“Microsoft’s new Windows operating system Longhorn will be so different from its predecessors that users may not like it right away, Microsoft chairman and chief software architect Bill Gates said yesterday. ‘Longhorn is a bit scary. We have been willing to change things,’ Gates said during lunch at Microsoft’s annual financial analyst meeting in Redmond,” Joris Evers reports for Macworld UK.
Evers writes, “‘Longhorn should drive a whole range of upgrades, but that could be sort of delayed,’ Gates said. Because of differences with the previous versions of Windows, it could be a year or two after its release before computer users really pick up Longhorn, he said. Recent Longhorn movies leaked to the Web (now removed) illustrated Microsoft’s debt to Apple’s research and development department: One movie clearly showed a window featuring an OS X-like genie effect. To make this a little different, Microsoft has made the window ripple in a curtain-closing-like effect across the screen as it disappears.”
Evers reports, “‘Longhorn is innovative,’ he claimed, but ‘there is a lot of work to be done in terms of what has to go in and what has not,’ he said. Asked if Microsoft would consider dropping some of the innovations it has planned so the product can come out sooner, Gates said no: ‘If you split it up, then you delay one of the really great pieces,’ he said. ‘We need a big bang release to drive excitement,’ Gates said.” Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We’d be scared, too, if our “Chief Software Architect” was waiting for each release of Apple’s Mac OS X to pick it apart and try to copy it, but with Windows code and Windows UI “designers.” It’s not “rippling windows,” Bill, that we like. You’ll never get it. And you should look up the words “innovative” and “innovation,” maybe then you’ll stop constantly misusing them to describe yourself and your company. You’re like a near-sighted weird guy who copied another guy’s lottery ticket over his shoulder because you’re too insecure to even think up your own numbers, but you got your copying wrong and lucked into a huge winning ticket. Have fun copying, Bill. Although we’d have thought you could do it faster by now after so much practice. Here’s hoping the only “Big Bang” we hear upon Longhorn’s release is the collective sound of hundreds of million of eyelids snapping open for the first time. Moo.
sounds like longhorn sucks
So… out in 2005 or 2006… adopted by users in 2006 or 2008?
Isn’t it taboo to be negative about your own product while trying to promote it? talk about scaring and alienating your own clients..this will ensure confidence among your own troops! this kind of talk from your own king will make you drop your weapons, put on civilian clothing and walk home right away! and even switch sides!
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Indeed, MS is very, very scarry!
Looks like another take-off of Apple. We can’t stop it, but it sure is idiotic on their part.
– Prediction –
With no Intel 64-bit CPU and no 64-bit OS from Microsoft in the next 4 years, gaming programmers will migrate (if not race) to the Mac for it’s photo-realistic 3D rendering on the fly as it effortlessly throws huge chunks of data around. With no new technology in 15 years, Microsoft struggles to stay alive in 2008, and claims that the Mac is just a game computer with a glitzy 3D GUI, and not suitable for the serious businessman. IBM and Microsoft would have traded corporate images, with MS taking on a shirt and tie atmosphere as they cater to their last hold out, stuffy old businessmen unwilling to move from MS Office. And IBM joins Apple in being the technology leader for the new generation.
IBM and Apple will continue to grow as their focus remains on whole systems and user experiences, and not on individual pieces that cater to the least common denominator causing technology stagnation. Software and peripheral designers will have to follow Apple’s ease-of-use or risk being called “Too MS-like.”
For Intel and Microsoft to have ANY hope, they will have to create an inexpensive 64-bit system and innovative OS within the next year or two. I do believe this is possible, but the MAJOR obstacle is making it backwards compatible. I believe with the Windows OS current fundamental design and the Pentium’s architecture, this is impossible. It will be the primary reason for Microsoft’s inability to keep pace with Apple. The game programmers, being forced to work with a whole new OS must decide if they want to stick with Microsoft or go to Apple that, by then, is a proven leader of speed, graphics, stability, security and excellent developer software.
