Describing how Microsoft has messed up (the one thing at which the Redmond monopolists seem to be really, really proficient) Word 2007, Margaret Heffernan blogs for The Huffington Post, “Microsoft has done it again: turned a perfectly decent piece of software on which a whole community depended into something that doesn’t work for anyone. It’s a classic example — if we needed more — of a company not listening to, not even thinking about, its customers. Instead of attacking competitors like Google, it might be a lot smarter if they diverted some of their brilliance to paying customers.”
Full article here.
Dan Warne, for APC Magazine, reports that Microsoft is pleading with customers not to wait for the oh-so-magical Vista SP1. “Microsoft has launched a ‘fact rich’ program to help customers understand why they should ‘proceed with confidence’ in rolling out Vista across all their PCs.”
MacDailyNews Take: Why would Microsoft launch Ballmer to help customers understand? (Scratching heads, rubbing chins, we re-read) Oh, we get it, “fact rich” – sorry, didn’t see that “c” the first time.
“Vista service pack 1 is, in the company’s own words, designed to address ‘deployment blockers and high impact issues,’ suggesting that until the release of SP1, you will have to contend with … deployment blockers and high impact issues. Hardly the basis for proceeding with confidence,” Warne reports.
Warne reports, “Microsoft’s ‘fact rich’ program announcement coincided with an embarrassing double-backflip today on its policy banning users from running home versions of Vista under virtual machines like VMware. It had planned to loosen the reigns, but pulled the announcement at the last moment.”
Full article here.
Also, in the “news” is a video produced by SarcasticGamer.com that highlights Microsoft’s vision of the future: “Surface: One Day Your Computer Will Be a Big-Ass Table.” The Sarcastic Gamer gives special thanks to their friends at Gamercast Network for “creative inspiration.”
As Andrew Fentem explained for The Register earlier this month, “Microsoft’s Surface Computing isn’t ‘a new paradigm,’ nor is it adding any innovation to an existing paradigm. Table computing isn’t a new market, either, and Microsoft’s demos are years away from being productized. In fact, according to Bill Buxton – ironically a Principal Researcher at Microsoft’s own research centre – these kinds of multi-touch interfaces have been around for over twenty years.”
Full article here.
More about Microsoft’s “Surface” (it’s smoke and mirrors – and cameras, folks) here and here.
MacDailyNews Note: The headline for this article is a parody. In regards to wakefulness, of course, not Microsoft products’ suckage, which is obvious fact to anyone who’s ever tried to use them. Unfortunately, only approximately 7.6% of home computer users have actually woken up (yet) combined with approximately 85% of digital media player users, 80% of legal online content downloaders, and another 0.00000001% who use Linux (but, as they’re way back in the server room, we’re not walking all the way back there to make sure he’s actually awake).
Heh heh, good stuff. My colleagues are waking up too. The all have these horrible acer anchors, and look with longing at my macbook.
I can’t stop laughing
awesome
Funny video.
I laugh at anybody who takes the Huffington Post as a source of opinion…
Platforms of self importance never cease top amaze me.
Of course MDN being the only source of credible opinion…well… in my case.
very very funny video…
Not everyone who owns a PC is convinced it’s the best thing out there. Some figure it’s the “best for the price” (they failed all four years of high school math) or “what they need for work”. Well, if “work” wants you to have a Vista-ready laptop, let them issue you one. For now, my son-in-law still plays solitaire on his H-P – and WoW (when he can get access time) on his wife’s iBook.
DLMeyer – the Voice of G.L.Horton’s Stage Page Pod-Cast
Using the latest touchscreen i have been testing from microsoft, it is horrid. the most inefficient and inaccurate machine to date.
Heffernan on Huffington, Heffernan on Huffington, Heffernan on Huffington, Heffernan on Huffington. Sounds like a train. Left leaning on the bends.
What if we were to see this on the new 24″ iMac as an option, for maybe around $2700.
ha ha ha that movie is great!
That video was classic. I love it.
The Huffington Post is nothing more than a lefty propaganda, straight-bashing, tabloid. A far cry from journalism. Yet Google news still clutters my personalized news page with their refuse.
