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Windows 8 - Deeper Impressions


JorgeA

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I think there is an additional piece to the puzzle: I am pretty sure Thurrott, Ed Bott, Sinofsky, the metrotards etc. have completely bought into the idea that all people do with computers is facebooking, twittering and porning the whole day and nothing else. So the opposition against W8 comes as a complete shock to them. They can't fathom they were wrong and would rather blame the whole world than Windows 8.

Excellent point!

No doubt there are people who only want to do those sorts of things, and need only a simple machine. But IMO their number has been vastly overestimated. Or, more accurately, the proportion of people who actually use their computers for more complex tasks has been greatly UNDERestimated. And then there are those who only want to do simple tasks, but who don't want to shell out $499 for a simple machine (the Surface RT) when they can pay $329 for a full-fledged PC, or a similar amount for a non-Microsoft tablet that will do much the same stuff (for that much less money).

--JorgeA

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...then there are those who only want to do simple tasks, but who don't want to shell out $499 for a simple machine (the Surface RT) when they can pay $329 for a full-fledged PC, or a similar amount for a non-Microsoft tablet that will do much the same stuff (for that much less money).

Acer Intros 7-inch Iconia B1 Android Tablet For Under $150 ( Tom's Hardware 2013-01-07 )

Acer confirms "less than $150" 7-inch Jelly Bean tablet ( TechSpot 2013-01-07 )

Now what do they do? I've been saying their math is way off on how much marketshare they can expect in "Mobile". There is also a often-rumored wave of budget cellphones coming as well. Microsoft let the Surface go for midrange laptop prices and the Surface Pro will go for high-end laptop prices. Are they crazy? What do they got on the bottom end? The number of tablets and phones will leapfrog and they have no chance at penetration. Even if every other phone and tablet ( "mobile" ) maker decided to take a year off, could they than make a dent? I doubt it. Great idea destroying Windows Steve.

Report: Microsoft's Xbox division has lost nearly $3 billion in 10 years ( NeoWin 2013-01-07 )

Is there actually a board of directors at this company?

Nokia is committed to Windows Phone, full stop ( NeoWin 2013-01-07 )

Or are they? Article makes it sound a little shakey to me.

Linksys Intros New 802.11ac Smart Wi-Fi Routers ( Tom's Hardware 2013-01-07 )

Not related to Windows 8, or is it? ...

Finally, the company has revealed several apps that will take advantage of the new 802.11ac Smart Wi-Fi routers including FileFinch from Fresh Consulting, Qnext for Facebook from Qnext Corp., HipPlay from Axentra Corporation, and save@home from Xoriant. Linksys said in the December meeting that more than 50 developers are creating apps focused on access control, media control, home monitoring and remote media.

"Today's smart homes and smart devices deserve a smart home network,” said Brett Wingo, vice president and general manager, Cisco Home Networking. "With the introduction of our new, powerful hardware and continued growth of Linksys Smart Wi-Fi, we are changing how people think about and use routers in the home. The router is becoming the hub of the smart home allowing parents to control their kids' screen time, ensuring streaming media devices get the bandwidth they need for top video quality, giving consumers an easy way to store and serve up music and video and much more."

So much for computer security which is unraveling on two fronts now. The router is getting "smart" and Windows 8 displays personal information by design at your fingertips. If I steal your Tablet or Surface I will have nice updating tiles with the names of your contacts, emails, tweets, facebook and probably billing information and stock quotes, each being a fingerpress away for more info. Now with smart routers, all I need to do is steal your Tablet or Surface and if the owner has his router password stored I have direct access to the network, its client computers, webcams, and coming soon: smart house devices probably including burglar alarms. We thought this was a bad idea a decade ago with uPnP, but memories are short I guess. Sacrifice security in the name of convenience and you know the result.

Totally unrelated to Windows 8, but articles to demonstrate that it is not just Microsoft that are not thinking clearly ...

USB 3.0 doubling up to a super ‘SuperSpeed' of 10 Gbps ( NeoWin 2013-01-07 )

USB 3.0 update will double transfer speeds to 10Gbps in 2014 ( TechSpot 2013-01-07 )

In summary, About a year from now USB will increase its speed from 5 Gb/s to 10 Gb/s, a complete doubling. However ... the new USB will still be called USB 3.0 ... and it will still use the same Connectors ... and it might still use the same Cables. :no: What could possibly go wrong? Continuing with previous blunders they will use a dumb parlance like USB "SuperSpeed" instead of USB 3.1 or something else. Why do we have these standards organizations again?

EDIT: using the same connector is a good thing, I doubt the same cable will work though. But the name is wrong! If you go shopping at NewEgg for something that runs at the new speed wouldn't you rather search for USB 3.1 instead of some dumb marketroid label? It is going to cause lots of headaches for hardware makers.

