In a move sure to excite tens, Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates and Corporate V.P./Steve Jobs-wannabe J Allard yesterday unveiled the next generation of the poorly-received Zune portable media players, software and online store. Gates and Allard also introduced Zune Social, a beta online music “community” Web site.
The two new models of Zune portable media players feature the new “Zune Pad,” a squarish circle, or “squircle” button for navigating the device, as well as wireless sync, which allows Zune devices to automatically sync over the device owner’s home wireless network when it is connected to an AC adaptor, in a dock or speaker dock accessory.
MacDailyNews Take: Microsoft “innovation” at work: Zunes offer “wireless” sync when connected to something with a wire.
The few Zune owners that do exist will receive new software features, the redesigned PC and device software and access to the new Zune Marketplace when the whole mess is released to the public in mid-November.
“Twenty years ago we bet the company on an integrated productivity suite of word processing, spreadsheets and presentations, and we changed the way people work,” Gates said in the press release. “Today we’re making big bets on games, music, video and connecting these entertainment experiences to help change the way people play.”
MacDailyNews Take: Bill bets so much, he oughta look into Gamblers Anonymous. So, Mr. High Roller, why don’t you bet the company on something meaningful for once, like quality? Then you can lose that bet, too, and the world can finally be done with the Dark Ages of Personal Computing, multibillion dollar Xbox hardware failures, mediocre music efforts, and whatever other crap you’ve half-baked and served up to the ignorant anyway.
“By tapping into customers’ passion for music with Zune Social, we’re starting to change the game,” Allard said in the press release. “This lets us start building a new, more valuable kind of relationship with consumers that, combined with other Zune innovations, will start to drive the entire music industry forward.”
MacDailyNews Take: Corporate mumbo-jumbo doesn’t sell derivative devices based on old ideas, Mr. Clean. One would have thought you’d have learned that the last time around, but you probably missed it while listening to one of your 9 iPods and using your Mac. We don’t blame you; using a Mac and a bunch of iPods is certainly better than facing the truth that you’re not Steve Jobs, will never be Steve Jobs, and you work for a company that makes your father’s OS, your father’s office suite, an unprofitable lemon game console, a bunch of other failures, and – again – derivative devices based on old ideas.
“The time is right to let go of the older business models and recognize that consumers want something different when it comes to music today,” said Terry McBride, CEO of Nettwerk Music Group, in the press release. “People are looking for simple ways to find great music and easily take it with them wherever they want to go, and Microsoft is not afraid of doing things differently to deliver on this vision.”
MacDailyNews Take: We’ve seen smaller loads being shoveled off pig farms by back-hoe.
Microsoft announced three new models of Zune portable digital media players:
• A black Zune 80GB hard-drive model, which has a 3.2-inch screen and comes with headphones for US$249.99
• Zune 4GB ($149.99) and 8GB ($199.99) flash models, both available in pink, green, black and red. The new Zune devices feature the “squircle” navigation button.
Together with the original Zune 30GB, now sans brown, that’s about it.
Microsoft’s promised new mid-November Zune features include the following:
• Wireless sync. Zune devices will automatically sync with their WIndows PC via a home wireless network and will start on its own when the device is placed in its dock or plugged in to charge. Alternatively, the sync can be started manually.
• Extended wireless sharing. Share select full-length songs, albums, playlists, pictures and even audio podcasts from device to device. Consumers can now listen to any song received up to three times with no time restrictions, and they can now also pass along songs to other Zunes, if you can find one. Try the Costco discount bin.
Launching first in beta, “Zune Social,” a beta online community Web site, gives people a place to share their music tastes, knowledge and experiences with others. Anyone can create a free, customizable Zune Card that automatically updates to reflect the music they are listening to on their Zune or with Zune software on their computer. The Zune Card shows most recently played tracks and highlights that person’s all-time music favorites. Other members of Zune Social can play samples of the songs a user has been playing directly from a friend’s Zune Card or link to Zune Marketplace, where they can buy or download the music. In a nod to the inherently social nature of music, Zune Social will eventually enable its members to place the Zune Card on today’s most popular social networking sites, where it will continue to update automatically and show off what its owners are listening to.
