Apple Fanboy Bloggers Gush Further Misinformation
Two weeks in a row, bloggers. Is this the result of the average blogger repeating a "hot" story without checking the source or is this the result of fan boys and girls gushing over anything Apple?
Apple was NOT more profitable selling cell phones than Nokia in Q3
"Recent reports that Apple's phone business generated $1.6 billion profit compared to $1.1 billion for Nokia don't add up. The companies' financial disclosures tell all."
The other story was, of course, when the project manager was quoted on how Windows 7 is, what most of the community would like to take from the story, a rip off of the OS X GUI. This man was not a developer nor a designer. He had as much to do with Windows 7 as I have with NAFTA while I do IT at this company.
Not quite the same.
Not the fault of Microsoft anymore than this link is Apple's.
Windows 7 Kills Dumbledore
That's right, Windows 7 is already smashing pre-order records on Amazon. It's definitely a good sign that I will be supporting Windows 7 in the near future professional instead of Windows XP for the rest of my life.
I, for one, am excited about Windows 7. I have been using it since January, wrote a handy little tutorial about adding Windows 7 into the GRUB, which I've done since every beta release and RC. It's still relevant. Now that it is retail, try it out yourself. You don't have to let Windows take over your PC.
The Windows 7 to GRUB it up is located here.
In Apple We Antitrust
An apparent leak has been revealed that Microsoft will be shipping Windows 7 without Internet Explorer already bundled. While it is not the first time we've seen Microsoft hit with anti-trust lawsuits recently, many can only imagine why no one complains about Apple bundling all of their applications by default without alternatives out of the box.
One announcement from WWDC 2009 is that Snow Leopard is only $29 to upgrade from Leopard. That's good news, but remember that the initial Mac OS X public beta was $29.95 and only lasted a little over half a year. As for Microsoft, we can download Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidate, based on the NT 7.0 kernel, and the Windows Server 2008 trial is good for 60 days. Also, Windows 7 has been out for several months now, with official and unofficial releases, for a long haul beta.
The $30 beta for Mac OS X did apply a discount for Cheetah, but was lacking in almost all features, and was rather unstable. Things did not improve for some time after the initial launch of OS X. Not only did the community pay for a beta, but they also paid for a very unfinished, featureless, and buggy operating system for the first retail release of OS X 10.0. They paid to stare at the Aqua UI. The Apple community can say what they want about Windows not being the best out of the box, but it took a couple of years for OS X to achieve usability.
Plenty of people would have became rabid if they could have only used the new Windows 7 toolbar with Jump Lists for 6 months without any real applications, DVD support, or much of any productivity software available, let alone that they received the beta for free. What would happen to Windows 7s sales if it took two years to become useful? Also, people were upset about backwards compatibility with Vista, but what of OS X Leopard/Snow Leopard and Classic? No more native OS 9 support.
I remember when Windows XP first came out. I remember the criticism about exploits, revolving door infections, and shoddy performance. After Service Pack 2 was released, everything then seemed stable enough. The same goes for Vista SP1, but what about Windows 7? There are several reports about glitches and other problems, but this is a public beta from Microsoft for a brand new operating system. No one will see a public beta, or free if "available" in beta, for Snow Leopard because everyone is already using Snow Leopard as Leopard or Tiger. It's still OS X.
I have and still do give OS X a chance. I have had Mac OS X Tiger for the longest time and doubt I will ever upgrade to further service packs released by Apple. I cannot justify paying for a service pack for an operating system older then Windows XP that has had 5 retail service packs and a sixth on the way! WinXP had 3 SPs and was pretty solid by the second. While Microsoft didn't focus heavily on themes, the end user can tweak their Windows desktop environment to make it unique.
It bothers me when I see blind iSheep flocking to the next "big" announcement in hopes it matches the rumors, but no keynote ever does. What is really bothersome is how the slightly positive announcements are given the most attention instead of the elephant in the room, such as a new line of expensive MacBook Pros without a removable battery. Apple can be just as greedy, if not more, as Microsoft and guilty of using guerrilla tactics equal to those committed by Microsoft.