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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Well, Paul Thurrott is back embarrassing himself again in ...

Fixing Windows 8, Part 6: Offer Desktop Apps in Windows Store ... For Both Windows 8 and RT ( WinSupersite 2013-01-07 )

Under the guise of improving Windows 8 by cross-pollinating the two sides of the Desktop and Metro, he actually is just re-stating much of the nonsense he stated earlier in another infamous comment. Here he is yesterday ...

Thurrott ... Windows RT is correctly viewed as Microsoft’s chance to more quickly shed legacy deadwood than is possible with mainstream Windows, I think its mission can be more clearly stated differently. That is, Windows RT is Microsoft’s chance to change Windows into a more controlled environment, one that is safer and ultimately better for users. And one way Microsoft can ensure this is to also offer well-made desktop applications in Windows Store, for both Windows 8 and RT.

We'll get back to that "deadwood" thing again later. Anyway, from there he proceeds on a wishful magical mystery tour of band-aids to be applied on this frankenstein monster. He seems to believe that if only Microsoft would tweak the thing up all the ill-feelings would wash away and the countryside would suddenly resemble the fields of Windows XP Bliss once again. It's sad really. He mentions that the "sandboxing" is the key to the safety and security of the new model. He implies that multitasking is the root of all evil, apps cannot be allowed to interact. Uggh. He is practically begging Microsoft to lock down the platform and turn him into an iSheep. Why doesn't he just go Apple? He closes the post with this ...

Thurrott ... Some will try to pick this idea apart. But I’m challenging the assumption that Windows RT is about something as specific as the death of the desktop: I think Windows RT is about offering consistent and reliable experiences, period. And one way Microsoft could accomplish this while offering users real benefits is to curate desktop applications and offering them via Windows Store. Done right, this could eliminate the few remaining disadvantages of Windows RT in particular, but it would also benefit Windows 8 users since all apps (and applications) offered through the store are known to be reliable, safe, and well-made.

I'll bet he actually does believe that too even though it cannot be said of any software ever developed in the history of the world, yet he no doubt believes it. :no:

He also demonstrates his failing eyesight or complete lack of taste when a very sensible commenter says: "I think that then next Fixing Windows 8 article should be about aero glass and personalization. I think the personalization settings in Windows 8 should be restored to that of the Release Preview.", to which he replies ...

Thurrott ... Aero glass is gone for a good reason: It was killing battery life. Microsoft clearly made the right decision on that one. And while not everyone agrees with this, I think the flat new look in Windows 8 is more attractive.

Every single word he wrote was ridiculous. Microsoft made the wrong decision Paul. Aero Glass was removed for no good reason Paul. And if you think the flat, glaring, shadowless, colorless, sharp-cornered, two-dimensional Windows 1.0 look "is more attractive", can I see some pictures of your house to see if you also do without the bells and whistles to keep it "more attractive"? Aero Glass may be optional and subjective certainly, but do you deprive yourself of such things in your home? Optional decorations are a personal choice, we could always choose not to use them and some did, but they are not things that are to be removed under false pretenses or outright lies. My computer here doesn't have a battery Paul, what do you have to say about that? My laptops are plugged in Paul, what do you have to say about that? You always had the choice to disable Aero and set the computer for "best performance" and a variety of other reductive settings. Did you disable all of those Paul? Now here is the final question Paul ... Why do you think these things should be removed from my computer and not just yours?

His comment about "Deadwood" was noticed in an earlier comment ( see Post #866 ) and is a reference to one of his worst displays of fanboyism ...

Wednesday, August 15, 2012 - Start: The Windows 8 Era Begins

... where we dubbed him ... Paul "The Desktop Must Die" Thurrott , and we saw him state ...

Thurrott ... Windows 8 is a mess, but it’s a glorious, wonderful mess. It's the technology equivalent of a gooey ice cream cone on a humid summer day, where half of it just drips down over your hand, and you couldn't care less because the whole experience is so wonderful. For all the whining, hand-wringing, and ivory tower opining over Microsoft's decision to wed an awesome new mobile platform with its superior desktop OS, few of these critics ever paused for a moment to consider an awesome possibility: This time, more really is more."

The real mind-bending pull-quote was this self-outing as a delusional MicroZealot ...

Thurrott ... And if Metro does take off, Windows will surely be better for it. This is a hard pill for some people to swallow, and I know that what you’re about to read will not be popular in certain circles, but please take this with the understanding that I’ve written it as a die-hard, confirmed desktop PC user. The desktop must die. And it must take all of the bad stuff that comes along with the good—the malware and viruses, sure, but also the complexities, reliability issues, and so on—with it. These types of technology changes are difficult, and often time consuming. But with each new generation change, some old, out of date technology is lopped off too. And the move to Metro/Windows RT will be the biggest exorcism of technological deadwood yet."