In addition to creating a friends list, members of Zune Social can send song links and messages to each other, post comments on a friend’s profile page or on their favorite artist pages. They can discover new music by seeing what their friends are listening to, receiving recommendations from others in the community or by seeing what the top fans of artists they’re interested in are listening to. Each artist page will list the Zune Cards of the people who listen to that artist the most, making it easy for other Zune Social members to browse their recent playlists and discover new content they can sample, purchase or download with a Zune Pass.
MacDailyNews Take: Good Jobs, they’re grasping at straws. Microsoft faces an infinite row to hoe.
The Zune Marketplace online store will offer a selection of more than 1 million digital rights management (DRM)-free MP3s, which can be played with Zune or any other digital media player. Wonder where they got that idea? Same place as all the rest they’ve ever had: 1 Infinite Loop. The Zune Marketplace online store offers more than 3 million songs or half that of Apple’s over 6 million songs offered in the iTunes Store.
Zune Marketplace continues to offer Zune Pass, which lets consumers download as much music as they want for a flat monthly rate of $14.99. To inspire Zune Pass subscribers, Zune Marketplace genre editors offer a range of playlists and promote new albums each week. Consumers can also choose to purchase music and music videos individually using Microsoft Points, so that Microsoft could make extra money from leftovers – if they only had customers.
That’s what I’m talking about, MDN
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Thanks to your take MDN. I like your summary of the new Zunes and Zune software!
Not to defend MS, but there are some things Apple would be smart to look at; the wireless sync feature for example. And MS seems to have listened to some of the criticism by removing the time limit on sharing songs.
whoa! A little harsh for first thing in the morning. Somebody wake up a little cranky. But I forgive you. Carry on.
Microsoft changing the time limit on songs squirted from others to more than 3 days?
It took that long to travel to the next person with a Zune.
“Zune Marketplace continues to offer Zune Pass, which lets consumers download as much music as they want for a flat monthly rate of $14.99.”
Is that music that the customer then OWNS for life, or still just renting?
Hmm.. the pictures look better than the old clunky Zunes, so they are definitely improving… maybe by version 7.5 they’ll finally catch up with this season’s iPods.
Oh great!
MDN gives Microsoft Zune a platform on a Mac related site, then knocks it.
This has a marketing effect of:
1: Giving the Zune free advertising.
2: Creates a underdog effect, which people who might otherwise buy a iPod, to consider a Zune.
Remember Rule #1 in Marketing, #1 doesn’t recongize or acknowledge #2
Apple’s iPod is #1 and there are no other devices.
Now why the hell didn’t Apple do the wireless sync with the iphone / touch? Oh, that’s right, STARBUCKS sharing!!! Looks like the Zune still has to be plugged into something to do wireless sync? I hate buring up a charge cycle on the battery just to sync a few songs or podcasts. At least the iphone / touch have the wi-fi store.
The New york Times article says the brown Zune is gone. Must have flushed it down the toilet.
Costco is planning an introductory offer:
Buy an iPod, get a 12 pack of Zunes free.
most people i know have horrible taste in music. i don’t care what they are listening to.
i think that M$ has mistake in the zune,Podcast defines the i-Pod,they don´t have even creativety on define a new word for it!
Whats wrong with MS ? Even the Zune.net website stole the ideas of recently re wamped apple.com website features ?? Try some original ideas atleast you ll get some brownie points.
MDN,
Stop! You’re killing me!
“squircle”?
Isn’t that a Pokemon?
Man, who thinks up this stuff for Microsoft?
I sick of the squircles!
….for those of your that remember calling circles for long distance calls.
Good take MDN.
Microsoft is dying, slowly.
But Surely.
