Tech talk, cold comfort.

**Steven W**, 2014-03-02 17:44 »

I couldn't put my finger on it at the time, but something was bugging me about the ad that I posted above other than the fact it was running Windows 8. I finally figured it out. This things are supposed to be portable. It seems that once you get above the size of an average clipboard, that you've defeated the whole purpose. The things would be a little unwieldy to take with you outside the home, I would think.

Speaking of things that Microsoft doesn't get:

Those fucking tiles look ridiculous on a laptop/desktop monitor. They look HUGE and ridiculous on smaller screens. It's like the jumbo print edition of Reader's Digest, it only appeals to the visually impaired (mostly the elderly).

**MasterOne**, 2014-03-02 12:12 »

Steven W wrote:Check this twat out:

She needs a touchscreen to plan her wedding. Macs don't have touchscreens yet. OMG! Why isn't Apple taking part in Microsoft's abortion of a business plan? I can't figure it out. Thinking is like hard and stuff. Gotta go, don't wanna be late for cheerleading practice!

Wonder how long it would take to break that cheap ass chinese built plastic kickstand...probably not very long; right about at the time that it's out of warranty.

**Steven W**, 2014-03-02 00:06 »

!, 2014-03-01 23:45 »

Wow man, a 20" touchscreen. Ah yeah, that's what you want to pass around for a wedding planning.

Here is an artist to go with it. Lowest common denominator.

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**Steven W**, 2014-03-01 21:57 »

Check this twat out:

She needs a touchscreen to plan her wedding. Macs don't have touchscreens yet. OMG! Why isn't Apple taking part in Microsoft's abortion of a business plan? I can't figure it out. Thinking is like hard and stuff. Gotta go, don't wanna be late for cheerleading practice!

**Steven W**, 2014-03-01 19:06 »

I see MS's position. Buying operating systems is becoming unpopular with all the free and libre OS choices available, so the future remains a big question mark, although the writing is on the wall. Does Microsoft charge now and suffer later, or go free and maybe havechance in the long term? They are, after all, the "Devices and Services Company" now, not the "buy bits in a cardbord box company".

It really didn't need to go down this way, at least not this quickly. The phone/tablet OS should not have been based on Windows at all. It could have been based on an open source OS (BSD/Linux). Windows could have been left alone for the Desktop/Laptop, at least until it became unprofitable to maintain it. In the interim the phone/tablet OS could have been beefed up into a desktop/laptop version a compatibility layer for old Windows programs developed, The last version of Windows announced, supported a bit longer than in the past, perhaps professional support sold for boo coo dollars...yada...yada. The transition could have been much smoother.

I too feel that if they keep going down this path, irrelevance is inevitable.

**Steven W**, 2014-03-01 15:47 »

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Do you suppose that we'll see free DVDs or thumbdrives when checking out at the super market? In the mail? Those who fail to learn....

**MasterOne**, 2014-03-01 12:50 »

I saw the news about the idea of a stripped-down Bing-powered 8.1, and details are still murky. Since Windows 8.1 is already Bing-powered, this must mean more spying, and more shit shoved in the user's face. Don't ya just love those hideous tiles, improving your computing experience? It's also more acknowledgment on Redmond's behalf that they know what their product is (shit). They should release a pro version of 8.1 for free, but that would upset people who already got swindled into buying 8.x. with a new PC. Therefore, I see MS's position. Buying operating systems is becoming unpopular with all the free and libre OS choices available, so the future remains a big question mark, although the writing is on the wall. Does Microsoft charge now and suffer later, or go free and maybe havechance in the long term? They are, after all, the "Devices and Services Company" now, not the "buy bits in a cardbord box company".

!, 2014-03-01 10:42 »

Windows 8.1 may become a freebie OS.

Remember! When you don't pay for something, YOU are the product! There is no free lunch.

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Microsoft is reportedly building a variation of Windows dubbed "Windows 8.1 with Bing." It's apparently part of an experiment to offer the operating system with tighter integration to featured Microsoft apps and services-primarily, at least at first, Microsoft's Bing search engine.

Windows Bing may also be part of a plan to boost adoption by giving away the OS for free or at a reduced cost to both individual users interested in upgrading their Windows 7 machines and PC makers. The Verge reported Friday that Microsoft might give away a consumer version of Windows Bing for free.

Last week, Bloomberg reported that Microsoft is cutting Windows 8.1 licensing fees by 70% for installations on low-cost computers of $250 or less. In that scenario, original equipment manufacturers currently charged $50 would only have to pay $15. It's not clear how (or if) the two approaches would work alongside each other.

Publicly, Microsoft loves to wax poetic about Windows 8, whose sales have surpassed 200 million licenses. But according to NetMarketShare, Windows 8 ranked third worldwide among desktop operating systems in February, behind Windows 7 and Windows XP. (Windows 8.1 comes in at #4; combined, Windows 8 and 8.1 are still third behind XP.)

Microsoft certainly appears eager to push its cloud services and apps to combat Google, whose Chromebook and Android initiatives are chipping away at Microsoft's business on both desktops and smartphones. Several reports have suggested that the company is mulling over free or low-cost variations of Windows Phone as well, plus a possible software mash-up of Windows Phone with its hybrid desktop/tablet OS, Windows RT.

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**Steven W**, 2014-02-27 22:53 »

My "Winston doing his job" crack was a reference to Orwell's 1984. Just so we're all clear on that.

https://archive.org/stream/ost-english- ... a_djvu.txt

https://ia600800.us.archive.org/17/item ... stopia.pdf

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xthahf ... rte_school