Exorcism? Technological deadwood? Give me a break. Malware from the "desktop"? Canned apps, no multitasking? Lunacy. Everyone knows that it does not make sense to attack your own strengths, your allies, your own history. You don't burn the bridges behind you unless you are in retreat. Severing ties to your own history is ludicrous. Microsoft was propelled to its dominant position from its pre-OS past life as a small fish in a big pond of software companies because of one platform - the x86 universe pioneered by IBM, whose coattails were long enough to drag these hicks into prominence. The x86 universe ( which now includes 64-bit also, it means 8086 family ) is one where anyone can become a programmer and directly sell their wares to anyone else without a gatekeeper like Microsoft charging a bridge toll. All the related companies including OEM hardware makers also played nice keeping the open architecture alive ( ironically it would be IBM that broke the unwritten rule with MCA, but I digress ) and thriving so this "ecosystem" flourished.

Along came Apple's business models, with a closed architecture, iron-fisted uniformity and later with private controlled stores complete with mafia-like cuts, and the mental illness of Apple-envy took root in all those jealous minds in Redmond. And here we are. It is very transparent to those of us who participated from the beginning. Microsoft wishes to morph into MicroApple right before our lying eyes while telling us how great this Windows 8 abomination is for everyone, even though we know it is good only for Microsoft. So where does Thurrott and Bott and a few other MicroZombies fit in? Good question. I find it hard to believe that they could be this gullible. It is impossible that the entire history of the x86 universe has escaped even them. They must be willing participants in this attack on the "free world" ( a good metaphor for the x86 universe I think ). Thurrott sees the "Free World" as "Deadwood". He is either blind or a useful idi0t. When you look at the overall history and remember that Microsoft first pushed its way into the OEM assembly line with back-room deals and ultimately got the bulk of the computers on Planet Earth running their OS, and later they decide it is time to convert them into their private walled-garden slowly and by attrition, it becomes a serious matter legally, morally and ethically. It is a very easy comparison to large monopolies of the past like Railroad or Oil Barons, except for scale, because the legendary monopolists of the past never got into the customer range of holding a billion victims at their disposal the way Microsoft has.

This attack on all of us is real. This is war. There can no longer be any doubt that they want x86 and all its scab developers with their non-sanctioned, non-taxed software out of the picture. Make no mistake, they have a plan to phase out x86 by hook or by crook. Ultimately the operating system ( Windows 8 or 9 or 10 or Metro or RT or whatever they call it ) will be the gatekeeper. Microsoft will get a cut from the software authors, advertising, streaming, developer tools and maybe even email and TV. This is a very cloudy future for freedom. The death of the x86 universe does not even mean the death of x86 chips from Intel and AMD because the OS could emulate on top of them a different target ( explains why they don't seem too worried yet ), or it could just shift to ARM architecture or even something else entirely. The problem is at the OS level, where Microsoft is making its move from selling a passive Operating System ( that sits between the hardware and applications ) to a one-stop shop of gate-keeping and control. Pretty much everything you take for granted now is on its way out the window. Yes, they cannot take away our own systems and tools and a dwindling world of x86 will probably survive, but the plan is nefarious nonetheless because as old computers die, and the new ones roll of the assembly lines with "Microsoft Gates" installed ( get it? like Windows, but gate-keeping ) it becomes a matter of time. This is why they have turned me around, an ancient veteran Microsoft DOS and Windows tech, from a friend to a mortal enemy. This is why I believe Windows 8 and all its evil spawn must fail and fail spectacularly. There is an old saying: "You always dance with the one that brung ya", and the x86 universe with its huge amount of companies and individual developers is "the one who brung ya".

The picture isn't crystal clear yet however. They may fail spectacularly this year, but it might not be enough to put this genie back in the bottle. In a perfect world they would just say "We're getting out of the OS business" and release something like the Windows XP or 7 source code to the community ( along with FAT and NTFS and other necessary protocols ) and let the actual experts take over. I mean they say it's dying anyway, right? Prove it by getting out, you made enough money off this thing already. Then they could move on to their Windows RT pipe dream ( and still fail ). Alternatively we can demand from the government ( never my first choice, but ) that this company to be split in at least two parts, isolating the OS division from the rest of those children. After a thorough house-cleaning ( that means under-achievers like you Steve, Julie and Jensen ) then things might just get on track. Hey, we can still dream, right?