Wow, a squircle. I think MS has lost the plot. The tipping point is here.
There are some elements of these that I think are OK or might be cool if Apple implemented in some fashion but they’re minor points and certainly not enough to make me want one over an iPod in any way. Wireless syncing may offer some convenience but it’s not a huge selling feature. Most of the time when I want to sync I’m at my machine and I charge it by plugging into my computer and if I’m transferring any volume of data then it’s faster when wired.
“access to the new Zune Marketplace”
Sounds like a place where I can trade a couple chickens for a sack of potatoes.
Have you seen the new Zunephone?
MDN is starting to sound more like a Yankee-hater than a Sox-booster. One is a subset of the other — let’s try to remember who we are.
That said, it looks like Zune *has* made some improvements to their product here, in direct response to public criticisms:
– use-based, not time-based exploding shared songs. better.
– re-sharable shared songs. better.
– shared songs to begin with is a cool idea.
– wireless sync is a cool idea, and one the iPod community has been requesting for a long time.
– Zune Social integrating with myspace, facebook, etc. will give them a lot of free publicity, and trigger a lot of “you use a Zune? do you like it?” conversations. That can only be good for them, and will start to peel back some of the Zune stigma that the iPod community is trying to hard to generate.
By the way, despite MDN’s snarky intentional misreading, wireless sync does NOT require being plugged in — it will sync AUTOMATICALLY when plugged in to a dock or speakers. Just an indicator that you’re probably at home. Otherwise, you can manually trigger the wireless sync at any time.
It’s a long way from catching up to the iPod, but it’s making strides.
More Zune junk doomed for failure.
A “squircle” is defined as follows:
[(x – a)/r1]^n + [(y-b)/r2]^n = r^n where n = 4. r1 and r2 are the major and semi-major axes of an ellipse. The “squircle” is a subset of supercircles. It takes on different shapes as n increases…as I understood it when I googled the damn thing.
Baby-poop green.
This Allard character is SOOOO forward looking… check out that 90s shaved head… SOOOO today, SOOO cutting edge. Maybe he should switch to a goatee and backwards cap.
WOW! One MILLION songs?
I had NO IDEA that Billy Joel and Neil Diamond had written so many!
So you squirt with your squircle, then.
Eww.
Spreadsheets to entertainment. That makes a lot of sense.
Most entertainers are ex-accountants after all.
The best thing about a new M$ product release are the youtube videos taking the piss out of it.
has anyone seen all the BS on Digg today about this new Zune crap?? All those idiots are praising M$ for updating the software of Zune 1.0 when the 2.0 comes out. BFD!!!
And can you believe they’re trying to smack Apple down because M$ updated products like they’re supposed too?
I guess they forget that Apple gives its products new features through software updates ALL THE TIME!!
Plus I think M$ has got to have a bunch of spies on Digg because all the people not slamming Apple are getting majorly Dugg down. Retarded.
“Squircle”. Brilliant! Thanks for the laugh. That was simply brilliant.
And the entire article was hilarious.
In another interview, MS says it wants Zune to be No. 2. Well, they should have kept the brown!
Things Apple should consider taking note of that MS has done very well:
Giving your fans access to (at least some) of the new features without forcing them to buy a new iPod every year. I mean, come on: I had to purchase a new iPod just to get GAPLESS PLAYBACK?! That’s nothing more than a software update!
++ There’s no reason – absolutely none – that the iPod Nano and Classic shouldn’t have wifi in it. So, why doesn’t it? I won’t browse the web on it, but sending songs via wifi to another iPod (which is much easier to find than a Zune) would be awesome.
I won’t be shilled forever, Mr Jobs. Everything MS does isn’t bad. These things I listed are some of them. Take note, because as of now, if Zune was available on Mac OS, then I would be dumping my 5G iPod.
People:
Why would Apple want to adopt any of Micros••t’s ‘ideas’ when it has the #1 best selling music player, the most popular music software, the biggest music library and the highest online music sales in every market it’s in???
