Print - WinInfo Short Takes: Week of March 21

An often irreverent look at some of the week's other news...

Longhorn Aero UI Won't Debut Until PDC 2005
Although attendees of the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) 2005 in April will be the lucky recipients of the first public Longhorn build in the 5xxx series, we'll have to wait until this fall before we see the debut of Longhorn's futuristic Aero UI. In an otherwise innocuous blog posting this week, Longhorn evangelist Robert Scoble suggested that the software giant will include Aero, along with a few other surprises, in the prerelease Longhorn build that the company will hand out at the Professional Developers Conference (PDC) in September. It must have been a long year for Scoble. Microsoft last shipped a public prerelease Longhorn build almost a year ago and has been quietly retuning the product while it concentrated on such things as Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) and Windows Server 2003 SP1. With those products completed--Windows 2003 SP1 will be finalized within 10 days--the company is finally starting to take on Longhorn full force. It's time to take Scoble out of hibernation.

EU: Microsoft Isn't Complying with Antitrust Order
The European Union's (EU's) regulatory arm, the European Commission, announced last night that Microsoft isn't complying with its order to open up technical information about Microsoft's server products to competitors. "We have ... some strong doubts," a Commission spokesperson said. "The ball is now in [Microsoft's] court." The Commission's opinion of Microsoft's compliance came after the Free Software Foundation (FSF) complained that Microsoft's technology licensing terms make it impossible for open-source software (OSS) makers to compete. Microsoft had planned to charge licensees as much as $600 per server for its server protocols. That cost, the Commission says, is much too high and doesn't comply with the spirit of the order. Microsoft representatives pledged to continue working with the Commission to resolve the matter. That's a wise decision: The Commission can fine Microsoft as much as 5 percent of its average daily sales--every day--until the company complies.

EU: Microsoft Ruling by Mid-2006
Speaking of the EU, the judge in charge of Microsoft's antitrust case said this week that he expects the case to wind down by mid-2006. Judge Hubert Legal (seriously, that's his name) said, "I envisage a hearing will take place between October and November. I have high hopes that a ruling will be given toward the middle of next year." That schedule is as approximate as Microsoft's product shipment plans and could change. I can't imagine anything that would delay legal proceedings, however. Ahem.

If Windows XP Gets WinFS, Does That Mean It Will Be Just as Good as Longhorn?
Back to Longhorn. The analysts are fretting about rumors that WinFS will be back-ported to XP, wondering whether the move will further dilute Longhorn. That's silly. What the analysts don't get, in this case, is that the "three pillars of Longhorn," as announced at PDC 2003 a year and a half ago, also include Avalon and Indigo (and, tangentially, WinFX) and describe just the developer-oriented foundation of Microsoft's next-generation OS. End users won't deal with these features directly. Moving them to Windows 2003 or XP simply means that developers will be more apt to adopt the technologies quickly because the potential market size will be so much larger than it would be if they were Longhorn-only technologies. For end users, the unique new features in Longhorn--including Fast Search, the Aero UI, and more pervasive end-to-end digital media solutions--will never be back-ported to XP. These features, and many others like them, will not only differentiate Longhorn but will also make it a viable, exciting, and desirable major upgrade for all Windows users. To find out more about some of the features Microsoft is planning for Longhorn, be sure to check out my "Road to Windows Longhorn 2005" showcase on the SuperSite for Windows. You don't buy milk from the butcher, so don't try to get accurate information about upcoming Microsoft products from analysts.

Motorola Lashes Out at Apple Over iTunes Phone
Apple Computer's only iTunes partner is pretty upset with the company this week because of Apple's inability to launch new products. Motorola was supposed to show off a new cell phone at the CeBIT 2005 trade show this week; the new phone features a mobile version of iTunes that lets you use the device to purchase and listen to music from Apple's popular online store. There's just one problem: The device was never shown at the show, which resulted in numerous questions. And Apple fans aren't going to like Motorola's answers. Apple, Motorola says, is the reason behind the delays. Motorola President Ron Garrigues said that the two companies have different philosophies about how to announce and deliver products. "Apple CEO Steve [Jobs'] perspective is that you launch a product on Sunday and sell it on Monday," he said. Basically, Apple prevented Motorola from showing the phone until Motorola is ready to ship it. The comments end rumors that service carriers were behind the delay. They also show that Apple has no sense of irony; the company often announces products, promises to release them on a certain date, then misses that date by several weeks, or, in the case of the iPod Mini, by several months. And you thought having Microsoft dominate a market was tough.

