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Things No One Gives Microsoft Credit For (But Should)

gizmodo.com — Microsoft gets more crap than any other company in tech. That's partly because it's given us garbage like Clippy, Microsoft BOB and Windows Vista. And it's partly because it's arguably the most important company in personal computing.

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  • ConfusedCartman, on 06/28/2008, -30/+75Absolutely true. I love Windows and Mac for different reasons, but the fact that Microsoft takes much more ***** for their mistakes really does help drive the industry.

    By the way, I love the two-button scroll mouse, but I have to say Apple's keyboards feel much better to the touch than most others. I love their sleek profile.
    • mitch37, on 06/28/2008, -19/+3Apple may have (arguably) enhanced the keyboard, but they didn't invent the keyboard. Microsoft invented the mouse as we know it.

      And anyway, my friend had a last generation (clear plastic) Apple keyboard, the amount of dirt that got in it, disgusting. I wouldn't go near one of those keyboards.
      • justinlarsen, on 06/28/2008, -3/+30Wrong, Xerox invented the mouse, Apple stole the idea, then MS shortly after.
      • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -3/+25Bill English, working for Xerox, invented the first rolling mouse at PARC in 1972. Coincidentelly, this is where both Apple and microsoft got the idea for a GUI. And saying that Microsoft standardized the system wide UI is rubbish. Since the original Mac. Mac applications have had a more cohesive feel to their UI. This article may give some credit where it is due, but it seems to give a little too much.
      • mitch37, on 06/28/2008, -9/+3"as we know it".
        I was talking about right click and scroll, but thats for telling me what i already knew.
      • notoneofus, on 06/28/2008, -0/+11Actually, Doug Engelbart invented the mouse at Stanford, and they licensed it to Apple.

        Therefore, with its two-button/scrollwheel, Microsoft didn't invent the mouse, but enhanced the mouse.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+16The Amiga OS used a two button mose in 1985. Win 3.0 didn't come out until 1990. No innovation here. At least, not by Microsoft.
      • sarchosis, on 06/28/2008, -1/+6You think an Apple Keyboard is somehow dirtier than a standard PC keyboard?

        I prefer using an Apple keyboard because using Command, with it's position right next to the space bar and easily reachable with the thumb, is way better than using Control, all the way in the corner, hiding like some red-headed step child.
    • stupidStan, on 06/28/2008, -14/+5haha, you were dugg down because you like MS...
      ...sad that this is what digg has become.
    • SOS84, on 06/28/2008, -8/+27Apple's input devices, to include both mouse and keyboards, are the worst in the business. I am not sure which one is worse. As with far too many things Apple, form trumps function at the consumers expense. I have a new iMac in my house right now, and was forced to buy a new keyboard (of course my wife insists that it matches) to replace the Apple unit because, while pretty, it is only good for web browsing. I chose an aluminum Enermax keyboard that looks nearly as good but is actually functional.
      • KnightWhoSaysNi, on 06/28/2008, -5/+9I happen to love the Apple mighty mouse, but it took a while to get used to it's way of right-clicking.
        The new keyboards look like they should suck, but I know people who love them (I haven't used them myself).
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -12/+4The Apple keyboards are the best keyboards out there, IMHO. Since I bought the aluminum one, I type faster and without hitting unwanted keys like on my old plastic keyboard.
      • renegadeafk, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5Agreed, my school has imacs with the one button mouse. Most annoying. Thing. Ever. Impossible to be productive when I can't right click. Their macbook touchpad, however is superb. I love the multi-touch scrolling ect. My friend just got a brand new dell XPS laptop and the touchpad is AWFUL. Wicked overly sensitive and scrolling almost never works.
    • WallyAnti, on 06/28/2008, -12/+8I will never forgive MS for Win ME. I feel they owe me for hours of wasted time on that one. 2000 is nice though. Stable. Something I cannot say about any other MS OS I've owned before. I always wondered why MS can make NT and 2000 actually work and fail so horribly w/ their consumer aimed OS's. I'd even endorse XP if it weren't for the activation ***** that caused me to have to buy the damn thing twice. So yeah, again I feel ripped.

      You know what... screw MS, they are that bad. They've demonstrated that they can do better but choose not to bc the average consumers won't be as demanding as their business customers. Might be shrewd, but it's not admirable from my perspective.
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1They make unstable consumer operating systems because they focus on throwing in every imaginable feature, instead of focusing on performance and user experience.