Apple leads, Micros**t follows.
Also, here’s a lovely little snippet from the ‘Techdirt’ site.
It’s a Zune owner replying to comments about the crappy wi-fi and poor sales:
“I have a zune myself and there are very few issues with the player but mostly the software is a POS. I am sure there would be more player issues found if I could use all the wi-fi features. I agree….forget the advertising and start fixing the software and device. Once the device is like the word will spread on its own. I think in about 1 year and 2-4 gens later this will be a good device. Perhaps things like internet radio, or the ability to setup connections to wireless networks and use it as a media device on things like the xbox 360 or any pc. Lots of uses for the wi-fi are capped by the local file sharing only.”
Yep buddy, you were right, the word did spread on its own.
The Zune is a turd.
‘Squircle’ reminds me…
… of the similar-shaped ‘Quartic’ steering wheel, fobbed off on a dubious UK public back in the 1970s, by the (surprise!) soon-to-be-doomed BL Motor Corp.
Halo 3’s not bad though, if you like that sort of thing.
From now on, I’m going to call my favourite member a ‘squircle’.
You’re pushing pretty hard MDN. Perhaps you secretly like it?
Who the *blank* FORCES you to buy a new ANYTHING every year????????????
Are you a mindless cretin or do you think for yourself???
Don’t answer that.
Who the *blank* FORCES you to buy a new ANYTHING every year????????????
Are you a mindless cretin or do you think for yourself???
Don’t answer that.
Today must be a wet dream for Zune Tang.
I own the patent to Roundish Squares, Triangulish Rectangles, Pyramidish Boxes, Empty Ashtrays, Balloon Air.
More to come.
“We’ve seen smaller loads being shoveled off pig farms by back-hoe”
Obviously no-one at MDN has ever been around a pig farm, may of them use a tank bigger then a swimming pool to store the pig manure for spreading on fields… and I am not lying about the size, a round tank usually 100+ feet in diameter and around 15 to 20 feet high filled with liquefied pig manure… though that’s still smaller then what MS can put out in a day…
MDN: Is this an article you wrote? Who are you quoting? Is it legal to quote someone verbatim without giving them credit?
The units look better than the old ones. The new iPods are still a generation ahead at least. The price is on par with similar capacity iPods so all in all I would say Zunes don’t have a chance in hell of catching up with iPods.
Competition is good – I want Apple to stay ahead of the game; give me what I want at a decent price. We all win….well except for M$.
I also want M$ to continue to lose money on the business, to reduce their cash supply and lower their profit margins. The less money they make the faster they fall!
Every song, including MP3s, squirted over to another zune is still wrapped in DRM.
Seems like this would be a good time to look up Bill Gate’s original comment regarding DRM-free music when Steve Jobs issued his open letter about it.
MDN, why don’t you post a good picture of Gates, instead of resorting to personal attacks like that.
bloo:
DIGG is virtually owned by Microsoft. They banned roughlydrafted.com articles because they were correct in their bashing of Microsoft.
No wonder Digg is going to have articles positive to Zune.
Wireless sync as long as it is connected to an AC adapter and a dock? Uh, that’s not wireless in my book. Wireless sync would be pressing a button while I’m in the backyard and sync. Pretty boring stuff that looks like won’t excite anyone if you ask me. That was about as exciting as Vista’s release.
Ren Hoek said it best, “Stimpy you iiidiot!”
Just my $0.02
Oh Stop! You are killing me! This is one of the funniest articles and comment threads!
In other news, Zune Tang was unavailable for comment as he was off playing with his new squircle.
So the big Zune doesn’t have a Squircle? How could they leave such an innovative feature off the most expensive one? I mean, come on, it’s a square, but it’s also a circle! Genius!
