Steve Jobs May Be Skinnier than One of His Laptops, but...

[Limey]

Apple shredded and Microsoft tanked in the last quarter.  I take no joy in job losses anywhere*, even at MS, but Gates' old firm have been pushing an increasingly inferior product for years now, and that's not sustainable.  Just ask Ford, GM and Chrysler.

However, Apple has been a little quiet lately too.  Lots of competitors are riding their touchscreen coattails and also putting out credible all-in-one desktops.  In some areas, the competition's ahead as it embraces new-fangled technologies like Blu Ray and MMS texting (Eh? Oh.).  The blogorama is chock full of fanboys just a couple of strokes away from completion, if only Apple would release the next iPhone with a 54" fold-out screen, enough memory to save the entire internet and the computing power of the NSA.  Seriously though, they're overdue on a number of product updates and refreshes, and the delays just fuel the concerns that as Steve shrinks, so goes Apple.

[strosrays]

Apple shredded and Microsoft tanked in the last quarter.  I take no joy in job losses anywhere*, even at MS, but Gates' old firm have been pushing an increasingly inferior product for years now, and that's not sustainable.  Just ask Ford, GM and Chrysler.

However, Apple has been a little quiet lately too.  Lots of competitors are riding their touchscreen coattails and also putting out credible all-in-one desktops.  In some areas, the competition's ahead as it embraces new-fangled technologies like Blu Ray and MMS texting (Eh? Oh.).  The blogorama is chock full of fanboys just a couple of strokes away from completion, if only Apple would release the next iPhone with a 54" fold-out screen, enough memory to save the entire internet and the computing power of the NSA.  Seriously though, they're overdue on a number of product updates and refreshes, and the delays just fuel the concerns that as Steve shrinks, so goes Apple.

At least one critic is generally favorable to the beta version of the newest MS operating system.  According to him, it is way better than Vista (what isn't?) and comparable to Leopard.  He doesn't know about Snow Leopard yet, though.

The Link

[Limey]

At least one critic is generally favorable to the beta version of the newest MS operating system.  According to him, it is way better than Vista (what isn't?) and comparable to Leopard.  He doesn't know about Snow Leopard yet, though.

The Link

It'll be interesting how the compatibility holds up when it hits the real world.  Also, I think Snow Leopard is expected before the summer, so by the time Windows 7 is suited up for the big game, Apple may have moved the venue again.

[MusicMan]

Also, I think Snow Leopard is expected before the summer

That seems like poor timing.

[subnuclear]

What exactly don't people like about Vista?   I've been using it at home and it basically does it what its supposed to.   I have many more complaints about OS X Server, though that's really an apples and oranges comparison since I do work stuff with it and not my Vista machine. 

[MusicMan]

Vista crashes more often than the stock market, in my experience.

[Waldo]

They're engineering the compatibility of Windows 7 to be exactly that of Vista (FWIW) - system requirements and drivers should be the same.  Microsoft is also hoping to make a dent in the netbook market with Win7, so the OS itself should be light enough to run on lesser hardware (probably without Aero though).  The way I see it is Win7:Vista::Win98:Win95... a few new features, but visually and under the hood it's pretty much the same.

I downloaded the Win7 beta and installed it to a VM earlier this month, and it's been pretty fun to play around in.

- Driver compatibility seems to be OK.  Since I installed to a virtual machine it's kind of hard to tell, but the VMware Tools virtual hardware drivers haven't yet been updated for Win7 and they worked.  However, since VMware doesn't support DirectX I couldn't use Aero.
- The Sidebar is gone, but individual Gadgets remain.
- The new "SuperBar", which replaces the taskbar and Quick Launch, is pretty cool - it merges the best functional elements of the taskbar, Quick Launch, and the OS X Dock, and the final result is better than all three individually (IMO).
- User Access Control has four levels of configurable nagging, the highest of which is equivalent to Vista's nagging, the lowest of which turns UAC off completely.  Even the second-lowest setting ("only warn when a program tries to change system files") never gave me a pop-up warning.
- As best I could tell, the "Classic Windows" (Win2k-style) theme and classic Start menu options are gone; I never found an option for these.  They may have just been an omission from the beta.  I've read that MS has locked out certain features of the beta to MS employees only.
- Nothing ever crashed on me.

So far, I would say Windows 7 has a lot of nice things going for it.

[subnuclear]

Vista crashes more often than the stock market, in my experience.

The software crashes or the OS crashes?  I get software crashes, but I blame the software and not the operating system.  

[Waldo]

The software crashes or the OS crashes?  I get software crashes, but I blame the software and not the operating system.  

On my first attempt with Vista, explorer.exe would crash on me for no reason.  That has to be the OS.

My second attempt with Vista (on another, new computer) has actually been flawless so far.

[Jacksonian]

Vista crashes more often than the stock market, in my experience.

Literally, I mean literally, every fucking day.

[subnuclear]

On my first attempt with Vista, explorer.exe would crash on me for no reason.  That has to be the OS.