Heads Up, Guys: The Office Team Is On to You
In a bit of manufactured news, the Microsoft Office team has released statistics that show that traditional office workers around the world waste 2 days out of every 5-day workweek. The statistics come from a survey of 40,000 people in 200 countries. Here are some stats: Workers average 45 hours of work per week, although 17 of those hours are considered unproductive time. In the United States, survey takers cited procrastination as the biggest time waster, followed by lack of team communication, ineffective meetings, and email. Microsoft didn't perform this study out of the goodness of its heart. The company would like to sell you Microsoft Office software, which it thinks will make you more productive. I have to be honest: Whether through familiarity or better design--I honestly don't know--I'm more productive with Office than I am with rival suites such as OpenOffice.org or Corel's WordPerfect. But these things are hard to measure and quantify. And I'm pretty sure that someone who grew up with WordPerfect could make a compelling case for using that product instead of Office. What does this all mean? I don't know, but I do like surveys.

Microsoft Delays Windows XP Starter Edition for India Until June
Microsoft has delayed the India release of XP Starter Edition from first quarter 2005 to mid-2005, citing problems in adapting the product for local users. "We are still working on providing Indian language capability," a Microsoft executive in India said this week. "You can't underestimate the huge development work involved." News of the delay came amidst a bit of bad news for XP Starter Edition, which is allegedly off to a bad start. The product started shipping in Thailand in October 2004 and in Malaysia and Indonesia in February 2005 but hasn't received the widespread support from systems makers that Microsoft expected. That's a problem because XP Starter Edition, like XP Tablet PC Edition and XP Media Center Edition (XP MCE), is sold only with new PCs. The bigger problem in these markets is piracy: You can get an illicit copy of XP Professional Edition for as little as $5 in these places. Linux is attractive in emerging markets as well. Emerging markets are so cute.

Linspire Goes Five-Oh
The OS formerly known as Lindows has turned 5. This week, Linspire announced the release of a new Linux distribution that's designed for typical users. Linspire Five-0, as the company annoyingly calls the release, allegedly includes more than 1200 improvements, which means we can also credit the company for trying to out-hyperbole Apple. I grabbed a copy of Linspire Five-0 and have been unsuccessful, thus far, installing it on a virtual machine, but I'll take another look at it this weekend.

Yahoo! Opens Up to Firefox
Internet services giant Yahoo! will henceforth support the open-source Web browser Mozilla Firefox 100 percent in all its products and services, a dramatic move that provides further credibility to the Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) challenger. Going forward, Yahoo! won't ship any new products or services that don't work equally well on Firefox and IE, the company said this week. "Due to the explosive popularity of the Firefox browser, it has now been added to our suite of browsers to test our products against," a Yahoo! representative said. "All new products that Yahoo! develops will be tested against Firefox." And, although the company couldn't deliver a timetable, all its existing products and services will be made Firefox-compatible as well. If you're still looking for Firefox momentum, folks, this is it.

Linspire installed for me in 8 minutes! It's BEAUTIFUL. I think Mac has more to worry about than Microsoft from the "look" of things. Everything installed just right, recognized all my hardware, and I was connected to my Windows network in seconds. I was pleasantly surprised by this update. Hans

"You don't buy milk from the butcher: Don't try to get accurate information about upcoming Microsoft product information from analysts either." That would be akin to trying to get an operating system shipped on time from Microsoft. And LINSPIRE ROCKS! Any idiot should be able to install it. Oh, wait.

Linspire is ugly, looks like somebody poured hair jell and different colour jello all over the interface.

Linspire is ugly? Not even. For the nonbelievers, check out: http://www.linspire.com/lindows_news_gallery.php?image=screenshot . Microsoft could learn a few things here; Windows looks like a child's crayon box exploded on my screen. Then there's "Clippy".

