Resistance is Futile
Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 09:57 AM
Even IBM is switching to Macs now.
Okay, okay, I know it’s just a pilot program, but I still think it speaks volumes about the changing tides in IT right now.
I love this little bit, though. Among the (few) complaints the participants had:
Other drawbacks or weaknesses users reported in the Mac platform included support issues with IBM’s Lotus Sametime instant messaging software and a “lack of robustness or support for Microsoft applications - PowerPoint issues, no NetMeeting, [and] limitations for tools running on Internet Explorer.”
NetMeeting? NetMeeting? Do people really still use that? And I guess they didn’t have Keynote installed, because anyone who’s ever used Keynote would care less about PowerPoint issues. And Internet Explorer? They’ve heard of Firefox and Safari, right?
Seriously, though, I think this is a good indication of the changes that are going to be happening in the next few years. Microsoft is having trouble staying ahead of the industry. More and more people are using Google Docs and OpenOffice instead of Microsoft’s Office. People are switching to Macs and Linux for their home systems. Companies are switching to Macs, Linux and Unix like never before. Meanwhile, MS is wasting resources on the XBox and Zune to try to compete with Sony, Nintendo and Apple in markets where they just don’t belong*. And while the XBox may be marginally successful (at least from a business standpoint - I know it’s popular with gamers, but it doesn’t make MS much money), the Zune has been a complete failure. Instead of innovating on the web front, they’re trying to buy out Yahoo!, which will only result in Yahoo! being converted over to the same mediocre MS technologies that run Hotmail/MSN/.Net/Live (or whatever the hell they’re calling it this week). (On a side note: I really hope Yahoo! is able to resist this takeover bid. I like Yahoo! mail better than Gmail, and Flickr better than Picasa, but I’ll switch if I have to!)
Microsoft has gotten too big for its own good. It can’t adapt fast enough. It’s sticking its hands into too many pots, and is unable to concentrate on their core business because of that. The massive Vista failure is only one of the problems they face right now, but indicative of where things are heading for them.
The next five years should be pretty interesting.
* What I mean by “don’t belong” is that they clearly don’t know how to compete in these markets, and would be better off doing what they do best, which is marketing software to businesses. They can get into whatever markets they please, but I wouldn’t buy a car from them if they put one out, you know what I’m saying?
When Will Michael Dell Eat His Words?
Tuesday, April 01, 2008 - 09:10 AM
When Steve Jobs came back to Apple in 1997 Michael Dell was asked what he would do to save Apple if it were him. His reply?
"What would I do? I’d shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders."
Well, today it’s being reported that Apple has gained 21% of the consumer computer market, and Dell is closing plants and laying people off in order to help the company stay afloat.
I really can’t gloat about this though, knowing that 900 people are losing their jobs, and that that’s just part of the 8,800 total jobs that Dell plans to shed. Ouch.
Gruber, FTW!
Thursday, March 20, 2008 - 11:11 AM
(Sorry for the internet cliché in the title.)
I took issue with Kahney perpetuating the whole iTunes/iPod tie-in myth.
Gruber rips the whole article to shreds.
Doing it Wrong
Wednesday, March 19, 2008 - 08:31 AM
Wired has an interesting article comparing the way things are done at Apple and how that differs from other Silicon Valley companies. The article focuses quite a bit on Steve Jobs’ management style and business philosophy.
It is a pretty balanced, interesting read, even if the author does echo the complete B.S. about the iPod and iTunes being inextricably tied to each other (a favorite lie of tech journalism).
Ironically, Kahney makes an interesting point towards the end of the article:
Amazon’s Kindle e-reader provides seamless access to a proprietary selection of downloadable books, much as the iTunes Music Store provides direct access to an Apple-curated storefront. And the Nintendo Wii, the Sony PlayStation 3, and the Xbox360 each offer users access to self-contained online marketplaces for downloading games and special features.
The iTunes music (and video) store is nothing more than an add-on to the iPod (and AppleTV). It’s a part of the system. (Although, I can use iTunes completely independently from my iPod, and can play non-iTunes purchased music on my iPod.) It’s funny how people don’t attack Nintendo for not making games downloaded from the Virtual Console playable on a Sony PlayStation; it would be ridiculous to suggest that they should. It’s ironic that iTunes is way more open than any of the other services mentioned in the previous paragraph, yet somehow people (tech journalists) can’t bash Apple enough for making the iPod and iTunes work together.
I give Kahney and Wired credit, though; it’s a rare thing in the world of tech journalism to admit when you’re wrong (especially when it comes to Apple). In a sidebar to the main article, they do just that.
Now it’s Time
Thursday, March 06, 2008 - 12:54 PM
Now it’s time to get an iPhone. (Okay, I may wait until it’s 3G, but still...)
Today Apple announced full Exchange support & push email on the iPhone. Full Exchange support.
Of course, this is one of those things that many people predicted way back when the iPhone was first announced (seems so long ago, doesn’t it?), but that didn’t stop the tech news pundits from decrying the iPhone for not having these features.
Just like the SDK. The tech pundits decried the lack of an "official" way to bring 3rd party apps (non-web apps) to the iPhone, completely ignore the fact that it was pretty much a given from the start that Apple would do this.
Of course Apple intended to add these features, but it was more important to bring the thing to market in the first place.
(Oh, and on the whole no "Flash" issue? Flash sucks! It always has and always will. Just because so many websites rely on it now, doesn’t make it suck any less. Hell, I had some bad Flash on a website lock my whole computer just yesterday. I had to hard boot to recover. Do you really want that crap on your phone?)