EDIT: typo

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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This attack on all of us is real. This is war. There can no longer be any doubt that they want x86 and all its scab developers with their non-sanctioned, non-taxed software out of the picture. Make no mistake, they have a plan to phase out x86 by hook or by crook. Ultimately the operating system ( Windows 8 or 9 or 10 or Metro or RT or whatever they call it ) will be the gatekeeper. Microsoft will get a cut from the software authors, advertising, streaming, developer tools and maybe even email and TV. This is a very cloudy future for freedom. The death of the x86 universe does not even mean the death of x86 chips from Intel and AMD because the OS could emulate on top of them a different target ( explains why they don't seem too worried yet ), or it could just shift to ARM architecture or even something else entirely. The problem is at the OS level, where Microsoft is making its move from selling a passive Operating System ( that sits between the hardware and applications ) to a one-stop shop of gate-keeping and control. Pretty much everything you take for granted now is on its way out the window. Yes, they cannot take away our own systems and tools and a dwindling world of x86 will probably survive, but the plan is nefarious nonetheless because as old computers die, and the new ones roll of the assembly lines with "Microsoft Gates" installed ( get it? like Windows, but gate-keeping ) it becomes a matter of time. This is why they have turned me around, an ancient veteran Microsoft DOS and Windows tech, from a friend to a mortal enemy. This is why I believe Windows 8 and all its evil spawn must fail and fail spectacularly. There is an old saying: "You always dance with the one that brung ya", and the x86 universe with its huge amount of companies and individual developers is "the one who brung ya".

What a magnificent, eloquent post -- all of it. I only quote the above so that readers know which one I'm talking about.

Just to make it worthwhile for folks to return to this webpage because of my post, here's more bad news for Windows 8.

And ponder the irony of this picture:

post-287775-0-45113900-1357666650_thumb.

--JorgeA

Edited by JorgeA
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@Formfiller has opened a new thread that provides what we may classify as another "Deeper Impression":

Scanning is not a supported Metro scenario in Windows 8.

Details: in Windows RT, that is. And yet, we've been told that RT (ARM) and the Metro interface are the wave of the Windows future. So, what gives?

Is this yet another way in which Microsoft is sticking it to serious users? (I suggest you go back to that thread to comment.) We can't even say that it's "for the sake of Facebookers and other casual users," because having vs. not having scanner functionality makes no difference to them -- so why remove it?

And even that would be less than true, because I know home users who do scan pictures and documents into their PCs for purposes of archiving and organizing.

--JorgeA

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Valve’s Gabe Newell on Steam Box and the “giant sadness” of Windows 8 ( Maximum PC 2013-01-09 )

Gabe reiterates his earlier observation on how his old company Microsoft is hurting everyone but Microsoft ( and I would add their fanboy cult ). He catches a lot of grief in the comments of articles like this, but I don't think he cares. He is plowing along with using Linux in future products and this also upsets the MicroCult. The guy was there in the early days of Windows and probably had a good look at lifelong under-achievers like Sinofsky, Julie and Ballmer so his insight is far from meaningless. How dare an ex-Softie criticize the Borg.

Nokia accused of $545m tax evasion in India; offices raided in investigation ( NeoWin 2013-01-08 )

Funny how two companies teetering on the brink of disaster have bet their entire farm on Windows 8, which could be the last straw for each of them. HP and Nokia ( and HTC could be a third ). If any or all of them get burned to the ground there will be some blowback on Microsoft, yet I doubt they really care. I would be sorry to see Nokia disappear, less so for HP, but they have asked for it. Wouldn't you love to be a fly on the wall of the backroom when Ballmer was hard-selling them with the used-car salesman schtick.

Microsoft Signs $617 Million Windows 8 Contract With US Gov't ( Tom's Hardware 2013-01-08 )

Let me be the first to state the obvious ... another Government Bailout! of course. A few years ago it was $600 Billion, and then $700 Billion, and only some of us complained, so what's another thousandth of that gonna do. It is being spun as cost savings, as if the existing corporate SA agreement was renegotiated with better terms for the customer ( the Pentagon, err, I mean the Taxpayers ). The MicroZealots are actually spreading this bull. But please, think it through! ... If the agreement was renegotiated resulting in a savings to the Pentagon, then Microsoft would have had to lose on this "deal" ( i.e., collecting less money from the Pentagon ). So which is it? A large new sale resulting in new net income ( black ink ) for Microsoft along with more red ink for the Pentaon ( and taxpayers ) , or, some new magic fantasy agreement where the Pentagon ( and the taxpayers ) are saving money and Microsoft gets what? Red ink or black ink?. Actually this stinks of the worst kind of cronyism. Avoiding party politics here completely, there were many recent articles about Microsoft donations in the recent campaign and upcoming inauguration, not to mention the hiring of a plugged-in political insider as a VP, so this is classic payback and is probably perfectly legal. I say probably legal because there are some very specific acts that address Pentagon spending and cronyism, and I am sure others will be looking at this down the road. This kind of shady deal does beg the question though, Why don't we taxpayers now get corporate licenses since we are the ones that actually paid this bill?

