Vista SP2 (what Doug calls a "late beta") is
now out. Here are your impressions so far:
For those of us in the trenches, Vista SP1 was fine (though I'm not surprised that your Dad had trouble considering how much CRAPWARE is pre-installed these days.) Cleanly installed, Vista SP1 is a great choice. SP1 brought with it much stability -- but little else.
I've been testing SP2 (first beta, then RC-Escrow, and now the full RC code). Vista SP2 does feel faster but it is still not nearly as fast as Windows 7 (which I am also beta testing). SP2 is rock-solid stable and I am using it in my own production environment without problems. What this means for me is that I will recommend SP2 to my father-in-law (who is running Vista SP1 now) as soon as it goes RTM, but for me, I am going to move all my systems to Windows 7 as soon as it goes RTM. Until then, I will run SP2 in whatever flavor I can get it.
-Marc
Maybe Vista SP2 will have the goodness of Win 7.
-Philip
I haven't experimented yet with the Vista SP2 "late beta." But, think it's safe to hope that the forthcoming Vista SP2 will actually upgrade Vista to a stable pre-release Windows 7? And bring some sort of fax app back into availability?
-Fred
To answer Fred's question, we don't know what the fax situation will be in future versions of Vista and Windows 7 -- but Sharon thinks it's a moot point, anyway:
Fax...ROFL! If you really still need this, there are plenty of free apps.
-Sharon
What can Microsoft do -- if it should do anything at all -- to keep the economic downturn from hitting it too hard? Here's your take:
Microsoft has nothing to worry about because first and foremost, it's a software vendor. As long as it is selling enough Windows and Office licenses to OEMs and enterprise customers, it can ride out anything. And even if sales drop off, all Microsoft has to do is lay off a few people and rent a little less office space.
That's not the same for Apple or the Microsoft OEMs. Hardware makers have to pay for the production capacity they own, whether they are producing hardware or not. And they have to store the inventory they cannot sell. They cannot just sell off production capacity or warehouse space.
-Marc
I was just reading a Computerworld item that says "Netbooks Are Killing Microsoft." It seems that "30% of all Netbooks ship with Linux."
I blame Vista for this. If Microsoft continues to sell bloatware, more and more people will change to Linux. Microsoft needs to be selling a slim-trim Windows that can be run on low-cost machines. Yes, that means Windows will have to be cheaper, too, but I think if M$ doesn't change its ways, it will find more and more people learning to use Linux and OpenOffice.
-John
How about Microsoft Visual FoxPro? MS has stated that there will be no new releases of the product past its current version 9.0. However, the worldwide developer community considers VFP a very viable product; visit http://codeplex.com/VFPX to see one example of how some of our brightest developers in the VFP community are taking charge and continuing the development of Visual FoxPro.
As a member of a local VFP developer community, the Chicago FoxPro User and Developer Group, I can attest to the fact that this 'marked for dead' product is alive and well. And we are one of many just in the U.S. The VFP community spans the globe. Microsoft could weather the storm a lot better if it worked smarter and did not hrow out the baby with the bath water!
-Tom
And Earl thinks that regardless of how the economy's doing, blaming foreign workers doesn't always wash:
One of my clients is an immigration attorney. While in their offices, I kept hearing the phrase "prevailing wage." I finally put two and two together: Foreigners must find work at the prevailing wage to qualify for an H-1B visa. They cannot be hired for less than Americans would take. Once hired, they pay U.S. taxes.
So the question "Why hire foreigners?" must be asked. The answer is two-fold. First, the foreigner probably has a greater facility with a different language and culture which would help in international situations. Second, businesses prefer the most qualified candidate. These foreigners were among the best in their countries. They will probably be among the best in our country, too.
-Earl
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/06/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
This story has been making the rounds. I first saw it on Digg, which got it from Gizmodo. Then a while later, it showed up on Drudge, which probably got it from Digg, which got it from Gizmodo. Now everyone probably knows about it.
Apparently, Vogue interviewed Melinda Gates and she disclosed that Bill won't allow family members to use iPods or iPhones. That leaves the Gates young'uns walking around with Zunes. Totally uncool!
I'm not sure how Bill deals with best bud Bono, who did iPod commercials (Apple even created a special Bono edition). "Uh, excuse me, Mr. Bono, but could you leave the iPod at the door?"
