Flipping the Linux switch: The GNOME desktop environment
,----[ Quote ]
| There is a controversy in the Linux world. It doesn't have to do with
| Microsoft, or anything overtly technical. It may seem, to the outsider, the
| open source equivalent of the question, "Boxers or briefs?" But it's much
| more serious than that.
|
| GNOME or KDE? There's a lot of emotion on both sides of the argument. Because
| we here at Download Squad value our lives, we're not going to tell you which
| is the best (yeah, as if we agree anyway). What matters is what works best
| for you. That's why we're spending this week and next discussing the virtues
| and pitfalls of GNOME and KDE.
`----
http://www.downloadsquad.com/2007/12/24/flipping-the-linux-switch-the-gnome-desktop-environment/
INQUIRER guide to free operating systems
,----[ Quote ]
| XP IS GETTING a bit long in the tooth, Vista is a pig and you don't want to
| buy a Mac and join the Jobs Cult. So, you're thinking of having a look at
| Linux, but are bamboozled by the hundreds of flavours and don't want to spend
| a weekend discussing it with disturbingly intense bearded men in socks and
| sandals. So here is the Inquirer's guide to Linux: quick, clear, opinionated
| and unfair.
`----
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2007/12/24/inq-guide-free-operating
Many people have had a migration to Linux (at home) planned for the holidays.
Related:
,----[ Quote ]
| In late February, a client of Solbrekk Business Technology Solutions
| bought seven PCs as part of a $50,000 project and decided to try Vista
| on one of the machines. Three hours into the job, he decided there were
| too many compatibility issues with the company's antivirus software
| and a third-party logistics application. So Joann Evans, Solbrekk
| senior account executive, opted to use XP. But after several
| frustrating hours trying to reach people at an OEM distributor
| and then Microsoft to obtain a downgrade license, she gave up and
| purchased a new XP Pro license for her client--with her own money.
|
| "I can't tell you how many times I got hung up on," she says.
`----
http://www.crn.com/software/199100681;jsessionid=WKHCZHK5FANAOQSNDLOSKHSCJUNN2JVN?pgno=5
How To Crash Windows Vista In 10 Seconds Or Less
,----[ Quote ]
| Here's the deal: One of the simplest command sequences you can think of
| will take Vista down completely. Hold down the Windows key and the letter
| "E" for 10 seconds or so. After opening up Windows Explorer windows ad
| infinitum, your system will stop responding.
`----
http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/06/how_to_crash_wi.html
Vista – XP Downgrade Rights – Hot Microsoft Subject
,----[ Quote ]
| The downgrade rights from Windows Vista to Windows XP are a hot subject over
| at Microsoft.
|
| [...]
|
| According to Lisa Michigan from the Microsoft U.K. licensing team, the first
| two positions in the company's top 5 licensing questions revolve around
| Windows vista downgrades.
`----
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vista-XP-Downgrade-Rights-Hot-Microsoft-Subject-57931.shtml
More Microsoft DRM?
,----[ Quote ]
| It's worth noting that the DRM can get even worse when it comes to
| digital cable. Media Center users can look forward to even more
| limits on streaming throughout their house, copying to portable
| devices, and other legitimate uses.
|
| Just because Microsoft decided to obey CGMS-A doesn't mean youh
| ave to. You can look to PC DVR alternatives, and you can make
| DRM-free, analog-to-digital conversions of TV content using
| tools like the Neuros recorder that don't recognize CGMS-A.
`----
http://p2pnet.net/story/12324
Microsoft Partner Points to Soft Vista Demand
,----[ Quote ]
| Overall, it's difficult to say how well Vista is doing. Yes, Microsoft
| has sold more than 20 million Vista licenses. But how many customers
| actually requested the operating system? And how many more would send
| it back to Redmond, if only they knew how? Based on all the negative
| Vista buzz, Apple is actually suggesting that the Vista party is over
| before it starts.
|
| In reality, PC vendors are selling boatloads of Vista systems to
| consumers. But perhaps not as many as expected. How else can you
| explain Dell's decision to re-introduce Windows XP on some systems while
| at the same time launching consumer PCs with Ubuntu Linux preinstalled.
`----
http://techiqmag.com/2007/05/10/microsoft-partner-points-to-soft-vista-demand/
Nine burning questions about how Vista is really doing
,----[ Quote ]
| Instead, there's so much spin -- from Microsoft, from rivals such
| as Apple Inc., from market analysts pushing research and more research
| -- it would even leave Sasha Cohen dizzy. Here's our attempt to unravel
| this puzzle-shrinkwrapped-in-a-mystery.
`----
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9021838
http://tinyurl.com/2u6gzq
,----[ Quote ]
| "This is a relic of old-line consumer products companies like Philip
| Morris, or fraudsters like Miniscribe who literally shipped bricks in
| lieu of disk drives to hit sales targets.
|
| [...]
|
| Channel stuffing is the business practice where a company or a sales
| force within a company inflates its sales figures by forcing more
| products through a distribution channel than the channel is capable
| of selling to the world at large.
|
| [...]
|
| We have a game we play around the office here with Microsoft press
| releases. The game is, "Find the words that make the headline true."
| It's not always easy.
|
| [...]
|
| Sony, like Microsoft, announces units shipped, not actually sold.
| This allows both companies to advertise sales numbers based on how
| many units they can force retailers to accept, not on how many units
| customers actually buy; both have considerable market power to push
| excess unsold inventory into the channel."
`----
http://www.informationarbitrage.com/2007/04/microsoft_phili.html
|
|
