “Microsoft Gadgets” page also reads, “What are Gadgets? Gadgets are a new category of mini-application designed to provide information, useful lookup, or enhance an application or service on your Windows PC or the Web.”
MacDailyNews Take: Gee, thanks for the explanation. Gadgets are Widgets, but the name was already taken, so Microsoft just copied the idea and introduced unnecessary complexity and usability issues, as usual.
“Gadgets come in three flavors,” Microsoft says.
MacDailyNews Take: Flavors? Now where have we heard that before? Oh, yes, from Apple. One of Microsoft’s “flavors” is “Gadgets for Windows Sidebar.” You know, like “Widgets for Mac OS X Dashboard.” Simple, huh?
Anyway, Microsoft’s so “super-excited” about the “cool idea” they’ve been “incubating,” that they want people to start start building their own. More info: http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/dashboard/ Oops, sorry: http://microsoftgadgets.com/
MacDailyNews Take: To those who wish to scream “Konfabulator,” we present you “Apple Mac Desk Accessories” circa 1984.
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Apple leads; Wintel follows as usual – November 11, 2002
Microsoft appropriates Apple’s ‘brushed metal’ look for Office 12 for Windows – September 13, 2005
Windows czar Allchin says Apple copying Microsoft’s Windows Longhorn – April 27, 2005
Microsoft employees leaving due to (and blogging about) malaise smothering company – April 25, 2005
eWEEK Editor Coursey: Longhorn so far ‘looks shockingly like a Macintosh’ – April 25, 2005
Due in late 2006, many of Windows Longhorn’s features have been in Mac OS X since 2001 – April 25, 2005
Microsoft’s new mantra: ‘It Just Works’ ripped straight from Apple’s ‘Switch’ campaign – April 22, 2005
Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Microsoft’s Longhorn: ‘They are shamelessly copying us’ – April 21, 2005
Microsoft’s Windows Longhorn will bear more than just a passing resemblance to Apple’s Mac OS X – April 15, 2005
Silicon Valley: Apple CEO Steve Jobs previews ‘Longhorn’ – June 29, 2004
PC Magazine: Microsoft ‘Longhorn’ preview shows ‘an Apple look’ – May 06, 2004
Microsoft concerned that Longhorn’s look and feel will be copied if revealed too soon – August 25, 2003
Windows ‘Longhorn’ to add translucent windows that ripple and shrink by 2005 – May 19, 2003
MacDailyNews Dashboard Widget 2.0 released – September 03, 2005
Free ‘Amnesty Screen Saver’ lets Mac OS X Dashboard Widgets run as Screen Savers – August 11, 2005
Runaway hit: Apple Mac OS X Tiger Dashboard Widgets pass one thousand milestone – August 02, 2005
Amnesty Widget Browser 1.0 released; runs Dashboard Widgets on Mac OS X Panther, Tiger Desktops – July 05, 2005
Apple CEO Steve Jobs: Mac OS X Tiger ‘is going to drive the copycats crazy – June 28, 2004
Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs previews Mac OS X 10.4 ‘Tiger’ to ship in the first half of 2005 – June 28, 2004
Apple takes dead aim at Microsoft, ‘Longhorn’ with WWDC Mac OS X 10.4 ‘Tiger’ ads – June 28, 2004
I want a chair throwing, Google killing, Steve Ballmer Gadget.
Oh yea, I want a Bill Gates “China F–ked Us” Gadget too.
Shameless! That’s all I can say.
And to the poster who said that the widgets have been copied from Konfabulator, well Apple had a similar thing (I think they were called desktop accesories) before Konfabulator.
– Mark
Microsoft’s R&D is located in Cupertino, CA. Apple Computers is the name of there R&D. Let’s see what else they will copy from Apple. Oh yea, I heard that Office 12 will have an aqua look with the metal type interface that Apple currently has.
It’s real, but not until Vista (early-mid 2008). By then OSX 10.6 Jackal would have well done away with those oh so yesterday widgets.
wait for Thurrott’s about-face.. seriously…
Widgets are applets that DO NOT PRODUCE any kind of file.. in other words.. they are NOT applications, but DO serve a purpose.. IOW.. they do produce SOME output..
Even if it’s a game, or checking a website for you etc.
Thurrott thinks Widgets are utterly and totally pointless.. yes.. all 1200+ of them..
Let’s see what he thinks about.. er.. MS’s version.. well.. when this thing is released Xmas 2006
Hammer – thanks for a good belly-laugh!
The funny thing is.. the Widgets that MS designs are… FUGLY
hehe..
look at the music one.. okay.. fugly..now the boring RSS feed..
