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Re: MS Zune UI: An Imitation?

__/ [ Chris Dunaway ] on Friday 15 September 2006 21:23 \__

> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>> New Zune Software Eerily Similar to Democracy Player...
>>
>> ,----[ Quote ]
>> | Take a look at the new Zune player software. Notice anything strange?
>> | It's the fact that the interface is a blatant ripoff of the open
>> | source Democracy player. Microsoft once again has to take other
>> | companies ideas and turn them into their own. Almost the same basic
>> | scenario of Mircosoft ripping off the iPod with Zune.
>> `----
>>
>>
http://yourdailydose.wordpress.com/2006/09/15/new-zune-software-eerily-similar-to-democracy-player/
>> http://tinyurl.com/gdjmy
>>
>> To be fair, it also looks firly similar to SongBird and iTunes and AmaroK
>> can be skinned to look similar.
> 
> I don't much similarity except that both have their playlists on the
> left and content window on the right.  The Democracy player has a menu
> alont the top with is not present on the Zune interface.  It also has a
> couple of buttons on the bottom left which are not present on the Zune
> interface.
> 
> Are you prepared to call all products that use a similar arrangement a
> ripoff of Democracy?  It's simply an efficient and logical design.  I
> doubt that Democracy was the first to use that particular layout.


I  put a question mark in the subject line because I  partly
disagree  with  the author of that blog post. I even  listed
other  applications  that could be argued to suit  the  same
allegations.  These  are just 2 candidates and Microsoft  is
perhaps just a scapegoat.

There  are  clearer cases where Microsoft ripped off a  user
interface.  For  example, early builds of Office  2007  used
Brushed- and Aqua-type widgets, which was grossly obvious to
one's  eye.  Other  cases  involved the tango  icon  set  in
MTV/Urge,   which   I   believe   Microsoft   has   by   now
snubbed/beyrayed  with  Zune  /et al/. And there  are  other
examples  that  go  as far back as the  eighties,  including
ripoff of Apple (through Xerox PARC). It's amazing that when
someone  implements a frame-based UI these days, people deem
it  a  Windows  copycat,  only due  to  prevalence  of  that
platform   and  its  arrival  to  people's  home.   Granted,
Microsoft  is  also an easy victim to pick on, owing to  its
scale  and  shady past. This shady part -- among several  of
its   distinct  characteristic  --  involves  observing  the
competition,   then   copying   to  eliminate   it   through
prebundling.

Best wishes,

Roy

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