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New Windows Vista Ads That Will Crumble Apple Mac Propaganda

neowin.net — It's an eye opener full of PWN.

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  • jmarkgraf, on 07/30/2008, -47/+203What, no shot at the mac?
    • nothugo, on 07/30/2008, -18/+189Translation: "What? Microsoft are being innovative with their adverts rather than simply reversing Apple's"

      Exactly how would simply slating Macs help re-educate consumers that, actually, Vista doesn't suck mmm 'kay?
      • cawpin, on 07/30/2008, -3/+33Exactly, this ad was a homerun. It is exactly what MS needed to do. Good for them. I've run Vista a little bit. I had the RC1 on my computer for about 3 months and had no problems whatsoever with it. I have it in a VMWare installation on my Macbook Pro, my first Mac, and it also runs there with no problems. I don't have the Aero Glass interface because of the VM aspect, but other than that it runs full speed with on hiccups.
      • wedges, on 07/30/2008, -20/+4innovative? it's a ***** hidden-camera ad, which we've seen tons (Burger King, Coke Zero, and Shreddies in just the last year). Not only that, it basically treats the viewer like a child. Remember how much you hated it when your mom wanted you to try spinach and you said you didn't want to?
      • onidraky, on 07/30/2008, -11/+10Yeah, but by the looks of it they have to treat these users like children. Not one of them said they tried Vista before blindly hating it. There's a difference between trying something and not liking it and hating something because, "I heard it wasn't good."
      • andyduncan, on 07/31/2008, -17/+8@onidraky How difficult do you think it would be to find a similar number of people who had never tried a mac and say they hate it? The point is that this is just marketing drivel. It doesn't prove anything, it's not informative, and it's not even clever or entertaining.
      • dema, on 07/31/2008, -12/+6Fake testimonials. It's a marketing breakthrough!
      • superal1394, on 07/31/2008, -1/+10I work in a custom computer store, selling windows PC's of all flavors, and I do find it incredible how many people flat out hate Vista. I spend more time selling people on Vista than on the computer itself. Its amazing how many people still take XP over Vista, despite my best efforts.

        As a Mac user, I must say I really do like Vista, and as much as I like my Mac, there are things Apple could learn from Windows.
      • Loonacy, on 07/31/2008, -7/+6As the family "tech guru" to a rather large family, it's amazing how many people ask me how they can get XP and get rid of this Vista thing they currently have. This is AFTER they've used the computer for a while, so you can't say it's just because they hear bad things about it.
      • cherwilco, on 07/31/2008, -1/+4@Loonacy, Im in the same predicament of being the family and friends "tech guru" as you put it and I have had plenty of occasions where someone wanted me to remove vista and go back to xp for them. I told them I would after I showed them how to disable uac and the gadget sidebar (usually its those 2 things that bug my friends) and then run it for a week. there all still happily running vista. so I gotta wonder if your friends hate vista or just a feature that can be switched off?
      • init100, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1@onidraky

        "There's a difference between trying something and not liking it and hating something because, "I heard it wasn't good.""

        Sure. There are also plenty of Windows Vista fanboys that claim that anyone who doesn't like Windows Vista hasn't tried it long enough. That someone could actually dislike their beloved Windows Vista is beyond their imagination, and thus must be based on hearsay and prejudice.
    • geniusj, on 07/30/2008, -12/+137Taking a shot at the mac would only help apple. It gives them recognition for being a real competitor.
      • etruscan, on 07/31/2008, -1/+14Exactly - which is part of why this campaign is so clever. It's a non-confrontational rebuttal... more like an answer to bad press than to Apple.
      • trippledigger, on 07/31/2008, -1/+6Microsoft know that most of the words population think that windows is the only OS you can get... They keep that quiet.
    • thcobbs, on 07/30/2008, -6/+102I'll give you a little tip jmarkgraf...

      As the leading provider of some good, you never mention your competition in an Ad. NEVER. Why give someone free press? Why give your consumers the idea that there are options to what you provide?

      Only the people trying to take over the lead spot mention competitors. They do this so that you can see that they are just as good as, if not better than the leader.
      • dragon76, on 07/30/2008, -45/+4Um, ACTUALLY, Mr. Marketing 101, comparison is one of the basics of advertising. You might try for a refund from your community college class.
      • im2emo4myshrt, on 07/30/2008, -2/+65"Um, ACTUALLY, Mr. Marketing 101, comparison is one of the basics of advertising."

        Not if you dominate the market. Why would Microsoft want to compare itself to the inferior Apple (in terms of market share not actually capability)? That is like CBS running an advertisement saying you should watch them over The Military Channel.
      • PlatanoPower, on 07/30/2008, -24/+6wow... you are dumb. Did u even read what he typed? Comparison is indeed a basic of advertising, but seriously.... did you read what he typed? You were just itching to insult someone weren't you
      • WoollyMittens, on 07/30/2008, -19/+2Apparently you have never seen a pepsi or coke commercial before, mr marketing know it all.

      • lolcat23, on 07/30/2008, -0/+6comparison a basic of advertising.
        what kind of advertising? the TV shop channels kind, where unhappy ppl with backaches are trying to do sit-ups in a machine you were trying to sell 5 months ago[notice, these scenes are always in grey]. and then you show happy slim and sexy ppl doing excercises on this NEW HOT machine.
        ....

        need i say more? mention or hint at a competitor and you are already giving him credit, says that you are only reacting to what the competition is already doing.

      • drgmdp, on 07/30/2008, -4/+6@woollymittens

        pepsi and coke kinda play in the same league..
      • jmarkgraf, on 07/30/2008, -6/+2Thanks for the tip, but I'm not in advertising so I don't really care. Truth is that the perception about Vista can't be turned around because of the impact of the apple commercials. It was a well placed torpedo into the side of a poorly marketed product, and it will sink slowly but surely because of it.
      • smacksaw, on 07/30/2008, -1/+3dragon76, I would compare your quote with the one by im2emo4myshrt, but I wouldn't want to give you any free press, seeing as you're the 2nd-place competitor here...

        =P
    • DylanClements, on 07/30/2008, -12/+65They should try letting them use the OS instead of just demonstrating it to them. Then this would seem more impressive.
      • mentor972, on 07/30/2008, -64/+10And crash more.
      • thcobbs, on 07/30/2008, -11/+67^have yet to have vista crash.... suprisingly enough
      • thwoom, on 07/30/2008, -6/+19how is that surprising?
      • max420, on 07/30/2008, -5/+49there really isn't anything wrong with Vista, except the fact that it requires a beefier system then XP to run properly.

        But now that the price of technology is going down, it is easier to afford a Vista capable system, I think you will see more and more people rockin' Vista.
      • xtraa, on 07/30/2008, -32/+5I was one of them and Microsoft paid me 3000 bucks!!!

        Thanks Steve B., my man!!!
      • iampriteshdesai, on 07/30/2008, -0/+10@xtraa You were a part of Mojave experiment? Did you say wow?
      • gyrfalcon, on 07/30/2008, -38/+9God you're all idiots or shills.

        Vista is a piece of $hit... They demonstrate it on a brand new laptop that probably costs a few thousand dollars. Secondly if anyone being taped had a bit of IT experience they could have identified the OS very easily.

      • PhishTahko, on 07/30/2008, -5/+24Runs fine on my sub $500 HP laptop. How about you try it before you knock it tough guy.
      • essjay, on 07/30/2008, -8/+13Giving a demo is a nive way to completely gloss over any difficult UI problems and allows you to showcase features in their best light. It's like going to test drive a car but having to sit in the passenger seat the entire time while the salesman keeps driving down hills and through tunnels.
      • IndigoMoss, on 07/30/2008, -4/+9Well there are some problems with Vista, even after SP1. I have a nice system too, Core 2 Duo E6300 @3.4Ghz stable, 3GB of DDR2-800, Visiontek HD 3850, Silverstone 850 Watt modular PSU, Evga 680i SLI A1, and a nice Antec 900 case to house it.

        The computer runs fast enough in Vista, but there's just some kinks that need to be worked out. For one, it will not save my folder preference no matter what I do, which is a total pain in the ass. The "Windows Game Explorer" always changes my view on random when opening up, and it takes for ever to actually open compared to regular folders. There's also Dreamscene turning off when I close TF2, (I had to disable the Dreamscene crash protection in the registry for it to not do that anymore.)

        So yeah it's definitely not perfect, and I payed quite a bit of money for it. I'd recommend it to my friends who had nice enough computers, but there's issues and I think that they need to be identified and fixed.
      • etruscan, on 07/31/2008, -3/+5I just installed Vista with the release of SP1. Overall I'm very satisfied with it. I've only encountered a few quirks, mostly with the Network and Sharing Center. I wouldn't personally go back to XP at this point. Having said all that - I intend to buy a Mac very soon. My reason for keeping a PC has always been gaming... but all the gaming I do now is on a PS3. Besides, I can still run Vista in Bootcamp if I need to.
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -2/+7gyrfalcon, but the people in the IT industry aren't the ones complaining about Vista without using it.

        Also, your complaint is nearly identical to the complains people had with Windows XP when it was released. Hell, if I want to get OSX at all on a laptop, I have to spend nearly two grand, with Vista, I have cheaper options (some of them are a little slow, but they exist)
      • DylanClements, on 07/31/2008, -4/+11Apple's base entry into the laptop market is $1100. I appreciate that there are cheaper PCs out there, but I don't think $1100 is an outrageous price for a laptop with an excellent OS.
      • Tenoq, on 07/31/2008, -2/+4Funny how no-one is really digging IndigoMoss - but that's the truth.

        I too have the same problems with the Game Explorer - and it won't remember it's window size either. It's great having a 1600x1200 display and this pissy little Game Explorer window opens up every single time, and I have to scroll around to find the game I want.

        They still have standby/wakeup issues with USB devices - allegedly fixed in SP1, but actually, no, it's still not working on my PC (basically same spec as IndigoMoss).