</sarcasm>
I hope the weather holds during the release date because it would be terrible to be rained on during the 7 days I intend to stand in line for the new Zune. I’m despondent though that there’s no ZunePhone yet. That really ruins my holiday season.
wireless sync…yeah, i guess it would be okay with relatively small amounts of data. if i added several CDs worth of music, or video(s) longer than a half hour, i’d hate to put up with the wait to sync it to my player. but wireless sync of contacts, calendars, etc. would be okay.
still, not enough there to pull me away from my iPod.
Well, this new Zune does in fact have better specs than the iPod classics, but Apple now has the iPod touch, which the Zune can’t even come close to “touching” (no pun intended). Wait for future iPod touches/iPhones with 32GB/64GB, etc once flash memory comes down in price. Flash memory is the future for DAPs, Apple just jumped the gun a little early with the 16GB only on the touch.
The writing is on the wall. I told you Mac Fanboys about Zune 2.0 and its many rich features that will be rolled with it. The wired-wireless sync is pure genius. Why didn’t Apple think of that??
Apple can’t even be consistent. At least the Zune you know your screen resolutions stays the same even with the older models. No changes like the iPod from 320x to 640x support. It’s confusing.
At least the new Zune stays with the same resolution. MS always thinks about their customers first. Unlike Apple causing confusion with these resolution changes.
I got socialized once. It took a frayed parallel cable and a groin adapter to mitigate the damage. I also suffered a betrayal of trustworthy computing ..so I’ll be damned if I’m going to spend time with zunisocial dudes who want me to feel their squircles ..and don’t you dare f*k with my passion.
MS updates the Zune……and the world collectively yawns. Seriously – who cares? Just another me-too wannabe iPod. After the iPod Touch, this new Zune design is positively prehistoric. Sorry, MS – I don’t think this is a battle you can win.
Why is everyone so fixated on wifi/BT syncing? You would drain half your battery syncing 4GB or larger over wifi/BT. So you’d have to plug it back in anyway.
Why is Originalrecipes ripping Zune Tang’s shtick?
Notice how the rendering for the new Zune’s mimics the studio lighting design from the 5G iPod marketing campaign.
http://i.pricerunner.com/prod/17_6_11_8_733680s/Apple_iPod_Video_80GB_Black.jpeg
What a bunch of turds.
How come Microsoft can get a hard drive into a device with a 3.2 inch screen with decent battery life but Apple can’t do the same concerning a 3.5 inch screen?
I thought a hard drive with such a big screen was impossible unless you had a laptop battery?
“In a move sure to excite tens”
I think that’s being a bit generous, don’t you think?
Zune Pass
I think I will!
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I thought the wireless sync was a great feature; I was almost worried MS had a good product on its hands and it would be taking on the iPod for real. But now I find out it needs to be attached to an adaptor??? Is it true??? That’s just so backasswards stupid.
Hey… not so nice to kick so hard when their down.
And this generation doesn’t look as butt ugly.
And hey MDN: you actually missed a relevant Zune omission. Still no mac support. Fortunately colleges are not important markets for music players. bwahaha. Music players are purchased centrally by corporate IT departments stardardized on windows. Yippeee!!! Good thing too because Apple can actually bundle ipods to college students with macs. Which would make MS… Netscape.
And… since the mac does not have a dominant market share and there is no consent decree hanging over Apple’s head… it can even bundle them… legally.
No matter, I’m sure those IT departments will by Zunes in the convenient 1000 pack.
You need to be kinder, MDN. MS is really fscked on this one.
Seriously it is so rich to see
I normally to do not post twice, but I just love how I can get together will all my special MS friends who have pre-released Zunes. We are all having a ball “squirting” each other with “unprotected” music. I even got my girlfriend to join in on the fun and we have been squirting her all morning. Awesome. I just love Microsoft.
re: Have you seen the new Zunephone?
———
ROFL!
That movie is priceless!
Everyone should look at that video – I fell off my chair it was so funny!
:DD
@ApplePi,
“MDN, why don’t you post a good picture of Gates, instead of resorting to personal attacks like that.”