I'd rather not wake up in the morning to see Safari secretly installed and automatically assigned as my default browser again. I uninstalled Apple software on my Windows PC, especially the disappointing Safari 4 release for Windows missing the delightful tab-process feature to kill tabs, which is featured in Chrome. Also, Chrome 2 appears has already "stolen the crown" that Apple gave itself, but was more of a pat on the back.
Mac OS X is a decent proprietary operating system with limited hardware configuration and software support, but Apple is the real culprit here with the misdirection, exaggerations, unnecessary mudslinging, and leaving loyal fans wondering if they are ever thought of in think tanks. I would imagine only true Apple fans can wait out the storm of bad ideas and implementations, but what would be considered the limit? Vista drew a great deal of fire, but when Snow Leopard drops, few will complain that they are paying for only a feature-lite service pack for OS X.
Digitus Medius to Consumerist Masochist
It's official: Apple and AT&T gave the middle finger to their loyal existing customers this week. There isn't much to say in regards to the reason why it's a big middle finger, but it's more of a question as to why should everyone care so much. No one really expects AT&T and Apple to give loyal customers deep discounts over new customers, that's the way of the business world.
So, the new iPhone hardware will be hundreds of dollars more for existing customers to upgrade their phone. That's fine. There are dozens of examples where this kind of new-customer-first policy takes place. One that comes to mind is a video store. Everyone has seen the big bold letters advertising 50% off rentals for 30 days to all new customers, but what about the veteran who has rented over 2,000 titles at New Release wall 5-day rental prices?
I could give more examples, but I'm sure everyone will immediately relate this behavior to many other companies. It's nothing new, it's just business. Big Tabacco doesn't care about the black lunged, existing smokers, they want the new and healthy. The difference between other companies and AT&T/Apple is that there is a fine contract between the consumer and a fancy new gadget that will be a quarter of the price after ten weeks.
The biggest insult is that AT&T could give their iPhone customers MMS, and should have before 3.0, but they refused all this time and will possibly push it out over the summer. They'll charge for tethering, possibly adding it onto the unlimited data plan, causing the already pricey data plan to become quite a monthly monster.
The WWDC 2009 keynote announcements have stuffed my RSS feeds with enough rehashed news of rabid fanboyism and upset elitists in regards to the same three announcements for me to care. I noticed Apple fans are different. Apparently, no one can be a true Apple fan without appreciating the fact that they will get shat on often.
At least with Microsoft, there is no mystery. We knew Vista wasn't great, but people bought it anyway. There went all our "ancient" 2005 software and printers that have been in the family for generations. We knew all of this before upgrading to Vista and many have regretted it ever since, but the fact remains that consumers did not have to buy into Vista and even the techie novice knew about many flaws beforehand.
While it may not be quality on release, what operating system is without a few updates to harden? Windows XP wasn't quite ready until Service Pack 2, but Microsoft didn't charge each end user to apply the update. Should Microsoft follow Apple in their footsteps and put a price on Windows 7 Service Pack 1? Chaos would erupt. Satan himself would rise from the depths of hell to congratulate Ballmer on a job well done.
Speaking of which, Apple loves to take cheap shots stating that Windows 7 is nothing but a polished Windows Vista, but how can a company that charges for service packs for the same exact operating system over a period of eight years have any room to talk about a rival company charging for a completely new operating system? What a double standard!
Windows 7 is not Vista 2.0. I've been using Windows 7 since January and I've been thoroughly impressed by it. Microsoft giving Windows 7 Home Premium upgrades for $49.99 for Vista owners is also a great incentive. While Snow Leopard upgrades are to be sold for only $29.99, I still cannot justify a service pack update going retail for just a few system enhancements.
Should we really have to pay any money to be able to give our desktop more of a brushed metal theme or to take it away in a future update with something more unified? What about a smaller footprint for the operating system? Ridiculous.
Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to blast Mac OS X. Sure, OS X has come a long way, but I'd rather use another open source Unix-like environment that allows Wine, which is fantastic software. Wine is rather experimental with OS X currently, but Apple could really help out the community, and possibly themselves, by embracing the Windows emulation software.
Why buy a completely different Office version specifically for the Mac when everyone already has pirated Office 2003 for Windows? Imagine the Switch commercials!
Speaking of switching, Apple is beginning to look like a pack of goons without some puppet CEO to hold up shiny new products. How will Apple be without Jobs? That's easy, look at what they were before Jobs. A history of messy hardware choices and poor customer support. Without Jobs on the job, they have already made some potential costly mistakes at WWDC 2009.
The new MacBook line will be cheaper, powerful, but without a removable battery. That's pretty bad, so much for executive professionals. Just keep it charging the entire time the MacBook Pro is in use! It's healthy for the battery.* Also, the little bit about ExpressCard being removed seems a mystery to some, but not to me. Apple has always tried to adopt different technologies, switch it up, and, at times, tackle completely new connections that become unique to their systems.
While it is nice to attempt to be revolutionary and take a different road at certain forks in difficult technological decisions, I think Apple, right now, said silently, "I've made a huge mistake."
Another slap in the face is, of course, the "new" iPhones looking exactly like the "classic" 3G model. I can see the fanboys getting frustrated now! "It's not iPhone3G! It's iPhone3GS! Gawd!" Everyone else can imagine that, I'm sure. Though, the only real difference is video recording and that's too little, too late for the cost of the 3GS.
As for the mud slinging, it won't end. Without Microsoft and Apple feuding over marketshare, I shudder to think about an alternate universe where we would be right now in terms of home computers. Would they would even be as affordable or easily obtainable as they are now? To think that only certain organizations could afford, or donated, computers, such as libraries and schools. This is a terrible thought, but enough of future-speak and what-if scenarios.
Gadgetry like the iPhone3GS is not special, nothing to clamor over or freak out globally on every tech blog on the internet. There are few apps to truly want and the hardware upgrades just don't seem worth the cash to upgrade. Too expensive, but still want it? Wait a few weeks and buy three for the price it cost for one during the release weekend.
* - It's not.
Windows 7, Antitrust Lawsuits, and Linux
No one can ignore the fact that Microsoft is losing market share. Not to their Apple rival, but to a completely different beast. Microsoft may have a lot to fear now that Linux has become quite a force in a variety of different areas.
While Microsoft will not go under as a company, the prestige and respect that was associated with Windows over the last several years may have been tainted by negative media reports, Steve Ballmer, antitrust issues, and rising alternatives.
Why the Windows 7 SuperTaskbar Beats Mac OS X’s Dock
I wanted to write a huge article about the new Windows 7 SuperTaskber, but Gizmondo has already done so in great detail. Most of this article sums up my thoughts when I first used Windows 7 several weeks ago and this article does a great job throwing together the best features.
Mac OS X is nothing but a sugar coated Unix variant. Give me PC-BSD and Wine instead.
Windows 7 MP3 Bug Patch Crashes Explorer – Solution
For those that have been experiencing pain when it comes to updating for Windows 7 after applying the MP3 bug fix, here is the proposed solution. I've tested this and so have others I know. It works.
Go into the registry. Navigate to the following key:
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\SQMClient\Windows\DisabledSessions
Rename the value "MachineThrottling" to "_MachineThrottling".
This is the only solution I have found.
Adding Windows 7 to Linux Multiboot
Update: I appreciate the comments! Thank you for adding more technical information to this attempt at a simple guide to simplifying the process. A big thanks to LifeHacker.com and Tuxmachines.org for adding this article to their front page!
Word of Caution: Thanks to the anon for mentioning you might lose the ability to use BitLocker. I have not tested any of this yet, but I recommend using TrueCrypt over BitLocker. Also note a Dynamic Disk setup would probably be slaughtered. Again, I have not tested any of this, just a word of caution.