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/06/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
The Microsoft Windows 7 hype machine
took aim at enterprise customers as executives touted its high-end features. A couple of features require Windows Server 2008 R2. The ability for remote Win 7 clients to securely connect to servers without a dedicated VPN only comes with the Windows 2008/Win 7 combo. A technology that speeds up WAN connections, BranchCache, also requires the latest and greatest Windows Server 2008.
Microsoft is also touting BitLocker, which will work with external hard drives. IT can also lock down applications and configurations through AppLocker.
What IT really wants is a solid, fast, compatible OS. So far, that seems to describe Windows 7 to a T.
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/06/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
I'm always excited when a Windows guru builds a new product. What's a Windows guru? It's just an idea of mine where I chose 12 technical leaders from Microsoft third parties and tried to figure out
what made them tick.
One guru is Troy Werelius, CEO of Lucid8. Troy's latest baby is Recovery Advantage. When e-mail crashes, it usually falls to IT to make it all right. With Recovery Advantage, end users themselves can recover lost or accidently deleted mail and related attachments. That way IT can spend more time on strategic work rather than on recovering a deleted e-mail with a Pam Anderson attachment!
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/04/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
The cloud promises to be the ultimate in green computing. Instead of server rooms running expensive A/C around the clock, the apps rest in huge, hopefully efficient, centralized datacenters.
Microsoft is hoping to make the efficient part ring true with new ways of building server farms. The idea is to use low-power chips such as those that power today's $300 netbooks to drive servers. These little chips use one-tenth to one-twentieth of the watts of a typical processor. If it works for Microsoft hosting centers -- and it's still just a research project -- the same approach may save you dough in your own datacenter.
Do you care about green technology? Is there pressure to save energy? Have you pushed any green initiatives, such as virtualization? Are there ways to use Microsoft software more efficiently and has Microsoft told you about them? Help me spread the green word by writing [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/04/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
Bruce thinks he knows the reason why
server sales are slumping:
I'll tell you what the issue is: Companies are FINALLY realizing you don't have to buy new servers again and again and again, and are also starting to reuse licenses. Wait until people start seriously buying machines made with AMD chips where you can get better performance just by swapping CPU chips. Then there won't be a need to buy a new machine for some time.
-Bruce
And, because we haven't had one in a while, here's another Vista rant:
My beef is with Microsoft's take on faxing. With DOS 5 and 6, every fax modem came bundled with fax software. For Win 3.1, Microsoft provided a fax application with Windows. For Win 95, 98, ME, NT 3.5, NT 4, 2000 and XP -- Microsoft included a fax app with even the lowliest version of each of these.
Now, with Vista Home Premium, the fax app is GONE. Want it back? Shell out for Vista Ultimate or Vista Business. I protest! What will be the fax story for Windows 7? A fax app with even the lowliest version once again? Or no fax app at any price?
-Fred
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/04/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
Microsoft is confident enough in its online services that it's offering them in
nearly 20 different countries.
For international markets, Microsoft is bundling a bunch of existing Office-compatible services such as IM and presence and selling it as Office Communications Online (guess it's ditching the Live name overseas). The more expensive Business Productivity Online includes Office Live Meeting, as well as cloud SharePoint and Exchange services.
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/04/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
I've tracked the Windows 7 beta and the IE 8 beta. Windows 7 has testers excited and anxious for the OS to ship. IE 8 has hosed more systems than the Boston Fire Department.
Microsoft, as I understand it, hasn't had a lot of Windows complaints but has heard a few howls about IE 8, which comes with the new OS. Microsoft blames browser add-ins and has updated the beta to fix it.
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/02/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
Excel is apparently
vulnerable to remote code execution attacks, and Microsoft is trying to figure out why and how to fix it.
Symantec found the bug and came up the clever name: Trojan.Mdropper.AC. The attack works through a malicious spreadsheet that's masked by a legit file when the user opens it. Microsoft is working on a patch and points out the attacks have been limited so far.
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/02/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
Readers share more of their predictions for how Microsoft -- and the tech sector in general -- will make it out of the economic downturn:
Microsoft will need to do some product innovation of its own in order to survive this time around. I don't think it'll be able to steal another "Windows" from Xerox.
-Anonymous
For Microsoft, the future is clear. Windows 7 will replace XP Pro as the flagship Microsoft operating system. It is that good. Even so, its sales will fall short of desired market penetration. Microsoft's true hope for the future lies with a touch-based user interface for its Windows Mobile software and a new physical format that will replace smartphones and netbooks.