My second attempt with Vista (on another, new computer) has actually been flawless so far.

I have a newer system as well and maybe it just needs the improved hardware to work.   

[Waldo]

I have a newer system as well and maybe it just needs the improved hardware to work.   

Actually, the first attempt was on a brand new computer as well (May '08).  It may just be a crapshoot.

[Mr. Happy]

I've experienced no Vista problems on my brand new lap top.

[MRaup]

I've experienced no Vista problems on my brand new lap top.

I've had Vista installed for 3 moths on my gaming machine, and it hasn't crashed a single time.

[Gizzmonic]

I've had Vista installed for 3 moths on my gaming machine, and it hasn't crashed a single time.

Yeah, but what about your sweaters? 

[Noe]

I've had Vista installed for 3 moths on my gaming machine, and it hasn't crashed a single time.

Output from Vista and anything Microsoft 2007 on up is not very backwards compatible friendly.  I get files from folks all the time that are either Microsoft 2007-ish that was great on Vista and it craps out in XP or Microsoft 2003 of less applications.  The new line of software made to run flawlessly on Vista works fine if you stay on Vista and play nice with other Vista machines.  Other than that, it craps out if you want to show someone something you did and it was not saved or developed with lower end OS and Apps in mind.

[jonbloozy]

What exactly don't people like about Vista?   I've been using it at home and it basically does it what its supposed to.   I have many more complaints about OS X Server, though that's really an apples and oranges comparison since I do work stuff with it and not my Vista machine. 

I upgraded from a pentium 500 Win 98 machine to a powerhouse Vista.  There are much better features, but it still seems slow, mainly when browsing the web (IE).  I had to turn off some of the filters (anti-phishing, etc) so I didn't smash the screen.  I personally don't have any problems with crashing, however, and I do test it's limits.

[kevwun]

The biggest issues with Vista happen when you stick it on a network in a business environment.  It then becomes a huge pain in the ass.  We're skipping it at work because we can thankfully still get new pc's with XP.  I can at least tolerate Vista, but I hate Office 2007 with a passion.

[Amy]

I've been running Vista Ultimate on my personal laptop that I bought about a year ago and have had no problems.  The OS never crashes on me.  I have been running MS Office Professional 2003 and have not had a problem using those files on my work laptop which is still running XP.  The two problems I have noticed are that Firefox seems to crash a lot, even after I upgraded to v3 and my touchpad mouse doesn't scroll and the right button doesn't work most of the time.  When I startup my computer, my touchpad mouse is in "select" mode (draws a box on the desktop) and when I tap it I just get the right-click menu.  I have to ctrl-alt-delete and bring up the task manager, then click cancel to make the mouse quit trying to select and move and left-click properly, but then it loses scrolling and right-click altogether.  It seems to come and go, but I have been having the problem consistently for at least a couple of months now.  But I have not attributed either the Firefox or the mouse problem to Vista.  Should I?

Fortunately, I read about the problems people were having with Vista before I bought a computer with it.  So I knew to disable User Access Control, as much as it will let you.  So I haven't had any issues with that.

[Amy]

The biggest issues with Vista happen when you stick it on a network in a business environment.  It then becomes a huge pain in the ass.  We're skipping it at work because we can thankfully still get new pc's with XP.

My company is still running XP too.  I have a ThinkPad T61 that is less than a year old and has the Vista logo on it, but came downgraded to XP.  But I hear they are rolling out GIL3 with Vista and Office 2007 this year.  That will be interesting.  Like I don't have enough hassles at the office without having to deal with that.

[Gizzmonic]

I'm a Mac guy and I'm none too fond of Vista, but not all of Vista's slowness can be blamed on Microsoft.

[Limey]

My company is still running XP too.  I have a ThinkPad T61 that is less than a year old and has the Vista logo on it, but came downgraded to XP.  But I hear they are rolling out GIL3 with Vista and Office 2007 this year.  That will be interesting.  Like I don't have enough hassles at the office without having to deal with that.

Upgrading from XP to Windows (Vista) 7 requires going through Vista.  How's that for the horns of a dilemma?

[kevwun]

Microsoft should have focused on re-tooling XP in the first place, instead of developing Vista.

[subnuclear]

Upgrading from XP to Windows (Vista) 7 requires going through Vista.  How's that for the horns of a dilemma?

Is Apple going to let users upgrade from Tiger to Snow Leopard?   

[Limey]

Is Apple going to let users upgrade from Tiger to Snow Leopard?   

AFAIK, yes.

The only caveat may be that Snow Leopard requires an Intel-based Mac, and if you're running Tiger there's a good chance that you've got a PowerPC-based Mac.  Barring that, I believe you can jump from Tiger to Snow Leopard without having to take any intermediate steps.

[JackAstro]

Is Apple going to let users upgrade from Tiger to Snow Leopard?  

Yes. The installer should allow either direct upgrade or migration assisted install that covers everything back to 10.0, unless they've changed something.