Because that picture is funny as hell!
re: How come Microsoft can get a hard drive into a device with a 3.2 inch screen with decent battery life but Apple can’t do the same concerning a 3.5 inch screen?
—-
The reason why they can do this is because no one every turns their Zune on.
My opinon of the new range of Zunes: “crap”.
Reading this article is simply a form of entertainment… and it’s hilarious! You’re right; it is a form of promotion. But, I don’t think posting this news story on MDN is going to sell one more Zune device. People are informed and entertained. It’s simply information about a laughable, 20th century-style mp3 player for loosers.
@justified,
Exactly what I said and posted on Appleinsider today.
But, you are 100% correct! Mafia$oft is now even copying Apple’s marketing campaigns.
Hey now, when you say they got all their ideas from 1 Infinite Loop. If you say that, then you have to give Apple credit for squirting…we don’t want Apple to have that mark on their record, now do we?
The new flash Zunes, are a copy of the old Nano’s
already obsolete
@Not to defend MS, but there are some things Apple would be smart to look at; the wireless sync feature for example.
what is the difference in putting a Zune in a dock, and synching, or putting an iPod on a dock, and syncing??
“In a move sure to excite tens”.
I used to have two excitable tens once. Then they grew into their sedate twenties. They both own iPods.
There are lots of features that Apple could ‘enable’ and others it o doubt has in the draw ready for release.
MS latest may be a poor second but without a volume contender Apple can release minor enhancements every 6 months and keep control of the market.
This just helps to make Apple raise the bar again – but a little faster than otherwise.
I still wouldn’t want one because it’s about integration and MS software is crud.
“We believe in the magic of software,” Bill Gates told the 15 journalists gathered at Microsoft Zune headquarters in Redmond, Washington for the relaunch of Zune for the 2007 holidays.
15 people? Now that’s a launch!
How effing low can they effing go? This company needs to be killed. I didn’t think it was possible for me to disrespect them even more, and yet they insist on plunging still further into heretofore unexplored depths of shallowness, make-a-buck met too bullshit, and flat out dishonesty. Good grief, I hope consumers are smarter than this. Bless the mighty Lords of Creation that Bungie wised up and jumped ship. Fucking Microsoft! RRRRRrrr!
I can’t decide until I see Zune Tang’s review.
He always makes sense.
How effing low can they effing go? This company so needs to be killed. I didn’t think it was possible for me to disrespect them even more, and yet they insist on plunging still further into heretofore unexplored depths of shallowness, make-a-buck met too bullshit, and flat out dishonesty. Good grief, I hope consumers are smarter than this. Bless the mighty Lords of Creation that Bungie wised up and jumped ship. Fucking Microsoft! RRRRRrrr!
I don’t like Bill or J squirting in my squirkle. That is too personal in my social.
“Today we’re making big bets on games, music, video and connecting these entertainment experiences to help change the way people play.”
Umm . . . excuse me? Didn’t Apple say exactly the same thing some seven or so years ago when iLife made its debut? What a fucking maroon.
I think Ballmer’s been squirting in all their squircles.
That’s why M$ is all squirked-up.
Type-o! squirCle. Can’t read other posts and type same mistake. This Micro$oft lingo is hard to learn.
I laughed so much I forgot to Drink Camel’s Milk!!
MDN…QUICK!!!! Patent or copyright SQUIRCLE before someone else does!!!!!!!!!
Now we know how they “sold” 1 million Zunes by June. Send them out and later we can update the firmware and call them Zune 30’s.
MDN Word = Stock, As in plenty of Zune 30’s in stock NOW, firmware to follow sometime in November!
We are betting BIG on market research today. Our panels have told us that they like big, thick, brick-like players, so we made them thicket than iPods. Plus the Zune sold over 1 million units by June, so we just renamed it and updated the firmware. No need to redesign it to match the new Zunes, nor make it thinner than the new 80. 30 should be thicker than 80. Also 60% of the panels liked a circular control, and 30% preferred a square control, and 10% wanted no control. Of course being Microsoft, we wanted to make 100% of our customers happy and gave them a Squircle control.
