by Earl Moore on August 29, 2007
Before I made the switch to Apple OS X I was a heavy user of Microsoft Windows. Windows was the standard at work and Microsoft Office was the standard office application package. it was easy and safe for me to follow this same standard at home.
Then came the Apple Mac.
One of my main concerns with making the switch to the Mac platform was document compatibility. Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac was the software application that for me made the hardware switch to Mac feasible.
Now, I find myself at the point where I’m uninstalling Microsoft Office for Mac. My reason’s:
- I find I only use it as a case of last resort;
- Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac is not a universal application and runs slow on Intel Mac’s;
- I’m tired of the application feature bloat that has become part of most Microsoft applications; and
- I don’t want to spend the big bucks($) to upgrade to Office 2008 for Mac when they finally release it.
For me, Microsoft Office for Mac has went from being a critical piece of software to being not required. My taste in software has progressed to more natural applications both from a cost and a function perspective.
I now use NeoOffice (free) for heavy duty document creation and editing and Apple iWork ‘08 ($79) for everyday/normal work.
Good-bye Office 2004 for Mac.
Technorati Tags: apple, microsoft, office, os x, windows
by Earl Moore on August 25, 2007
According to Ars Technica, It appears that Microsoft’s Windows Genuine Advantage service is suffering a worldwide outage:
Windows Genuine Advantage suffers worldwide outage, problems galore:
Late last night we started receiving reports from readers experiencing problems with Windows Genuine Advantage authentication. Users of both Windows XP and Windows Vista were writing to say that they could not validate their installations using WGA, and one user even said that his installation was invalidated by the service.
We contacted our sources at Microsoft, who told us off the record that the company is aware of a major WGA server outage affecting users across the globe. The Windows Genuine Advantage support forum has exploded with complaints, as a result, and Phil Liu, WGA Project Manager, says that he won’t sleep until the problem is fixed. Windows Vista and XP are affected, 32- and 64-bit versions….
…Right now we don’t have official word on a cause, but one source with familiarity with WGA tells us that the issue may be caused by updates to the service that were required after Microsoft expanded the number of activations keys available for Windows XP. However, the sense we get from Phil Liu is that Microsoft is pretty much in the dark right now.
Update:Â 8/30/07 - I wanted to follow-up on this post with the cause and results.
So, what happened? Pre-production code was sent to the live WGA servers, causing it to be unable to encrypt/decrypt incoming product keys from machines in the activation and validation process. The problem only existed for half an hour, but 12,000 systems were affected. Those machines had to re-activate to get back to full functionality.
via InsideMicrosoft
Technorati Tags: genuine advantage, microsoft, windows
by Earl Moore on August 17, 2007
Here’s a WOW folks! I know things aren’t good in “Vista Land” when Jim Louderback, the former editor-in-chief of PC Magazine and Microsoft Windows fan boy, expresses serious doubts about Vista as he’s writing his last column..
“I’ve been a big proponent of the new OS over the past few months, even going so far as loading it onto most of my computers and spending hours tweaking and optimizing it,” Mr. Louderback wrote. “So why, nine months after launch, am I so frustrated? The litany of what doesn’t work and what still frustrates me stretches on endlessly.” - via MacObserver -
Mr. Loudenback went even further in stating…
“I definitely gave Microsoft too much of a free pass on this operating system: I expected it to get the kinks worked out more quickly. Boy, was I fooled! If Microsoft can’t get Vista working, I might just do the unthinkable: I might move to Linux.”
I don’t think that’s the “WOW” Microsoft was striving for, but it’s certainly the one they seem to be getting lately. Even their greatest fans are frustrated, especially when remembering that Microsoft worked on Vista for five+ years prior to it’s release.
Hey Richard, you guys with Ubuntu wouldn’t mind welcoming Mr. Loudenback aboard would you? 
Technorati Tags: jim loudenback, linux, microsoft, pc magazine, vista
by Earl Moore on August 7, 2007
Steven Hodson at WinExtra did a frankly honest post titled “Oh how I wish I could be a drooling fanboy” on the frustrations of being a Microsoft Windows user these days.Â
I felt those same frustrations with Microsoft several years ago.
One of the reason’s I switched to Mac was that I didn’t feel that Microsoft focused in any positive way on it’s users.
Apple may not be all warm and cuddly with it’s users, after the fact, but they do design with them in mind.
FRUSTRATIONS…
Technorati Tags: apple, frustrations, microsoft
by Earl Moore on July 3, 2007
It seems that developers are cooling on developing for Windows desktops and are looking to Linux and mobile devices.
Tech news blog - CNET News.com:
According to an Evans Data study published on Tuesday, software developers are choosing to write applications for Windows deskop PCs less than they used to.
In a survey, Evans Data found that almost 65 percent of software developers are targeting some version of Windows for their applications, as opposed to nearly 75 percent last year. The research group expects the number to drop another two percent in the coming year.
The culprit? Linux. Developers are choosing to write applications for Linux desktops in almost 12 percent of cases, which is a 34 percent increase from last year.
“It’s clear that a shift away (from) Windows began about two yeas ago and the data show that this migration is now accelerating. Linux has benefited, but we also see corresponding growth in niche operating systems for non-traditional client devices. The landscape is changing,” said Evans Data president and CEO John Andrews in a statement.
Where the developers go so go the applications followed by the users. Could Microsoft be losing it’s grip on the desktop?
Technorati Tags: development, windows, linux, developers, microsoft
