What laptop does Microsoft’s CEO use for his presentations?

A picture is worth a thousand words…

 

View the original on Flickr.Com

Ballmer: Vista is ‘a work in progress’

 

As PC users clamor for Microsoft to continue to support Windows XP, company CEO Steve Ballmer called the Vista OS “a work in progress” at an annual Seattle event on Thursday.

“It’s a very important piece of work. We did a lot of things right and have a lot of things we need to learn from. You never want to let five years go between releases,” he said.

While Microsoft recently extended the date when the XP software will be available for low-cost PCs, it doesn’t plan to listen to some other complaints, including that Vista is too big. “Vista is bigger than XP and it’s gonna stay bigger than XP,” Ballmer said. Read the full story on MacWorld.Com

 

Top Analysts: Windows collapsing under its own weight; Radical change needed

 

Microsoft’s Windows juggernaut is collapsing as it tries to support 20 years of applications and becomes more complicated by the minute. Meanwhile, Windows has outgrown hardware and customers are pondering skipping Vista to wait for Windows 7. If Windows is going to remain relevant it will need radical changes.

That sobering outlook comes courtesy of Gartner analysts Michael Silver and Neil MacDonald. Half of a full room of IT managers and executives raised their hands when asked whether Microsoft needed to radically change its approach to Windows. Read the full story on ZDNet.Com

 

Bill Gates: Vista replacement “Sometime in 2009″

 

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates on Friday indicated that Windows 7, the next major version of Windows, could come within the next year, far ahead of the development schedule previously indicated by the software maker.

In response to a question about Windows Vista, Gates, speaking before the Inter-American Development Bank here, said: “Sometime in the next year or so we will have a new version.” Referring to Windows 7, the code name for the next full release of Windows client software, Gates said: “I’m super-enthused about what it will do in lots of ways.” Read the full story on C|Net News

 

Microsoft top brass ‘burned’ by Vista problems

“Private Microsoft emails unearthed during a US court case have revealed that even the software giant’s own executives struggled to get Windows Vista running smoothly.”

“…One executive, Mike Nash, complained he was “burned” so badly by compatibility issues he was left with “a $2100 email machine”.

Steven Sinofsky, the Microsoft executive in charge of Windows, struggled to even get his home printer working with Vista.”

“Jon Shirley, who experienced compatibility problems with his Epson printer and scanner and his Nikon film scanner.

He could not even get some of Microsoft’s own MSN software products to work on Vista and refused to upgrade his other computer to the operating system.

“I cannot understand with a product this long in creation why there is such a shortage of drivers,” Shirley wrote to Ballmer.

Other emails from various Microsoft executives show that even they struggled to work out what “Vista Capable” and “Vista Ready” meant when buying a new PC.

“Is it true that Vista Ready doesn’t necessarily mean Aero capable? I got a Dell Latitude that is Vista Ready but doesn’t have enough graphics [hardware],” Sinofsky wrote.”

Read the full article on SydneyMorningHerald.Com.Au

See also this article on the NYTimes.Com

Court docs reveal Vista requirements lowered to help Intel sell incompatible chipsets.

“So now that the “Vista Capable” lawsuit is a full-blown class action, the judge has unsealed all 158 pages of emails between Microsoft execs trying to sort out what went wrong with the sticker program. While bits and pieces have been blacked out, what remains is still fairly incredible — although Intel’s 915 chipset was initially rejected as incompatible with Vista, MS execs flatly admit that “In the end, we lowered the requirements to help Intel make their quarterly earnings so they could continue to sell motherboards with the 915 graphics embedded” and “We are caving to Intel.” Read the full story on Engadget.Com

McAfee warns of Trojan virus for your Windows Mobile cellphone.

“WinCE/InfoJack sends the infected device’s serial number, operating system and other information to the author of the Trojan. It also leaves the infected mobile device vulnerable by allowing silent installation of malware. The Trojan modifies the infected device’s security setting to allow unsigned applications to be installed without a warning.

The Trojan was packed inside a number of legitimate installation files and distributed widely. It has been distributed with Google Maps, applications for stock trading, and a collection of games” Read the full story on ZDNet
I still can’t believe Microsoft wants to be more involved in the medical industry and that Bill Gates said he would trust his LIFE to Microsoft powered hardware in a hospital.

Was Vista rushed so Senior VP could accept Amazon’s millions?

An interesting article appeared on Slashdot today which suggests that perhaps Microsoft’s Sr. VP Brian Valentine pushed Vista into RC1 status prematurely in order to be free to leave Microsoft and able to meet the terms of his Employment Agreement for his new job at Amazon. The job that would see him receiving a $1.7M signing bonus, $150K salary, and 400K shares of stock (Now worth $30M)

I gotta admit though… Could you really fault him? I’d probably have done the same thing. A choice between a sinking ship and a new job, + millions of dollars isn’t much of a choice at all.

