Please bear with me for one more (and final) post concerning Vista.  I want to try and explain my personal lack of enthusiasm for Vista and Microsoft. 

I’d also like to point out an article by Scot Finnie at “ComputerWorld” titled “The Trouble with Vista” that closely resonates with my own feelings on this.

I‚Äôve worked many years in I.T. supporting one version or the other of Microsoft Windows.¬† Early on I was a Windows fan, but that’s changed over the last five years. When I personally made the switch from Windows to Mac it was not with the idea that the Mac would be so much better. At that point in time I wasn‚Äôt sure what the Mac would be. I made the switch because I wasn‚Äôt finding the Windows experience satisfying.

I’ll go on record here and say Vista is probably a good OS.  It will be even better later this year after SP1 is released.  I’m sure Microsoft took much time and effort to improve those areas they perceived as problems inherent with previous Windows versions.  Improvements include speed, graphics, security, and the basic user experience.  In the referenced article, Finnie agrees that there are many improvements present in Vista but he also states that:

On the other hand, nothing about Vista is truly innovative or compelling. With the exception of security (and we don’t know yet whether Microsoft’s security changes will be enough to significantly change the Windows experience), there’s no transformational, gotta-have-it feature in Vista.

For me, Vista is an indicator of Microsoft‚Äôs current marketing and technology philosophy. In the early days I saw Microsoft’s goals as wanting to bring a superior PC technology experience to the user, to capture market share, and of course to make money, in that order.¬† The user was a key focus of that goal. You could tell that Microsoft and their employees believed it and lived it. Today I see Microsoft as mostly caring about market share and money. The conviction of their leaders and employees seems uncertain and unclear.¬† Their vision is turned inward.

…one thing Microsoft had going for it during its rise was its exceptional customer focus. It listened to end users, as well as the press and analysts who represented them. It made decisions based on the needs of small and mid-tier businesses, instead of just its thousand or so largest enterprise customers.

Perhaps it was the long antitrust proceedings against Microsoft that caused this change.  Or perhaps it’s come about due to an aging Bill Gates that no longer has the fire in his guts for the business he started.

Microsoft stopped focusing on end users and now seemingly makes many decisions based on these two things:
1. Avoiding negative publicity (especially about security and software quality)
2. Making sure the largest enterprise customers are happy

Ten years ago, the notion of Microsoft missing the consumer pre-holiday launch of a new version of Windows by only a matter of weeks would have been inconceivable. It’s not necessarily a bad thing that Microsoft made the decision to delay Vista, by the way. But it shows a fundamental change in the company’s orientation.

We’re seeing Microsoft taking more control away from the user.  Some might say that this is to protect the user from themselves, but I see it as insuring Microsoft’s ass is covered and that they collect every last dime possible.  Finnie states that it’s a matter of Microsoft telling the user “You’ll Do as We Say.”  This new Microsoft policy can be seen in recent Vista related examples such as no easy clean install with the upgrade package, DRM, and the multi-level Vista pricing.

In conclusion let me echo the final sentiments in the ComputerWorld article.

When all is said and done, it’s not that I don’t like Vista. It’s that I’ve lost faith in Microsoft to deal in an evenhanded way with end users and corporate buyers of its software.

Despite the welcome improvements in Vista, using the product just isn’t exciting or intriguing any longer.

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