Regardless of the Ipod/Motorola nonsense, when that phone is released it will be sold out. People love Ipods and rightfully so. Now leave me alone... I have to get back to my way too many bubbly graphics LinDOWS box and listen to my IPOD.

I think we should still call Linspire Lindows. A stupid product deserves a stupid name. Solo

Well Microsoft's certainly got Apple beat when providing delivery dates for their next-generation operating system. Go Microsoft!

I've never had a problem with linspire to date, and I have been using it on my wifes computer since version 3. you can get better results as a power user if you go with a true debian distro instead though :( the CNR thing sucks bad.

Based on past history, where Motorola wasn't able to delivery processors in sufficient quantity or speed for Apple's needs, I don't blame Apple for keeping Motorola on a tight leash schedule-wise.

Do you actually care more about 3d interfaces and translucent windows when we have headlines of "One Million Zombie PC's" and "69,000+ Windows Viruses" attacking innocent consumers?? On Microsoft, I think the former White House Cybersecurity and Counterterrorism adviser said it best: "Given their record in the security area, I don't know why anybody would buy from them" I'll happily read about your daily pain from afar with my (virus and spyware free) Apple.

To the above poster, it's all just coincidence, no trends. LOL. Microsoft tries to turn its own security flaw into commercial gain - February 25, 2005 Cybersecurity advisor Clarke questions why anybody would buy from Microsoft - February 18, 2005 Microsoft's Gates espouses homogenous operating system environments for better security - February 07, 2005 Windows' mounting security problems make some consumers eager to purchase Macs - January 03, 2005 Windows Media songs and videos found to carry Windows malware payloads - December 30, 2004 Anzae/Inzae worm affects all Windows versions after 3.1; Macintosh unaffected - December 28, 2004 Unlike Windows users, Mac OS X users surf the Internet without a care in the world - December 28, 2004 Multiple unpatched Windows holes crop up; Windows systems compromised within minutes in experiment - December 24, 2004 Windows spyware mess is out of control, get a Mac and surf with impunity - December 21, 2004 New Microsoft Internet Explorer exploit spoofs Web sites on fully patched Windows XP systems - December 17, 2004 Microsoft may charge extra for Windows spyware protection software - December 16, 2004 Detroit Free Press: Windows malware problem getting worse, it's time to get a Mac instead - December 16, 2004 Sick of spyware, adware headaches? Get a Mac and surf the Internet freely - December 13, 2004 Mossberg: Windows PCs plagued with problems, Apple's Mac is 'rock solid, elegant and affordable' - December 09, 2004 Security expert: Don't use Microsoft Windows, Office, Outlook, Internet Explorer - December 09, 2004 Security test: Windows XP system easily compromised while Apple's Mac OS X stands safe and secure - November 30, 2004 Sick of spyware, adware infecting your PC? Don't fret, just get a Mac - November 01, 2004 Microsoft: The safest way to run Windows is on your Mac - October 08, 2004 Spyware plagues Windows users while Mac users surf Net with impunity - November 01, 2004 Ballmer blames Windows users for not upgrading systems as Microsoft's biggest security problem - October 22, 2004 Windows users line up to pay for spyware removal; Mac users surf Web with impunity - October 18, 2004 Microsoft: The safest way to run Windows is on your Mac - October 08, 2004 Windows users' security woes spark interest in Apple's secure Mac OS X - October 06, 2004 Windows desktop monopoly threatened by secure, safe Apple Mac OS X - October 04, 2004 Even Bill Gates can't avoid Windows malware; Mac users surf the Web freely - October 03, 2004 Cyber-security adviser uses Apple Macintosh to avoid Windows' security woes - September 27, 2004 Information Security Investigator says switch from Windows to Mac OS X for security - September 24, 2004 Mossberg: Apple iMac G5 'powerful, affordable, virus-free with better, more modern OS than Windows XP' - September 23, 2004 USA Today: people are switching from Windows to Mac because of security issues - September 21, 2004 Windows besieged by hackers; number of Windows viruses soars by more than 400% - September 20, 2004 USA Today columinst angry about Windows viruses, adware, spyware - September 15, 2004 University of Chicago recommends all students patch Windows at least once a day - September 14, 2004 Windows XP worm speaks to users as it deletes their files; Macintosh unaffected - September 13, 2004 Security is top priority in Apple's Mac OS X - September 12, 2004 Millions of Windows PC's hijacked by hackers, turned into zombies; Macintosh unaffected - September 08, 2004 Mossberg: Dump your Windows machine and get an Apple Macintosh to free yourself of spyware - August 25, 2004 Tired of patching patches to patch Windows patches? Writer suggests getting a Mac - August 03, 2004 Windows 'Scob' virus designed to steal financial data, passwords; Macintosh unaffected - June 26, 2004 Gartner: Worms jack up the total cost of Microsoft Windows - May 07, 2004 Spyware, adware plague Windows users online; Mac OS X users surf freely - April 19, 2004 SmartMoney: Long-suffering Windows users can only dare to dream of Mac's ease-of-use - February 12, 2004 Mac OS X has no viruses; what's wrong with Windows? - February 11, 2004 Gates: Windows 'by far the most secure' system; tries to use 'Mac OS X secure through obscurity' myth - January 27, 2004 Columnist tries the 'security through obscurity' myth to defend Windows vs. Macs on virus front - October 1, 2003 New York Times: Mac OS X 'much more secure than Windows XP' - September 18, 2003 Wall Street Journal's Mossberg on making the switch from Windows to Mac - September 18, 2003 Fortune columnist: 'get a Mac' to thwart viruses; right answer for the wrong reasons - September 02, 2003 Shattering the Mac OS X 'security through obscurity' myth - August 28, 2003 Is Mac OS X really inherently more secure than Windows? - August 26, 2003 Chicago Sun-Times columnist: Windows 'many holes in its security' but 'none of my Macs have ever been affected - August 26, 2003 Sick of worms and viruses? 'Move to Mac OS X' suggests Chicago Tribune columnist - August 25, 2003 Virus and worm problems not just due to market share; Windows inherently insecure vs. Mac OS X - August 24, 2003