Microsoft: 60 million Windows 8 licenses sold, 100 million app downloads ( NeoWin 2013-01-08 )

The MicroZealots are ecstatic of course, and naturally unquestioning of any news that Ballmer lets out. Obviously "licenses sold" is mostly OEM backroom shenanigans, plus corporate agreements, plus the new government bailout, plus boxed SKUs sold to retailers and then finally SKUs sold to the lemmings directly. The latter group is microscopic, the first three are sizeable but do not represent installs at all and includes downgrades to Windows 7 of course. The first group and last two groups really would tell us something since they include returns from angry customers ( of which I am personally aware of a dozen or so, something I cannot remember ever happening in the past ). Naturally Microsoft does not tell us anything useful as usual, they really never have but this cooking the books came to prominence IMHO around the Vista era. Don't believe a word they say now because Ballmer will never be truthful because he is a bureaucrat and a marketer. That is the modern equivalent of a Snake Oil Salesman. Questions for journalists, how many of the alleged 60 million licenses sold are installed? How many of those 60 million were literally returned? How many were actually Windows 7 downgrades? About the App Store, there is something else to consider. When you download and install an app, their telemetry obviously is recording this. What happens when you uninstall? Don't tell me their telemetry dos not record this also. So why not report Installs minus Uninstalls equals Net Apps distributed? Unless I am mistaken fraudsters can simply download, install, uninstall, and repeat to drum up numbers. And while we're talking about this, what about Free Apps versus Paid Apps. Once again, don't tell me their telemetry granularity is so coarse that it cannot easily break down that 100 million into both categories. The fact that they do not is very telling. It would be of huge interest to the developers that Ballmer is trying to snooker into his Apple-esque walled-garden. So where are the details Steve? What phonies.

Followups to the last article ...

Microsoft: Windows 8 passes 60M licenses sold ( ComputerWorld 2013-01-08 )

'Not even Santa could save Microsoft's Windows 8' ( UK Register 2013-01-04 )

A closer look at the Windows 8 sales figures ( NeoWin 2013-01-09 )

Microsoft exec defends Windows 8 sales pace ( ComputerWorld 2013-01-09 )

Microsoft pats self on back over Windows 8 sales ( UK Register 2013-01-09 )

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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Microtardia and Metrotardia

These two articles are nominally about Windows 8, but if you ask me there is a larger point in play, and that is the comments and attitudes of the MicroZealots. To these selfish children, it is all about them and them alone. If it works for them then it will work for you, and you better like it and change and adapt to it. Their way or the highway. These are textbook narcissists, they have no consideration for anyone but themselves, let alone consideration for the past history of the industry, nor for the future. They appear in every thread usually calling us h8ters and trolls for not grasping the brilliance of Windows 8 and Metro exhibiting unimaginable levels of hypocrisy while they insult you. These two aren't important stories by any means, I just happened to notice the attitudes which jump out at you after a year now of controversy. To me, this is really the most interesting phenomenon: somehow around the Vista debacle Microsoft planted fanboy seeds and they have now germinated into full bloom iSheep mSheep. How they did this is beyond me. It is certainly the ugly side of the modern era. Previously it was allegedly the iSheep that were the arrogant fanboys ( even though I cannot remember any of them personally bothering me ever ) evangelizing their toys.

Now we have some kind of Twilight Zone role reversal where the dogmatic lunatics are on "our side". Microsoft must be so proud ( actually I bet they are since the arrogance flows freely from there ). The most common symptoms of what we might call Microtardia ( or perhaps Metrotardia ) seems to be a combination of narcissism and arrogance with the most visible manifestation of the disease resembling Tourette's syndrome, where instead of only barking out profanities, they shout orders and guidelines telling you how to do things different than you have always done. This is where the fashionable Microsoft "you're doing it wrong" meme ties in. Ultimately, a patient suffering from Microtardia cannot really fathom how other people interact with their computers different from themselves, they cannot imagine someone doing other tasks than those very few that they have actually experienced, and cannot believe that other people may require different equipment entirely. So, just two random stories from yesterday, where the usual expectation of Microtardia is met ...

What a whopper! Huawei hints at giant 6-inch Windows Phone ( NeoWin 2013-01-08 )

A simple story about larger form factor phones filling in the gaps between cells and tablets. You can always spot children because when they open their mouthes the brain gets disconnected. "Whats the point in this exactly, if you need a 6" device, you need a tablet.". And another: "It's a tablet! This is getting ridiculous.". And another: "stick a sandal on your face to know how rediculous it is to talk to a 6" 'phone'.". ~sigh~ Hey kids, for starters try to imagine different size people other than yourselves. Think basketball instead of Angry Birds players. Think adults rather than children. Do you think a 5" phone fits the same in a hand almost twice your size? Grow up and you might understand ( and be able to hold a larger phone too ). Even if everyyone had uniform hand size there would still be people desiring or even requiring larger screens because they don't like wearing glasses to read a text message or want to watch a video as tiny as a webpage embed. Look, I know we all have had children, but what is it with parents that they have not even addressed the narcissism growing in their basements? Folks have to get a grip on this and teach their little brats not only to have respect for other peoples' choices but to understand that the world does not revolve around them in any manner whatsoever. These kids are going to be in for a rude awakening in the real world.

