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Windows 8 - Deeper Impressions


JorgeA

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May I add, in passing by, how in the US a judge is usually elected by the people, and being the career of a judge very interesting (culturally and socially) and quite rewarding (financially) it is not-so-common the case that someone who managed to be elected as judge chooses to become ex-judge (unless the people decided to elect someone else).

On the other hand, while in charge a judge is to all effects a representative of the people, while once he/she is an ex-judge, he/she is only an ex-judge.

His/her opinion on any legal matter may well be authoritative, legally sound, accurate and what not, still it is and remains an opinion, without the dignity that a decision of a "real" judge has in court.

Additionally, an "ex-judge" may well be an absolutely unbiased, honest person (and I believe the large majority of judges and ex-judges are like that), but he/she could well be if not outright a crook, somewhat sensible to bribing or simply strongly biased.

Maybe the good MS guys should put together, besides the ex-judge opinion, a private Grand Jury :w00t:;).

jaclaz

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JorgeA.

My Amstrad PC1512 came with floppys for MSDOS 3.2 and DOS Plus . Unless DS-DOS Plus was a special version, DOS Plus was made by Digital Research as a sort of CPM 86 Which was probably Digital Research was approached by IBM first (which they flunked) before Microsoft (The rest, as they say, is history)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOS_Plus

Regards Tony

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I guess there is some confusion between DS-DOS and Dos Plus:

http://www.trademarkia.com/ds-dos-73492079.html

http://www.old-computers.com/museum/forum.asp?c=473&st=1

And very possibly the "full name" for one of the DS-DOS versions was "(Michtron)DS-DOS 2.11 Plus"

http://ebook.pldworld.com/_eBook/dosref33/CHAPTER.008

jaclaz

Edited by jaclaz
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JorgeA.

My Amstrad PC1512 came with floppys for MSDOS 3.2 and DOS Plus . Unless DS-DOS Plus was a special version, DOS Plus was made by Digital Research as a sort of CPM 86 Which was probably Digital Research was approached by IBM first (which they flunked) before Microsoft (The rest, as they say, is history)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOS_Plus

Regards Tony

Hey Tony,

If it was CP/M, it must have been a different OS than the one I had for the Sanyo. Huh, just occurred to me that maybe lawyers got involved at some point to sort things out between DOS Plus and DS-DOS PLUS.

Amstrad. That's another blast from the past! My second computer was a PC6400 model. It came with MS-DOS (I forget which version) and (on a separate diskette) the GEM GUI, which was outside the Microsoft universe. Looking it up, it must have come with a version of CP/M. Oh yeah, that too was from Digital Research.

I remember thinking at the time, "What do I need this gwee thing for?? It's just something to get in-between me and my files." :)

@jaclaz:

Nice research work! :thumbup

The first link is that same company.

--JorgeA

EDIT: typo

Edited by JorgeA
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Paul Thurrott takes the clearest step yet toward advocating for the REAL Windows:

In Windows, Veritas

Although Windows won't be the primary personal computing platform going forward, it's still an important and vibrant platform that can dominate the competition in the key market for productivity. Let Android and iOS wallow in "Candy Crush": Windows is where real people go to get real work done.

[...]

...[W]hen you consider the general usage patterns that will occur across these 300 million PCs, not to mention the 1.5 billion installed base, one obvious trend emerges. Although, yes, some people can get "real" work done on tablets or even smartphones, the fact remains that PCs are now, and will continue to be, where real work gets done.

This is the bit that really does get me excited about the future. And while Microsoft wrong-headedly pursues some vain and ultimately fruitless consumer strategy, it's here where I'd ask the company to step back and ask itself who its real users are. They're often individuals, of course, but they're not "consumers." They're people who are being productive, getting work done. They're the doers.

[...]

Microsoft has an opportunity to shore up its most important market—business customers and those individuals who need to get real work done—and all it has to do is . . . wait for it . . . just stop focusing on all this consumer stuff that frankly isn't resonating with anyone. Just give it up. Walk away. Let Windows be . . . Windows.

In its desperation to repeat the successes of Apple and Google in consumer-oriented devices and services, Microsoft has subverted Windows's key strength. This is misguided, and while the Windows of the future will no longer dominate personal computing as it did in the past, the Windows of the future can most certainly dominate an important market of doers getting things done.

Microsoft just needs to start listening to our needs.[...]

:o:thumbup

--JorgeA

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Paul Thurrott takes the clearest step yet toward advocating for the REAL Windows:

In Windows, Veritas

Quote

Although Windows won't be the primary personal computing platform going forward, it's still an important and vibrant platform that can dominate the competition in the key market for productivity. Let Android and iOS wallow in "Candy Crush": Windows is where real people go to get real work done.

[...]

...[W]hen you consider the general usage patterns that will occur across these 300 million PCs, not to mention the 1.5 billion installed base, one obvious trend emerges. Although, yes, some people can get "real" work done on tablets or even smartphones, the fact remains that PCs are now, and will continue to be, where real work gets done.