        Driver support still isn't as good as XP - a non-issue for most people buying a pre-built system, but a PITA for people with high-end parts that are a couple of years old (like my soundcard from M-Audio).

        It's slower, but performance is adequate after disabling a few useless services. Again, XP goes faster most of the time.

        But I'll persevere. I like my games, and Vista is the future, like it or not.
      • gyrfalcon, on 08/04/2008, -0/+1"gyrfalcon, but the people in the IT industry aren't the ones complaining about Vista without using it."..Also, your complaint is nearly identical to the complains people had with Windows XP when it was released. Hell, if I want to get OSX at all on a laptop, I have to spend nearly two grand, with Vista, I have cheaper options (some of them are a little slow, but they exist)"

        All of you fuk heads can go kill yourselves.... I'm in the IT industry and I have an MSDN account that allows me to download every damn Microsoft product for FREE.

        I've used Vista and it's a piece of *****.


        Go ahead bury me you fuktwats.
    • BlueSkyfish, on 07/30/2008, -8/+46It didn't work out so well for them when they ran the anti-linux "Get the facts" campaign. They made outlandish statements like Linux costs $200 more than Windows and crashes every five seconds. Tech sites started reporting about it, and it just ended up generating a lot of bad press for Microsoft.
      • Waterrat, on 07/30/2008, -4/+29 It did Indeed. I took one of Microsoft's polls during the "get the "facts"" campaign and was given a chance to tell them what I thought..I basically told them one of the reasons I went to Linux was their smear campaign.
        And of course,in the Microsoft ad,they are only going to select people who had a positive reaction. Who knows how many were not impressed?
        Now THAT would be interesting to know.
      • Murdats, on 07/31/2008, -1/+4they stated the percentage of positive reactions in a summary elsewhere from this, and they said it was a 90% positive reaction.
      • init100, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1@Murdats

        "they stated the percentage of positive reactions in a summary elsewhere from this, and they said it was a 90% positive reaction."

        What did you expect? This is marketing, not reality. I'd take any figures provided by Microsoft with several tons of salt.
    • Shoebox639, on 07/30/2008, -17/+39The shot was implied and very subtle. It was more towards all the sheep that are Apple's customer base, who just believe anything a tv tells you.
      • lolcat23, on 07/30/2008, -14/+22as opposed to windows well informed user base?
      • PlatanoPower, on 07/30/2008, -5/+11Linux users ftw!
      • UltraMegaFilms, on 07/30/2008, -9/+25Windows users look like Rhodes scholars compared to Apple's target customer.

        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Tq7yykR-DM
        Check out who they want you to relate to.
      • Tevediggs, on 07/30/2008, -28/+8Windows fanboys must really be running out of ammo if your insults are talking ***** about Apple's target customer. The only people voluntarily get Windows is because they're nerds or they don't know any better or can only afford a $300 computer.
      • mu0p, on 07/30/2008, -9/+22@Tevediggs

        Have you walked by a mac-store lately?

        Nothing but a bunch of people whom know very little about computers, and go "Wow, I like how the buttons grow when I go over them! NEAT! I WANT IT!"
      • Yulo, on 07/30/2008, -11/+13I've been a professional programmer for 10 years and I just recently bought my first Mac. It is by far the best computer that I have ever owned. I'm just saying.
      • boydbme, on 07/30/2008, -17/+2professional gamer for 10 years? what games were you playing in 1998 professionally? who was paying you to play them?

        just curious...
      • Yulo, on 07/31/2008, -3/+9I wish there was a "Check comprehension" button next to the "Check spelling" button.
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -1/+4I tried watching that Youtube video and ended up closing it half way through. There is no way a person could be that stupid "I couldn't even get someone to tell me what cable I needed to go from my camera to my computer". Hint: It's the ***** cable that came with the goddamned camera and it's the same cable whether you use a PC or mac. I would hunt that guy down, but that's what they do in Hollywood.
      • init100, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1@Speed

        "I would hunt that guy down"

        Why don't you join Liberty City Survivor?
    • tomz17, on 07/30/2008, -46/+86WOW ... a bunch of uninformed morons incapable of recognizing Vista... and I'm supposed to take their opinions as credible, give me a break.

      I'm sure if I dangled a piece of shiny aluminum in front of most of these people it would have gotten a 10 as well...

      • briLo, on 07/30/2008, -26/+6WOW.....a bunch of uninformed morons were capable of making their own opinion on something they knew nothing about....and I'm suppose to take their opinions as credible, really???
      • puma, on 07/30/2008, -13/+51and you think Mac is winning all of its customers from the genius population with those commercials filled with misinformation and baby lulliby music playing in the background? "WOW" u db
      • thwoom, on 07/30/2008, -14/+72"I'm sure if I dangled a piece of shiny aluminum in front of most of these people it would have gotten a 10 as well..."

        So, most of apples product line? that explains it.
      • griffinjam, on 07/30/2008, -5/+30I don't think I've ever seen anyone so throughly miss a point before in my life.

        The point of this commercial is that people *can't* recognize Vista because they've never used it before. The point here is that (and this is stated explicitly in the ad) is that people don't like Vista, not because they have tried it and don't like it, but because of everything they have heard.
      • Hoinah, on 07/30/2008, -6/+14Hey, fix your hair, it got pretty messed up when the point flew right over your head...
      • gyrfalcon, on 07/30/2008, -11/+5"The point of this commercial is that people *can't* recognize Vista because they've never used it before. The point here is that (and this is stated explicitly in the ad) is that people don't like Vista, not because they have tried it and don't like it, but because of everything they have heard."

        Maybe Microsoft should have sent some folks free copies of Vista and video taped them installing it then... :) Or they could come to a Fortune 500 company and video tape some of the meetings relating to Vista deployment.
      • wastern, on 07/30/2008, -10/+8"The point of this commercial is that people *can't* recognize Vista because they've never used it before. "

        Most Windows users I talked to when I used to work tech support didn't know what version of Windows they had. You had to ask what color the start button was. These are people I wouldn't take any computer advice from

        Not to mention a lot of the Vista issues were with drivers, 3rd party apps, and being too heavy for the $300 PCs it was being installed on. All these factors were not present in this test misleading the people. I bet they were pretty pissed when the went home, dropped $500 on Vista Ultimate and had it run like ***** on their P4 with 1GB of ram.
      • krillinhazuki, on 07/31/2008, -1/+7Very cleverly displays the true fact that most people are so ignorant about their computer operating system that they'll trust rumors and speculation because its easy and comfortable. Truth is, 90% of users don't even know what an OS actually IS, let alone which is better than the other. Give them XP and ***** Word 2000 and they're set.

        The ads are well done, not snotty like Apple's, and will probably go a long way towards helping people realize how dumb and judgmental they've been. That said, it didn't give a user who's already been frustrated with Vista a reason to switch (or really ANY reason why its so good other than the opinions of obviously ignorant subjects).

        I'm liking my OS X very much at home and I run XP at work. I, like many others, am just waiting to hear more about Windows 7... basically was Vista SHOULD have been in the first place.
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -4/+7"Maybe Microsoft should have sent some folks free copies of Vista and video taped them installing it then"
        Ok, then we can send them old Macbooks and a copy of Leopard and video tape them installing that.
      • specialK16, on 07/31/2008, -2/+5"Maybe Microsoft should have sent some folks free copies of Vista and video taped them installing it then... :) Or they could come to a Fortune 500 company and video tape some of the meetings relating to Vista deployment."

        When people don't have a clue about what they are talking about....

        I work in the 11th company listed in Fortune and we use a modified version of the XP. Even though Vista has not been offically deployed (we are basically talking about ten or twenty thousand computers worldwide), Vista is offcially available for employees who want to install it.

        Get your facts....
      • mrBitch, on 07/31/2008, -3/+4@Speed RE: "Ok, then we can send them old Macbooks and a copy of Leopard and video tape them installing that."

        Actually, that's one of the things that blew me away when I switched just over a year ago.

        OSX Leopard install is a piece of cake.

        When I did a clean install over my Tiger OSX installation (came installed with my MacBook) - It just did the whole installation after asking me if I was Ok to install over my existing Tiger OSX.

        The damn thing did everything and then booted ONCE and asked me to create a new administrator account.

        That's all there is to it.

        Compare a complete (one click) OSX installation with buying a new Toshiba laptop with Vista installed ALREADY.

        It took 40 minutes and 6 reboots for Vista to start up for the first time on the Toshiba laptop! (this is Vista that's ALREADY installed on the damn thing).
      • init100, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1@krillinhazuki

        "The ads are well done, not snotty like Apple's, and will probably go a long way towards helping people realize how dumb and judgmental they've been."

        Making people feel dump won't give Microsoft any customers. People don't like feeling dumb, so anyone who makes them feel dumb is not going to get a nice treatment. And in the case of a corporation, they won't buy the corporation's products.
    • rudieboy, on 07/30/2008, -10/+27Then we told them.
      They were using Linux.

      Wat? Wait i mean.......... aw ***** it.
      • Laminarcissus, on 07/30/2008, -4/+24I love Linux. I'm using Linux right now. Linux is a friend of mine. But even the hardiest fanboy knows that Ubuntu would not win this test.

        Until it's ready, stick with promoting Linux for what it really is: an advanced OS for advanced users.
      • PhishTahko, on 07/30/2008, -1/+6***** me, a reasonable response!
      • gyrfalcon, on 07/30/2008, -11/+2"Linux is a friend of mine. But even the hardiest fanboy knows that Ubuntu would not win this test."

        You suck at being a fanboy... Ubuntu/etc would blow the doors down.
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1Laminarcissus, I honestly thought you were going to say something along the lines of "you are no Linux". (Since I suck at referencing things: google "You are no Jack Kennedy"
    • Iggins, on 07/30/2008, -15/+5How about the fact that it was grey, slim text against black background? the font (and whole page, really) looks rather apple-ish. just saying...
      • griffinjam, on 07/30/2008, -1/+8I'm sure that was on purpose, but not done to be devious.

