“Microsoft Corp. plans six core offerings of its upcoming Windows Vista operating system, targeting how people use computers instead of PC hardware specifications, the company said Monday,” Reuters reports. “The world’s largest software maker plans three offerings aimed at consumers, two at business users and a stripped-down edition for emerging markets… The company, which accidentally posted some details of the Vista product lineup on one of its Web sites earlier in the month, has promised that Vista will feature improved security, simplified search across the desktop and a cleaner interface… Microsoft will also offer a version of Vista Home Basic and Vista Business without a Windows Media Player in Europe to comply with European Union antitrust rulings.”
“We’re delivering the exact same number of offerings as in Windows XP, but the big difference is that each of those offerings are targeted differently with a different set of features,” said Barry Goffe, director of Microsoft’s Windows client product marketing,” Reuters reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take:
Ballmer: How come only three versions, Barry? As with everything, food, dancing, hair, you name it, more is better. Make it six versions. I can sell that.
Goffe: Okay boss. I’ll make it the exact same as Windows XP, but with the big difference of it not being exactly the same, but targeted to the same differently-defined targets with the exact same features, but the big difference is that each feature will feature differently-targeted feature sets. Then we’ll just market the shit out of it.
Ballmer: Makes perfect sense to me. Thank God that 50% of the world is below average and that 35% of the rest are too lazy to care.
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“Things that make you go… HUH?”
Six Versions = 6 x (1million viruses + 2million bugs) = Worse than Windows XP
Seriously…..why….?
What edition will Ballmer be using Fat Idiot Edition.
I just want Windows Vista Gaming for Virtual PC. All I want is to play Wintel games on my new Intel Mac, and nothing else. And I suspect that I am not the only one who feels thus.
Great take MDN!
“These go to eleven…”
Great Take MDN. These guys are complete idiots. It’s embarrassing!
Won’t most Windows buyers just wave a WHITE flag and surrender? I mean, even Office XP comes in too many flavors to understand. No one wants to have to make choices about software they have never used. MSFT should follow AAPL’s lead on this one and have a client version adn a sever version.
Why would ANYBODY want a stripped down version of Windows!
That’s be like a pig with lipstick, without the lipstick. Just a pig.
I take it from this marketing strategy that their theory behind it all is you get what you pay for, so the ‘Ultimate’ Edition must weigh in at $0.50
Apple does not like to dissapoint
Steve Jobs does not like to dissapoint
Expect Apple stock to go up 5-10% after tomorrow’s Apple Show.
Mac Genius, wouldn’t you rather see all those Windows games get developed for Mac OS X? If everyone buys Windows games to run on their Mac, who’s going to develop Mac games? If you really want to play windows games in Windows, then why don’t you just buy a Windows computer?
I would imagine the versions that will suck the least will be the European versions, the ones without Windows Media Player.
six flavours of shit is not really a selection
Wow! MS will be available in 6 flavors of crap. Mmmm Crap.
Of course even if people could actually figure out the difference between them, they’ll basically end up with whatever PC World or the like happens to bundle in with whatever cheapo piece of crap hardware they’re foisting on the public that week as being the best in modern computing technology but at a low price.
Salesman: this comes with Intel centrino technology with HT bullshitting built in.
Member of the public: (blank stare)
Salesman: It’s really cheap and runs windows blah blah.
Member of the public: (I don’t know what that means but) all that sounds techy and that’s what computers are, it’s cheap though – I’ll take it.
Salesman: sucker.
Member of the public: Sorry?
Salesman: erm, I’m a sucker to let it go that cheap.
“Six” as in “666” is the number of the DEVIL (if you believe Dispensationalism – personally, I don’t buy into it, personally, I’m a Postmillenial Preterist).
do NOT cuss….do you have no etiquette?? no sense of decency?
this is the first time i’ve seen you swear in an MDN Take…and am fully disappointed. there is no way i would refer someone to this site with comments like that. please, is not cussing for high-schoolers? i think we know better.
mw ‘four’ – no four letter words!!
split a pile of dog poo 6 ways and you’re just left with a bigger mess.
Release a Windows-free version and I’m there
Mac Genius–It’s about time you changed your name to Mac F–l, or Windoze Genius.
New movie title: Six Degrees of Shit Excretion, starring Steve Ballmer as Jabba The Hutt and Bill Gates and the wormy nerd next door. In this movie, the good scientist, played by Steve Jobs, have found a cure for a horrible wave of viruses that has plagued our society. The evil Jabba The Hutt decides that the only way he can continue his domination of society is to make more ways for his evil virus strains to reproduce, so he creates six separate colons through which his evil viruses can travel. The ignorant American public, not knowing or caring the difference, continues to purchase these unclean bowels, as they have all been cloned from sheep and therefore do not know any better. But in the end, a smaller but smarter religious group called Mac Heads ultimately find a way to defeat Jabballmer by avoiding his dirty colons altogether, choosing instead to side with the smart/good scientist Jobs.
Hey, it could happen.
ashamed to read MDN……
F S C K O F F then.
how do you like them apples.
Surely, it just means another reason for the IT department to up the budgets and employ more people. I can just see the $$ signs in the head of depts eyes. It’s all about power and holding onto it.
Thanks for editing my cussing MDN, and not deleting my entire post.
Kudos
too true jimbo