Mailbag: Thoughts on 'Vista Capable,' Yahoo, OneCare, More
There's just no shortage of opinions when it comes to the "Vista Capable"
sticker lawsuit. Today, it's the Microsoft defenders' turn:
OK...just a sanity check here. All of you whining about this, please
look carefully at the your computer and see if you can figure out who manufactured
it. Those whose computers were manufactured by Microsoft, keep complaining
about MS. The rest of you, aim your complaints at the computer manufacturer!
So much whine, bring on the cheese!
-Terry
I think MS should win the case. It's fun to knock the "Big Dawg"
which is why people tend to root for underdogs. I believe Microsoft didn't
even have to put that label on the hardware. Let's not blame it for the ignorance
of others.
-Michael
In my opinion, Vista is not just Vista Ultimate. I believe (correct me
if I am wrong) there are other editions including Home Basic, Home Premium,
Business, etc. If a machine can run Vista Basic (without the razzmatazz of
Vista Ultimate), then the machine is "Vista Capable." If the sticker
said "Aero Capable," then we have a different game entirely. I use
an HP dv2910us with 3GB RAM, and it's very capable of running Aero, but I
use the Windows Classic theme. Just because Aero is turned off, doesn't mean
I am not running Vista.
Microsoft should pay, but not through its nose.
-Anonymous
I think everyone is missing the point about the "Vista Capable"
stickers. Yes, Microsoft goofed when it allowed manufacturers to use them.
However, Microsoft did not manufacture any of those low-end computers or place
the stickers on the computers. Most of the blame should go to the manufacturers
who wanted to mislead consumers about low-end computers.
Another important question is: Why does Vista have so many flavors? Could
Microsoft be making these stripped-down products in response to manufacturers'
needs? Could it be making them to make more affordable products? After all,
it doesn't cost Microsoft any more money to ship Ultimate than it does to
ship Home Basic. Unlike Apple, Microsoft does not control the entire manufacturing
practice for its computers. If it did and forced manufacturers to make high-end
computers, it would deny access to a large segment of the populace.
-Earl
As they try to hang MS, how many of those same folks are trying to fry
the auto companies for the mileage ratings posted on the windows of new cars?
I know the auto companies all say, "Well, those are the numbers from
the government testing," but I don't hear any of them saying, "Here's
what you should really expect to get."
-Anonymous
After news broke that Jerry
Yang was leaving Yahoo, Doug wrote that he'd be happy with just 1 percent
of Yang's success. He's not alone:
I totally agree with you on your statement. Look at the high-tech industry
as a whole and the persons who started to develop companies. How many have
created something major and then let go from the company? If I am not mistaken,
this happened recently at VMware.
-Lee
Bill doesn't think OneCare deserves the bad rap it's been getting:
One of my pet peeves with the nightly "news" programs has been
the way they casually plant uncorroborated, inaccurate statements in the programs
and repeat them frequently. One of your recent Redmond Reports contains such
a statement: "problem-plagued
Live OneCare." I have this product installed on many systems with
many happy VSB users. Version 2, the current one, has worked well. It's easy
to administer and has been successful in protecting the computers. I have
not had to repair or clean viruses from any of these systems. It is less intrusive
than any of the other anti-virus programs that are on other computers I administer.
I am happy with OneCare and hate to see it go. But then I am a user,
not a journalist.
-Bill
And finally, Fred needs some Wi-Fi security answers. Can
some knowledgeable reader help him out?
After my initial consternation upon reading your report
on the latest Wi-Fi hack, I began to wonder. As a Wi-Fi user in my home,
a single-family house in a neighborhood of single-family houses, on a short
street that dead-ends between two minor cross streets, how concerned should
I be about the insecurity of my simple WEP Wi-Fi connection at home?
Agreed: In a hotel or at a public hot spot, I'm at serious risk. But
how about at home, under the circumstances described above?
-Fred
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Posted by Doug Barney on 12/02/2008 at 1:16 PM