Read the article on SlashDot.Org

Bill Gates: ["Vista Sucks"] [video]

Gizmodo recently interviewed Bill Gates at CES. They posed a carefully worded question to the man and got a surprisingly frank answer…

Wow. See more of the interview at Gizmodo.

David Letterman on Bill Gates retirement. [video]

Hi, I’m a Programmer. I’m In love with my new Mac because…

“…I’m just like you, seriously! I’ve been using Microsoft stuff since 1992! That’s right, I’ve been a windows user most of my life. I remember 3.1, NT, 95, 98, 2000, ME (fucking stupid, 2000 in a different box, right?), and then on to (OOooOOoo) Windows XP. Luckily for me, the buck stopped here.

It’s about here that I meet Jay Phillips. Jay, a fellow hacker, is the creator of a very successful Telephony application called Adhearsion. He will be the first to tell you owes some of his coder success to his MacBook. Honestly, Jay even looks like the Mac guy on the commercial (see right). Anyway I was in the mood to debunk this obviously misguided coder (because coders need TECH machines, not pretty toys, right?) and I can honestly say from the deepest techie place in my heart: I got PWWWWWWND. This is why: Read the full post on SiKaNrOnG.com (found via SwitchingToMac.Com)

Soviet Microsoft: How Resistance to Free Markets and Open Ideas Will the Unravel the Software Superpower.

“…Somewhat ironically, one of the most financially successful capitalist companies of the 90s has positioned itself as a modern counterpart to the old communist Soviet Union. Microsoft’s ideological contempt for and resistance to free markets and the open expression and propagation of fresh ideas and technologies is not only a close parallel of the old USSR, but also a clear reflection of why Microsoft is currently failing and why its troubles have only just begun. Here’s a comprehensive look at why this is the case.” Read the full article on RoughlyDrafted.Com

Microsoft’s Latest Invention: The iPhone

Patent application from Microsoft. Words fail me. Read what Wired.Com had to say.

Looking for a good movie to rent?

I posted this a while ago but I’ve decided to refresh the post since there are a lot more readers now than when I first posted this.

Look for a copy of ”Pirates of Silicon Valley”. Based upon the book, Fire in the Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer, by Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine, this film documents the rise of the home computer/personal computer through the rivalry between Apple Computer and Microsoft. Here’s a clip…

Mother’s ire puts Ballmer on defense over Vista

“I’m one of those early adopters of Vista,” said Yvonne Genovese, an analyst who was interviewing Ballmer along with fellow analyst David Smith on stage at a conference forum. “My daughter comes in one day and says, ‘Hey Mom, my friend has Vista, and it has these neat little things called gadgets — I need those.’”

Said Ballmer: “I love your daughter.”

“You’re not going to like her mom in about two minutes,” said Genovese, while the crowd laughed.

She went on to explain that she installed Vista for her daughter — and two days later went right back to using the XP operating system. Read the full article on ComputerWorld.Com [via Hasta La Vista, Vista]

C|Net: Why Microsoft must abandon Vista to save itself

While Vista was originally touted by Microsoft as the operating system savior we’ve all been waiting for, it has turned out to be one of the biggest blunders in technology. With a host of issues that are inexcusable and features that are taken from the Mac OS X and Linux playbook, Microsoft has once again lost sight of what we really want. Read the full article on C|Net

Bill Gates Raves about the Mac (1984)

Back when Macs were new and Windows hadn’t been invented made by Microsoft yet, Bill Gates was interviewed at length about his thoughts on Macs. What did Bill have to say about them? You’d be surprised.

It’s kinda like those old razor ads that had the president stating: “I liked them so much I bought them company” but without the buying the company part. Read more.

Bonus: Video Clip

Off Topic: Bill Gates and McDonalds

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates disclosed on Tuesday his foundation holds stakes in McDonald’s Corp. The filing revealed that the trust holds 740,000 shares of McDonald’s, the world’s biggest restaurant company. While this isn’t really relevant to computers. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to use this All your base picture. Read more.

Watch Bill Gates answer to the Dept. Of Justice [video]

Here is a snippet from an 17 hour DVD set which you can obtain by contacting the poster. “What we’ve got here is Bill Gates raw, lively, on the hot seat and uncensored like no interview you’ve ever seen before.”

Dvorak: Microsoft: End of an Era

Personally, I wonder if the company can survive without Gates there on a day-to-day basis, berating the masochistic coders with his chiding. Two of his favorites include, “Do we actually pay you to work here?” and “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve EVER heard.” People always complain that Steve Jobs is a big meanie to the staff, but Gates is just as bad. Read more.