Microsoft never had the long term focus nor the temerity to gamble with new ideas that Apple did. Microsoft was an opportunist; Apple the dreamer of new horizons.
I dunno, my bet is that longhorn will be microsofts attempt at stealing Apples ideas again, but using their muscle to make them better (?), We shall see, but I wouldn’t jump the gun and say it’s gonna suck. Right now, though, anyone that does their research would have to say that Apple’s got the best OS, and now the fastest hardware with a great future. Things are looking good…
Well now we know what the ‘long’ means. Perhaps longhaul would have been more appropriate though.
You guys are quite die-hard “DEATH TO ANYTHING MS! BILL GATES IS THE DEVIL” to extremes!
I know why Bill is concerned: The office environment likes little change, because any change means more training and more screw-ups as the network is shifted over. Office networks are already strained running MS crap.
Prime example of how a monopoly stalemates progress and advancement.
With a R&D budget of $6.8 BILLION a year, talk about a disappointing return on investment. Who’s working in the R & D department in Redmond, guys that cound not get a government job?
I think what MS has shown of Longhorn is nothing. I saw the ‘leak’ and it was pretty vague and very boring. What if they ‘leaked’ this on purpose to lull competition into a false sense of security. I hope the Longhorn release will be much more impressive than the early demo we’ve seen… And I think it will be.
The problem will be that it’s still Windows. Microsoft will still own it. I can only imagine what type of exciting spy-ware-big-brother-sh*t will developed for inclusion by 2005/2006
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hey bobob,
just look at the record. MS did not write DOS. He bought it cheap and turned around and rented it to IBM.
When Win 2000 Pro was released it had over 60,000 known bugs. Each patch fixes about 500.
MS has not invented anything, or help advance the computing industry. It takes a good idea, bastardizes it and has 3-4 upgrades before it is a tolerable product which is still inferior.
It steals ideas, and ties up companies in court until they go bankrupt.
Apple products, even in it’s alpha stages have fewer bugs than MS final release of any product.
Also, Apple did take other people ideas (Xerox), but they expanded and have innovated as well.
QUOTE from Aryugaetu:
**********
– Prediction –
With no Intel 64-bit CPU and no 64-bit OS from Microsoft in the next 4 years, gaming programmers will migrate (if not race) to the Mac for it’s photo-realistic 3D rendering on the fly as it effortlessly throws huge chunks of data…
…must decide if they want to stick with Microsoft or go to Apple that, by then, is a proven leader of speed, graphics, stability, security and excellent developer software.
Microsoft never had the long term focus nor the temerity to gamble with new ideas that Apple did. Microsoft was an opportunist; Apple the dreamer of new horizons.
(see full text below…)
**********
This paints a rosey picture for Mac users (and anyone else who can’t stand the extreme slowing of progress and advancement). But we cannot forget MS currently has over 49 Billion –in cash! Money talks. That’s why MS is the monster it is today.
I honestly believe most people want to coolest, most advanced stuff. But these same people are mostly short-sighted sheep. They follow, they get shafted, they buy the next POS hoping it will live up to their expectations, it doesn’t and then repeat the cycle. Each time this cycle repeats itself the bar lowers. Excellent for making money –Yay money!
Many have thoughts and theories on how this phenomenon (especially given humankind’s advanced ‘powers of observation’) can continue to exist. But alas, they are only theories. No one knows for sure why people will ALWAYS behave this way. (I personally say –fsck em’!)
Money talks? Indeed.
[P.s. Aryugaetu: I want your plan carried out immediately. Please send to Jobs and Co.]
XP had slower than expected sales. Microsoft saw a lot of Mac Users complain about the change in interface and realize that it will hurt sales of Longhorn. They are preemptively making excuses.
Fact is that PC’s shipping with Longhorn as the default will guarantee the things success even if it is a piece of garbage.
Humm, me thinks that bill is trying to give us the long horn again.
/me thinks that this place is full of Mac-talibans!
From Portugal, with love!
“With no Intel 64-bit CPU and no 64-bit OS from Microsoft in the next 4 years, gaming programmers will migrate (if not race) to the Mac for it’s photo-realistic 3D rendering on the fly as it effortlessly throws huge chunks of data around.”