Viewsonic reveals new touchscreen monitors for Windows 8 ( NeoWin 2013-01-08 )

I've been on about this ergonomic issue for a while. It is going to become very important over time. So I see Viewsonic, like everyone else is trying to sell desktop touchscreens. One sensible commenter dislikes the idea of fingerprints on his screen, so a Microtardia sufferer immediately helps him out by saying: "Does your keyboard and mouse look like the back of a fry cooker at a McDonald's or something?". Well let's see, the keyboard is an input device, the monitor is an output device. You spend a microscopic amount of time looking at the keyboard, you spend all of your time looking at the monitor. It doesn't matter if the keyboard is dirty, it matters if the monitor is. Furthermore, people do not want dirty keyboards either so they spend lots of time being careful not to mess up their keyboard, and the monitor will demand an order of magnitude more consideration. The level of fail exhibited by this Microtardia sufferer is clearly inversely proportional to their intelligence.

Another perfectly sensible commenter mentions a back problem and the fact that his monitor is elevated higher than one would be laying flat. Insensitive child replies: "The idea is that touch monitors wouldn't be positioned the same way non-touch monitors are.". This is the new and necessary meme about 'redesigning your workspace' to make Windows 8 a viable tool for you. What, cut the legs to lower the desk, saw a hole to sink the monitor lower so that the tilt-mechanism might be of use? Is anyone really imagining the physics here? Look at your monitor and imagine tilting it, raise your seat higher now, angle your neck to look down! These people will do anything to fulfill their narcissistic personality disorder. The same Metrotard ( these are usually interchangeable, Microtard == Metrotard ) says: "Technology is never going to evolve for you if you're unwilling to experiment with your work space.". This is a logic fail. Tech will evolve with or with us. Whether it penetrates and sells is a completely different matter. In fact most would agree that technological darwinism requires consumers to reject nonsense so it does not evolve down the wrong path. This means NOT carving up your desk, changing chairs and developing medical conditions simply to accommodate a product. That is utter insanity. You don't adapt to technology, it is adapting to you. You don't support ill-suited or inferior technology because that will only perpetuate it. The minute that you are expected to adapt to Microsoft or Windows 8 or some other bone-headed idea is the very minute you should have woken up and got smart.

Someday I'm going to have to collect these kinds of examples and pool them into a medical case study on the mental illness of technology cult members.

It reminds me of a while back when the Microtards were stunned that people wanted the Start Menu and the Taskbar as well as all other options available. This makes it flexible for the computer user because they can choose to put hot work items on the desktop, common programs on the taskbar, more on the Start Menu and have the complete inventory under All Programs. That's Flexibility. It wasn't long before the first signs of an outbreak of Microtardia surfaced almost exactly a year ago when the Start Menu was first removed in the CP. Very quickly this contagious disease circulated among fanboys and the meme coalesced as "You don't need the Start Menu, just pin them to the taskbar!" I couldn't believe they would even go there, unless they were people that literally did nothing on their computer except Cut The Rope and stalk people on Facebook. Back in Post #1159 I noted how one great commenter at NeoWin illustrated the absolute absurdity of this ...

... and how the responses were hilarious precisely because they didn't get it. That should tell you something about Microtards. His image demonstrates exactly what they impulsively tell the so-called "haters" to do, yet they still cannot understand it! Cognitive Dissonance.Microtardia :lol:

EDIT: updated image URL, and again

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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And ponder the irony of this picture:

post-287775-0-45113900-1357666650_thumb.

--JorgeA

There was other news that hit recently, about how someone figured out how to beat Windows RT's "Code Integrity Mechanism" to run un-signed, custom or non-supported apps on it. However since I am unsure whether or not that is something allowed to be put here, I won't post a link to the story or the original blog post.

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The Wall Street Journal's Walter Mossberg tries installing Windows 8 on a pair of computers that meet Microsoft's stated hardware requirements. Here's what happened.

The bottom line:

The industry really wants you to get Windows 8 via an all-new PC, and most people who adopt it will go that route. But, if you don’t, or can’t, and have even a three-year-old PC, you may want to just stick with the Windows you’ve got.

--JorgeA

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There was other news that hit recently, about how someone figured out how to beat Windows RT's "Code Integrity Mechanism" to run un-signed, custom or non-supported apps on it. However since I am unsure whether or not that is something allowed to be put here, I won't post a link to the story or the original blog post.

I saw that ;) -- it's encouraging to learn that something like this is possible at all, even if this particular approach turns out to be limited and temporary as the reports suggest.

You WILL use your PC as WE say!!!