Surface looks cool, but in how many ways is it going to be THAT great? I can see for kiosks and stuff, but the video actually makes some brilliant points– it kind-of keeps you from doing the same sort of thing which is usually easier, more entertaining, and human. Surface attempts to be “personal tech,” but it’s not.
We already have touch screen kiosks– in what way is surface unique, except that… well… it’s a big ass table?
All those Winblows Fista users out there can’t wait for SP1 so their solitaire games will really fly once again.
I just pis*ed myself watching that.
Someone should send that to Monkey Boy.
I just can’t get this smile off my face! Classic video!
Love it.
if you are all done complaining about huffington post and back to watching faux news, can we get back to the point?
damn that video is funny!
it might be a lot smarter if they diverted some of their brilliance to paying customers.”
The quote above says most of it. They need to listen to there customers. They don’t, so it’s there loss and Apple’s gain as Apple does listen to there customers and it it working brilliantly.
Thanks Apple!
Word 2007 is the shit. Shit as in – brilliant.
I use 4x more functions than in previous versions, the ribbons work fine for the novice, and a pro user simply uses shortcuts for every function. I don’t even use the mouse any more, even for advanced editing.
Try it – you’ll like it.
Hopefully it will be just as user-friendly in the coming Mac-version (and yes, I’m also an avid Mac-user; 3 months old Macbook Pro).
For once Microsoft got something right.
And (while I’m at it…) I think Surface is an interesting technology.
In some ways similar in function to what the iPhone promises, although not at all practical for the foreseeing future (far too expensive and crude)
But look ahead. In 10-15 years time, more advanced screens of this type might show up all over the place.
And who will be in the forefront of development?
Right now, only Microsoft.
But I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple tried to get in to the market… :-
They have a sense of style and taste that would be perfect for this kind of product.
“World awakens, realizes Microsoft products suck”
Man, that was just mean. I got my hopes up and then it turned out to be hyperbole!
Shame on you.
LMAO
That table-computer video is just so funny.
Well at least I lived long enough to see MS begging its customers to keep on using. What a freaking joke MS is.
MW = “problem”, as in, Hey, I know what the problem is.
hehe, MDN’s take is hilarious…and so true.
I reliazed the mediocre-ness of M$ products last november…and immediately switched to Linux…and then to a Mac. Nothing wrong wiht linux, infact I like it better than Windows, but OS X is more user oriented…and looks graphically stunning and better than Linux.
If I could count at how many times people have drooled at my Macbook Pro + OS X, and then multiply that by a dollar for each time…I would honestly be a millionaire by now.
Most individuals in the world are not exposed to chance…and hence are too scared to make the switch, and are stuck thinking that M$ products are the only way to go…its changing slowly though, as more and more people become aware.
“Reins”, not “reigns”, although I see the pun.
I simply appreciate the fact that my 2½ year old PowerBook looks as good as the day I bought it
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And I love how OS X is the most intuitive OS available to buy today.
Nothing more to say really.
Microsoft pleading people not to wait for Vista SP1 should have been the subject of its own article. This is great stuff:
<a >Microsoft to users: Pretty please don’t wait for SP1</a>
@PC Guy
Thanks for the insights. I do think that you, and all of us, might end up being a little surprised about who’s really at the forefront of new screen technology. I couldn’t help but notice the whimsical smirk that SJ had on his face when BG mentioned so called “surface” technology in passing during his reply to what futuristic inventions are on the horizon for Apple and MS during D5.
I wouldn’t be shocked at all, and I don’t believe I’m being over optimisitic, if Steve and company have already had it on the drawing board for sometime, and it won’t take 10-15 years to get the technology completed, but it is going to take some work trying to get the price down so people can and will buy it – I think that’s the only reall challenge with any cutting edge screen tech. already being developed.
My understanding is that flexible screens, a.k.a. Minority Report, have been developed and are now awaiting assembly line development that will allow this new technology to be produced for a consumable cost. The last I heard there were at least two or three companies lined up ready to take this new invention to the next level. No, I don’t think it’s going to take 10-15 years to get some real cutting edge screen tech. to market, and I’m in no way convinced that MS has any edge in this area – software or hardware wise.
