The Natives are Restless
The Associate Press reports that people are starting to object to the con: Microsoft class action suit over Vista approved
SEATTLE – A federal judge said Friday that consumers may go ahead with a class action lawsuit against Microsoft Corp. over the way it advertised computers loaded with Windows XP as capable of running the Vista operating system.
The lawsuit said Microsoft’s labeling of some PCs as “Windows Vista Capable” was misleading because many of those computers were not powerful enough to run all of Vista’s features, including the much-touted “Aero” user interface.
It amazing, these people apparently think that corporations shouldn’t deceive them to make a profit. Where would they get a radical idea like that. They are probably DFHs.
14 comments
Ha! You just posted that because you like me saying what I think of Micro$haft and Gates! Well… I won’t be drawn! Nope! Not this time!
OK… He’s still a crooked little dweeb! :b
Happy now? LOL
Oh… and I told you so. Again. :b
I’ve been at this too long, I would have thought that everyone knew that those stickers were lies and you were going to be required to upgrade for any new system, That’s apparently part of the reason so many manufacturers have OEM agreement to put Windows on their machines – automatic sales when the next version comes out.
I have been running Vista for almost a year now, nearly without incident. On the other hand, I don’t have Aero (not really powerful enough, but Aero is just a toy to impress other people with, IMO, and not a truly useful tool.) and I’ve switched off all the annoying security functions that sometimes keep me from using my own software.
What do I have left? Windows XP.
😀
Those people should be happy they can’t
upgradedowngrade to Vista. Let’s see… what can you do with a Vista machine that you can’t already do with XP? Hmmm.. can’t use my scanner, network may not work, lots of older software won’t work, drm and annoying security features. Yup, makes me want to “upgrade” to Vista.That is an os I am going to skip. There is nothing right and too much wrong with it. I ordered a new notebook last month with XP on it. I do not need a Vista headache. But now I don’t get to sue M$. 🙁
I went to a great deal of trouble to get the specific inexpensive machine I wanted without the
virus, ah, I meanspyware, um,adware, ah, whatthehell, operating system called Vista. There are a lot of reasons I’d like to sue Microsoft, but the inability of my computer to run Vista is not one of them. XP is imperfect, but it works pretty well by comparison.That appears to be the basis of the law suit, Anya, that the version of Vista that will run on these machines is essentially a less functional version of XP, as it won’t recognize or reliably use software and hardware that works under XP.
I make my sometimes pathetic living with a computer, Lady Min, and am subject to the whim of clients, but so far they are all avoiding Vista like the plague. Only one of them tried it and went back to XP almost immediately because one of the pieces of equipment that they need won’t work with it. As that piece costs in the 6 figure range, I don’t see them upgrading it any time soon.
That’s the real point, isn’t it, Steve – XP is “good enough” as Jerry Pournelle says.
To be serious (for a change lately, I know… ) 😉
Before I got too ill to work, I was an engineering & IT consultant. A LOT of engineering firms still use DOS and even Windows 3.11. Seriously! Most Mining companies would shoot anyone who suggests they move from DOS! Also, A lot of Pharmacies also use Windows 3.11. Because the software they use is very specialized and does exactly what they need on very low cost computer systems on very old OS’s. They don’t care if M$ supports them, it’s dead easy to find a DOS /3.11 guru. I did an update a few years ago for a large Pharmacy group, and I never heard a peep for support from them since. It just works. Compared to organizations I worked with that migrated to XP which generally kept me insanely busy for months! In one case for a very large Retailer here, they were forced to upgrade in October ’02 and their Payroll system (for thousands of employees Nationally) had to be completely rewritten! It refused to run under XP (or 2000 etc). It was a 24/7 job and was finished 2 days before the Christmas payroll and bonuses were due. In the meantime, we ran it on a small 3.11 network and manually transferred the data. Because of the issues they had migrating to XP, there is no way in hell they will move to Vista (and I have been told that by IT people I know in those companies).
I honestly do not understand how M$ got so *popular* given that many organizations I worked with considers them a nuisance at best.