If you knew how much and how long it takes to develop and optimize a game you would realize that this just isn’t going to happen. What games to port to the Macintosh are “ported” from the X86 platform. Games are optimized X86 and ported Macintosh. The ones that make it anyway.
What if they build a longhorn [a.k.a. ‘ripplin’ windoze’] and nobody bought?
Ahh, no… eventually ‘enterprise solutions’ [a.k.a. ‘guaranteed obsolescence’] will make it economically prohibitive to keep old windoze units beyond their ‘use-by’ date. Remember Munich? Longhorn [a freudian play on the word ‘microsoft’] will be a big boon to linux. Any youngsters who would like to have a future in IT had better bulk-up on linux. Sh*tbox manufacturers will have to compete with China-designed and funded unix boxes built in North Korea, where wages are a cup of rice a day.
And what of the average windoze consumer? A few will ‘switch.’ But most will be so loaded with .wmas and .wmvs and .docs and whatnot proprietary formats that switching to anything else will not be an option. To accelerate their conversion, Redmond will place an ad’ in the superbowl encouraging the lemmings to stay in the herd by converting to their new ‘cow’ of an OS – or risk losing their passports.
Since I’m on a roll here I might as well tackle the whole enchilada. Jobs will reach retirement age, declare victory and sell Apple and pixar to IBM, retiring with 3 billion [2003 equivalent] dollars to pursue his next interest: watching old QT .movs.
Digitalstrider, you missed my point. I am predicting that the best looking games will soon be designed on, and solely for, Mac without any Microsoft equivalent because Microsoft doesn’t have the 64-bit abilities for FP math and manipulating large portions of memory necessary to the next generation of games requiring realistic images and motion.
For game programers, the G5 is too cool to ignore. Too often game programmers dream of one thing but must settle for a slower, low res, version so it doesn’t tax the Wintel box. With G5, they can create it as they imagine it. Maybe even better than they imagined.
It doesn’t take much for gamers to switch platforms. No single person runs even a significant fraction the 50,000 Windows games. People run just their few favorites. Gamers will quickly make the jump as soon as they see their friend playing a wickedly fast and smooth game with unbelievably real graphics on their Mac, because as soon as they get home to their tired, slow, Wintel box, that is completely incapable of running the really cool Mac games, they will switch.
This won’t happen overnight, but the computer industry hasn’t had a serious earthquake in a very long time. It is far overdue after the long reign of Microsoft mediocrity! And when Apple does send the shudder through the industry, Microsoft’s inflexible structure built on an old foundation will come crashing down.
Microsoft recently announced a huge increase in their R&D spending. Some analysts see this as Microsoft seeking computer innovation, I see this as desperation. They can no longer copy Apple so easily, and now they actually have to do their own thinking to barely keep pace in the technology race. Personally, I think R&D at Microsoft stands for “Rip & Duplicate”.
Microsoft doesn’t have to innovate to survive. With all the OEMs including whatever version of Windows Microsoft is currently touting, Bill and his people can claim acceptance among millions of users. Many more that are using Macintoshes, no matter how good OSX is.
Apple is doing well by creating a very powerful combination of hardware (G5) and software (OSX) and letting developers see what they can write will all this at their disposition. Soon enough and with the right applications, a $500 Windows box will never be compared with a $3000 double-processor OSX machine. Nowadays, if most businesses only run MS Office, then the comparison can be made.
Longhorn must *really* suck for them to put out a press release like that! The spin doctors are already at work trying to make “lousy user interface” synonymous with “innovative.” Sorry, Bill…wishing doesn’t make it so.
@Aryugaetu concerning your prediction.
I�m a hardcore Macfan, but you really miss the point. Developing games is about GPU power and not CPU Power. ATI and NVdia put more effort in supporting Dirext X than OpenGL. And finally, as long as any standard MacIntosh will use a software controlled audio output the mac will always loose a lot of precessing power for generating the music and the sounds.