My prediction? Look for the next tech-business move to come from the past. Anyone remember Apple's Newton? That physical format, in landscape mode, supportd a virtual qwerty keyboard for speedy, touch-typing text input. In addition, it provided all the functionality of a Kindle, cell phone and workstation. Bonus: The larger, high-resolution screen means on-screen text can be larger (maybe I could even read it without my reading glasses), images display at the size of printed photos, and videos can be viewed without extreme eye strain. For end users, this is the ideal format size for tablet PC applications for hospitals, field inspectors, insurance adjusters and law enforcement officers. For Microsoft, the mini-pad format gives much-needed screen space for Windows Mobile. For Apple, it is the next logical evolution for the iPhone. Plus, Apple gets some vindication for part of its Newton product. The physical format was simply ahead of its time.
Speaking of being ahead of it's time, Trekkers will be quick to point out that this physical format, was predicted in the original "Star Trek" series.
-Dave
The problem is deeper than you imagine. You say Microsoft will be fine, but I don't believe anyone will be fine in the foreseeable future. Most people, especially in business and politics, don't seem to get how deep and painful this one will be.
What Microsoft will do is the same thing other tech companies will do: survive. It will eventually come back to one degree or another, but the old days are gone for good. Fine? I don't think so.
-Anonymous
After a judge ruled against giving the Vista Capable lawsuit against Microsoft class-action status, one reader wrote that it wouldn't have helped the plaintiffs much, anyway. Based on some personal experience, James agrees:
I have to agree with reader Earl about the class-action suit being a benefit only to the lawyers (of course, it probably wouldn't hurt Microsoft that much).
I bought a couple of iPods a few generations ago and got a postcard in the mail the other day. Somebody sued Apple because these particular iPods didn't have some kind of protection on them which allowed them to be scratched very easily. So if I fill out some form on a Web site, I can get either $15 or $25 back, depending on how badly they're scratched. OK, I guess I can fill out this form. Then the postcard went on to say that the total judgment is for $22 million. The lawyers get like $4 million for winning the suit and $200,000 to cover expenses. So who really wins on this one?
-James
Meanwhile, Sharon doesn't think the suit against Microsoft over Vista-to-XP downgrade fees holds much water:
I don't understand why someone would think that you should be able to get past versions of an OS after buying the new version. I realize that for some products, Microsoft allows corporate clients with broad licensing agreements to downgrade for the same price. Never for an end user, though. Should I be able to buy a 2009 car and, when I decide I don't like one of the features, take it back to the dealer and tell them I want an '08?
Applying this to software: Have you ever heard of any software downgrade that didn't require you to buy the older version? The latest version of Photoshop is more complicated than the version I learned. Should I get an older one for free if I bought the new one?
-Sharon
And Ben offers his answer to a reader's question last week about why the EU doesn't pursue Apple over bundling Safari the same way it does Microsoft over IE:
The reason for this is quite simple. The problem is not just that the browser is shipped with the operating system, but that Internet Explorer is integrated into the operating system itself, giving it an unfair competitive advantage over other browsers. When working on Windows, you can pretty much ignore whether you are in Internet Explorer or Windows Explorer.
Safari does not function as the file system browser or integrate with Mac OS in the same way IE does with Windows. I think there is often confusion with the use of the word "bundled" in this situation, because it could be interpreted in different ways.
-Ben
Join the fray! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/02/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
Vista wasn't a resounding success, so many turned to SP1 for help. But SP1 wasn't a resounding success either, as we
reported in a cover story.
Now there are two possible solutions. One is Windows 7, which you all seem to like very much. There's also Vista SP2, which is now what Microsoft is calling a release candidate and I just call a late beta. This is a big baby, coming in at a hefty 300MB. Let's hope the download works better than SP1.
My dad is a Vista user (it came with his new laptop, so he didn't exactly volunteer). Vista SP1 decided to download itself and before he knew it, the laptop was more messed up than Lindsay Lohan at an all-night Hollywood party. We'll be anxious to see how much good SP2 actually does.
Have you downloaded the SP2 late beta? If so, how's it going? Send your reports to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 03/02/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments
You've got to love when monopolies fight. In one corner, you have Microsoft holding on to its IE monopoly by the skin of its well-maintained teeth. In the other, you have Google steadily building control of search -- with the rest of the Internet seemingly to come.
You'd think Google would have enough pride to stay out the European Union's prolonged fight against IE. But no. Google claims there's nearly zero competition in the browser space (maybe because Chrome has a share smaller than Moxie has in soda sales).
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/27/2009 at 1:16 PM0 comments