Paul, remember when you used to swear up and down that there was no iPod halo effect? Read and weep: http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=959 And yea, it's the analysts proving you wrong this time.

How did Paul miss this one? New Microsoft Longhorn chief was former Pepto-Bismol brand manager http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/03/18/microsoft_longhorn_indigestion/ How utterly appropriate.

"A stupid product deserves a stupid name" Yeah! Like "Windows Me" or "Windows XP Reloaded" or "Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005" or some other glop like that.

Paul I'd like to kick you in the face before you go to bed at night, sweet dreams you little fatty!!

^ with comments like that, you wonder why apple's market share is so low. if this is the average apple fanboy, then surely people don't buy apple computers because they don't want to become like those stupid dorks.

What the hell is with making fun of the EU judge? Linspire sucks. It doesn't play C&C Generals.

Like it or not, Linux will be the world's next mainstream OS. How many articles have you read about migrating from Linux to Windows? Thought so. Now, how about the other way around? Windows is proprietary & legacy.

LInspire takes the crappy mutation of the Mac OS 7.. that is Windows, circa 1995, and adds OS X buttons.. wow.. Lsongs? Lphoto? How pathetic

"Yahoo! Opens Up to Firefox" PR first, truth later. Launchcast (launch.yahoo.com) still doesn't work on Firefox. I guess they'll get round to it once they've lost all their credibility.

>They also show that Apple has no sense of irony; the company often announces products, promises to release them on a certain date, then misses that date by several weeks, or, in the case of the iPod Mini, by several months. I sure hope that doesn't happen to Longhorn.

I can't believe that those cats at Yahooch haven't done their cross browser testing! What a joke. I don't use launchcast, but I had to try it out and sure enough, it is broken.

RE: "iPOD = Virus oh and a major security flaw (read Cert)" Sure, if you suffer with Windows.

Linspire SUCKS!! And that Piece of **** CNR too! Install Debian or Mandrake, or whatever... But don't install linspire