Category Archives: Microsoft

Why I don’t use Windows, no. 15235

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Wonderful account by the NYT’s David Pogue of his struggle to install a Netgear 802.11n USB adapter onto a brand-new, spotless Lenovo ThinkPad laptop. Sample:

Screen #1: “Netgear WN121T Smart Wizard.” The startup window offers a photo of the product–but in the place of honor, in the lower-right, right where the Next button should be, it says only Quit. That’s the only choice there.

There are also SIX buttons to the left of the picture. One of them is Setup. Well, that sounds right, but it belongs in the lower-right. At the very least, it needs a border or something to differentiate it from the other five buttons (Registration, Web Support, etc.).

Screen #2: Tells me that my software might need updating already. My options are “Check for Updates” or “Install from CD.”

This is a totally unnecessary screen. Do what Apple and Microsoft do: quietly check for updates. If there is a newer version, THEN tell me about it (and give me a one-click way to download it). If there isn’t one, don’t even bring up the subject.

Screen #3: Now a second installer launches ON TOP of the first one–yes, we’ve got superimposed dialog boxes. What the heck?

Anyway, this one says “Welcome.”

Here it is: the very definition of a time-waster. If I’ve come this far, don’t you think I already know that I’m in the Netgear Installer?

Screen #4: “License Agreement.” The entire agreement is typed in capital letters, just to make sure it’s as difficult as possible to read.

Nobody reads these license agreements–nobody. What is Netgear worried about, anyway–that you’re going to distribute its USB software driver on Kazaa?

At least Netgear lets you just hit Enter to blow past this screen. Most companies don’t. It’s as though the software company lawyers are saying, “Nyah, nyahhh, you can’t ignore us!”

Guess what? We’ll still ignore you, even if you make us use the mouse.

Screen #5: “Select Destination.” Here’s where we specify where we want the software put. This, too, is a waste of time. Who on earth doesn’t want programs put in Programs?

Screen #6: “Software Installation Complete.” Yay!

But if it’s complete, then why is there a Next button?

Screen #7: Uh-oh. “The Software you are installing has not passed Windows Logo testing. Continuing your installation of this software may impair or destabilize the correct operation of your system… Microsoft strongly recommends that you stop this installation now.”

Here it is, on one screen: everything that’s wrong with Microsoft and the Windows software industry. I’m sorry, but you would NEVER see this kind of idiocy on the Macintosh.

Who’s being dumber here? Netgear, for not getting Microsoft’s blessing for its software? Or Microsoft, for trying to scare people away from perfectly legitimate software (and, presumably, for charging software companies for Logo testing)?

There’s more, much more. Why do people put themselves through this crap?

Roll on, Vista!

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From Good Morning Silicon Valley…

Open-source software proponents may end up owing Microsoft a big, ironic thank you for finally getting Vista out the door. Release of the new version of Windows has forced IT folks in the public and private sector to make some serious plans about their upgrade paths, and that could be working in favor of Linux. Among government agencies, an important market for Microsoft, the Transportation Department has already put a moratorium on upgrades to Vista — as well as Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer 7 — while it examines cost and compatibility issues and looks at alternatives, including Linux. Now, according to Information Week, the top technology official at the Federal Aviation Administration is considering grounding Microsoft software in favor of a combination of Google’s new online business applications running on Linux-based hardware. “We have discussions going on with Dell,” said Chief Information Officer David Bowen. “We’re trying to figure out what our roadmap will be after we’re no longer able to acquire Windows XP.” Microsoft still has a chance to retain the business, he said, if it could resolve the compatibility problems and make a case for its substantially higher costs.

The cost of Windows upgrades and proprietary software is also leading to some re-evaluation in Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Faced with replacing some 400,000 public school computers running Windows 98 or Windows Me (yipes!), the agency is taking a hard look at Linux and open-source software…

Microsoft stakes claim to moral high ground; audience dies laughing

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Ho, ho! From today’s New York Times…

SEATTLE, March 5 (Reuters) — The Microsoft Corporation, the software giant, has prepared a blistering attack on rival Google, arguing that the Web search leader takes a cavalier approach to copyright protection.