        This ad was more to counter negative opinions of Vista, things believe believe without it actually being true. One commonly held, and completely wrong, opinion is that Windows can't look nice or create anything stylish. Making the site look like something Apple would make is like saying "Hey, Window *can* do that too, but it can do other stuff as well."
    • wild, on 07/30/2008, -8/+43As a marketer and designer who has spent a lot of time behind mirrors watching research studies, I can tell you that these types of advertisements are usually avoided for a reason. In a research study, people tell you what they think you want to hear. Especially in a situation where its one to one, or even worse, one of them and several of you.

      You can get a lot from the studies, but you can never take away that what you did was right just because the subject said "oh yeah, I like that!" Its not that they are deceitful. Its just that they want to help you out, but in doing so, can send you down the wrong path.

      Basically, these videos don;t really have any substance to them.
      • breadfred, on 07/30/2008, -2/+5It is very interesting to see this video through a marketers' eyes. I have learned something today!
      • slicecom, on 07/30/2008, -2/+9Good post wild. A great example of this is the original Xbox controller. Everyone hated it, but Microsoft kept insisting "Everyone LOVED it in our focuz groups!"

        Eventually they came to their senses and released a much better controller.
      • KingBabi, on 07/30/2008, -1/+4I dunno, that Pizza Hut ad did it very well.
      • Trav3133, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1They like Itchy they like Scratchy and one kid seems to really like the Speedo man.
    • LeeSoong, on 07/30/2008, -14/+8Macs - what do they give you that you can't get in an HP for half price:

      http://blog.laptopmag.com/the-leader-of-the-pack-h ...

      HP 2133 Mini-note, $499 Linux mini notebook, or a few dollars more for the Windows Vista machine. Sleek new design fits most of your needs.

      Apple MacBooks still look about the same as they did several years ago, and if your not doing video editing, there really is no reason to buy one.
      • P4NG1T, on 07/30/2008, -5/+8there are plenty of reasons why someone would buy a mac other than video editing.

        i would say you're just in the same boat as those mojave people. those people have pre-conceived notions of what vista is, but for you, you have pre-conceived notions of what a mac is.
      • smpx, on 07/30/2008, -2/+9You know what we need? More advertising in our comments.
      • mu0p, on 07/30/2008, -6/+8Uhh.... no professionals in the film industry use macs Film Industry standard usually is Avid, is Avid for mac? No.
      • Palaceguard, on 07/30/2008, -4/+5I can get a honda for 1/3 the price of a BMW, what's your point?
      • mrBitch, on 07/31/2008, -3/+1@LeeSoong RE: "Apple MacBooks still look about the same as they did several years ago, and if your not doing video editing, there really is no reason to buy one."

        1. Apple MacBooks still look about the same as they did several years ago because the design was YEARS AHEAD.

        2. If you think video editing is the only thing you can do on a MacBook then this indicates to me that you know absolutely nothing about this subject.

        3. To make a comment on something you know nothing about indicates to me that you are an asshat.
      • LeeSoong, on 08/01/2008, -0/+2mrBitch - please refer to my digg image.

        Apple notebooks have no practical use, they are over priced, fragile, have limited tech specs, and can't run most of the software on the planet - unless you spend more money on Parallels and buy a copy of Windows XP in a retail box.

        Now if Apple folded in a free first year of MobileME (when it gets working), added a free iPod, and gave you a $ 50 credit in iTunes - then at least you could consider buying a MacBook.

        The Air is a neat-o product introduced to a down turning economy.

        Companies buy PCs because they are cheap, and lots of employees can be equipped with cheap PCs. Macs cost more and so people are not issued Macs, they get PCs.

        I honestly can not list an advantage to buy a MacBook vs buying a Dell.

        Both have the same processor, ram, storage, can run windows, etc. iTunes works on both Dell and Macs, so all your entertainment works on both.

        What possibly could make a Mac (hardware) worth more than a Dell ?
    • digitalarcanum, on 07/30/2008, -4/+21Nope, no cheap shots against the mac, or Apple in General here. Vista can run on a mac, remember? why insult your competition, when they can run your software on their hardware? MS would only be hurting themselves in beating up on Apple.

      However in my opinion, Apple really needs to get over the mac vs. PC *****. Instead of comparing yourself to another company's product, SHOW ME that you're better.
      • cwa107, on 07/30/2008, -3/+5...and stop copying the competitor, if you are supposedly already better.
      • mrBitch, on 07/31/2008, -3/+4@cwa107 RE: "and stop copying the competitor, if you are supposedly already better."

        That is something Microsoft can't do, since they were contracted to work for Apple to design the first MS Office suite on a Mac.

        Years later, Microsoft released Windows 3.1 (after the failed Windows 1.0 & 2.0 efforts).

        Back when Vista was being developed during that 6 year effort, it's UI was heavily based on OSX Tiger UI concepts (Vista even copied "Spotlight" and called it "Search").
    • dn11, on 07/30/2008, -3/+4it's called being on the defensive - it's what happens when you sit around letting people punch you in the face for 2 years and do nothing.
    • swraman, on 07/30/2008, -9/+11Apple threw a low blow by so directly attacking and ridiculing Microsoft. Microsoft has some dignity, theyre not going to go that low. I mean its a professional courtesy to not so directly insult your competition.
      • Dracusis, on 07/31/2008, -7/+6Only a true comedian could work Microsoft and courtesy into the same paragraph. You sir, are a very funny man indeed.
      • dn11, on 07/31/2008, -6/+6yeah... that Steve Ballmer - he sure is a polite and courteous guy. The real answer is that MS has been too incompetent to come up with any valid response to criticism. They've been the market leader so overwhelmingly for so long they've forgotten what real competition even means.
    • icepick602, on 07/30/2008, -5/+9I don't see why this is so spectacular. Am I supposed to be impressed that Microsoft got to demonstrate Vista to a sampling of people who obviously aren't computer experts and they were able to come up with good results? Even if vista was a piece of *****, if they could pick and choose what to show people on a completely optimized machine of course they can make it look impressive. This isn't going to "crumble" *****. The problem with vista isn't that it can't be impressive for a 15 minute demonstration, its that when normal people tried to use it on there personal computers there were a lot of problems. This ad, while a good move by microsoft, isn't going to change most peoples minds
      • weech, on 07/31/2008, -5/+2that's where you're wrong, because you're assuming the vast majority of users are advanced users or computer experts..they're not. if MS can even alter the minds of a fraction of the population at large who simply have a poor perception of this thing known as "Vista", they can make huge gains in making the sell..i think this ad is very effective when you consider the target audience.
    • jeffvvisoft, on 07/31/2008, -3/+3Another Vista ad, apparently Lt. Cmdr Data has problems with his computer too:

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k9o8j2EJ6Y
    • DarkDx, on 07/31/2008, -1/+4I'm not a big fan of windows, but this was a really good idea from them, I'm not a fanboy so I'm not like "omg everything microsoft does sucks even their ads!!11"
    • iamshaft3, on 07/31/2008, -7/+3noone can take a shot at the mac OS, vista is basically an awful attempt at a copy of older versions of OSX.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDNuq94Zg_8

      and the way vista was developed, thank you john.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpR6jwQXc3Y

      be original microsoft.
      • mrBitch, on 07/31/2008, -2/+2RE: "vista is basically an awful attempt at a copy of older versions of OSX. "

        Some nice youtube clips there...
  • thenonhacker, on 07/30/2008, -13/+345Don't miss this one:
    Try clicking "You can't please everyone" (4th link) in the Mojave Experiment site.
    • B1663r, on 07/30/2008, -10/+618I don't know about you dude, but from the looks of it Im just gonna skip Vista and wait for Mojave to come out.
      • lindstorm, on 07/30/2008, -41/+7Yeah. It is the promissed land of Windows. Nothing like my HP laptop with 2Gb of ram and that #&%! that took years even to boot up. All the gadgets and aeros disabled you can even do something with it.
      • nixda, on 07/30/2008, -17/+0ymmd!

        kthxbai
      • uthallan, on 07/30/2008, -5/+11i lol'ed
      • duffy89, on 07/30/2008, -11/+2Apple nut are you
      • b4cheung, on 07/31/2008, -9/+2Mojave already came out - It was Vista under a different name. I think you mean Midori?
    • fmyidotcom, on 07/30/2008, -38/+96Well they probably did give them Vista on a brand new computer, not one full of files, so it might have been faster for that reason.

      Regardless, that guys [lack of] reaction, especially his tone, was quality
      • EddyG12, on 07/30/2008, -10/+21you're so stupid...
      • rsylvest20, on 07/30/2008, -8/+14Agreed - unbelievably stupid.
      • Mothh, on 07/30/2008, -3/+117You solved it!!! Vista is slow because of FILES. You see files are square and the tubes of the internet are round, so the files can't fit throught the tubes.
      • MFF37, on 07/30/2008, -1/+18^ lol brilliant.
      • PunkRampant, on 07/30/2008, -4/+7Maybe he meant full of *programs* which could hog memory.
      • Fryth, on 07/31/2008, -0/+10these nerds are being sarcastic, but they're right. It's a common misconception that computers slow down because of "too much crap". In reality, there's usually just one application or malware process that is eating up all the resources of the system. These things often get installed when you are foolish about installing lots of crap, so it's easy to see where the correlation comes in.
      • getrdone656, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1They are geeks not nerds
        you should know this
        you're on the internets FFS
      • Brad324, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1I think what he meant was that the computer was old and dead...
    • mentor972, on 07/30/2008, -45/+16Cause they put it on some Uber fast system with nothing else on it.
      • batmanz, on 07/30/2008, -1/+26Actually it is just an HP pavilion DV 2000, with 2GB RAM.
      • dragon76, on 07/30/2008, -1/+9Stock configured from HP?
      • MFF37, on 07/30/2008, -2/+8stop the hatin! mentor!
      • danjwray, on 07/31/2008, -7/+3You're digging this guy down? You honestly don't think they optimised the box for these ads? Are you all stupid?
      • mentor972, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1Exactly Danjwray. I'm not hatin', I'm just telling the truth. You don't expect me to believe that they had them do things like set up a connection to a network with a hidden SSID or mess with video configuration, do you? They got it all set up, and showed them Gadgets and the UI. It has a bad reputation for a reason. There really are some problems. I've lost the hair to prove it.
    • JamesMorris, on 07/30/2008, -3/+16Nope was a c2d HP desktop & hp laptops.
    • laserdog, on 07/30/2008, -50/+35From http://www.mojaveexperiment.com/facts/

      "89%* of users expressed satisfaction with it"
      *43% very satisfied, 46% somewhat satisfied

      Their new slogan should be:

      "Windows Vista, give us $300 and there is a 57% chance you'll be somewhat satisfied or less!"
      • FutureGuy, on 07/30/2008, -8/+10You are an eternal optimist aren't you? Apple must make the only products in the world the gets 100% satisfaction.