“In a move sure to excite tens”
LOL!!! I love that one!!
MW: nearly – I nearly shot coffee out my nose when I read that.
Nice try…
Now if M$$$ could only find the target market…. they might be able in “time” to claim ownership of iPod’s bottom 20%… the slice marked “Other”
M$$$$$ needs to wake up and close shop…the road is only going to get stepper and in the wrong direction…DOWN HILL!
A negative comment was made regarding the Zune Pass idea. I think the person who made the comment isn’t thinking very clearly because he feels he needs to “OWN” the music.
Hmmmmm. I have been collecting CDs since 1984 and I have over 1000 of the things. Average cost is around $15.00; that equates to $15,000!!!! Holy cow batman!!!!
Let me do the math. If I “rent” the music at $15.00 a month then I would have spent…$4140.00, or about $10,860 less!! If I rent my music at (to cover increased costs) $20.00 a month for 50 years I will spend ONLY $12,000. HOLY COW!!!
So…it is cheaper to make a monthly payment to listen to a huge library (it doesn’t have to be specifically Zune Marketplace) versus buying CDs for the rest of my life..Hmmmmm
you guys got to see this, fucking hilarious:
http://www.blimptv.net/mostpopularV1.html
@Joe
You are assuming everyone has bought 1000 CD’s or plans to buy 1000 CD’s. You are also assuming they cost $15 each. You are also assuming the music rental services will be around in 50 years. Also, if one service goes out of business, you can certainly choose another one (if another exists at that time). However, all the effort expended in downloading and building a collection will be gone. That’s 10’s of thousands of songs you’ll have to re-download and organize into playlists.
That’s a lot of assumptions. Isn’t it better to pay for each song you really like, and have the right to play them forever?
That IS hilarious.
Freakin’ awesome!
Your potential. Our passion.™
I would never buy a product from a 40 year old man who still calls himself Robbie. Watched him on CNBC – silly person – oh yea he has a mountain bike – whoa! –
Over at the NYT, after reading luke warm newsflash… http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/03/microsoft-sings-a-new-zune/index.html?ex=1349064000&en=c3add967b1814e66&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
sorry about that.. I left this comment:
“This is just another ‘me too’ product from a Titanic company, MSFT. Apple is the Hydrofoil of tech companies, good luck catching up with their superior electronic gadgets. It’s fun watching the PC wars heat up again. As well as using a computer that works for me, no constant tweaking coupled with tedious cyber-hygiene requirements. Security via better code, *Nixing the bad guys every time. “
MW-dead, ouch.
You are reading from a textbook.
Microsoft will NEVER be the underdog; it will always be the evil empire UNTIL it loses its monopoly. If its products continue to suck when it has lost its monopoly then it will just be a bad, small-time company. There are plenty of lousy software companies in the world.
Apple’s RAISON D’ETRE is to be the REBEL. Remember the PIRATE FLAGS. Rebels will ALWAYS knock the Goliaths of the world.
The iPod continues to rule because it is just AN EXCELLENT PRODUCT.
Let’s talk marketing later when the products are at least nearly on par.
The Windows marketing machine only happened because of ILLEGAL MONOPOLISTIC PRACTICES. Don’t say MS products won because of marketing. It’s easy to spew propaganda when you are in a totalitarian state.
Bill G is gettin’ out while he can still say that “it wasn’t MY fault…”
inspiring…
MDN: Microsoft “innovation” at work: Zunes offer “wireless” sync when connected to something with a wire.
What do you expect from people who are attempting the logically impossible task of squaring a circle?
A squarish circle is known as an ‘elipse’, and that would have been a helluva lot cooler sounding than ‘squircle’. The hilarity never ends.