Where is Windows heading?

An interesting comment from Microsoft at the end of an Australian Parliamentary enquiry into software/hardware pricing:

Microsoft: If our prices were unfair, people wouldn’t buy them

The last cab off the rank was Microsoft, fronted by Australian managing director Pip Marlow.

Marlow acknowledged that the company had not polled Australian customers about the fairness of its local pricing, but went on to argue that different markets require different prices and the sales figures speak for themselves:

We don’t set a global price for our products. We don’t believe that every market is the same. Emerging markets where the cost of living and the availability of technology is different has to be priced differently. At the end of the day, if we make a price too high in a particular market, customers will look elsewhere.​

The Committee then confronted Marlow with a pricing sample of 47 Microsoft products, of which nearly 66 per cent are more expensive in Australia than the US.

Again, Marlow cited Microsoft’s sales success in the country, claiming “if they don’t like it, they vote with their wallets”. Under repeated questioning, Marlow all but dismissed the main thrust of the inquiry, claiming: “You’re looking for one simple silver bullet. There isn’t one.”

The Committee then rattled off some Microsoft price comparisons between US and Australia. When lumped together, the evidence is pretty sobering:

Windows 7 Professional (US: $326, AU: $469)
Office 2010 (US: $356, AU: $499)
Word 2010 (US: $142, AU: $189)
Visio Pro (US: $570, AU: $900)
Visual Studio 2012 with MSDN membership (US: $12,000, AU: $21,000)​

As the questions drew to a close, Marlow claimed that the company would “consider” using different pricing strategies as the company moves deeper into the cloud.

IT Pricing Inquiry: A Recap Of Excuses | Lifehacker Australia

How much deeper into the cloud does Microsoft intend to go?

 

[Ray8]

A cold one for me is a Diet Pepsi. . .diabetic

That's a bummer.

 

[HippsieGypsie]

A cold one for me is a Diet Pepsi. . .diabetic

That's a bummer.

So, you really can have empathy.

 

[Wenda]

I was reading some of the comments made by Mr Robson from Adobe. Now, I have Photo-Shop 6, with the retail PS 7 upgrade. It was legitimately obtained several years ago through, and for, my (then) job as a printer. After reading Mr Robson do an extremely poor job of attempting to justify their pricing, and being very arrogant and dismissive of his customers while doing so, I determined that if/when I feel the need to update, I will not be considering another Adobe product. I'll use Paint-Shop Pro or similar, or go with one of the better free-ware alternatives.

As for Windows, I've always considered its cost to be excessive, and its licencing requirements are beginning to be quite ridiculous and bizarre. I like Windows 8, and, apart from the flat, bland look, am very happy with it. But although I had no issue ponying-up $70 for the introductory offer, I would never consider paying the $399 full retail price.

I'll definitely be keeping Windows 8, but if Blue continues down the cloud/subscription path, and continues to treat desktop users as second-class citizens, there's an installation of Mint 14 (Cinnamon) in Virtual-Box and I'm quite liking it. I've dabbled in Linux on and off over the years, but only as a diversion. But now, I'm going into it much more thoroughly, and I'm liking what I'm finding.

I can see the day coming when things will be reversed, with Mint being the host and Windows in Virtual-Box for the stuff I can't run in 'Wine'. I've no need for or interest in touch on a 'serious' machine, and will state categorically that I will never use the cloud for file or data storage under any circumstances, and will NEVER pay for subscription-based software. Again, I'm quite happy to go open-source or freeware, and indeed have done so many times previously.

Now, I just KNOW that some of you will disagree, and that's just fine. But, I'd ask you to remember one thing. I am not you. I may compute in a different way, perform different tasks, consume different content, and a different amount of it. My actual tasks and needs may vary from yours, and I may (and do, actually) need more 'horsepower' than a tablet can supply. No two users are the same, and
they shouldn't be regarded as such, or even expected to be.

So, if you are happy with your ways, wants, decisions and wishes, please allow me to be happy with mine.




Wenda.