      • AJRiddle, on 07/30/2008, -7/+12You are the one twisting the words now laserdog. 57% somewhat satisfied or less, when 46% of them are somewhat satisfied leaving just 11% to less than that.

        Stop being a douche.
      • laserdog, on 07/30/2008, -7/+10@FutureGuy "Apple must make the only products in the world the gets 100% satisfaction."

        I don't own a single Apple product. I just think the burden of proof is on Microsoft to convince me to upgrade. And that their own survey seems to indicate that it isn't worth the money.


        @AJRiddle "57% somewhat satisfied or less, when 46% of them are somewhat satisfied leaving just 11% to less than that."

        Sure, that's fair. Still, a 46% "somewhat satisfaction" rating is actually pretty low for a product. Especially for one that is so expensive.
      • leahpee, on 07/30/2008, -1/+2Personally, I'd be 100% satisfied with $300.
      • ExRe, on 07/31/2008, -0/+5Since when did Vista cost $300?

        Flat out, you are a dumb ass.
      • specialK16, on 07/31/2008, -1/+5Meanwhile, in a mansion somewhere in Cupertino, Steve Jobs laughs thinking

        "Give us +$2k or else we won't give you *****."
      • mrBitch, on 07/31/2008, -3/+1err, a Mac Mini is $2k ? The low end Macbook laptops are $2k?

        You are an idiot
    • FutureGuy, on 07/30/2008, -15/+1It took him 20 seconds (fealt like) to ask why its faster.
    • hypnotiq, on 07/30/2008, -6/+87So they are not allowed to use a modern system for their new OS? That's retarded. Just look at the requirement for OSX....

      Consumer electronics is the worst industry. The people giving advice were probably selling shoes at their last job. And asshat "consumers" often rely on their neighborhood zit face geek to tell them what to do, instead of getting off their rich asses and figuring it out themselves.

      Getting advice from an IT professional about Vista vs. XP is like asking a rocket scientist which motorcycle helmet you should buy.

      For some strange reason, my ***** works. Whether XP, Vista, Linux, OSX, etc. That's all I ask. Vista only sucked when 3rd party developers wouldn't get their thumbs out of their ass to build compliant drivers (Nvidia for one). But that was almost 2 years ago.....
      • anubis2night, on 07/30/2008, -13/+2Nvidia's driver still don't work properly just doi a searc h for that nvlddmkm error and you'll see huge problem still out there without a proper fix from anyone. Vista is a joke, but it's not eniterly without merit, it's just temperamental and realistically about the same as Apples iphone 2.0 firmware, or mobile me. Of course those are proprietary systems that you pay a huge amount more for the hardware so I would think people would expect more from Apple, but I digress...
      • Rodalli, on 07/30/2008, -3/+20@anubis2night

        You could do a search for Nvidia driver problems with Windows XP and still find an ass-load of issues to this day, so what's your point? On more than one occasion I've had to download fourth-party/user-created apps to strip Nvidia's crappy drivers from a Windows XP machine, because they were causing problems and wouldn't uninstall fully. The same goes for any company, and any driver. You can't solely blame Microsoft for this one. Newsflash, cause here comes the "Inconvenient Truth" about hardware and software compatibility: there's no way to make it work 100% correctly, 100% of the time on 100% of systems.

        It's the nature of an open system, where there can be a completely incalculable number of unique hardware configurations. Apple is a closed system where they know exactly what hardware a system has (because they built it, and refuse to let anyone put their OS on a non-Apple computer) and it still has problems. *shrugs* You tell me who has the harder job, Apple or Microsoft?
      • belfastbiker, on 07/31/2008, -1/+2Reason for no upgrade?

        XP DOES EVERY DAMN THING I WANT OR NEED.

        Well done for making a fine OS, Microsoft.

    • ImmediateAction, on 07/30/2008, -4/+98"This is actually Windows Vista."
      "......................but why is it faster?"

      Touche salesman, touche.
      • AutoTom, on 07/31/2008, -24/+2Yeah thanks for writing exactly what it says

        ***** douchebag
      • ImmediateAction, on 07/31/2008, -0/+5Touche AutoTom, touche.
      • specialK16, on 07/31/2008, -7/+3@AutoTom: Wow, live and let live... go burn in a fire you ***** dick.
      • danjwray, on 07/31/2008, -0/+6Presumably it's faster because it's on a machine with higher than minimum specs. Microsoft could have avoided a lot of bad press if they hadn't had that awful 'Vista Capable' campaign which told everyone that any old computer could run Vista. Or if they'd coded Vista efficiently. Whatever works....
    • ntulip, on 07/30/2008, -3/+10i couldn't stop repeating the video!
      • duffman03, on 07/31/2008, -1/+7Please stop, it's not loading for me...
    • mattshoppes, on 07/30/2008, -4/+6I'm not seeing it.... the 4th link for me is a lady... who granted doesn't look all that impressed, but it doesn't seem to follow the dialog that is presented in this comment thread... can someone enlighten me?
      • Mithivh, on 07/30/2008, -0/+7The fourth link on the bottom left, above the red text. Not the 4th video.
      • kevnaca, on 07/30/2008, -0/+5It's not the 4th video on the collage of videos, it's the phrase on the bottom portion of the site.
      • xerox, on 07/30/2008, -1/+5Helps if you click the proper 4th link. *hint* look down.
    • exomni, on 07/30/2008, -3/+32"Then why is it faster"

      Because you have a slow-ass computer.
      • danjwray, on 07/31/2008, -8/+6You mean,

        'Because it's a memory hog, and the example machine has overkill specs designed to line the pockets of both the hardware and software makers.'
      • jeremymccurdy, on 07/31/2008, -1/+32 gigs of ram is hardly overkill specs, I would never suggest anyone buy a new computer with anything less than that anymore, 1 gig is usually okay but doesn't always cut it.
      • danjwray, on 07/31/2008, -2/+12 gigs of ram doesn't seem like overkill because most new computers have it. The truth is that the vast majority of computer use simply shouldn't require 2 gigs. Running Firefox, a word processor and a media player shouldn't need it. In order to make money the wintel guys need to make us feel like we constantly need higher specs. Of course there are apps that need that kind of power, but those should be the exception, not the rule.
      • exomni, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1Also, if they were trying to run any actual applications, and not just using the OS apps, it would not seem nearly as fast.
  • Nuccio23, on 07/30/2008, -54/+405Typing this from my iMac: Great campaign, very intelligent. Interesting how people's have such strong opinions about something they've never tried, including myself when it comes to vista. Definitely changed my perception of vista by a fair degree.
    • megamod, on 07/30/2008, -3/+81I was tired of hearing my Room mate complain about it just because she had heard so many friends that had friends that used vista and had issues with it. I'm not saying that Vista is perfect in each and every way...I'm just saying people aren't even giving it a chance.

      Just like in psychology's availability theory if there's a BIAS you're more likely to only remember the things that support your bias. Like they say Good news travel fast but bad news travel faster? She had never even touched Vista but refused to install it on her machine.
      • scojac, on 07/30/2008, -19/+3"cmon guys just give vista a chance".

        Like a redheaded stepchild.

        Beaten.
      • BThunderW, on 07/30/2008, -3/+24She hot?
      • apothekari, on 07/30/2008, -25/+6This does ***** all for my reservations about vista.
        1.Price too expensive you want Ultimate there's absolutely no need for a serious computer user to get anything else {I use my xp machine as an entertainment server with XBMC I am a photographer and use high end photoshop,and I game on it}
        2.XBMC is better in every way than MCE easier to set up and maintain and FREE, and as I build all my pc's {even though I am not so bold as to say I am an expert}I have reservations on how Vista would work with my "frankenstein"builds using older parts and new together.
        3.DRM DRM DRM DRM,I DO NOT want M$ tying my hands on mp3s or other video I have had since the Clinton administration.I OWN it It is mine GTFO it.
        4.Not enough bang for the buck IMO its a band aid on a sucking chest wound.talk to me when the price is gone down and the requirements are lower sayyy 5 years or until I master Linux.
        5.I am a cheap bastard {obviously}
      • drjekelmrhyde, on 07/30/2008, -3/+16@apothekariapothekari
        You know you can get OEM Ultimate for 180 on Newegg
        plus tell me what you can't do with Vista with it's DRM cause "someone I know" burn shyt they get from torrents, limewire and they copy and burn Netflix movies
      • dragon76, on 07/30/2008, -15/+10Vista is slower on the same hardware that XP flies on. If Apple and KDE and Gnome could incorporate visual effects much more advanced than Aero Glass in their products like, 5 years ago, why do I need to buy a new computer for Vista?
      • PhishTahko, on 07/30/2008, -2/+28XP is slower on hardware 95 flies on. Did you have a point?
      • wounded625, on 07/30/2008, -1/+15@dragon76dragon76
        Because Vista is more then just "pretty". Lots of things were changed under the hood too.
      • natenovs, on 07/30/2008, -0/+16@apothekari: umm...DRM om mp3s? What are you talking about? Wrapping an mp3 with DRM makes it a completely different format. If your music is in mp3, then there is no DRM...
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -1/+5dragon: because Apple releases a new OS every ***** year and the hardware they sell is nothing but top of the line *****.
        Also, what are these "more advance" visual effects in KDE and Gnome? If you mean Compiz Fusion, I'd hardly call it more advance. It's kind of cool, but a pain in the ass to set up, doesn't do as much as Aero Glass and still ugly as ***** (unless it's been dramatically updated from earlier this year).
      • Abatrour, on 07/31/2008, -3/+4I tried Vista when it first came out. I installed it on my notebook, gateway, amd 1.6ghz dualcore, 1gb of ram, 80gb hdd, 6100go

        I hated it. It required such high system requirements to display the fancy graphics alone. And the amount of ram it used... Yes i know its designed like that, to store all your commonly used programs in ram to start faster, but ALL I ever used it for was Firefox and Msn Messenger. Now don't tell me that Vista needs 700mb of ram just for that...

