My how the times have changed.
Remember 1995? August of that year, to be exact. Microsoft released Windows 95 to extreme fanfare, enlisting the services of Jay Leno and the cast of "Friends," commenting on the exquisite concept of right-clicking.
Now the world is on the verge of another high-level OS release from the Seattle-based-people-who-rule-computerdom. Except this time there is not quite the same level of hoopla and, it seems, less excitement from the consumers. Oh sure, we will see some video of customers running into a store come midnight, but overall the buying public just appears, well, blase to the anticipation of upgrading.
Why? Some good reasons are listed here, but I also think some computer veterans are no longer lured by Microsoft's promises of The Next Big Operating System being "all that." Too many bad experiences with 95, 98, ME, 2000, and XP. And missing the holiday season didn't help.
I think another reason that February of 2007 will in no way resemble August of 1995 for Microsoft is that most buzz these days comes from hardware, not an operating system. If you doubt this, just go to CNET and check out the subjects for most of their articles. (Hint: HDTV, Blu-ray, MP3 players, and the iPhone.)
For the Geohouse, the introduction of Vista will go unnoticed. Most of you know I tap-tap my blog entries using a Macbook. I also use it for my photos, web browsing, e-mail, iTunes, recording and managing music using my cool Christmas gift from Geogal (a USB turntable). Why did I purchase a Macbook last fall? Many reasons, but one of the biggest was my overall disgust over how fat and sloppy Windows-based PC's had become.
I can still recall the words of Geogal when I brought home the Macbook: "Now we live in a divided house." By that, she was referring to our desktop PC, a Dell unit running XP. She has since become a believer in the Mac and in OS X. Now, when it is time to replace the desktop, we will buy an iMac.
That's what we think of Windows. So enjoy this OS release, Microsoft. It might be the last one of this magnitude you will ever enjoy.
1 comment:
OK, after using your beloved MacBook, I can say that I am so used to XP hotkeys and I hate having to click everything with the mouse (Apple's original "better idea", lots of mouse clicks with a 1-button mouse) to get the job done. I am far more productive with a Core Duo (shameless plug for Intel!) XP machine. Your MacBook is very cool looking, and has some nice design features, but I'll stick to XP (not Vista!) HHM :)
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