This is the bit that really does get me excited about the future. And while Microsoft wrong-headedly pursues some vain and ultimately fruitless consumer strategy, it's here where I'd ask the company to step back and ask itself who its real users are. They're often individuals, of course, but they're not "consumers." They're people who are being productive, getting work done. They're the doers.

[...]

Microsoft has an opportunity to shore up its most important market—business customers and those individuals who need to get real work done—and all it has to do is . . . wait for it . . . just stop focusing on all this consumer stuff that frankly isn't resonating with anyone. Just give it up. Walk away. Let Windows be . . . Windows.

In its desperation to repeat the successes of Apple and Google in consumer-oriented devices and services, Microsoft has subverted Windows's key strength. This is misguided, and while the Windows of the future will no longer dominate personal computing as it did in the past, the Windows of the future can most certainly dominate an important market of doers getting things done.

Microsoft just needs to start listening to our needs.[...]

:o:thumbup

--JorgeA

Looks like he's found some meds that work! :thumbup

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:lol: Very good!! :yes:

Paul elaborates on his change of mind in Windows Weekly 349:

[...] In the old days when Windows was personal computing, I kind of forgave the multiple ways of doing things, because this was the way everyone had to compute, and it made sense that you would have to reach all of these different groups. Two things have happened that have really changed my mind about this situation. One is everyone is not using Windows anymore. Maybe we don’t have to address everyone’s needs. Maybe you could make Windows simpler by simply not trying to be everything to everybody. But the other thing is actually Apple, and I have always made the case with Apple, with the Mac especially, and with IOS at first. They’re reaching a smaller audience so they can afford to be laser focused on stuff because they don’t have as many constituencies to appease, but today IOS is used by hundreds of millions of people, and they have never strayed from their path. I don’t understand why they can do it, and Windows can’t. I feel like they need to accept the reality that they’re going to be a minority player in the overall platforms that people will use to compute, and that they should address that market. Why do people use Windows? Why will people continue to use Windows? The reason is not Angry Birds, it’s not Candy Crush. Those kinds of things happen, they always did, and they always will.

[...]

I got a lot of feedback from Microsoft guys, past and present, one of them had a great quote about the real problem with Windows 8, which was that Windows Vista was a disaster in its own right, but Windows Vista was made with the best of intentions. Those people weren’t trying to hurt anybody. They may have released a bomb, but they were trying hard and wanted to do the right thing. Windows 8 was very deliberate. It deliberately stopped all of the backwards compatibility stuff with user experience, they very deliberately jammed this very mobile user experience down people’s throats whether they wanted it or not. I think the fundamental problem with Windows 8 is that it was not agnostic towards different types of users, it was hostile to the very users that matter most to Windows. Business users, productivity users, developers, it was just the wrong thing to do to those people, and it done deliberately and kind of belligerently. It should be no wonder why people have reacted to this thing the way that they did.

[emphasis added]

--JorgeA

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Paul elaborates on his change of mind in Windows Weekly 349:

[...]

I got a lot of feedback from Microsoft guys, past and present, one of them had a great quote about the real problem with Windows 8, which was that Windows Vista was a disaster in its own right, but Windows Vista was made with the best of intentions. Those people weren’t trying to hurt anybody. They may have released a bomb, but they were trying hard and wanted to do the right thing. Windows 8 was very deliberate. It deliberately stopped all of the backwards compatibility stuff with user experience, they very deliberately jammed this very mobile user experience down people’s throats whether they wanted it or not. I think the fundamental problem with Windows 8 is that it was not agnostic towards different types of users, it was hostile to the very users that matter most to Windows. Business users, productivity users, developers, it was just the wrong thing to do to those people, and it done deliberately and kind of belligerently. It should be no wonder why people have reacted to this thing the way that they did.

[emphasis added]

--JorgeA

And now, they will scratch their heads trying to figure out what happened when they find that a very large number of their base has left and will not return. Combined with their open hostility to their users and the recent revelations of just how far they will sink as to privacy issues, I can't see to many wanting to continue with them. We've already seen articles about companies and governments outside of the United States saying that they want something different, just for security/privacy issues. I'm afraid they have done irreparable damage unto themselves.

bpalone

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Now, more news from the raising waterline front.

Microsoft sending out Surfaces with wrong processor

Microsoft is supplying Surface Pro 2 tablets with older processors, despite having promised customers upgraded components.

Now, I may not be the fastest uptake around here, but this sure looks like THEY HAVE A VERY LARGE UNSOLD INVENTORY of the old model. Not only that, it indicates that the demand is still NON EXISTENT. I guess it must be really painful to admit that you made a mistake, so much so, that you are willing to sacrifice the entire entity to avoid facing the truth.