TIME Magazine: How Apple Does It

This is partly a story about a company called Apple Computer. It’s also partly a story about a fancy new iPod that plays videos as well as music and that could dramatically change the way people entertain themselves. But it’s mostly a story about new things and where they come from, about which there are a few popular misconceptions.

read more | digg story

Microsoft should buy discovered security exploits

“WabiSabiLabi generated some controversy recently by announcing their eBay-like site for security researchers to sell security exploits to the highest bidder. But WabiSabiLabi didn’t create the black-and-grey market for security exploits, they merely helped draw attention to it. There’s nothing that companies like Microsoft can do about the black market where security exploits sell for tens of thousands of dollars, but there’s one obvious thing they can do to help protect users: offer to buy up the security vulnerabilities themselves. Read more.

How Apple Can Win The PC Battle

Let’s step back and analyze why Apple’s market share is increasing. Apple’s endless passion for speed, elegance and simplicity runs through their entire product line. In the last few years, Apple has created a line of iMacs with gorgeous displays. They also basically made the hard drive fit into the display, released the Mac mini, ported to Intel - just to mention some of the Mac changes. Read more.

iPhone a True Threat to Windows Mobile

Microsoft has reason to fear the iPhone, both for its sales potential and its disruption of Microsoft’s traditional business model of proprietary protocols and customer lock-in, a Blackfriars Marketing analyst wrote Monday. Read more.

Bill Gates causes Hometown Clerk’s office to switch to Linux

When Bill Gates was building his house in Medina, WA, the sheer volume of permits it required forced the County Clerk’s office to move to a Linux based operating systems. The town looked into using NT to go with their Windows LAN, but went with Caldera’s Linux instead.

read more | digg story

Bill Gates Live Windows 98 Crash [video]

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this one.

I once made an audio clip from it which I used as my Windows error sound effect. I had to get rid of it though because hearing it that many times a week… it got old quick.

Bill Gates declares Vista could run life support systems in Hospitals.

Journalist: Let’s imagine a hospital where life support systems are running Vista. Would you trust it with your life?

Bill Gates: …The answer to your question is that, absolutely… Read more.

If Microsoft made toasters

I believe that Microsoft’s domination of the PC software market has dulled and altered our expectations of the ‘fit for purpose’ and ‘use from the box’ aspect of all - not just computer software - products we now shell out our hard earned for. Read more.

A thought from the author: PC vs Mac

I came to a realization the other day while surfing around the net looking for things of interest. I happened to read a comment on a site from a PC user to a Mac guy. It was a very biased and ignorant comment that left me envisioning this PC user as a 5 year old kid with his index fingers in his ears yelling “Lalalalala. Macs suck. Lalalaa I can’t hear you!”

But then it hit me. I used to be one of those guys!

Microsoft’s security leaks and dirty business tactics since 1999

I stumbled across this site this morning. Although the author decided to abandon it in 2005, it’s currently serving as an excellent historical record of Microsoft’s doings. If not for this archive this information might have been forgotten by the public with it’s short-term memory. All the information contained there is pretty overwhelming (ie: long read) but it only takes a quick browse of the archives to be reminded of just how and poor quality their software is, and how corrupt the management is. Is Microsoft above the law? Read more.

Microsoft considered abandoning Office for Mac in order harm Apple

Yet more criticism of Microsoft’s business practices has emerged in the wake of the recent Iowa anti-trust trial. Documentary evidence that Microsoft considered abandoning Office for Mac in order to cause “a great deal of harm” to Apple has emerged. An emailed memo from Microsoft-founder Bill Gates to then Mac Business Unit chief Ben Waldman dated June 1997 talks about morale in the Mac Office development camp. At that time Microsoft’s senior management were considering dumping Mac support. Read more.

Bill Gates Will Punch You in the Face if You Call Him a Nerd

Apparently money can’t buy a sense of humor. In a recent interview with AdAge, Bob Garfield asked Bill Gates about his thoughts on the John Hodgman “I’m a PC” character from the Apple ads. Read more.

Researcher: [Microsoft is] the key architect of the greatest financial pyramid scheme this century.

Bill Parish, a respected Investment Management and Researcher is authoring a book on some of the business practices of Microsoft. His page makes an interesting read. Here’s some snippets:

“I would buy a Mac today if I was not working at Microsoft.”

This is old news but I’m posting it for those that may not have ever stumbled across it. Did you know that Jim Allchin was Co-President, Platforms and Services Division of Microsoft. Did you know that after 17 years with the company, he retired on January 30, the day Vista shipped to consumers. The reason?

Vista sucks.

Here is the famous internal e-mail he sent:

Former Microsoft Insider Speaks Out

It is quite a rare thing for someone who was an employee of Microsoft to openly speak about the actions of a company that in the past tried to eliminate any potential competition.  He states that GNU and Linux are superior to Microsoft Windows, Office, and Internet Explorer. Read more.