[Waldo]

Upgrading from XP to Windows (Vista) 7 requires going through Vista.  How's that for the horns of a dilemma?

Microsoft is supposed to be working on some kind of migration tool to allow XP -> 7.  Although no person with reasonable computer knowledge should ever, under any circumstances, perform an upgrade install of a Microsoft OS.

[Lurch]

Microsoft is supposed to be working on some kind of migration tool to allow XP -> 7.  Although no person with reasonable computer knowledge should ever, under any circumstances, perform an upgrade install of a Microsoft OS.

And it's such a sad statement that we all know this.

[Limey]

Microsoft is supposed to be working on some kind of migration tool to allow XP -> 7.  Although no person with reasonable computer knowledge should ever, under any circumstances, perform an upgrade install of a Microsoft OS.

I used to regularly re-format my HDD and reinstall everything when working with Windows.  That used to straighten things out for a day or two.

FWIW, Macophiles I've seen on the interwebs recommend a clean install of a new version of OS X, even though and upgrade option is available.

[Guinness]

I used to regularly re-format my HDD and reinstall everything when working with Windows.  That used to straighten things out for a day or two.

FWIW, Macophiles I've seen on the interwebs recommend a clean install of a new version of OS X, even though and upgrade option is available.

I was about to post something in a similar vein, that a clean install of any OS better than choosing the upgrade option.  You never know what kind of crap the old OS will leave behind to fuck you up.

And it's such a sad statement that we all know this.

And with Microsoft, always wait for service pack 1....

[JackAstro]

FWIW, Macophiles I've seen on the interwebs recommend a clean install of a new version of OS X, even though and upgrade option is available.

Count me in that group.

[Amy]

Upgrading from XP to Windows (Vista) 7 requires going through Vista.  How's that for the horns of a dilemma?

I have no idea how my company is going to accomplish the change.  I had heard that we were all going to get new computers, which seemed a little extreme to me.  Of course, that was before the economy crashed.  Like I said, it will be interesting to see what happens.  I wonder if they are going to roll it out slowly, one division or business unit at a time, or if they will try to do it all at once?  It would be pretty sad if a huge global corporation could be brought to it's knees by a Windows "upgrade".

[kevwun]

It's hard to say.  Part of the reason we're avoiding Vista is because it's not completely compatible with our core software system.  Most of it is, but there are a few crucial packages that won't work with Vista.  Our software provider isn't eager to fix those issues because the new version of their software is compatible with Vista.  The powers that be at my company have decided against upgrading to the new system so that means we stay with XP.  If Windows 7 is just a sprucing up of Vista, I'm sure we'll still have the same problems.

[S.P. Rodriguez]

It's hard to say.  Part of the reason we're avoiding Vista is because it's not completely compatible with our core software system.  Most of it is, but there are a few crucial packages that won't work with Vista.  Our software provider isn't eager to fix those issues because the new version of their software is compatible with Vista.  The powers that be at my company have decided against upgrading to the new system so that means we stay with XP.  If Windows 7 is just a sprucing up of Vista, I'm sure we'll still have the same problems.

Okay, so you're venturing into my job area, so tell me if this is a fair prediction.  This remains the cause until the software provider sunsets the old version.  Mgmt ignores this information until you have 3-6 months to do 12 months of testing and implementation planning.  Sound about right?

[kevwun]

Yes that sounds realistic, but in our case the software provider has promised to support the old software as long as we want to keep it.  Most of their clients haven't switched to the new version yet(it's expensive as fuck), so we're probably still ok for a few years in that regard.  They want us to keep sending them money every year, so they'll probably accommodate us.  Getting new pc's with XP down the road will most likely be the biggest problem.  There's already hardware out there that was designed for Vista that doesn't work well with XP because of driver problems and it's going to get worse when pc manufacturers stop selling XP.

[Amy]

It's hard to say.  Part of the reason we're avoiding Vista is because it's not completely compatible with our core software system.  Most of it is, but there are a few crucial packages that won't work with Vista.  Our software provider isn't eager to fix those issues because the new version of their software is compatible with Vista.  The powers that be at my company have decided against upgrading to the new system so that means we stay with XP.  If Windows 7 is just a sprucing up of Vista, I'm sure we'll still have the same problems.

I wouldn't be surprised if the same reasons were behind my company's delay in moving to Vista.  I hope they've done the proper testing and upgrades (if necessary) of SAP and Ariba to make sure they will work properly with Vista.  I really don't have time for any snafu's there.

[HudsonHawk]

On my first attempt with Vista, explorer.exe would crash on me for no reason.  That has to be the OS.

My second attempt with Vista (on another, new computer) has actually been flawless so far.

When mine crashes, I just turn it upside down and shake it.  Clears right up.

[Limey]

Happy Birthday Apple Macintosh.  25 years old today.  (ETA: Actually, it was Saturday).

I'm going to celebrate by buying the iLife '09 update, because of its Facebook integration and new facial tagging feature (which I thought was only in porn) that will recognise a person's face and thus allow you to sort photos by who's in them.