--JorgeA

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Valve's Gabe Newell Gives Details on Steam Box ( Tom's Hardware 2013-01-10 )

Microsoft Xbox exec on Steam Box: selling console hardware "is a really tough business" ( NeoWin 2013-01-10 )

Yeah and Microsoft sure should know all about it: Report: Microsoft's Xbox division has lost nearly $3 billion in 10 years. :lol:

Mobile Hotmail & Outlook.com users hit with access issue ( NeoWin 2013-01-10 )

And the forecast today calls for cloudy skies with a good chance of loss of access to your data. ( This is a cloud story which the headline writer tries to hide ). Just wait for problems in Office 365.

Uh-oh, Windows RT, Samsung's got second thoughts ( Cnet 2013-01-11 )

Samsung gets cold feet, won't launch Windows RT device in the USA ( NeoWin 2013-01-11 )

They think that Microsoft has bollocksed up the thing with the marketing and and confusion. The genius commenters at NeoWin cannot even acknowledge that simple fact and instead say that they don't want to compete with Apple! ( wait, what? see next story )

Samsung's record quarter: $8.3 billion profit, 63 million phones sold ( TechSpot 2013-01-10 )

Nokia's Lumia did 'better than expected' in Q4, 4.4 million units sold ( TechSpot 2013-01-10 )

Nokia sold 4.4m Lumia Windows Phones last quarter, "exceeded expectations" ( NeoWin 2013-01-10 )

The last headline is cherry-picked though, this is the quote about Nokia: "4.4 million Lumia smartphones were sold, along with 9.3 million Asha full-touch handsets and 2.2 million Symbian devices". ADDED: So Nokia sold 16 million phones total and the Lumias were a quarter of them. Unless I am mistaken, Microsoft is even losing marketshare just with Nokia! In other words, even if all other companies stopped making phones and only Nokia continued, they would still lose marketshare. Am I reading this correctly?

And that ends the Christmas silly season. It's all downhill for three more quarters. Meanwhile it looks like they are getting crushed by the others: "Samsung sold about 62 million handsets in the quarter, compared with Apple’s 45 million, according to estimates reported by Bloomberg." No breakdown on the Samsung numbers between Android or WP8 that I can find, but it must be microscopic.

The Microsoft thought process just doesn't add up. I have been trying to understand what they found in their spreadsheet projections that justifies turning the world upside-down with the Windows 8 fiasco and also the destruction of consumer value by forcing higher prices ( see next story ) with touchscreen madness. I just don't see what they saw. How could they even contemplate gaining any marketshare. It is far more likely they will gain nothing or even lose. This is starting to look like an Xbox gamble where "Windows" becomes the "console" but they never actually make any money except on the games ( Apps ). It looks similar to the Printer market where they only make profit on the ink and lock out other avenues of refills. More than a little coincidence I think.

Acer Aspire S7 Review ( TechSpot 2013-01-10 )

TechSpot review of the Windows 8 flagship from Acer. This is essentially an Ultrabook and no MicroZealot can complain that the OEM here is slacking or sabotaging their precious Windows 8. Very few parts in this thing could be spec'd any higher without blowing the price out further. What we have here is an Acer laptop / ultrabook / tablet with a 13" touchscreen ( jacked up price ) i7, integrated graphics and 256 GB SSD. It will only set you back $1650. They even compare and benchmark it against three other nearly identical units, the Lenovo Yoga, another Acer S5 and Apple's MacBook Air. We know that Intel was pushing this Ultrabook thing hard, but this is in reality a Wintel operation because of Microsoft pushing the Windows 8 and Metro nonsense which demands a touchscreen.

Microsoft has singlehandedly brought the traditional value curve of increasing performance at decreasing prices over time, which has been in effect for most of 30 years, to a complete screeching halt, and in fact reversed it. And it happened even fast than I could have imagined. I had been recommending careful shoppers who need new computers should get ready to buy something within a year because the market will be taken over by over-priced Apple-esque Windows gadgets. I fear it is too late now ( not for me, I build them, but too late for customers buying finished PC's ). Microsoft must actually have listened to the over-whelming complaints and warnings about this Windows 8 abortion, and instead of listening to the customers, they monopolistically strong-armed the OEMs in backroom deals to go whole hog, wiping out the Windows 7 high-value units in favor of Apple priced boutique toys. This is how they want to save the PC industry, turn it into double or triple priced crap, a shopping mall full of nothing but Apple shops.

It is true that there are a few deals around, but you never want to be shopping for the last remaining remnants of value because that is by definition a "sellers market". We have been very lucky to have had a "buyers market" for many years. It is over, at least for now ( again, unless you build your own ) and it is over precisely because of Microsoft. Make no mistake, the customer is the last thing on their mind. What they are now is a company consumed by Apple-eny led by a CEO who literally defines the Peter Principle. This may yet turn around but it is hard to say. There will be a bloodbath of OEM companies awash in red ink once this experiment in Apple-economics comes crashing down. Pricing every manner of device ( phones, tablets, laptops, AIO ) with displays from 5" to 15" at $1000 average is suicide.