        I love Ubuntu though, everything works right from the start, except that I need Ndiswrapper to get my wireless working. Its so damn fast and you can have lots of those fancy graphics on an old Geforce fx 5200!

        Why is it that Microsoft cant even come out with a Live CD equivelant for Vista or update the stupid disk with additional drivers every once in a while? What they don't show you in those videos is how long it took the computer tech to install everything.
      • Recidivus, on 07/31/2008, -1/+4So far I haven't had any issues with DRM and unplayable videos/music on Vista. Although I'm only playing my own personal backup rips.
      • cryonix, on 07/31/2008, -0/+4I refuse to install it because my ***** brick of a stone age pc wouldn't handle it. I suck.
      • djgreedo, on 07/31/2008, -1/+2@apothekariapothekari

        Oh, no. I'd like to refute some of the FUD you are (inadvertently) spewing:
        Price? Compared to Linux Windows is expensive. Considering a decent PC costs hundreds of dollars, $150 or so for an OS seems reasonable to me. The OS does a LOT.

        Serious user? Photoshop, games, and entertainment? Vista is the best version of Windows for those uses. Directx10 for games, Vista Media Center is amazing (big improvement over XP), photo editing will depend on your 3rd party software. There's nothing in that list that Vista Home Premium can't do.

        2. Fine. Woteva.

        3. DRM? Whatever you've heard about DRM in Vista is wrong. Do some research. There was some BS FUD going around a while back about Vista having some deep-rooted DRM measures...all nonsense. Vista supports DRM if you buy media with DRM (Blu-ray, etc.), but there is nothing built into the OS sniffing at your videos or music. MP3 doesn't even support DRM, nor do most formats. The bottom line is that DRM is built into the MEDIA, not the operating system. If you don't like DRM, don't buy media with DRM restrictions. I certainly wouldn't. I seriously can't believe this myth is still doing the rounds with the ignorant masses.

        4. Wait for lower requirements? You can run Vista comfortably on any computer made in the last 3 or 4 years (or buy a $400 PC if you need a new one). This is a tired, lame attack on Microsoft. Any computer bought since Vista was released (and for a few years before) will run it with no issues. If you have an old PC that you're happy running XP or Linux on, then don't complain that Vista isn't for you. Use the OS that matches your hardware.
    • fmyidotcom, on 07/30/2008, -15/+31Sounds like a propaganda war to me.
      • Atomic05, on 07/30/2008, -4/+21Propaganda requires that the media in question lies to you and speaks negatively of the opposition. These ads are really pretty cut and dry in that respect.

        Apple ads on the other hand...
      • theantidote, on 07/31/2008, -2/+5There's lying and then there's withholding information. I see them as both parts of propaganda.

        Do we see the users that didn't enjoy "Mojave" in these videos? No.

        Microsoft could have tested thousands of people in order to get these (relatively) few positive responses, we don't know.
      • Speed, on 07/31/2008, -0/+4Atomic, by definition, propaganda is just information meant to persuade. Doesn't have to be false (though it often is).
    • birch25, on 07/30/2008, -4/+42i agree wholeheartedly. i have an HP laptop and an Apple laptop and i upgraded the HP to vista a few months ago. i much prefer it to XP in almost every way. it's just an all around better experience (i did join the vista club after a lot of the hardware compatibility issues were ironed out). i still don't love windows, but vista is a step forward, not backwards.
      • Mystlyfe, on 07/30/2008, -12/+4Well it definitely is a step up from the ad campaign perspective, I find it ironic that the specific compliments are for the features that are rip-offs of OSX. "I love gadgets", "it's so simple", "it just seems like it would be easy", "comes with a remote control", "instant search", etc.
        That and the users are just being demonstrated the software, which is always sketchy.
      • dragon76, on 07/30/2008, -10/+2The designer for Apple's Aqua interface was hired to create Aero. It was no accident. Microsoft wins because you believe that "after a lot of the hardware compatibility issues were ironed out" is acceptable. Hurrah for the exaltation of the mediocre.
      • griffinjam, on 07/30/2008, -2/+7@dragon76: "Hurrah for the exaltation of the mediocre."

        I suppose that's one way to look at it, but one that I disagree with.

        On Macs all hardware is controlled by Apple, and you can only get hardware that Apple approves of. When they release a new system it is instantly compatible with all Apple approved hardware because they make it that way.

        Windows has no control over who makes hardware for a PC. They make developer versions available years in advance so hardware developers can have drivers ready when their new OS version hit the market, but they can't make developers create new drivers. So when new versions of Windows ship there are always hardware devices that don't get supported, or are supported poorly. This is the price you pay for having an open hardware system that allows for competition.

      • birch25, on 07/30/2008, -0/+4dragon17, i didn't have any issues with drivers not working, hell, i plugged in my printer and it found its driver, installed it, and it worked without having to touch anything or use the install cd that i had lost long ago. i'm spoiled because my mac does this just as well (along with most of the other new features in vista) for years (i've had instant search for over 3 years!). and i hope you're not proposing that vista is mediocre in regards to hardware compatibility in comparison to something like ubuntu which won't recognize my wifi card or graphics card, grrr....

        i'm not saying there aren't problems with vista, there definitely are, but i haven't had the nightmares that some are having and there are lots of people (more than the hates would like to admit) that are doing fine with vista.
      • Abatrour, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1@birch25

        Did you check out the restricted drivers feature? Much easier just clicking a few buttons, having it download the correct version and installing it for you than going to lets say the nVidia site, and downloading their huge drivers and doing it all yourself.

        As for wireless, use synaptic package manager to download ndiswrapper over lan and then you can use the windows drivers.

    • FriedTurkey, on 07/30/2008, -4/+35Yeah if you ask most Vista haters what are the problems with Vista they really aren't sure other than "it crashes". The problems with Vista are the same problems with every new Microsoft OS:

      1) Hardware drivers - non compatible and broken drivers by hardware manufactures. Macs don't have this problem because the hardware set is very limited. This always goes away after newer drivers with newer hardware fix the problems.

      2) Software compatibility - eventually all the software will be written for Vista and this issue goes away. Macs did have this problem when they went to Intel but the mac fanboy distortion field seems to pretend this never happened.

      The Vista issues will eventually go away. I will eventually get it installed on my machine. I really don't see any reason to get Vista because the new features aren't really needed by me but eventually the software will require me to upgrade.

      I don't know why Microsoft even advertises for their OS. Most Windows users like myself don't really care about the OS and just want something to run our applications. We will get Vista with our new hardware.
      • andreegal, on 07/30/2008, -2/+6hopefully my computer eventually upgrades so I can install Vista
      • belumaves, on 07/30/2008, -0/+6you say that as if your computer can upgrade itself... what do you know that I don't know?!? if you have a self improving computer, I want one!
      • danjwray, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1So now that those problems are fixed everything is good, right?

        "eventually all the software will be written for Vista and this issue goes away"

        But isn't Windows 7 on the horizon? This is all going to happen again in about a year. Microsoft really ought to incrementally improve and provide backwards compatibility, but it's just not conducive to ripping off your customers. When and how do you charge huge amounts for small, frequent and necessary improvements?
    • ralphthemagi, on 07/30/2008, -37/+37How is this a great campaign? If anything, it shows how desperate Microsoft is. It's kind of sad, since Vista isn't really that bad at all. This is basically saying, "Everyone thinks Windows Vista sucks, but it really doesn't suck that bad. Here, check it out in a controlled environment with no bloatware with no device drivers or custom software to worry about. See? Isn't that nice?"

      The reality is that this is a pretty pointless "experiment." In the real world people have to contest with buying crappy consumer products from Dell and Best Buy that come riddled with bloatware and poorly configured. It's no wonder that people find Vista slow, when it has to load a half dozen pieces of crap every time it starts. Most people aren't going to shell out for a Dell or HP business notebook that comes bloatware free. Most people have to deal with the IT staff at work which sets up their computer, locks it down with a bunch of stuff, installs proprietary software, devices, and drivers and then sets up the corporate VPN.

      For most people the Vista experience is crap. A lot of it has to do with inadequate hardware, slow performance, missing drivers, applications that no longer run, applications that crash constantly, etc. I run Vista Business, and have no problems—but I'm the exception, not the rule. The reality is that all the things I mentioned aren't a great excuse. Vista is no ME, but after 5 years of the virus/spyware hell that was Windows XP, people expected a lot more. They wanted something faster, more secure, more compatible, more stable, more intuitive and more polished and they only got about 50%.
      • KielKilla, on 07/30/2008, -4/+7That's not Windows fault. It's the bundled bloatware *****. Usually if I need to help someone with a new computer I tell them to format everything and then install the OS.
      • a3leggedmidgit, on 07/30/2008, -2/+11why is this guy being buried? He has an excellent point.