Oops. I hate it when good URLs go bad:
<a >Microsoft to users: Pretty please don’t wait for SP1″</a>
Are you kidding me. (*sigh*) Long day, I guess. One more try:
Microsoft to users: Pretty please don’t wait for SP1
in my opinion microsoft invented the most unconfortable way to touch,in a table our back still uncortable,there is no other method,i still think apple´s answer to surface its the best, i think apple can do a multi touch imac,but to be resigned its not need to be complete vertical,actually needs to be mid-vertical to be the best computer ever made without being a big ass table witch is more uncortable and only we see it on restaurants or enterprises,oh and the price its not fair to be the best product.
@Mr. Peabody
It will be interesting to see what will happen, if the iPhone is a great success. Will the next generation of operating systems – Windows/OSX/Linux – support similar touch screen technology?
Microsoft sucks, no question. But MDN isn’t giving the straight scoop here, I’m afraid. Heffernan’s beef with Word 2007 is that there are issues with the equation editor. The Apple alternative to Word, Pages, doesn’t even have equation editing. You can create your equation in grapher and use a third party utility LaTeXiT to typeset the equation using LaTeXt, but out of the box it can’t be done, and if you’re using LaTeXt, that works with Word too. In any event, the finest word processor in the PC realm is still Word Perfect, and, if anything, Word 2007 is trying to emulate the latest version of WordPerfect. Having praised the program, however, I have nothing but scorn for Corel because they discontinued the Mac version of WordPerfect. Boo.
$10,000 for a bloody table!
LLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLL!
Reduce it by $9,999 and people will start buying it.
Surface may look good, but Microsoft DIDNT invent it.
They bought the technology off another company – same old story of throwing cash around to try and make something, someone, somewhere may buy.
Stick to Office Microsoft, thats all youre good for.
While the movie was enjoyable, I think the irony is that is what exactly the table will be used for. I think some people will get off on the novelty approach, like ordering a menu from a list of pictures. I wonder if there will be a scented add on device that will let you sniff what you are going to eat.
We might forget what has driven some of these industries. Remember the porn industry’s influence on the early net? I think the surface thing might be real popular at strip clubs.
2250 Downtown in a major city.
After my electric car breaks down I finally link my iPhone to one of the city’s robocabs and I’m on my way to my dinner date.
This is such a big night for me I’ve got dinner with my girlfriend and I want to propose to her. At least I missed the acid rain front off the ocean. Damn this global warming; why were my grandparent’s generation so selfish, we could have so avoided most of this. Oh well I guess it could have been worse.
(Walter’s cab arrives at the restaurant, he pays Fred the driver. All robodrivers are called Fred and Walter races into the restaurant. He sees Ruth his girlfriend and goes over to the table that he’d pre-booked with his iPhone).
As he sits down Ruth shows him MStable. She’s been waiting for him for fifteen minutes so she’s had a chance to try it out. Microsoft promised that the technology would be available by 2025. I guess some things never change.
(Walter and Ruth then decide to order by using the menus and resizing options from the MStable.)
This is so cool Walter tells Ruth. This table is an interactive pleasure. Just as they’re about to order the images freeze and then about a minute later the images fade to a blue screen. Oh great says Walter the blue screen of death. Quicker than a ramjet Mars thruster, Walter whips out his iPhone and places their order.
Walter thinks out aloud that some things never change. Apple products work and Microsoft just don’t.
Half an hour later Walter proposes to Ruth and she accepts. They get back to their dinner whilst discussing possible honeymoon destinations: the Timorese Confederation, the Martian colonies, Alice Springs, a submarine visit to the old New Orleans. They decide on Mars; no smog and no acid rain.
Walter assures Ruth that it’ll be as safe as all get out. You see, the interplanetary express runs on Apple software.
Yes somethings never change…
Umm.. no.. $10,000 does NOT get you a working table.
All that gets you is the big bathtub sized table and computer, and you still have to program it to do what you want it to do. It’s what they call “customized solution” in other words, program it yourself!!
So yeah, it costs WAY more than $10,000!!