The luckiest people I know are those that bought systems last summer and early fall before this technological collusion hit the market.

EDIT: added another link

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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The Microsoft thought process just doesn't add up. I have been trying to understand what they found in their spreadsheet projections that justifies turning the world upside-down with the Windows 8 fiasco and also the destruction of consumer value by forcing higher prices ( see next story ) with touchscreen madness. I just don't see what they saw..

Let me quote a neowin fanboi:

http://www.neowin.net/news/samsung-gets-cold-feet-wont-launch-windows-rt-device-in-the-usa#comment-2062131

The market is dictating what everyone wants(touch). And Microsoft is adapting their software to accommodate them. ...Actually,it is also for that market. Windows is adapting to what the market wants. The market is speaking and saying we want touch. Microsoft is trying to fulfill those needs. If the desktop counterpart becomes less wanted,then Microsoft will keep diminishing its role in Windows.

And you still have Windows 7. Why do some people speak as if it ceased to exist? Why are you so mad that Windows 8 now has support for touch applications? Stick to 7 and continue using whatever you like to use. Nobody is taking that away from you. And whoever like Windows 8 touch features will use it. Let the market decide what people want

I think that's really it. As I said earlier: I am pretty sure Thurrott, Ed Bott, Sinofsky, the metrotards etc. have completely bought into the idea that all people do with computers is facebooking, twittering and porning the whole day and nothing else. So the opposition against W8 comes as a complete shock to them. They can't fathom they were wrong and would rather blame the whole world than Windows 8.

All the references to Steve Jobs and Apple are there because they have taken his "Post-PC" talk far more seriously than Jobs himself did (Jobs didn't convert the Mac line into touch abominations after all) - I am pretty sure the mSheep revere Jobs more than the average Apple user does: With Gates gone they had a vacuum to fill and Ballmer isn't exactly in the same league. They just can't admit that the whole Post-PC talk was a marketing stunt and that people do indeed "work" with their computers. That's why they even have to go as far and hate the typical Windows PC user and praise the Angry Birds addicted as "teh future".

They are completely missing the fact that tablets for the most part aren't replacements for desktops/laptops. They are a supplement device.

You post-PC tribalists should visit a college before standing on a soap box and screaming about how the world is ending. Visit any campus cafe and you'll see the place packed with Macbooks. Wait.....aren't they supposed to be typing out term papers with their fingers? No they use their fingers to play Angry Birds. My God have you all gone mad? Who the hell wants to edit photos or videos with their fingers? Microsoft should be focusing on areas where people use the PC, not shimming in a phone UI as way to wedge themselves into the mobile market.

http://www.techbroil.com/2012/12/ghost-of-jobs-laughs-at-tech-world.html

Yet the metrodrones at MS and their circle-jerkers on neowin have completely bought into touch hype. Even low sales don't seem to cure them. (not selling? ADD MORE TOUCH!) It's madness.

How could they even contemplate gaining any marketshare. It is far more likely they will gain nothing or even lose. This is starting to look like an Xbox gamble where "Windows" becomes the "console" but they never actually make any money except on the games ( Apps ). It looks similar to the Printer market where they only make profit on the ink and lock out other avenues of refills. More than a little coincidence I think.

Actually, no, it's far from the xbox model or the cheap printer model: The Xbox and cheap printers are actually popular! It's just that they get sold below their production value. Windows 8 is NOT popular. The W8 "plan" (?) is far more insane.

Edited by Formfiller
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TechSpot review of the Windows 8 flagship from Acer. This is essentially an Ultrabook and no MicroZealot can complain that the OEM here is slacking or sabotaging their precious Windows 8. Very few parts in this thing could be spec'd any higher without blowing the price out further. What we have here is an Acer laptop / ultrabook / tablet with a 13" touchscreen ( jacked up price ) i7, integrated graphics and 256 GB SSD. It will only set you back $1650.

My God! I wasn't following the prices of these thingies very much.

1650$ !??!!!?

For less than half of it you can get this:

http://www.amazon.com/Dell-Inspiron-i15R-2369sLV-15-Inch-Laptop/dp/B009LTUB5A/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1357901769&sr=1-3&keywords=i7

Intel Core i7-3632QM 2.2 GHz Processor

8 GB DDR3

1 TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive

15-Inch Screen

Windows 8 is controversial enough, yet it seems Microsofts want to sabotage it even more with loony-bin prices like this. Is there any logic in this?

You have a confusing product that scares your existing customers, coupled with crazy hardware prices... A winner, obviously! Is pot allowed at Redmond?

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