I received a question regarding my last post about Windows 7 being in my multiboot setup.
Read This Before Starting: To begin, you must have a basic understanding of GRUB and naming conventions in the GNU/Linux world. If (hd0,1) speaks your language, this will be a very easy to follow guide. If you do not know GRUB (GRand Unified Bootloader), then you are missing out on the best boot loader around. I should mention that LILO requires a bit more work and maintenance, but both possess the same functionality.
Extremely Important Notes: I recommend a novice editing the mapped devices in GRUB with the distro installation disc. It is the easiest way. If you do not have a distro disc handy, then I recommend trying to use the Super Grub Disc. With the SGD, you can restore GRUB to the MBR, but you will still have to edit mapped devices. The distro CD or DVD allows both jobs done in one step. I do not recommend editing the Windows boot.ini file.
What Happened to the GRUB: Installing Windows 7 will wipe add itself to the master boot record (casualprogrammer is right, it does not "wipe", bad choice of words) over your custom GRUB configuration. Do not panic when Windows begins booting without GRUB appearing first, this is normal. Since Windows Vista, the NTLDR has been replaced with several other components which are bootmgr.exe, Boot Manager, and winload.exe, the Operating System Loader. This might make people think that Vista or 7 are incapable of functioning under GRUB, but there are unnoticeable changes regarding the multiboot functions and performance with GRUB and bootmgr/winload.
What Happened to Windows XP: If you had Windows XP installed as your primary before, then XP will still be present. If you did not upgrade from Windows XP or format your hard drive, XP will still be present. Also if you did not install over the same partition that held XP. Windows 7 will take care of booting XP. When Windows boots, you are given a prompt and 30 seconds, by default, to choose to boot to Windows 7 or an Earlier Operating System. Choose Earlier Operating System to boot back into Windows XP.
Installing Windows 7: You can install Windows 7 on any other NTFS partition on your hard drive without worry. Seven will always be displayed and function like it is on the C: drive when running, even though it is actually installed on drive R:. This means that headaches will not result from installing it elsewhere. The installation is very straight forward, much easier than Vista, which says something because the Vista installation was a huge improvement from Windows 2000 and XP.
What Happens Next: After the installation, the computer can only boot into Windows because the newly added bootloaders are now priority after POST. No problem, but you will have to change this to get back into the capabilities of GRUB and boot back into your existing Linux installations. Pop in your tool of choice to edit the GRUB. The easiest way to do this involves your distro installation disc. Boot to the distro disc. Proceed through the language and other prompts to the Bootloader Configuration options. You may only have the choice to create a new bootloader. Select that and proceed.
Creating a New GRUB: If you only have one operating system using the Linux kernel and Windows 7 currently installed, this might be easier. Windows XP will not be in the device list and you should not be able to add Windows XP again while Seven is present. You can spot which partition holds what by the boot flags, such as "/boot". Linux should be the one with the output "/dev/hda3" or another consisting only of a forward slash (/). Add this and give it a relevant name. Windows may be installed under /dev/hda1, or (hd0,0). The title "Windows" should do, since it may be for both XP and 7.
Consummation: Apply the changes, wait for the BL update to finish, and you should be all set after the system reboots. You will be given the GRUB screen to choose between which O/S to boot. You're all done. It's been a couple of weeks, but I have experienced no issues and I am always bouncing from each operating system. I've been GRUBing it up with Windows XP Pro and Fedora for a long time without any hassles. Please respect my hard work. Pass this guide along if you've found it helpful, and feel free to leave a comment with any criticism. Enjoy.
Here are links with further information:
Arc Language Blog - Notes on dual-booting Windows 7 and Linux
APC - The definitive dual-booting guide: Windows 7, Linux, Vista and XP step-by-step
Windows 7: The Long Awaited XP Replacement
Balmer's keynote is finished and the reports are everywhere. Ballmer said that the next Windows O/S is the best version yet. The world may agree with him soon because Windows 7 Beta will go public as of today, Friday, January 9th. I find this an excellent time for everyone who has an unused computer to break it out and install the beta. I've been testing it out for a while with multiple combinations of software, my favorite suite of system protection, and a lot of non-Vista friendly productivity software. As a friend of mine said, my thoughts exactly, Windows 7 beta build 7000 seems RTM already.