Gah! Apple’s were meant to show you a glimpse of what was possible.. this just says “Do Not Open till 2007–Under Construction”
Dear god mac fans are protected of apple’s intellectual property… which they stole from konfabulator. and yes i’m throwing that right in your faces. Why don’t I throw “Xerox” in your face which Gates and Jobs both copied from? And we can have this stupid argument all over again!
Of course if you want to waste all of your time arguing about this and that, be my guest. Some of us aren’t 14 anymore.
It DOES matter that Microsoft copies Apple, even though Apple copies too.
Why?
Because it means we Mac users get all this great technology FIRST.*
I take it that, as a Windows user, you’re a little sensitive** about that?
* Viruses and spyware excepted. Macs have none.
** Way to regurgitate Konfab and Xerox without looking into the full story in either case! First rule of trolling: repeat without thinking.
I think M$ should come up with an expose type feature aswell….. and use F9 through F12 to access these new features….. that would be sweet
I invite you to read…
http://www.mackido.com/Interface/ui_history.html
You may find some info here:
http://www.igeek.com/
http://www.folklore.org/index.py
I haven’t seen such coping since xerox. I have seen more originality from a Elvis impersonator. I haven’t seen this much crap since the State Fair. Microsoft would make a good carbon paper.
Before panties get in a twist about Konfabulator – ever heard of DA’s? Desk Accessories? I little history lesson is in order.
http://daringfireball.net/2004/06/dashboard_vs_konfabulator
Ah well, seems I missed the first posting of the daringfireball link. Still, history lessons are important.
So is Arlo of Konfabulator fame gonna raise hell and bitch about how Microsoft is ripping them off too? LOL.
And Yeah, I know, Yahoo now owns Konfabulator.
WOW. MDN has turned into the ultimate of Mac apologists.
The Daring Fireball article about Konfabulator basically seems to say this: Dashboard is different from Konfabulator because it’s built to consume less CPU and uses different code. Whoop-de-do. The idea is the same; the purpose of the widgets is the same. It doesn’t matter who picked the name “widget” first. It’s like giving credit for every single program ever written to an OS to the first guy that named it a program.
The fact is, the purpose of Dashboard is eerily similar to the purpose of Konfabulator, and I’m not sure I buy the argument that Apple developed this idea effectively first. To me, it seems like you just argue that Apple is innovating because they rewrote the code from scratch to be different.
Well if Microsoft decided to put in “Gadgets” into Windows, and they did it by introducing a new coding language, then ladies and gentlemen, they are innovating.
The article does nothing to quell my full belief that Dashboard is still a basic concept stolen from Konfabulator.
This is who we are; this is how we earn it: We steal it from Apple. — Microsoft
My post on their site….
Hi.
I hope you irrelevant nerds at Microsoft can understand this.
Apple has outdone you, by far. Just because you weasels may have stock in the company, doesn’t mean they’re working for you. Give credit where it is due, losers.
What a shameful display you proudly set up here. I can’t wait to see Leopard pounce all over your sad OS (pronounce: Oss for better effect)
Hasta La Vista,
John Gee
Anyway…. Did DesktopX really preclude Konafabulator? If so, gadgets are more closely related to M$.
Of course, let’s all remember: Windows is forever dull.
Gee
At the comments board almost all of them are taking the piss out of Microsoft for their “innovation”
The BEST comment is:
“re: Welcome to the Gadgets Blog! @ Tuesday, September 13, 2005 6:14 PM
Why don’t you just call it Windows OS X and be done with it?
Paul Thurrott”
http://microsoftgadgets.com/blogs/gadgetnews/archive/2005/09/13/3.aspx#comments
Would LOVE to know if it is really him. He has been PRETTY SCATHING of the ammount of OSX that is ending up in Vista recently.
my 2 cents
Luke
Windows “VIGER”
Surely the story here should not be how M$ is copying Apple (again) but how Apple does not protect its intellectual property! Being the innovator means nothing if you then leave the door open to others to use your inventions ….
The problem is this: Does anyone hold a patent for these things?
Do not expect people in a cutthroat industry to miss out on an opportunity of recreating a good thing that has not been patented.
We Mac lovers often whine and complain about Apple’s innovations being “stolen”, but we should complain about Apple “giving them away” by not patenting them.
some good comments
http://www.blogger.com/publish-comment.do?blogID=9044302&postID=112665439778359497&r=ok
You know, as long as MS don’t try and stuff their gadgets full of proprietary Windows code, this could be a good thing. More widgets/gadgets for all.
And let’s face it, Dashboard wasn’t exactly a new idea in the first place was it? I remember using these things on OS/2 back in the 90s.
If you guys heard the latest TWIT podcast, you can hear Arlo, creator of Konfabulator, explain that he was approached by both Yahoo and Microsoft about buying Konfabulator but wouldn’t go into much detail with the MS talks. It does sound like he possibly licensed his technology over to MS, otherwise, you would of heard the outcries by now!