From:

 sfrf77@sbcglobal.net

Subject:

 Fw: Interesting article about Vista

Date:

 Thu, May 3, 2007 7:44:00 pm

Hi all. Some people might consider this off topic but with window-eyes
coming with 6.1 and if you haven't read this, you thought you might find it
interesting.

Subject: Article says that vista is a failure.
Date: Monday, April 23, 2007 10:42 AM

http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article9087

Microsoft admits Vista failure

Actions speak louder than PR

By Charlie Demerjian in Beijing: Saturday 21 April 2007, 12:20

WITH TWO OVERLAPPING events, Microsoft admitted what we have been

saying all
along, Vista, aka Windows Me Two (Me II), is a joke that no one

wants.

It did two unprecedented things this week that frankly stunned
us.

Dell announced that it would be offering XP again on home PCs

http://news.com.com/Dell+brings+back+XP+on+home+systems/2100-1046_3-6177619.
html

. The second that Vista came out, Microsoft makes it very hard
for you to

sell anything other than Me II. It can't do this on the business
side

because it would be laughed out the door, but for the walking
sheep class,

well, you take what you are shovelled.

This is classic abusive monopoly behavior, Microsoft wrote the
modern book

on it. It pulled all the major OEMs in by twisting their arms
with the usual

methods, and they again all fell into line. Never before has
anyone

backpedalled on this, to do so would earn you the wrath of
Microsoft.

But Dell just did. This means that Me II sales are at least as

bad as we
think, the software and driver situation is just as miserable,

and Dell had
no choice but to buck the trend. If anyone thinks this is an act

of
atonement for foisting such a steaming pile on us, think again,

it doesn't
care about the consumer.

What happened is the OEMs revolted in the background and forced

Microsoft's
hand. This is a big neon sign above Me II saying 'FAILURE'. Blink

blink
blink. OK, Me II won't fail, Microsoft has OEMs whipped and

threatened into
a corner, it will sell, but you can almost hear the defectors

marching
toward Linux. This is a watershed.

The other equally monumental Me II failure? Gates in China

launching a $3
version of bundled Me II. Why is this not altruism? Well, it goes

back to
piracy and how it helped enforce the MS monopoly. If you can

easily pirate
Windows, Linux has no price advantage, they both cost zero.

http://news.com.com/Microsoft+aims+to+reach+next+billion+PC+users/2100-1003_
3-6177431.html

With Me II, Microsoft made it very hard to pirate. It is do-able,

you can
use the BIOS hack and probably a host of others, but the point

is, it raised
the bar enough so lots of people have to buy it. Want to bet that

in a
country with $100 average monthly salary, people aren't going to

shell out
$299 for Me II Broken Edition?

http://news.com.com/Acer+Vista+is+an+excuse+for+Microsoft+price+increases/21
00-1016_3-6130136.html

What did MS do? It dropped the price about 100x or so. I can't

say this is
unprecedented, when it made Office 2003 hard to pirate it had to

backpedal
with the student edition for about $150. This time though, things

are much
more desperate.

If you fit Microsoft's somewhat convoluted definition of poor, it

still
wants to lock you in, you might get rich enough to afford the

full-priced
stuff someday. It is at a dangerous crossroads, if its software

bumps up the
price of a computer by 100 per cent, people might look to

alternatives.

That means no Me II DRM infection lock in, no mass migration to
the newer

Office obfuscated and patented file formats, and worse yet,
people might

utter the W word. Yes, you guessed it, 'why'. People might ask
why it is

sticking with the MS lock in, and at that point, it is in deep
trouble.

So, it did the unthinkable, and dropped the price. I won't bother

to hunt
down all the exec quotes saying how people can't afford clean

water would be
overjoyed to sell kidneys to upgrade to the new version of

Office, but they
are out there. This was a sacred cow, and it is now hamburger

backed up
against the wall.

These two actions by Microsoft are proof of what I suggested

three years ago
http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article350 .

Microsoft has lost
its ability to twist arms, and now it is going to die. It can't

compete on
level ground, so is left with backpedalling and discounts of

almost 100
times.

What we are seeing is an unprecedented shift of power. It is also

an
unprecedented admission of failure. And the funniest part about

the moves
made? They are the wrong things to do. Microsoft is in deep

trouble. µ

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