        I sell computers for a living, and if you were to have a laptop that was, as ralphthemagi said, stripped of the bloatware and other trial crap on the computers, the users would have a much better experience.

        That, granted, isn't window's fault, but Windows should have more power in what goes along with the OS, especially if it has such a negative impact on the user experience. They are the #1 operating system in the world because of how they're marketed. Linux boxes haven't caught on yet for the regular consumer, and macs are perceived "too expensive".

        If Microsoft wants to be more competitive, they need to do WAY more than just desperate "punk'd" like studies that are a complete joke. They need to clamp down on dell, toshiba, HP, acer, gateway, emachines, compaq, and all the other PC makers and say "hey, this bloatware you put with our OS is what is weighing it down tremendously. Remove it." How could they not have the power to do that?

        Vista, in my opinion, is really not terribly much more than a shiny looking Windows XP with some visual effects ripped off from mac. And not even ripped off very well at that.
      • tnoy, on 07/31/2008, -0/+4@a3leggedmidgit

        Microsoft will not do that because they're aware of the fact that the removal of bloatware would raise the price of the hardware. The cheap market is the one area that Microsoft doesn't have any serious competition. Dell, HP, etc, all get kickbacks for installing the bloatware.

        The absence of that level of control is also one of the reasons the OEMs LOVE Microsoft.

      • misterjangles, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1I read a lot of blog posts and comments about drivers and applications that don't run, but I haven't actually run into many people that experienced those specific problems first-hand. I don't doubt anybody who had real troubles, but in my experience there are a lot of people who tell half-truths when errors happen. Installing an OS on unsupported hardware, upgrading without wanting to have to make any effort to learn the new features, etc. Apple leaves old hardware in the dust on occasion, I have a laptop that isn't very old and I can't install Leopard on it. Pro Tools took over 6 months to release an update that runs properly on Leopard. I updated a Linux server and it f'd up a bunch of virtual machines for a while. Patches eventually came out and life goes on. Point being that this stuff happens to every vendor. MS actually supports legacy hardware and software nearly to a fault.

        That being said, I didn't use Vista originally it because it was just a little slower and didn't have anything new that impressed me enough to sacrifice one CPU cycle of performance. Since SP1, they seem to have ironed out some of those problems and I finally upgraded my main windows box. I don't feel any strong need to tell people to upgrade, but if I were doing a clean install or getting a new machine, I'd go with Vista rather than hanging onto XP.
      • djgreedo, on 07/31/2008, -0/+0Do you people really think 'bloatware' has a dramatic effect on a computer's speed? Nonsense, especially to an 'average' user.

        I buy Dell laptops, and I got my latest about a month ago. It was full of crapware (Nero, Norton, etc.). After I got it home I did a fresh Vista install. I couldn't notice a difference in performance, and I know what to look for (quicker loading of big apps, snappiness, etc.).

        The only noticable lag from bloatware is boot time really, especially for an average user. They aren't running benchmarks and complaining because Vista gets 3 points less than XP on the same hardware. They are assuming Vista is slow because morons and fanboys have told them it barely runs on a $10,000 system.

        The bigger issue with performance is that these companies sell machines that barely meet the requirements for Vista, and average users see two computers - one is $300 and the other is $1,200, both run Vista and have the same apps preinstalled. It's not hard to guess what an average person would buy. This is why Vista Basic exists.
    • Wootstapler, on 07/30/2008, -23/+16We could care less about what your typing your comment on.
      • Matt2k, on 07/30/2008, -3/+4True. Like what he ate for lunch.
      • MalharP16, on 07/30/2008, -1/+22He just wanted to make the point that he's a Mac user
      • inotocracy, on 07/30/2008, -0/+12So you care a little bit about it? Ok.. I'm on a Windows machine.
      • enantiodromia, on 07/30/2008, -2/+2as for me, i could not care less about what you think.
      • masterkenobi, on 07/30/2008, -1/+8Your you're your you are, you your your.....

        ...you are your.

        Your?

        You're.
      • mtmtmtmt, on 07/30/2008, -1/+5If we could care less, it means we do care... correct?
      • Wootstapler, on 07/30/2008, -1/+1Thank you asian grammar nazi.
      • masterkenobi, on 07/30/2008, -0/+4You are quite welcome, nondescript white dude.
      • LemonChicken, on 07/30/2008, -1/+1It's not really grammar; it's more logic.
    • Chirp08, on 07/30/2008, -5/+16"Interesting how people's have such strong opinions about something they've never tried"

      That is the most ironic thing I've ever seen in defense of windows, how many of the people that bash macs are guilty of this, way more then the majority. And just like with Vista, you can't try it "once", or a "for a little bit of time" and make your decision. I'm not trying to get into an argument here, it's just humorous to me.
      • someology, on 07/30/2008, -4/+3Personally, it's that of the three Apple computers I've used regularly, one crashed constantly(OS9 was a DOG), and another killed itself by frying one of the CPUs. Quality stuff, yep. With all of the Mac users I know, telling me for years how reliable, and scoffing at Windows crashes, hah! I've also had an interesting time watching colleagues who have opted for Powerbooks have the lovely cooling system literally fry their shiny new machines over the last couple of years. Apple makes some pretty machines, but there is no proper substance there; you must reign yourself in for function at some point when designing hardware instead of sacrificing all to appearance.
      • WiseWeasel, on 07/31/2008, -1/+5@someology: Apple hasn't sold Powerbooks in several years. I think you need to update your trolling software.

        I'll say without hesitation that my MacBook Pro is the best computer I've ever owned, for the two and a half years I've had it, and it's still working just as well as the day I bought it, running MacOS X and Windows XP quickly and silently. Apple hardware has been incredibly reliable for me, my family, and friends that own one, and in the cases where there have been problems, it was never hard to get a helpful, native-English-speaking person on the phone to get it fixed promptly. Say what you will about the ease of use of Mac OS X, but Apple's hardware is top-notch. Compared to most OEM vendors, it doesn't get much better than this unless you're willing to assemble your own computer from hand-picked quality components, and that doesn't really apply to laptops. If you were hoping to get better quality kit from most PC OEMs, you won't like those odds.
      • tnoy, on 07/31/2008, -1/+3@WiseWeasel

        The Thinkpad I have is by far the most reliable piece of hardware that I've owned for the three or so years that I've had it. I cant say much about the tech support, though, mostly due to the fact that I've never even come close to needing it. There are PC OEMs that churn out *****, but there are quality ones.

        By comparison, a friend of mine is on his fourth Macbook after purchasing it a year ago.
      • misterjangles, on 07/31/2008, -1/+2mac hardware is no more or less reliable than the next brand. the one thing i will say about macs, though, is that it is extremely nice to be able to simply walk into an apple store with your computer and speak face-to-face with tech support. with windows boxes you can run into a lot of finger-pointing due to the various parties involved. my experience with windows hardware support is that you are guilty until proven innocent. I've had many long frustrating calls, trying to get beyond a level-one support script and reach someone who can actually help me. obviously it varies by vendor, but the basic routine is similar.

        i generally don't like being locked into one vendor, but when that vendor is providing excellent service above and beyond what the rest of the industry is doing, well, i'd rather be locked in with the best than have the freedom to choose from 2nd rate services.
    • Kerrigore, on 07/30/2008, -0/+9Believe it. I work in computer sales and probably 75% of the customers complain that virtually all the new machines come pre-loaded with Vista. Few if any of them have actually tried it for any significant length of time.

      Now, I'm not saying that Vista is without flaws or that there aren't better alternatives, but the bad press that has built up around it in the common mind reminds me of all the anti-plasma tv propaganda which is now just false.
      • WiseWeasel, on 07/31/2008, -0/+3Plasma TVs are for suckas! My barber told me so, and he wouldn't lie.
    • omikun, on 07/30/2008, -7/+4Of course they liked it. They didn't even touch the computer (from what I've seen). All they do is see how 'easy' it is for people who know what to do to do it. I bet the average joe will still have to take a class or read a book to do most of those things. This isn't a fault of the OS. It's sort of inherent in complex systems like an OS.

      Personally I have XP, Vista, and Ubuntu installed on my desktop. I use ubuntu for coding and work (cause it's nicer and gvim doesn't look gimp) but firefox crashes inexplicably more often than XP). I use XP to play games and do daily stuff. I use Vista when I want to see pretty. All I have is an E2180 and an 8800GT and I can see a noticeable degrade in performance between XP and Vista. I think I'll have to wait until I get an E8500 before moving over to Vista if at all.
      • macbookhair, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1What are you doing with such a ***** processor and an 8800gt... total bottleneck you have right there.
    • energyblue, on 07/30/2008, -10/+2I agree, fantastic campaign, very clever, alot better than the 'Mac vs PC' attempt. But, after first hand experience, Vista is a bad OS.
    • rpdillon, on 07/30/2008, -9/+12There are 55 videos on the site. I watched every one of them and analyzed exactly what Microsoft chose to emphasize. The results are at http://etherplex.org/archives/33

      But here's the thing. The subjects in the study watched a trained MS employee use Vista for 10-15 minutes. Does this somehow make their opinion more valid than someone who bought Vista, installed it, tried to get drivers and peripherals working with it, had to administer it and then gave their opinion?

      Honestly, there is no attempt at honesty here. The problems people complain about in Vista go completely unaddressed, and features that are emphasized are already in OS X for the most part. Crumple the propaganda? Hardly.
      • Frost9999, on 07/30/2008, -4/+3Nice analysis.
      • kineticarl, on 07/30/2008, -3/+3Golly, MS is trying to serve its best interest?
      • atomicfireball, on 07/31/2008, -3/+1If they were really trying to serve their best interest, they would fix the actual problems people were complaining about and stop telling their customers that their opinions are ignorant.
      • rcmatt4321, on 07/31/2008, -2/+1That's exactly what I was thinking...