In remarks prepared for delivery on Tuesday to the Association of American Publishers, the associate general counsel of Microsoft, Thomas Rubin, argues that Google’s move into new media markets has come at the expense of publishers of books, videos and software.

Mr. Rubin’s comments echo arguments at the heart of a 16-month-old copyright lawsuit against Google brought by five book publishers and organized by the Association of American Publishers, an industry trade group.

“Companies that create no content of their own, and make money solely on the backs of other people’s content, are raking in billions through advertising revenue and I.P.O.s,” said Mr. Rubin, who oversees copyright and trade-secret law.

“Google takes the position that everything may be freely copied unless the copyright owner notifies Google and tells it to stop,” Mr.Rubin said. Microsoft, he said, asks the copyright’s owner for permission first…

Danny Sullivan has posted a nice dissection of Microsoft’s high-minded cant.

Microsoft: recruitment news

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Microsoft has hired Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg. His job title? Why “Enthusiast Evangelist”, of course.

It reminds me of Apple in the good old days when the prevailing Silicon Valley joke was:

Q. What’s the difference between Apple Computer and the Boy Scouts?
A. The Boy Scouts have adult supervision.

Apple had job titles like “Evangelist” then. Now they just have the Supreme Evangelist.

Paradigm shifting

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This morning’s Observer column…

It’s interesting how phrases take on a life of their own. Take, for example, ‘paradigm shift’ – originally coined in 1962 by Thomas Kuhn, the philosopher of science, to describe the transition of a scientific community from one theoretical framework to another. The phrase was quickly recognised as a Big Idea by people in all walks of life because they could use it as a metaphor for describing traumatic or difficult transitions in worldviews and mindsets.

As a result, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions – in which Kuhn first sketched out the concept – has never been out of print and is among the 10 most cited books of all time. A quick search on Google for ‘paradigm shift’ brings up 1,240,000 hits. And an investigation using Amazon’s useful ‘search inside’ facility reveals that ‘paradigm shift’ occurs in over 23,000 books on Amazon’s virtual shelves, from all over the disciplinary spectrum. Truly, Kuhn’s phrase has entered our collective unconscious…

The Allchin 2004 email

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From: Jim Allchin
Sent: Wednesday, January 07, 2004 8:38 AM
To: Bill Gates; Steve Ballmer
Subject: losing our way…

This is a rant. I’m sorry.

I am not sure how the company lost sight of what matters to our customers (both business and home) the most, but in my view we lost our way. I think our teams lost sight of what bug-free means, what resilience means, what full scenarios mean, what security means, what performance means, how important current applications are, and really understanding what the most important problems [our] customers face are. I see lots of random features and some great vision, but that doesn’t translate onto great products.

I would buy a Mac today if I was not working at Microsoft. If you run the equivalent of VPC on a MAC you get access to basically all Windows application software (although not the hardware). Apple did not lose their way. You must watch this new video below. I know this doesn’t show anything for businesses, but my point is about the philosophy that Apple uses. They think scenario. They think simple. They think fast. I know there is nothing hugely deep in this.

http://www.apple.com/ilife/video/ilife04_32C.html [Note: link no longer works]

I must tell you everything in my soul tells me that we should do what I called plan (b) yesterday We need a simple fast storage system. LH [Longhorn — now known as VISTA] is a pig and I don’t see any solution to this problem. If we are to rise to the challenge of Linux and Apple, we need to start taking the lessons of “scenario, simple, fast” to heart.

jim

[Source]

Jim Allchin was Co-President, Platforms and Services Division of Microsoft. After 17 years with the company, he retired on January 30, the day Vista shipped to consumers. According to the Microsoft web site,

He shared overall responsibility with Kevin Johnson for the division of the company that includes the Windows and Windows Live Group, Windows Live Platform Group, Online Business Group, Market Expansion Group, Core Operating System Division, Windows Client Marketing Group, Developer and Platform Evangelism Group, and the Server and Tools Business Group.

Well, apart from being free to spend more time with his money, Jim will also be free to buy a Mac!