In ancient times when IBM deigned to enter the “personal computer” market, they anointed Microsoft as the one true operating system and the rest is a painful memory. People become invested in one system and you cannot convince them to step on the true path to enlightenment.
In those days the first commandment was: “No one has ever been fired for selecting IBM” and that has evolved [or been intelligently designed] to now mean “No one has ever been fired for selecting Microsoft.”
Inertia is a major PITA, but it exists in all large organizations.
i got a new computer about a year ago. and specifically ordered xp. i figure that, like with every new program, it’s better to let everyone else figure out the bugs before i deign to deal w/it.
i am so happy i did.
Vista would probably insist you use upper case.
Do you know the story about how the original IBM PC came to be Bryan? 🙂 I’m just curious because whenever I have told the true story to most people, they are either a) horrified, b) amused, c) disbelieving. LOL
I was dealing with IBM at the time and heard the story from an Engineer who worked on the project over dinner and drinks. He was rather annoyed with IBM. LOL
My understanding is that it was essentially a private project that really wasn’t met with any great approval at the main office which is why it was run out of Boca Raton, a dead-end office at the time. The original was specifically designed to compete with the Apple II, which is why it had BASIC in ROM, only 64K memory, a 160K single-sided diskette, and a number of other restrictions. It was a parts machine and most of the parts were built in Mexico because of the Florida connections.
If you look at an original 64K motherboard you’ll see the palm tree trademark of the company that actually designed and built it.
The 5100 was a real IBM desktop but was too expensive, so they went cheap with the 5150 and were ready to flush the whole thing if it didn’t sell.
The “Boca boys” really ticked off their IBM brethren by rejecting IBM components from other divisions as too expensive, and made the entire system unbelievably open from an IBM standpoint. It was almost a hobby project, from the corporate stand-point.
They tried to reenter the IBM fold with the AT, including designing in the IBM only 128K memory chips, but then they found out that piggy-backed 64K chips would work and were cheaper. That motherboard is a spider-web of jumpers and patches if you look at the underside, because it was rushed to market.
IBM stood ready to pull the plug at any time and blame the fiasco on Estridge.
That’s what they were saying in SoCal. The best things about them were the cases, binders for the documentation, and the monochrome monitors.
That’s pretty close Bryan! 😀 You get a kewpie doll (do they still make those?) LOL
The basis for the PC was in fact an attempt by IBM to get into the cash register business (again). The story goes that NCR discovered IBM’s project and immediately released a new advanced and cheaper electronic cash register. IBM decided it would be pointless wasting any further funds on the project and dumped the components they had already produced into storage for some future fate to be determined. Someone discovered this and thought that with a few other parts (mostly from other abandoned projects) and some kind of OS, they could be converted into some kind of personal computer. IBM said that would be foolish as nobody would have a use for such a thing. LOL However, the case was made that it would make a lovely gift to their corporate clients as a kind of amusement, and they could get rid of a lot of junk in the process. You know about the fateful story of the OS of course! *sigh* That was a very sad day for the World!
The original intention, I was told, was that there were enough parts to build several hundred machines. People got wind of it and started to petition IBM to sell them one. A group at IBM decided to test the waters and produce 10,000 machines. After that, IBM could barely keep up with the demand even at the high price of the units! LOL
That’s why the motherboard was so obviously patchwork. It was a prototype for the new electronic cash register. When they decided to produce more, they were copied as was, down to the patch wires. 🙂
And you are correct. It triggered a LOT of infighting at IBM!
I remember selling a basic XT in the early 80’s with no screen and 1 FDD for around AU$4k!
The same system with the crappy color screen, a NEC Spinwriter impact printer [35 cps] , and software cost about $15K US in Southern California. It was absurd.
One of the good things was in San Diego my favorite vendor could get spares from the Mexican factories without going through IBM at half price. They were at least “gray market”, but they were identical without the IBM packaging or labels.
You still needed an original for the ROMs, but the IBM pricing for parts was death for small shops. A number of shops would simply swap boards to fix the problems and work on the bad boards during down time, which is pretty much how we used to repair minicomputers – swap boards until it worked, and send the used boards back to a depot.