The entire article can be read here: http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/387760/microsoft-sending-out-surfaces-with-wrong-processor

I don't think they are going to go away, but they are going to end up being a mere shadow of their former self. You know, they will no longer be the 950 pound gorilla in the room but will be the 200 pound gorilla instead.

bpalone

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That's amazing!! :wacko:

You're right, it makes sense to conclude from this news that they must have tons of unsold inventory.

It also suggests what their view is of the kinds of people who are the target market for Surface devices (i.e., unlikely to ever find this out, except for articles in the press).

Now, more news from the raising waterline front.

:lol:

--JorgeA

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On the security/privacy front:

Police keep quiet about cell-tracking technology

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Police across the country may be intercepting phone calls or text messages to find suspects using a technology tool known as Stingray. But they're refusing to turn over details about its use or heavily censoring files when they do.

[...]

A Stingray device tricks all cellphones in an area into electronically identifying themselves and transmitting data to police rather than the nearest phone company's tower. Because documents about Stingrays are regularly censored, it's not immediately clear what information the devices could capture, such as the contents of phone conversations and text messages, what they routinely do capture based on how they're configured or how often they might be used.

Worried about the government? Internet giants also dip their hands in the cookie jar

Security protections have been tightened at many of the major online services, as firms like Google and Microsoft pledge to protect their users against unwanted prying eyes. But while many people fret about unwarranted government access to their data, the Internet firms themselves play by their own set of rules.

[...]

There are at least two class-action lawsuits looking at the way Google's automated systems scan emails for advertising and other purposes. One of the suits accuses Google of crossing a "creepy line" by scanning the data of Apps for Education users to build profiles that could be used for marketing, according to a report this week in Education Week.

[...]

Facebook faces a similar lawsuit, which claims the company scans people's private messages for URLs for "purposes including but not limited to data mining and user profiling." It's accused of violating the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, as well as privacy and unfair competition laws in California.

These issues raise questions about the extent to which users should be concerned about the access companies have to their private communications.

With the exception of certain types of information like medical records, your data is basically all there for the taking, said Lorrie Faith Cranor, an associate professor of computer science and of engineering and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University, and director of the CyLab Usable Privacy and Security Lab.

The news is not ALL bad, though:

At the same time, almost all the major Internet firms have bolstered their efforts to protect people's data from intrusion by outside entities such as governments and hackers. Last month, Microsoft announced availability of its Office 365 Encryption program, which encrypts the emails people send to make snooping harder.

And Google this week said it was removing the option to turn off its HTTPS encryption, to make it harder for others to snoop on people's email.

For those seeking more online privacy, smaller outfits have cropped up like Syme, an encrypted Facebook-like service, and the messaging app Wickr, which claims to have no way of seeing people's data even if the company wanted to.

--JorgeA

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Great, now Google Glass can be used to spy on the user:

Spyware app turns the privacy tables on Google Glass wearers

But a spyware app developed by two researchers has shown that Google Glass can be used to secretly take photos of whatever a Glass wearer is looking at without their knowledge - making the Glass user the one whose privacy and security is potentially compromised.

The lens display usually lights up whenever Glass is in use, which is the only way to tell when Glass is on - other than witnessing voice and gesture commands used by the wearer such as "Okay Glass, take a photo."

However, according to media reports, the app takes a photo every 10 seconds when the display is off, meaning the wearer (or anyone in view of the camera) is unaware that it's recording.

The app can also access the internet from the user's Glass connection to upload the images to a server.

--JorgeA

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I don't understand the doubt about "it's not immediately clear what information the devices could capture"
It's easy, *anything*, it is a cellular "man in the middle" device:
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/09/meet-the-machines-that-steal-your-phones-data/
Besides the actual hardware, there are "modular" softwares, so not *any* device can do *anything*, most probably the Fishhawk software is the one that, being defined (see the pdf in the above) :

The intended order provide over the air cellular tracking systems compliant with Communications Assistance for Law
Enforcement Act (CALEA) designed for tracking and decrypting GSM cellular phones. The Harris Porpoise system
is the only laptop-based, GSM Silent SMS Monitoring System with Network and Handset capabilities currently
available. Harris Corporation is the only source and distributor of the Porpoise System. The Harris StingRay system
w/FishHawk GSM Intercept S/W upgrade is the only portable standard + 12VDC powered over the air GSM Active
Key Extraction and Intercept system currently available. Harris Corporation is also the only source and distributor of
the StingRay system plus Fish Hawk GSM Intercept S/W upgrade, training, and maintenance.

but it is optional/a separate buy.
And the stingray is not the "only" device:
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2011/10/datong-surveillance/

JFYI, the technology is not really "news", it is something in use since several years:
http://publicintelligence.net/harris-corporations-stingray-used-by-fbi-for-warrantless-mobile-phone-tracking/

Of course the good three letter agency guys try to say the least they can on the capabilities of the device:
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/03/gov-fights-stingray-case/all/
if there is some data, likely it can be found here:
http://epic.org/foia/fbi/stingray/

jaclaz

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