        But maybe Windows 7 will change that.
      • Biker803, on 06/28/2008, -1/+4So, you know that Windows XP and Vista are based off of NT, right? Just saying, I haven't had a BSOD since the very early days of XP. Windows 95, 98, and ME were not NT-based and they had always generally given me the most problems.

        I won't dismiss it but I think it's improbable that you had to buy XP twice. If you had a legit copy to begin with, and online/automated phone activation did not work, a quick call talking to an actual rep would have cleared things up, once again, so long as it was a legit copy with a legit key.

        Also, after using Vista for a while now (took a while to get used to just like XP did), I would not go back to XP just because of some basic ways the UI works that I wouldn't want to lose going back to XP. Not that Vista is "better" than XP in every way imaginable, but it's not Vista's fault that a lot of people think it's slow. Honestly. I built my computer 4+ years ago, only upgraded the video card once -- Vista runs (and scores with that Windows Experience Rating index) better on my computer than almost all new computers you buy today retail. Still using the same hard drives, memory, and all from 4 years ago, only upgraded the video card once like I said.

        I really believe it's OEMs that cause most of the problem here. Have you ever seen how much ***** comes on a computer? I've spent over an hour removing crap that came on a Dell computer because the startup time took an extra 45 seconds to load everything when all the junk was on it. It ran better after, but I know that a clean install of the OS-only would have yielded much better results. Vista runs fantastic for me. I still have a Mac that I use occasionally, and several Linux boxes that I have setup as servers, so I've used everything, but people who say Vista is slow really need to STFU and either build their own system, or learn how to clean off all the ***** that's on it.
      • WallyAnti, on 06/29/2008, -1/+2First of all I'm not that thrilled with the idea of having to call someone to use something I've already purchased. There's an old saying. You do not own that which you cannot protect.

        See I like to actually use the things I buy, play around with them. Swap out the HD. You know, use them. I don't have time to get a permission slip from Gates every time I want to wipe my ass with his effing products. What if one day there is no rep for me to call? What's to stop MS from doing that? Nothing. And they will do that as soon as they feel MY software that I bought isn't worth THEIR time.

        Secondly it's my business if I want to install a copy of XP on 3 of my computers at the same time. I don't have to be concerned about that with any other software I own. Why should I allow MS to get away with giving me less with each successive product they roll out.

        Why do consumers now argue against their own interests? This is madness.

        Thanks for calling me a liar in the nicest possible way btw.
    • digitalpencil, on 06/28/2008, -0/+12the mouse was a leap forward, adding a second button to it.. not really
      although i'll side with the author in that apple's mouse philosophy is ***** retarded. Take the mighty mouse, it's about as ergonomic as a hedgehog, the 3d scroll wheel's ***** stupid, the 'right click' doesn't work cause you have to lift you're finger off the left before it knows what the ***** just happened... i cannot, for the life of me understand why they haven't released one good mouse.. ever?!? that yo-yo mouse is the most ***** ridiculous thing i've ever used and they've only got marginally better.
    • DocHoliday22, on 06/28/2008, -5/+1Microsoft inadvertently contributes to the computing domain. It is not done on purpose like a lot of other companies that want to improve on the domain for free as well as make their money.

      I don't have a problem with Microsoft products, it's their heavy-handed tactics I oppose.
      • DarkShroud, on 07/02/2008, -0/+1Yeah never mind that apple locks almost everything into their near proprietary hardware. But it's ok because it's Apple.
    • sniper68, on 06/28/2008, -4/+6I find the Apple keyboard annoying, it takes more effort to press the buttons and its a lot bulkier and heaver.
      • digitalpencil, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5you mean that slender, aluminium affair with the easy-press buttons? i'm not a fan either as i prefer the tactility of regular keyboards but i don't think the adjectives 'bulkier and heavier' apply here.
      • renegadeafk, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4I think he is referring to the older ones, which were annoying, they keys got stuck very easily.
      • JohnLawson, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1you guys should try the G15.... its my baby. It's my enormous bulky heavy, incredibly functional baby.
    • MacSuxWindozSux, on 06/28/2008, -2/+4The good thing about many Apple keyboards is that they are backlit.

      Backlit keyboards are awesome. You can also get them for PC, there's a number of companies like Logitech that makes them.
    • tugger, on 06/28/2008, -6/+2The only correct statement in that whole written piece is that Vista is crap.
    • kubedawg, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5It kinda sucks that you have to explain that you are not a 'fanboy' of Microsoft, just so people won't automatically think you are one for supporting what Bill Gates has accomplished.
      • brundlefly76, on 06/29/2008, -1/+3The thing I like about Microsoft is that they really take a holistic approach to both business and consumer needs.