You laugh in the face of Linux now, MDN [%.0000001 of all computer users? Ha, more like just as large as Apple’s base], but it’s blatantly obvious that more and more windows users are switching over to Ubuntu, and Linux will be a force to reckon with in the not-too-distant future. People have arisen from the dead, so to speak, to a system that preaches true democracy (for the people, by the people), not a monarchy (Apple) or a tyranny (Microsoft).
Seriously, give Ubuntu a shot, i think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how far Linux has come in terms of useability..
O-M >big ass table witch is more uncortable >
“I think it’s very cortable,” said the which.
Ubuntu user: but it’s blatantly obvious that more and more windows users are switching over to Ubuntu, and Linux will be a force to reckon with in the not-too-distant future. People have arisen from the dead
First off “arisen from the dead” should be “risen from the dead.”
Second, Linux users are not enemies of the Mac. Apple embraces and cooperates with a large number of OOS movements, from the Konqueror engine in Safari, to Apache web server, to Bonjour for automatic networking over TCP/IP, not to mention the Unix kernel in OS X. If Apple is a “monarchy” it’s at least somewhat benevolent and helps push open standards.
Microsoft is truly nasty not only trying to put up road blocks to non MS solutions and open source software, but actually threatening to sue claiming various UNSPECIFIED patent infringements.
PC guyBut look ahead. In 10-15 years time, more advanced screens of this type might show up all over the place.
And who will be in the forefront of development?
Right now, only Microsoft.
To PC guy, MS did not in any way shape or form invent surface multi touch computing, it’s been around and in development by many different companies for over a decade.
Microsoft is a follower here and late to the game, hardly at the “forefront.”
‘Seriously, give Ubuntu a shot, i think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how far Linux has come in terms of useability..’
Yes, that’s true, but it isn’t saying much in comparison to the nightmare it was before to the non-geek. So many of my hardcore techie friends say the same thing, but you’re missing the point (no offense). It is still in no way, shape, or form ready for the average user, and it is light years behind OS X, however it may compare to Windows. Someday it will undoubtedly be a contender, but that day has not yet arrived. I use my machine mainly for creative work and I wouldn’t touch Linux with a ten foot pole at this point. It’s still not ready for prime time.
Ubuntu user, wow. They finally connected a phone to the server room? Amazing……..
> Seriously, give Ubuntu a shot…
Ubuntu is pretty good. However, it has one major drawback, beyond the still somewhat technical process for installing it and getting everything to work properly. There is no iTunes. There is no straightforward way to get iPods (and soon iPhones) to work with it. For me, that would be a show-stopper.
Well, thats the beauty of Linux, that the more problems and bugs are reported (by more users), the more those kinks are more likely to be worked out. With time, it will most definitely improve in leaps and bounds, you cant say the same for MS. Dare I say, Linux is like wikipedia in that sense (or is it the other way around?
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Microsoft and Linux do share one thing in common — they are always promising that things will be better next time. Linux allows you to fix stuff that’s broken, so you can tweak your customized box to your heart’s content (assuming your time is worth nothing to you); Microsoft doesn’t, but you’re still saddled with making the thing work. Two different approaches to causing problems, but both cause problems. I quit using Windows because I got tired of being the computer custodian. Why in the *&*^&* would I go and then use Linux? I’m sick of Having To tweak and jerry-rig and pray and sweat and bleed to get my computer working and to keep it that way. Thanks, but I want to use my computer to DO something, not glory in the fact that I have some mechanical marvel that actually works. I’m an ex-Windows user, and for the most part, an ex-Red Hat/Linux user, too. Mac all the way, baby.
Surface sucks! Take that microsoft.
opinion-maker: “Surface sucks! Take that microsoft.”
I think it’s more of a hand job.
ok disclaimer here: I like Apple as much as anyone here..
@BTSOI
lets face it, what exactly are you referring to that is broken in Linux? have you tried it recently (in the past 1-2 years)? Red Hat is geared towards Business Enterprises, Ubuntu towards “Human Beings”
And as Nietzsche said, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”; many people in Ubuntu forums have stated that their experience in CLI (command line interface) has helped with regards to OS X when something goes wrong.
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