 

[mart4494]

I was reading some of the comments made by Mr Robson from Adobe. Now, I have Photo-Shop 6, with the retail PS 7 upgrade. It was legitimately obtained several years ago through, and for, my (then) job as a printer. After reading Mr Robson do an extremely poor job of attempting to justify their pricing, and being very arrogant and dismissive of his customers while doing so, I determined that if/when I feel the need to update, I will not be considering another Adobe product. I'll use Paint-Shop Pro or similar, or go with one of the better free-ware alternatives.

As for Windows, I've always considered its cost to be excessive, and its licencing requirements are beginning to be quite ridiculous and bizarre. I like Windows 8, and, apart from the flat, bland look, am very happy with it. But although I had no issue ponying-up $70 for the introductory offer, I would never consider paying the $399 full retail price.

I'll definitely be keeping Windows 8, but if Blue continues down the cloud/subscription path, and continues to treat desktop users as second-class citizens, there's an installation of Mint 14 (Cinnamon) in Virtual-Box and I'm quite liking it. I've dabbled in Linux on and off over the years, but only as a diversion. But now, I'm going into it much more thoroughly, and I'm liking what I'm finding.

I can see the day coming when things will be reversed, with Mint being the host and Windows in Virtual-Box for the stuff I can't run in 'Wine'. I've no need for or interest in touch on a 'serious' machine, and will state categorically that I will never use the cloud for file or data storage under any circumstances, and will NEVER pay for subscription-based software. Again, I'm quite happy to go open-source or freeware, and indeed have done so many times previously.

Now, I just KNOW that some of you will disagree, and that's just fine. But, I'd ask you to remember one thing. I am not you. I may compute in a different way, perform different tasks, consume different content, and a different amount of it. My actual tasks and needs may vary from yours, and I may (and do, actually) need more 'horsepower' than a tablet can supply. No two users are the same, and
they shouldn't be regarded as such, or even expected to be.

So, if you are happy with your ways, wants, decisions and wishes, please allow me to be happy with mine.




Wenda.

- very well explained. All users needs/wants are different but this is often forgotten both by companies and individuals.

 

[BillWindows]

I was reading some of the comments made by Mr Robson from Adobe. Now, I have Photo-Shop 6, with the retail PS 7 upgrade. It was legitimately obtained several years ago through, and for, my (then) job as a printer. After reading Mr Robson do an extremely poor job of attempting to justify their pricing, and being very arrogant and dismissive of his customers while doing so, I determined that if/when I feel the need to update, I will not be considering another Adobe product. I'll use Paint-Shop Pro or similar, or go with one of the better free-ware alternatives.

As for Windows, I've always considered its cost to be excessive, and its licencing requirements are beginning to be quite ridiculous and bizarre. I like Windows 8, and, apart from the flat, bland look, am very happy with it. But although I had no issue ponying-up $70 for the introductory offer, I would never consider paying the $399 full retail price.

I'll definitely be keeping Windows 8, but if Blue continues down the cloud/subscription path, and continues to treat desktop users as second-class citizens, there's an installation of Mint 14 (Cinnamon) in Virtual-Box and I'm quite liking it. I've dabbled in Linux on and off over the years, but only as a diversion. But now, I'm going into it much more thoroughly, and I'm liking what I'm finding.

I can see the day coming when things will be reversed, with Mint being the host and Windows in Virtual-Box for the stuff I can't run in 'Wine'. I've no need for or interest in touch on a 'serious' machine, and will state categorically that I will never use the cloud for file or data storage under any circumstances, and will NEVER pay for subscription-based software. Again, I'm quite happy to go open-source or freeware, and indeed have done so many times previously.

Now, I just KNOW that some of you will disagree, and that's just fine. But, I'd ask you to remember one thing. I am not you. I may compute in a different way, perform different tasks, consume different content, and a different amount of it. My actual tasks and needs may vary from yours, and I may (and do, actually) need more 'horsepower' than a tablet can supply. No two users are the same, and
they shouldn't be regarded as such, or even expected to be.

So, if you are happy with your ways, wants, decisions and wishes, please allow me to be happy with mine.




Wenda.