        Also, how many of the subjects looked like intelligent computer users that have sufficient knowledge of computers to form an opinion on just how "fast" it was. I was "loling" at that lady who referred to vista as an application...
      • ilikechaitea, on 07/31/2008, -1/+3the whole driver issue is old, and was only relevant like....almost 2 years ago now.

        Yes, some still have issues (drivers), but considering they have millions of copies on a multitude of hardware configurations the OS is doing extremely well.

        Vista preinstalled on a new PC just works, and for most people, which is a lot in real numbers, that's amazing.

        Plus this is talking about preconceptions of Vista, unsecure, unstable, Windows ME, anyone who's used Vista can tell you those are just not true.

        Its extremely stable, its an a very innovative recovery model built into the OS and available to any application, its secure, and its very mature and powerful OS. My girlfriend's Mac Book Pro running Leopard crashes way more often than my underpowered HP laptop running Vista (which has never crashed).

        Your analysis at http://etherplex.org/archives/33 is just an old rehash of what everyone else is saying.

        The point is, MS here is trying to break unfounded preconceptions of users who've never even seen Vista. And lastly, if you really want to publish an original analysis, why don't you look at the Apple Mac ads. I love them, but they are full of crap.
      • tnoy, on 07/31/2008, -1/+5Yeah, I by far prefer all the honesty that comes from the Mac vs. PC ads.

        *cough*
    • Shorties, on 07/31/2008, -0/+3Honestly I love vista, and I am a mac user. I like OSX better, but vista is a really cool operating system and I was never able to figure out why so many people give it so much crap, (Probably because of apple's advertising campaign, or all the issues they had at launch). I guarantee you that if they start airing commercials on TV based off these tests (I can't even tell if they are real tests some of the answers seem coached, but that doesn't matter, it's how the commercial is perceived) they will completely reverse the negative connotation that Vista has right now.
      • misterjangles, on 07/31/2008, -0/+2They are good ads, but i doubt they will completely reverse public opinions on Vista. Vista is actually a decent OS, but the perception is already set that it is a failure, a transition OS, and it's going to be very hard for MS to change this. Apple's ads are effective because they each contain a nugget of truth. I'm sure it makes for an interesting study to understand why people bash Vista so much who have never tried it, but that's the way it seems to have gone down.

        I personally think MS would be wise to capitalize on this perception and just get their next version of Windows out the door more quickly.
    • AutoTom, on 07/31/2008, -2/+1People so out of touch with computers that they haven't even tried vista yet

      Clearly these are the people who we should be basing our opinions on vista on.
    • getsk3wled, on 07/31/2008, -0/+2Have you used it?
      You may have changed your internal ideas, but don't assume that a (pro-microsoft, pro-vista ad 'project') is completely true.
      Decide for yourself, by using it, and not like most people already find out, from other people. Them judging vista without really using it is no better than you believing a microsoft ad campaign for all that it's worth.
    • Phatlip012, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1Typing this in my underwear. I just thought I would share that.
    • pantone286, on 07/31/2008, -3/+1"I am typing this from my imac."
      bwahahahahahahahaha
    • Cryoniq, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1I used Vista and it dissapeared myestriously from the system after 5 minutes and this lovely OS named PCLinuxOS showed up.

      Seriosuly. No ad will get me to use Vista ever again. Microsoft should be mass sued for slowing down the development of the human as a specie.
  • metapop, on 07/30/2008, -77/+59great, so everyday joes were wowed by a fancy GUI, they're used to staring at XP every day of their life... I wonder if any of them have even seen OS X or Ubuntu.
    MUST BUY MOJAVE NOWWW
    • senae, on 07/30/2008, -7/+86no, they were given a rundown of the actual features (indexing and whatnot) and not just the GUI.

      also, according to the website, 22% used Apple OS's, 1% used Linux (The average Linux user would probably have unzipped their pants and peed on the interviewer for no reason, so can you really blame them?)
      • RetroRufio, on 07/30/2008, -3/+17I nearly spewed coffee all over my monitor thanks to your Linux comment. Thanks.
      • zach382, on 07/30/2008, -2/+19How come everyone's always drinking coffee when they "nearly" spit it out? And how come no one ever really spits it out? o.O
      • PatrickBrown, on 07/30/2008, -1/+5I would have asked how open it was and how good its support was for interacting with other operating systems or even a file system other than its default.

        There isn't a single operating system that can take care of the needs of everyone and thus any operating system that limits itself (or other operating systems) to its own technologies is ultimately lacking in functionality.
      • TheShad0w, on 07/30/2008, -0/+10Wait. Sure I'll concede that the word-of-mouth has really damaged the Vista image. But lets be fair folks. First they didn't show us what they showed the users. Secondly they didn't tell us which version of vista they were showing. Vista Home is drastically different from Vista Ultimate. Thirdly they didn't tell us what hardware they were running the test with. I'm sure it looks amazing on high end hardware and decent on systems with 2GB RAM, 256 MB video cards, and a monitor to show it off.

        Look. No ones saying that Vista isn't pretty. What we, by we I mean those of us who dislike Vista are saying is that its bloated, slow (unless you throw crazy hardware at it), and it has crap support for peripherals and drivers. Don't even bother going down the road of "Thats the venders fault" You know what? Linux has been using that argument for years and they couldn't change anything cause they didn't have enough weight to throw around. If Microsoft doesn't have enough power to "encourage" their third-party vendors to build better drivers and software then Vista is a failure. Its really that simple folks.

        A user shouldn't be expected to buy a brand new computer just to run an operating system.
        A user should be able to purchase a low end machine that clearly states its "capable" of running the OS w/out having issues.
        A user should be able to find software/drivers to support their needs. Especially with a company that has this much influence.

        Those are the facts people. Take'em or leave'em.
      • Atomic05, on 07/30/2008, -0/+2@Shadow

        I dug your comment because I agree, it's difficult to know exactly what the customers were working with and Vista isn't some god-send of an OS that's absolutely perfect. You acknowledge some of the core problems, and I don't need to repeat them.

        However, the driver and software problems have been mostly solved. I've used vista on three separate computers with varying hardware and it worked flawlessly. Also, as hardware advances Vista's requirements are becoming less and less of a problem. These ads aren't lying to you, Vista is a great OS that's been getting a bad rap and this campaign is working to rectify that. Can you really expect Microsoft to do anything else?
      • skootz85, on 07/31/2008, -0/+0*Unzips his pants and pees on senae*
    • Puttzy, on 07/30/2008, -17/+9"great, so everyday joes were wowed by a fancy GUI,"

      Yup!! That sums it up really.
      • SuperDaveOz, on 07/30/2008, -2/+4Yeah, especially in the MAC world. I just use what works. There are things that work good in MAC, some that work good in Windows, but so far, I don't really have a reason to go prettier than Linux. Especially since I can make it look exactly like a MAC or Windows.
      • Spuy767, on 07/30/2008, -0/+11What is all this banter about Media Access Control?
      • cthellis, on 07/30/2008, -0/+1Data Link layer FTW!


        ...though to be fair, he may have been talking about message authentication codes. Or the Military Armament Corporation; they make kickass guns.
    • kuwan, on 07/30/2008, -6/+9I like how the users we shown what Vista can do rather than sitting the users down and letting them play with it. Anyone can give a good demo of what something can do but designing something that is easy to use when you don't know what you're doing is difficult. I think that is likely where Vista fails, in usability.
      • Dumbledorito, on 07/30/2008, -0/+2Huh? How is Vista "hard?" For basic function, it's still click on the icon, open your application.

        Aside from where it sticks "documents and settings," it's nearly identical in file structure to XP. How is THAT "hard?"
    • alexforcefive, on 07/30/2008, -11/+3More to the point, are we expected to believe these people didn't take one look at the "new" OS and say "gee, that looks exactly like vista! And none of these features are new! I give it 0/10"
      • Shoebox639, on 07/30/2008, -1/+7are you retarded? the point of the ad is that these people have NEVER seen vista before.
      • alexforcefive, on 07/30/2008, -1/+1Where does it say they'd never seen vista before? None of them had USED vista, but they all knew about it. That's how they were able to answer questions about it. Are you telling me they picked up all these negative viewpoints without ever once seeing a screenshot or feature list?

        By the way, you don't have to be rude to get your point across.
    • gradivus, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1Feel free to explain how Ubuntu looks better than XP(never mind the severe lack of functionality inherent in all linux distros).
  • tricky88, on 07/30/2008, -122/+598You think it was Mac propaganda that torpedoed Vista? I think it was the horrible, terrible reviews it got upon being released, the confusing array of different levels of the OS and Microsoft's terrible string of delays and marketing snafus. And while I watched that whole commercial linked here I just kept waiting for them to show me - or tell me - what exactly was so great? That it didn't just explode in their faces? At least MSFT has lowered the level of what people expect from them.
    • scojac, on 07/30/2008, -28/+24Yeah - don't know who to hate more here. Microsoft for putting out such bloatware, or the people they interviewed for:

      a) not being able to recognize which OS they're using

      b) thinking Vista is anything other than a waste of hd space
    • gdgi, on 07/30/2008, -46/+48Showing someone a fancy, well-edited marketing video of any product is very different than sitting them down and forcing them to actually try to get anything done with said product.

      Vista fails horribly at 'just working' - so much *****, so little usefulness.
      • Atomic05, on 07/30/2008, -7/+19Have you even used Vista? I switched from XP myself and was prepared to face all the crap I had heard about it. Right from the start it installed in under ten minutes, and in ten more it had booted and automatically picked up on what drivers I needed for most of my hardware (including its own updates), I had given it the go to install them, and it was ready to use. Security software like AVG and Comodo was easy to get, and the annoying default Vista security was cake to turn off. I'm still using Vista because it looks and is simply better than XP, and I don't plan on switching back.

        If you ask me, Vista 'just works' fine.
      • gcnaddict, on 07/30/2008, -4/+12"sitting them down and forcing them to actually try to get anything done with said product."

