MS might get it right soon

[SIW2]

Microsoft is set to bow to pressure from customers and change “key aspects” of its much-maligned Windows 8 operating system.

...described by some analysts as the biggest product U-turn since Coca Cola dropped “New Coke” – only Coke listened better.”

They still don't understand it - as revealed by the comment

Tammy Reller, confirmed the plan in an interview with the Financial Times, admitting that many users had struggled to master the new operating system.

Tammy, people are not lazy or stupid - they just don't like it.

I hope they get it right and don't attempt a half hearted fudge.

Responding to the customers is the correct thing to do.

If they do it right - they should be applauded.


Microsoft announce Windows 8 rework in 'biggest product U-turn since New Coke' - News - Gadgets & Tech - The Independent

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there
Is it only me or do I see the basic standard of English going down the drain - especially from people who should know better - Journalists from a decent quality British Newspaper like The Independent.

How can you say correctly (part in Red -- FUTURE Tense please should be TO BE RELEASED or similar)

......In a move described by some analysts as the biggest product U-turn since Coca Cola dropped “New Coke” 30 years ago, an updated version of Microsoft 8 released later this year will be significantly differen.......t.

It's not the printers -- these days journalists have all sorts of direct entry word processors etc.

I might be making pedantic gripes here - but a decent NEWSPAPER should at least have the ability to write correct English --- strangely enough the best quality writing I find in almost any paper I read from Any country are the Sports Journalists although sometimes I wonder if they've been watching the same match that I did.

If people who should know better are careless with their use of language (and even as a non Native English speaker I would concur) and English has one of the best if not THE best mechanisms for decently expressing yourself then can you trust their research that they've done for the article they have written or is that based on sloppy methodology as well.

It obviously makes sense for W8 to be changed (for desktop users) but who are we to say what the long term strategy of Ms is now anyway.

With Adobe and Ms Office both going to a subscription based service maybe Ms has decided it just doesn't really care about the desktop any more since they will only be giving users Cloud based offerings in future. I don't know and I hope I'm really wrong about this but the Cloud makes a significant difference to future strategy as far as desktop users are concerned - and by going "Cloud" Ms doesn't have to worry whatever happens to its existing desktop user base.

We shall see --I hope the rumour mill is correct this time but I'm sure it would be really interesting to be the proverbial fly on the wall at some high level meetings at Ms these days.

Who said "Life at the top" was dull --- beats watching TV soaps any day.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[goodintentions]

I have a friend who is currently studying psychiatry. Ok, he's actually my ex boyfriend. Anyway, a couple weeks ago he asked me to proof read his paper that he was going to submit the next day. We're talking about someone who is studying psychiatry in med school here. The paper was littered with grammatical errors. For example, there was one sentence that read something like "...everyone must judge for themself..." Lots of switchings between plurals and singulars. We're talking about a major med school in Chicago here.

I'm assuming journalists have to have at least an English degree or something. Sometimes, I wonder if our standards regarding communication are on a downward spiral. Why do I say that? Because when I pointed these grammatical errors out to my friend, he said that he's always used such sentences in the past and never had a problem. My reaction was "huh?" In the end I just told him whatever floats your boat.

Anyway, you are absolutely correct to point these errors out. I used to cringe at poor writing online. Eventually, I had to learn to live with it.

 

[DavidY]

Microsoft announce Windows 8 rework in 'biggest product U-turn since New Coke' - News - Gadgets & Tech - The Independent

Is that link correct? I can't find the quotes (or indeed the dodgy grammar) there. I wonder if it's this one instead?
'Biggest product U-turn since New Coke' as Microsoft announce Windows 8 rework - Independent.ie

Or maybe they've changed it - like the original FT headline which seems to have morphed from "Microsoft prepares U-turn on Windows 8" to "Microsoft prepares rethink on Windows 8 flagship software"

I'm also wondering if Ms Reller really said this or if it's another example of poor journalism, as other quotes around this story don't put it the same way.

Tammy Reller, confirmed the plan in an interview with the Financial Times, admitting that many users had struggled to master the new operating system.

However she does seem to have said (in many of the quotes I've seen) something about it being a learning curve, which doesn't reflect well on her.

There are some things which Windows 8 makes very hard if you try to use the Metro apps. For instance try typing details from a (landscape) PDF into a landscape spreadsheet using the Metro Reader. It's not a case of "struggling to master", or "learning curve" it's just something Windows 8 can't do.

And, although I wouldn't agree with it, I'd respect Microsoft if they said "yes that's by design, tough" or "sorry about that".

But for Microsoft to blame the users for not learning it well enough would mean they still haven't understood some big things wrong with Windows 8.