You or anyone on this forum has the right to do whatever they like, I do what I like, I've got iPads and Android tablet Android phone. I've even got 3 versions of Linux on a computer.

Its exactly because I've got all this different stuff that I know Microsoft is heading in the right direction, one OS for everything and everything synced through the cloud.

I've got Apps on my phone, Apps on my tablets, Apps on my PCs and they're all different with the exception of a few. I just want a simple life and I believe Microsoft can give me that eventually.

If you've got just one PC or even two and they're not connected, it doesn't matter what you use, as long as they run your apps. When you've got all the stuff I've got you really need everything the same.

I'm not saying I wouldn't play around with other OSs, but I want all my tablets and PCs etc to talk the same language.

 

[Hopachi]

What a coincidence Wenda.
I'm currently trying Mint in a VM and already quit PS.

I'm using GIMP to replace PS, it's free, does some pretty neat stuff.

I'm also curious where Blue is heading and the same: no fan of cloud and subscriptions here either.


Cheers
Hopachi

 

[BillWindows]

What a coincidence Wenda.
I'm currently trying Mint in a VM and already quit PS.

I'm using GIMP to replace PS, it's free, does some pretty neat stuff.

I'm also curious where Blue is heading and the same: no fan of cloud and subscriptions here either.


Cheers
Hopachi

I'm no fan of the cloud either, I thought I'd be the last one on the planet to use it, I've got two NAS to try to avoid it. Then I subscribed to Office 365 and saw the simplicity of Skydrive and I was hooked. I'd dabbled with other cloud options and didnt think much of them but now I'm in.

 

[Hopachi]

What a coincidence Wenda.
I'm currently trying Mint in a VM and already quit PS.

I'm using GIMP to replace PS, it's free, does some pretty neat stuff.

I'm also curious where Blue is heading and the same: no fan of cloud and subscriptions here either.


Cheers
Hopachi

I'm no fan of the cloud either, I thought I'd be the last one on the planet to use it, I've got two NAS to try to avoid it. Then I subscribed to Office 365 and saw the simplicity of Skydrive and I was hooked. I'd dabbled with other cloud options and didnt think much of them but now I'm in.

You're right about the simplicity, I got Skydrive myself.
But I'm partially hooked and I don't use Office 365 at all.

 

[BillWindows]

What a coincidence Wenda.
I'm currently trying Mint in a VM and already quit PS.

I'm using GIMP to replace PS, it's free, does some pretty neat stuff.

I'm also curious where Blue is heading and the same: no fan of cloud and subscriptions here either.


Cheers
Hopachi

I'm no fan of the cloud either, I thought I'd be the last one on the planet to use it, I've got two NAS to try to avoid it. Then I subscribed to Office 365 and saw the simplicity of Skydrive and I was hooked. I'd dabbled with other cloud options and didnt think much of them but now I'm in.

You're right about the simplicity, I got Skydrive myself.
But I'm partially hooked and I don't use Office 365 at all.

It's always easy to say you're never going to do something until you find something pretty great and then bam you're hooked. I must admit I never thought I'd be hooked on anything to do with the cloud but I really wanted One Note, once I started to use that with Skydrive I was amazed at how simple my life was becoming, this is what I want on all my tablets and PCs simplicity.

 

[Wenda]

That's all good, Bill, I wasn't knocking your choices, or anyone else's, just putting mine forward.

As for the cloud, I don't mind it for email etc, but I don't feel at all comfortable storing stuff there.

Companies go broke or start data-mining, terrorists attack, equipment fails, hackers breach
security, and of course, last but by no means least, there's always our oh-so-trustworthy (NOT!)
governments and not-always-ethical 'law enforcement' agencies. I also have a very limited internet
access plan, which precludes streaming, and isn't always useable (I don't regard 64kb/sec as
'useable', sadly my ISP does).

I've nothing to hide, but equally I've nothing I want to share without my explicit authorisation. That
can only be made easier if I retain both physical and digital possession of the data/files.

But, to each his/her own. Cheers!

Wenda.

 

[BillWindows]

That's all good, Bill, I wasn't knocking your choices, or anyone else's, just putting mine forward.