        That's what they did in the Mojave experiment. Nice try.
      • Katana314, on 07/30/2008, -5/+4You did not RTFA.
        It's great, but you...all together now...
        HAVE
        TO
        SEE
        IT
        FOR
        YOUR
        SELF.
        GOD DAMN IT.
      • mcalica, on 07/31/2008, -1/+6Gotta the love the "Vista Hater" bandwagoners. I have a vista laptop and my gf has a Leopard Macbook. A few times I left my laptop in my car, so I jumped on hers to browse the net. Just navigating through safari was a pain. I am not saying that Leopard is a bad OS, I am just saying that I was not used to it. To me, it just didn't make sense. I am sure that if I spent enough time on OSX, I would learn the system...but why do that when Windows has given me absolutely NO problems? Also, I would consider my gf decently tech savvy, but guess whos computer she is on most of the time? Her mac? Nope, my Vista Laptop.
    • puma, on 07/30/2008, -27/+6yea horrible reviews by every doosh bag journalist carrying a macbook.
    • kelmaster1, on 07/30/2008, -33/+37Vista is a solid OS
      • tugger, on 07/30/2008, -9/+5I think 'overweight' is a better description...

        Although do know what you are trying to get across. Yes, alot of the problems in XP were solved, but vista is just as buggy as XP ever was, and I'm not talking about lack of drivers.
        Port recognition, problems with ipv6, wireless, usb2 transfer rates, scrolling errors and lots more. Basically it's unfinished, just like XP SP2
      • CyberGlitch, on 07/30/2008, -2/+4It's not as bad as people say...if your computer can run it well...
        Then again, as Tugger pointed out it's hardly perfect.
        I used Vista for a month...found none of its "new features" useful (at all), and reverted back to XP so my Laptop could run quickly again. If you have XP you do not need Vista for any reason (except it's potentially more pretty interface). It's not worth the cost.
      • WiseWeasel, on 07/31/2008, -3/+1@tugger: It's just big-boned... LEAVE VISTA ALONE!
    • FutureGuy, on 07/30/2008, -7/+22I am pretty sure the twisted Mac ads didn't help. Vista got bad reviews primarily because it was installed on machines that didn't have enough resources. I have been using Vista and it has been a pretty solid OS, at least in my experience. I did give it 2GB ram to work with and a half decent video card, the PC only costed me around 500$. I guess the problem MS ran into was that, unlike OSX, Vista is not a closed environment, anyone can install it on anything and throw in a review.
      • cthellis, on 07/30/2008, -3/+4No they certainly didn't "help," but they wouldn't exist without Vista's pre-existing bad reputation. If it was only minor matters that hit geeks and gamers and such, such a commercial wouldn't make any sense at all. They just took advantage of the matter to reinforce public and press opinion.
      • someology, on 07/30/2008, -1/+1cthellis: um, the Mac vs. PC ads predated Vista I believe.
      • CyberGlitch, on 07/31/2008, -0/+3someology, several Mac vs. PC ads made direct attacks on Vista, such as its fancy new interface, or its annoying security that required you to permit any action on your computer (remember the commercial with the bodyguard?).
    • chukd, on 07/30/2008, -4/+4I don't think the problem was with Vista itself, it was with all the peripherals. When Manufacturers and retail outlets advertise a product to be Vista ready and the thing doesn't work right because of no drivers or poor drivers, it gets blamed on the OS and not the Manufacturers. I had to deal with my parents new computer issues when they got a package deal for a new Vista machine with a HP printer/scanner/copier that was "Vista ready". It wasn't even close to Vista ready. HP didn't have one decent driver to make it work correctly.

      As far as the OS, Microsoft screws themselves with 10 different versions of an OS. The reason why people are migrating to Mac and Linux is there is only one thing to buy. Everything is included in one box and people can decide what they use. I don't need to pay more because I want the "professional edition" that does 3 things more than the home edition. Only release one version of the freaking OS.
      • xerox, on 07/30/2008, -0/+4'Cept Linux users don't have anything to buy.
    • TnTBass, on 07/30/2008, -6/+22Of course it didn't. What Mac did was promise its customers certain things and then actually followed through on those promises. Vista promised a whole lot, then didn't follow through. Now Microsoft is saying "Look, forget what we promised you and just use it, ok? I promise you will like it!"

      I know many people who use Vista who have said something along the lines of "***** Thing Sucks! I want XP!" I also know a few people who use Leopard. I haven't had them say "I wish I had Tiger" or even "I wish I had XP". (A few of them are completely new to OSX).

      Its called meeting the expectations you set out. OSX continues to make us expect a good, fun, pretty OS and it delivers. Ubuntu promises us a free OS, and it delivers. Microsoft promised us a blow job with every mouse click, and all I get is a prompt to "Allow or Deny".
      • earthforce1, on 07/31/2008, -1/+3> Microsoft promised us a blow job with every mouse click

        Now that would make it worth the price!
    • terminal157, on 07/30/2008, -1/+17Speaking as an XP user, the reason I haven't upgraded has nothing to with how bad Vista is, or supposedly is. It costs too much and it doesn't offer me anything over XP that I want or care about. Simple as that.
      • AngelaQ, on 07/31/2008, -0/+3I agree. I couldn't possibly afford a computer to run that now, let alone upgrade all my software I use daily for my work.

        Vista earned the bad reputation with the "Vista-capable" sticker debacle. Everybody either knows somebody who bought one of those doorstops, did themselves, or considered buying one.
      • ExRe, on 07/31/2008, -1/+1Vista only costs $110. But if you want Vista you are probably better off buying a new PC. Dell has had plenty of deals on Quad core systems with 3GB of ram, 500GB hard drive, and Vista Home Premium for about $500. $390 more for a new desktop, especially one that good is a steal.
      • zwaldowski, on 07/31/2008, -0/+2@ExRe: On top of the $1000+ that I've already baid for my computer? ***** that *****.
    • NaziHatinChimp, on 07/30/2008, -6/+4Looks like those Hardee's commercials. Bunch of trash.
    • illt, on 07/30/2008, -12/+9it was definately the Mac ads.

      A large consumer base is going to be the moron sitting at home watching the idiot box. Mac ads are on all the time bashing Vista in between fair and balanced news programs.

      Average joe doesn't go around reading indepth comparisons and reviews on operating systems. Their opinion is largely based on word of mouth, something Apple is very good at.

      As I recall Wall St journal called it the best version of windows yet upon release, and as a casual gamer and and student, i'd agree.

      • vtnerd, on 07/30/2008, -6/+2Mac's rabid fanboys are busting out the bury stick on you. They dislike truth.
      • pseudosoma, on 07/30/2008, -0/+2It may be the best version of Windows, but it didn't get there until SP 1 IMO. I eagerly bought Vista when it first came out and it was horrible. It was slow, clunky and just felt unfinished. So I went back to XP until I reinstalled Vista Ultimate about a week ago(on the same computer FYI) and now it runs like it should. Though after the excitement of it actually working died down it was just windows.. that worked well. Nothing really to get excited about. Other thank IE 7 crashing about once a day I haven't had any issues. So in the end, it works. But really there was nothing about it that made me say "wow". Which I am cool with. I mean, its an OS. It should just get out of your way and let you work.
      • arah91, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1@pseudosoma You really should do yourself a favor and get a different web browser. I would suggest Firefox or Opera but pretty much any thing is a step up from IE
    • earthforce1, on 07/30/2008, -3/+5Not to mention the draconian DRM
      http://www.momentaryfascinations.com/technology/vi ...

      http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/02/drm_ ...

      Sorry, but when I am root my PC does what I want, not what the RIAA/MPAA or Microsoft wants it to do.
      • ExRe, on 07/31/2008, -2/+1And thus you give us examples of the BS anti-MS campaigns use.

        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Windows_ ...

        The DRM ONLY applies for HDCP for Blueray movies. If Vista did not support HDCP you would have to buy software that does in order to play it.
      • earthforce1, on 07/31/2008, -1/+2I don't have to worry about WGA unless I have a Blu-ray player?

        I don't have to buy software to play DVDs on my PC, and I won't be buying blu-ray disk until there is a fully open source workaround for the DRM. Lots of time, Blu-Ray burners are still expensive. (Sly-soft has software that removes BD+, but only for Windows thus far.)

        In fact, the protected A/V path in Vista http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protected_Media_Path is turned on whenever the content producer says so, not just for Blu-ray. Also, if there is any unsigned drivers present anywhere in the system, the protected A/V refuses to operate. Bye-bye HDTV if Vista decides it doesn't like your USB scanner drivers for some reason.



    • earthforce1, on 07/30/2008, -2/+2You can digg me down, but you can't call me a liar:
      http://apcmag.com/vista_sp1_wont_install_on_dualbo ...


    • gavdog2020, on 07/31/2008, -0/+0Vista is just fine for home users, because Microsoft geared it towards them. Techy people don't like it, and techy people tend to be the ones who are assigned to review a new operating system.
    • radiofrequency, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1On a feature basis Vista sounds pretty good but the implementation is still not polished. Vista feels like a step back compared to XP.
    • jhaks, on 07/31/2008, -0/+1Do you realize you are just like all those people in the video? Does human stupidity know no bounds?
  • josereyes0, on 07/30/2008, -15/+706These are pretty effective ads, but honestly anyone who has a strong opinion over anything solely based upon others' opinions is a ***** idiot.
    • WallnutBoy, on 07/30/2008, -7/+219You mean the userbase of Digg is a ***** idiot?

      ^all in good fun.
    • valkyries, on 07/30/2008, -1/+61you mean most of this country... Well at least i do
    • Slacker1031, on 07/30/2008, -1/+94I'd like to introduce you to the majority of the population...
    • sh0rtstop00, on 07/30/2008, -5/+29Can you please say that to all my friends who swore not to use Vista and I'm the only one using it since it came out?
    • MrRabbit, on 07/30/2008, -1/+35That is the definition of groupthink. Everyone is guilty of it in one way or another.
      • Laminarcissu