Once again, flocks everywhere are comparing Windows 7 to Mac OS X and their taskbar. I have to admit that I was not only skeptical of Windows 7 as a whole, but the new taskbar dubbed Super Taskbar. I am not only impressed, but it forks off from any taskbar I've seen in all the dozens of operating systems I've used. You are able to pin an application on the taskbar, as promised, but you gain a wealth of easily accessible Recent History and other options by one lonely click. No longer will mousers worry about the keyboard enthusiasts preach about wasting time navigating with the cursor. The new taskbar is fantastic.
Another jab at Windows 7 is the dreaded resolution to DLL hell called the SXS folder. Windows 7 possesses virtualization for backwards compatibility. The problem has been that this folder can climb to enormous levels quickly, especially so soon after installing Windows 7. After I was done with my first sweep of applications, the SXS folder was between six to seven gigabytes. After another week of testing, the folder did not increase. 7GB is a worthy trade off. This beta actually ran smoother than Windows XP on my current desktop, especially after I combed through services.
Next up I should mention multiboot capabilities. I have a GRUB controlled boot load that has Windows on default next to several Linux operating systems. After installing Windows 7 in a separate NTFS partition, it did take over as expected, but I was able to update the GRUB with no issues. After the boot configuration update, Windows 7 will boot up as the primary by default, but you have 30 seconds to choose either an Earlier Windows Operating System or boot into Win7. After which, you can choose to boot into any other Windows operating system. Simply put, I have had no problems with WinSeven in a large multiboot environment after installation. That might mean something to someone other than me.
Aside from most of the eye candy, Windows 7 is stable and impressive. It runs well enough on the old Dell I have laying around without turning off any visual effects. Not to mention I had a fleet of software running at full capacity. I may only have 2GB of RAM in this system, but multitasking not only became a lot more manageable, but customizing how you want to multitask is a huge perk. You can now easily edit the taskbar button grouping options in Taskbar Properties among other choices.
Microsoft will finally release an operating system that not only seems secure and stable on release, but one that doesn't irritate us with user control prompts for every action. This brings up the mention that UAC can be configured to be relaxed for the most part without shutting the entire service off. Helpful options like this are sprinkled throughout Seven nicely and are not difficult to find. If you have a very basic idea of what you want to do, you will probably stumble into the necessary radio button or check box. While Vista was geared towards gamers and PC enthusiasts, Windows 7 looks to be geared for everyone else.
We will mark Vista down as the second black eye from Microsoft following Windows ME. While not nearly as terrible as ME, the constant annoyances, lack of backwards compatibility, and heavy hardware requirements deserve to be placed near the mantle of failure ME currently resides. I don't know why Microsoft decided to follow up an operating system that has been around for seven years with a possible successor that could not run any software or drivers dated before 2006. At least they managed to release a proper beta before people began to lose hope. Windows XP was resurrected with SP2, Windows 98SE had SP 2.1a, and a lot of software and updates cannot install without SP4 in Windows 2000.
Microsoft also discontinued Live OneCare and will be releasing their own free antivirus program for Windows. I see this as another great move by Microsoft considering the wealth of garbage antivirus protection that can cost an annual subscription of $80. I trust this is an action taken to push Symantec to try to push out quality software for once, along with Trend Micro, AVG, and others. Too many consumers are being duped into buying protection suites that do little for protection and more in terms of setting up, registering, dealing with spam as a result, false positives, and lengthy, resource sucking scans.