        Apple has never really dedicated itself to the enterprise. A lot of top Microsoft enterprise software is completely unknown to consumers, and its very well supported.

        I am a Linux developer and always use linux for servers, but I appreciate what Microsoft has done to try to make server software less intimidating and more more manageable.

        If enterprise computing is to move forward we need to continue to develop more higher-level enterprise software and require less ponytails - and/or mostly replace them with consultants and support staff.
    • Cryoniq, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1You cannot possibly know the definition of love.. that is for sure..
  • wontstoptalking, on 06/28/2008, -8/+123I give him credit for having the best mug shot EVER.
    • bonez56, on 06/28/2008, -9/+1I see what you did there
    • tjlsmith, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1I agree - a lot of guys don't look that good in their wedding photos...

      And it's a LOT better then Glen Campbell's...
    • Hangly, on 06/29/2008, -0/+1Aw, c'mon. Nick Nolte?
  • razreal, on 06/28/2008, -19/+0ok bro....ihv digg
  • Fangsinmybeard, on 06/28/2008, -24/+11He wanted it that way. Why compete when you can be a great big government pandering corporation that wastes more time and energy in taking away productivity from every thing.
  • Jenadae, on 06/28/2008, -14/+82I hereby declare that this comment thread shall not have any XP vs Vista bickering....
    • plr4ever, on 06/28/2008, -0/+32Windows 3.1 FTW!
    • Ganja420, on 06/28/2008, -12/+12windows 2000 > xp ≥ vista
      • Murdats, on 06/28/2008, -10/+22you have got your symbols back to front
        windows 2000 ≤ xp < vista
      • FlaNative, on 06/28/2008, -16/+5windows 2000 = xp = vista

        Same problem, with added headaches.
        Can you run windows right "out of the box" without any third party stuff?
        Vista security does not work against malware, only against the user.
        Oh, yeah, I was a Vista user at work for a while. (Test bench for possible deployment)
        Vista is just as insecure as any other Windows.
      • crownedgriffin, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3Digging you back up. Windows 2000 FTW.
      • estvir, on 06/28/2008, -8/+10> Can you run windows right "out of the box" without any third party stuff?

        Third-party stuff like..? 'Cause I've been running Windows out of the box without third-party things since 3.1.

        > Vista security does not work against malware, only against the user.

        Nope, it's proven that UAC works and stops near all rootkits.

        > Vista is just as insecure as any other Windows.

        No, no it's not you idiot.
      • Karmavs, on 06/28/2008, -3/+14“Can you run windows right "out of the box" without any third party stuff?”

        No, you can't run it without a computer.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -2/+22"No, you can't run it without a computer."
        Now you tell me. I spent the better part of the week install Vista on my cat.

        Kitty wasn't real happy about it, either. I guess I'm stuck with meowOS.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -4/+2"Nope, it's proven that UAC works and stops near all rootkits."

        That's like saying a condom "stops near all sperm".

        You only need one to really ***** you up.
    • CCmachined, on 06/28/2008, -8/+19i hereby declare the Vista vs. Linux war in this thread.
      Linux: One $0.10 CD
      Vista: One $100 DVD
      i dare you to comment ;)
      • jpqsat, on 06/28/2008, -11/+30Time require to install OS with every optimized drivers (including wifi.. ndiswrapper suck)

        Linux: 2-3 hours (much more if you are noob to linux)
        Vista: 45 minutes
      • arjie, on 06/28/2008, -2/+41Ha ha, sort of relevant; I remember a long time ago, a Red Hat employee went to Nigeria (or some other African nation, though for the story it could well be my country India) and decided to see how much software was on the market and he noticed that Red Hat cost more than Windows XP because:
        Windows XP: 1 CD
        Red Hat: 3 CDs

        The sad reality of the pirate market.
      • mithrasinvictus, on 06/28/2008, -9/+11@jpqsat
        linux: 30 mins (including ndiswrapper install for noobs trough adept) in kubuntu.
        vista: 45 mins - never, depending on whether you are installing on a brand new pc with a shiny logo sticker on it or not.

        I agree having to use ndiswrapper sucks, but it is easy enough to install and works well.
        At least linux works on systems without a penguin sticker.
      • Murdats, on 06/28/2008, -2/+15neither of my comptuers have a vista sticker, as my laptop was prevista and my desktop is built by me, but I used my super uber hax on both to make vista think the sticker was really there.
      • mikelieman, on 06/28/2008, -3/+2Don't OEM/System Builder MSFT media come with stickers?
      • evilgourmet, on 06/28/2008, -12/+7Linux is USABLE right after install, Office, programming, and internet all in one install.