As for the cloud, I don't mind it for email etc, but I don't feel at all comfortable storing stuff there.

Companies go broke or start data-mining, terrorists attack, equipment fails, hackers breach
security, and of course, last but by no means least, there's always our oh-so-trustworthy (NOT!)
governments and not-always-ethical 'law enforcement' agencies. I also have a very limited internet
access plan, which precludes streaming, and isn't always useable (I don't regard 64kb/sec as
'useable', sadly my ISP does).

I've nothing to hide, but equally I've nothing I want to share without my explicit authorisation. That
can only be made easier if I retain both physical and digital possession of the data/files.

But, to each his/her own. Cheers!

Wenda.

I would have been one of the first people in Australia to do Internet Banking, never had a problem and I move quite a bit of money around. My Internet data is 200GB per month at 118Mbs download, I can download 2GB in about 5 minutes or less on a good day. Unfortunately I'm a child of the future, tech can't keep up with me, I need all the latest stuff, but I am starting to slow down a bit thank goodness.

I understand your concerns and I've had them, but they get in my way so I shove them aside. I've had to to be able to keep up with all my hobbies which include booking hotels and flights online, buying and selling online and just about everything I do is online, so I can't really afford to be squeamish.

 

[lehnerus2000]

I'm using GIMP to replace PS, it's free, does some pretty neat stuff.

I've used GIMP for ~5 years.

Overall GIMP does what I need and IMO it's easier to use than Photoshop.
Some of the Photoshop tools are better though.

I think GIMP has a better GUI than Photoshop.
I particularly hate the Toolbox in Adobe products.

My Internet data is 200GB per month at 118Mbs download, I can download 2GB in about 5 minutes or less on a good day.

Nice.

We got 200GB/month too, but we only get a maximum speed of ~6Mbs (too far from the exchange).

 

[whs]

Wenda, I can only encourage you to explore Mint some more. I use it (the Mate flavor) half of the time now and I am very pleased with it. Here are a few video clips I made.

 

[lehnerus2000]

Agreed

Wenda, I can only encourage you to explore Mint some more. I use it (the Mate flavor) half of the time now and I am very pleased with it. Here are a few video clips I made.

Agreed.
Linux Mint 14 MATE (64 bit) is a nice OS with a conventional desktop.

 

[BillWindows]

Wenda, I can only encourage you to explore Mint some more. I use it (the Mate flavor) half of the time now and I am very pleased with it. Here are a few video clips I made.

I'm not sure if I've got the Mate flavour or Cinnamon flavour, how do I tell, and it keeps coming up with some error message about a floppy disk, I can't even remember what they are.

 

[SIW2]

Your problem is between the chair and the pc.

 

[whs]

I'm not sure if I've got the Mate flavour or Cinnamon flavour

The Start menus will be different. This is a Mate start menu:

 

[BillWindows]

I'm not sure if I've got the Mate flavour or Cinnamon flavour

The Start menus will be different. This is a Mate start menu:

View attachment 18983

Sorry I just had to go for a swim, all your fault talking about pools and spa's, but I've only got one of each. It's over 30 degrees here today and it's nearly Autumn.

Okay just booted up, I've got Mate, is Cinnamon worthwhile playing around with do you think, or is Mate the best. I was going to put Blue on this drive as well I might have to reformat and do NTFS and start again.

If I'd known about Blue earlier I would have partitioned this HDD and quad booted, oh well.

 

[whs]

Mate ot Cinnamon is a matter of taste. I find Mate more user friendly and has more easy options to set it up nicely. I have both but really use only Mate on a daily basis. Another nice one is Zorin, but that is a lot simpler than Mate and a bit buggy, nothing serious but some functions don't work, yet.

This is not one of my better videos, but it gives you an idea: Having fun with Zorin - Windows 7 Help Forums

Btw: I run all my other systems on VMware Player from an external SSD, including Windows 8. That way I can run them on any of my PCs.

 

[labeeman]

Where is Windows heading? To court in Europe.

Linux Users Sue Microsoft over Windows 8 Restrictions [Reuters] - Softpedia