Microsoft: evil empire or friendly giant?

zak

This poll is prompted by an article at:

http://www.fuckmicrosoft.com/content/whatsbad.shtml

What do you hate/love about the Redmond giant?

planetsim

I cant think of a great thing thats come out of Microsoft that hasnt had a big glitch in it. Why do you think hackers learn how to have for Windows. There's so many security issues with it its not funny.

ereptur

Without Microsoft, I could play my very important games. I could however, do my work, much easier.

zak

It makes you wonder whether the glitches are deliberate, for a company that supposedly employs "only the very best"...

I've heard people say that if it wasn't for Windows, Linux wouldn't be where it is today. Could be true, but then we'd probably be using Macs instead or something... In truth, if it wasn't for Windows, Linux would be in a much BETTER position than it is now. Plus we would be a lot better off in pocket.

.... nice thoughts.....

ahundiak

If it wasn't for Microsoft then Paul Allen would probably not be a billionare. And if Paul Allen was not a billionare then the Seattle taxpayers would probably not have given him 430 million dollars to build a new football stadium. And without a new football stadium, the Seattle Seahawks would have to move to another ciy to lose their games. And that city could have been mine. My taxes are already high enough so:

Go Microsoft.

MrRosary

I personally dont think MS are good or evil.

I think they are merely incompetent and have a really really really strange marketing department.

MrRosary

piersk

Originally posted by MrRosary
I think they are merely incompetent and have a really really really strange marketing department.

Not too mention a very good one...

dalecosp

M$ is a business run by geeks who became rich and powerful, built a huge campus, gave themselves large salaries, and then found out that the cash cow had to be fed to keep producing.

That might explain quite a bit, actually...

LukeO

Lol, the old MS discussion again. I would put my points across if I hadnt already a hundred times, but to cut a long story short, Sun, I think you need to grow up a little and find someone else to embed.

NEWS UPDATE Microsoft received a reprieve on Monday from a court order requiring the company to ship Sun Microsystems' Java software. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted Microsoft a stay of a Jan. 21 decision from U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz in Baltimore, who gave the company 120 days to begin including Sun's latest Java runtime environment in every copy of Windows and Internet Explorer.

Luke

orionblue

The scariest thing about MS is the monopoly they have - it's like weird tech evolution - if there is one bad gene the whole works could be wiped out.

mpirvul

I am guessing that the page referred to in the original post, http://www.fuckmicrosoft.com/content/whatsbad.shtml is running on IIS as it failed to come up for me... :eek: lol

LukeO

If they are using IIS, wouldnt it be ironic 🙂.

dalecosp

It popped right up for me. Netcraft says its running Apache on FreeBSD, which seems more appropriate to me. However, the "Netblock Owner" is listed as NT Sales 🙂 . Still yet, checkout some other sites within this netblock, which may be of interest to this discussion.

Please note: that while I may agree with certain statements, I personally deplore the overuse of expletives, particularly in domain names. OTOH, they've got pretty good uptime. Kudos to FreeBSD.....

LukeO

Originally posted by zak
Could be true, but then we'd probably be using Macs instead or something... In truth, if it wasn't for Windows, Linux would be in a much BETTER position than it is now.

Yup, but then you would be complaining about Linux now wouldnt you 🙂.

Luke

rpanning

I agree with LukeO, there will alway be people who hate the most profitable company. If not Microsoft then some one else.

dalecosp

Hmm, how 'bout the Opera Stylesheet issue currently on the frontpage at /. ?

My brother the MIS says they're "slimy & underhanded" on that one....

For those who aren't nerd enough for /. here it is at Opera dot com/no.....

largo

Originally posted by rpanning
I agree with LukeO, there will alway be people who hate the most profitable company. If not Microsoft then some one else.

I disagree with that entirely. Microsoft has time and again taken on itself the sole responsibility of pushing down competition, of monopolizing the market -- on even the smallest level -- case in point being Opera. It's not the only browser out there, but it's certainly a damn good one and nipping it in the bud is a safe alternative.

It's not about "hate" or "profits". It's about poorly written software (and I do not believe it's on purpose) and a marketing team which, as the topic of this thread conveys, does whatever it takes to make sh*t look like spit shined gold. How do you explain AOL having 23 (?) million users?

LukeO

Come now largo, regarding Opera, its one page out of thousands, and I have already read several different articles portraying both sides. Would you not consider it strange that MS is doing nothing about this if it is true?

And as for monopolisation, I initially constructed a response to this which was considerably long, but I think I'll stick to a shortened version. Lets take one random example;

Building IE into Windows, sure a monopoly alright, you make an os, put your browser in it, and thats REAL wrong. If you want their browser, you comply to it, and if you dont want to, use a different OS, people who spend time saying I hate MS, but I have to use their software..... how pathetic, we all have free choice in this country, nobody HAS to do anything.

Luke

largo

True. I use debian linux as a result. I do have a windows partition however which serves it's purpose.

You said it well, everyone has a choice. I don't encourage people to move to linux if windows serves what they need. I know my grandma is better suited to AOL and windows XP than debian and mutt 🙂

The argument however is microsoft tactics. Building IE into windows is just icing on the cake. Options are given on such a hardcore level that alternatives just don't seem feasible to average users. Microsoft has done whatever it takes to make that happen and it's not about to get easier. Linux is on 2% of all desktops (according to a misplaced survey, I think I can find it again), that means 98% of the people "chose" windows?... Use the force Luke. 🙂

dalecosp

M$'s penchant for quashing competition is relatively unparalleled in the history of the world, with the possible exception of people like Adolf Hitler or Nero, IMHU*O......

So many complaints, from so many companies. It could just be the fact that we have too many lawyers, and M$'s pockets are so deep, but my Grandaddy always used to say "where's there's smoke, there's fire..." and I firmly believe that mankind is inherently NOT good...given the chance, why wouldn't M$ play dirty?

I'm not sure that there was ever an age in which corporations existed for the good of the public and upheld high standards within the community; if there ever was, it's truly over as far as M$ is concerned...and as far as a LOT of corporations are concerned. Which brings us to this, an adage oft-used in politics..."we get what we deserve."

Until we, as a national and international community, demand better conduct of ourselves and our families/friends, we will not get better conduct from companies like M$...

* let's just say 'uneducated,' shall we?