“Microsoft confirmed Wednesday that it will yank yet another feature from Windows Vista, this time PC-to-PC Sync, a P2P-based technology for keeping files up-to-date on multiple machines. ‘While PC-to-PC Sync is a great feature that improves productivity and collaboration we don’t have it at the quality level our customers demand,’ a company spokesperson said in an e-mail. ‘As a result the decision was made to remove it from Windows Vista,'” Gregg Keizer reports for TechWeb News.
“The departure of PC-to-PC Sync comes just days after Microsoft said it was pulling other features from Office 2007 and letting computer makers install the OS sans the company’s new XPS electronic document format, all under pressure from Adobe,” Keizer reports. “The spokesperson also said that PC-to-PC Sync would be the last feature to be dropped from Vista, and that it hoped to provide it in some fashion down the road.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Mikey” for the heads up.]
MacDailyNews Take: “Quality level our customers demand?” So, when did Microsoft hire Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf as a company spokesperson? Anyway, just when you thought the ineptitude couldn’t get any worse… Hey, let’s see if we can all come up with a list of all the promised features that Microsoft has gutted from Windows XP SP3, er… Vista. We’ll start: WinFS…
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MDN is obsessed with Windows…
“the quality level our customers demand”
He he he he he! Thats great!
As the old programmers used to say:
“Lose Lisp, sync ships.”
With .Mac I’ve not had a major problem with it. I have just one machine in my 5 mac setup be the one to send data to .Mac and have the iDisk drive icon on the desktop. Each of my Macs sync with each other on an hourly basis.
Sure there’s the occasional downtime due to maintenence issues. which IMO is standard practice in about every server room in any organisation. Each organisation has to do that in order to provide the service they offer such as you and me, the general public or for the organisations own internal needs to allow it to function in a tech age.
Now since Vista won’t have a .Mac type service for its (future*) users and yes it would be nice to have a price drop should PC-to-PC Sync have gone ahead, but at least now the Mac OS is yet another step above Windows, even more so than before!
*Future, what future, who am I kidding!
MW: alone, as in Mac users will soon no longer be regarded as being an oddity alone in a Windows world.
R if I’m not mistaken I believe that Apple licensed PDF from Adobe when developing OS X.
“we don’t have it at the quality level our customers demand”
…but it IS at the quality level their customers deserve.
What is sick is that Microsoft admits not that it aims low and merely codes to a quality level their customers demand, rather than having their own internal high standards and leading the way by innovating.
—
MDN Word: ‘doubt’; I doubt Vista will ever ship before 2009.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahha.
we don’t have it at the quality level our customers demand
Translated: the damn thing doesn’t work, nobody knows what’s going on, and we gave up out of sheer hopelessness.
MS needs to release all existing Windows versions as freeware, and then shut down the Windows division for good. The beast is dead and rotting, just bury it already.
The more feaures and functions Microsoft deletes, slashes, and removes from Vista the less Vista it becomes. At this rate, the only original thing about “Vista” when it is finally released will be the packaging. “Yes, folks, after years of hard work we now present a pretty new cardboard box with a joke inside.”
“As it has in the past, Microsoft cited quality concerns as the reason for the feature’s exit. ”
If quality is the main concern for Microsoft, which would certainly be a first, then why not just pull the plug on the friggin’ product all together.
Microsoft’s new tag line should be: Microsoft “Crap-In, Crap-Out”
<u>LOLLIBAGGER</u>I guess they couldn’t perfect a new version of a dialog box showing an animation of a piece of paper flying from one folder to another, like older Windows.
Yeah, they’ve dropped that for a new dialog box showing an animation of a chair flying from one side of Ballmers office to another.
This is new Windows.
MW: I’m looking at many Switchers comin aboard!
“the quality level our customers demand”
It must have been really crappy if they figure that they should pull it now, because 6 months of further development, beta testing and quality assurance isn’t gonna put lipstick on that pig.
I hereby request MDN to post the features and functions promised by Microsoft first in Longhorn then later Vista and now deleted as of 07 June 2006. I need a good laugh.
Excellent request, maczealot.
“Microsoft lops off yet another Windows Vista feature: ‘PC-to-PC Sync’ bites the dust.”
Yeah, but Minesweeper and Solitaire will have transparent windows and net-enabled tournament play.
“Instead of studying for finals, what about just going to the Bahamas and catching some rays? Maybe you’ll flunk, but you might have flunked anyway; that’s my point.”
– Jack Handey
Yeah. Let’s see the list.
I love the comments here. You guys all rock.
Microsoft not so much though…
I don’t think they’ll ship within 12 months.
maczealot asks:
1. WinFS
2. virtual folders
3. Replacement for System Tray in Sidebar
4. Media Center remote for Calendar, Mail, and other components
5. support for RAW image files
6. PC-to-PC Sync
7. Vista Ultimate Extras (features & services), including a Texas Hold-em
8. Virtual PC Express
9. Media Center support for the Xbox 360 Media Center Extender
10. automatic hard disk defragmentation
11. themed slideshows
12. Windows Movie Maker HD
13. resolution-independent vector graphic icons
14. EFI Boot support
Oops, I meant ‘now’, not ‘not’:
“What is sick is that Microsoft admits now that it aims low and merely codes to a quality level their customers demand, rather than having their own internal high standards and leading the way by innovating.”
BTW, coding to “a quality level your customers demand” is the cart leading the horse. Listening to customers is one thing, but solely crafting your product to petty, small-minded user demands for workarounds, fixes and gee-whiz features leads to mediocre products that scream “slapped together”.
A really innovative company can have the foresight to create well-designed and well-implemented features in ways that the user didn’t imagine they could ask for (in a good way) – paradigm shifts etc., not mere incremental refinements to ease complaints, or one-up the other OS for gloss.
Over-hyped tweaks and desperate imitation won’t get Microsoft anywhere, especially when poorly implemented. Oh, wait…I take that back…
What were: ‘Avalon’; ‘Indigo’; ‘Fundamentals’?
Meanwhile, Microsoft has an eye on Adobe’s project (formerly Macromedia), Apollo, that combines PDF, Flash and HTML. The embrace, extend and extinguish machinery rolls on.
.Mac rules. I’ve never had any serious long-term problems with it. It’s saved my bacon a few times, especially when I dropped my laptop at school. Installed a new hard drive, and bam… my Address Book and Calendars were there waiting for me after a sync.
Tommy Boy:
Thank you. I enjoyed a good chuckle after reading the list. However, now I have nothing but pity for the pathetic Windows user. It’s no wonder that the people in the IT department mumble incoherently, fidget with their hands, and avoid eye contact when Leopard and Vista are mentioned. The shame of Microsoft must embarrass PC users tremendously.