This year is beginning to look up for Microsoft, but consumers may feel cynical after purchasing Vista. These may be the same people that felt cheated from investing in an ME machine. They are undoubtedly a lost cause, but Windows 7 definitely picks up the slack after losing a portion to Mac and Linux. Those that have found love in Linux may vow to never return again, but we have not hit that pivotal point in history where we no longer need to run Windows. Many will have to return, but at least it could be a delightful reunion with what appears to be an actual replacement for Windows XP.
Sorry Microsoft, I’m Done
Update: The reason behind this blog is undoubtedly that Microsoft may be dropping Vista in favor of Windows 7. Excellent. Let Vista rest in stagnation because there are too many issues by users crying out to be fixed or give options to adjust certain annoyances. Ah, well. Windows 7, for me, will be the answer, but I feel sorry for consumers everywhere that invested in Windows Vista. This includes the latest expensive productivity software when earlier purchased versions should have sufficed and brand new Vista certified hardware.
Everyone has that one friend in their lives that never seems get things right, but try their best. They may imitate others because they probably have this crazy notion they aren't good enough on their own. What's worse is that they make mistakes. A lot of mistakes. Though, I wouldn't call this friend lazy, but he or she will sit on a resolution for months, or years, before attempting to repair the error. This kind of friend is not just a teenager, but is displayed through all spheres of life. This friend is quite literally everywhere you go. At first, regretfully, when you lose contact permanently, you seem to become a better person.
In my spheres of life, Windows has been that friend of mine. Microsoft has never learned from past mistakes, which has led to serious security compromises. We all vividly remember the Blaster worm and numerous other exploits. Well, here is a lovely little networking flaw that can be abused to crash Vista systems. It can allow rootkits to be hidden and DoS attacks to create chaos for your daily computing needs. Meaning that your Vista machine could be exposed to damaging attacks.
Well, I've been trying to keep up with Windows and stay optimistic, but I have to finally admit, Vista was a failure. Windows 7 seems more and more like what Vista would have been if they let it stay in the oven a couple more years. Windows 7 is going to be a failure as many people who already painstakingly upgraded to Vista now feel they will be pressured into upgrading to Windows 7. Though, Windows XP will not be retired for quite a while until Vista/7 get their game together; you will not be able to purchase XP in stores on preconfigured manufacturer computers. Only online through the same retailers.
I was sad to hear that Microsoft will address this vulnerability in their next service pack. There is no estimated release date for SP2 and I feel it will bring little to the table to resurrect Vista. The damage has been done and so many Windows users have felt cheated by a half-finished product, which is clearly evident now with videos displaying Windows 7 features and technology. Sure, it may be feature rich, but just like Vista, there is nothing that changed the productivity and convenience for Windows. Well, aside from easy to use parental controls.
Sadly, I'm telling Microsoft I'm done defending and supporting them and now it seems the once proud software giant has taken a knee during an important play. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have two more days to wait until the official release of Fedora 10. With a speedy GUI boot process and many other amazing changes, there will be no reason I will have to do anything Windows again besides emulate Windows XP. Come to think of it, I don't recall the last piece of software that won't install properly with Wine. Hell, even recent big name MMOs install under Linux now.
I used to actually enjoy Windows with the amount of customization and choices. Even though Windows XP wasn't quite "good" until Service Pack 2, that does not entitle M$ to give the same treatment towards Vista. At least try to hammer out security flaws when found. Albeit, Mac OS X is full of security flaws, at least Apple will hot fix them as soon as when it matters.
Best Windows Gaming Feature Ever?
"This week, Microsoft unveiled one of Windows 7’s new features, which will allow games and other DirectX 10 and 10.1-based applications to run fully accelerated on obsolete graphics hardware, and even on systems with no graphics acceleration at all.
Dubbed Windows Advanced Rasterization Platform or WARP, the new graphics layer for Windows 7 will utilize the system CPU as the graphics engine to assist old graphics cards, and take over completely in some cases."
This means that all those fancy video games that require a heavy duty 3D graphics card can be run on the most basic setup. The benchmarks look really promising. Microsoft released specs benching Crysis on low settings.