        Vista needs extra programs and runs like a bloated whore, running the HDD furiously for hours until it gets all the bloatware loaded and cached.

      • h0m3styl3, on 06/28/2008, -2/+11@evilgourmet have you ever actually used vista?

        ps - beagle and many other linux desktop search programs do the exact same thing.
      • nickbyfleet, on 06/28/2008, -2/+18Right,

        linux - as an average consumer, I have installed on my desktop and spent hours trying to find the right drivers for my graphics card. On my laptop, the audio didn't work without doing some pretty intense patching in the command environment.

        vista - works out of the box, saves me hours of pointless searching for drivers and means I am using the exact same OS as all of my customers.

        Anyway, its not even true, there are so many distros out there now that you have to pay for, take SUSE for instance. Anyway, I know this comment is going to get buried, but the fact remains that we are in a free market and the consumer has chosen MS, who are you to argue with the status quo?
      • evilgourmet, on 06/28/2008, -6/+5Yes i tried Vista, I also have to try and use it at school in the computer lab.
        I can watch Vista try and do the things I do on my Linux laptop in half the time, logging into the network, printing files, saving as PDF (oh yeah office won't save as PDF on windows without thirdparty software), etcetera.
        Go ahead and digg me down, but I have used all of the OS's and chose Linux for flexibility and power.
      • mikelieman, on 06/29/2008, -3/+6If you believe that MSFT's dominance of the desktop is due to Free Market forces, you're woefully ignorant of the history of Microsoft and their product marketing.
      • kwilliam, on 06/29/2008, -2/+2KDE 4.1 (beta) is a better desktop than Windows Vista, in my opinion. When Kubuntu 8.10 comes out this October, I suggest y'all give it go. Need a reason to consider switching? How about NO POP-UPS? Vista gets in your face. (Do you want to let this program run?) Linux is the exact opposite; you are in control of everything the computer does.
      • wonderbriefs, on 06/29/2008, -2/+2I have no doubt that Ubuntu works perfectly well on a prefab desktop used primarily for office work.
        I built my desktop to be a media center / audio powerhouse / gaming machine. For sound I have a Presonus Firebox recording interface. I'm using an M-Audio Oxygen 49 Midi controller, and a Roland R-8 drum machine, all controlling Propellerheads Reason. For audio recording and wave synthesis I use Goldwave. Ubuntu failed to recognize my Presonus Firebox, cannot run Reason with any version of Wine. I've looked high and low for apps that will compare to Reason and Goldwave that will run on any distro of Linux and they just don't exist. Granted, Reason is a $500 piece of software so finding anything like it for free is unthinkable. Goldwave, on the other hand, only cost about $30, but I have yet to see any OpenSource wave editor that makes use of batch processing or features and expression evaluator.
        Pro audio stuff aside, graphics and monitor support is on the sucky side as well.
        Vista has no problems recognizing my nVidia 8600 graphics card. Surprisingly, it even recognizes my off-brand Akai HDTV that I'm using for a monitor. Ubuntu 7.04 was stuck in a stretched aspect ratio, 7.10 worked great on a clean install. But when I updated from 7.10 to 8.04 I lost all support for my graphics and screen. I was able to get it running in a 640x480 resolution but any time I would try to bump the resolution up, the screen would go black. The native resolution is 1366x768, which Vista handles no problem. Ubuntu never gives me an option for a resolution anywhere in that ballpark.
        Now, I know that it's got to be possible to make this work. But if Ubuntu claims to have "It just works" technology, then why doesn't it just work?
      • mikelieman, on 06/29/2008, -1/+2Because your vendors have made the choice to not support Ubuntu?
    • STKD, on 06/28/2008, -2/+9Server 2008 > Server 2003 > Windows XP > Windows Vista > windows 2000
      • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5Closer to accurate. The server versions of Windows always suck substantially less than the desktop versions.
      • h0m3styl3, on 06/28/2008, -0/+8vista sp1 is running 2008 kernel now.
        xp 64bit runs 2003 kernel

        so if you're going for stability and functionality (including the ability to address 4gb of ram), it should be:
        server 2008 > vista sp1 > server 2003 > xp pro 64bit > xp > vista > win 2k
      • CLShortFuse, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5x64 Server2008 / Vista SP1 > ANY OTHER MS OS
        I'm never going back to 32bit
      • Tenoq, on 06/28/2008, -3/+4Unless you want to game, of course. In which case the server OSes are a PITA. Oh, and unless you want to install a lot of consumer programs too - many refuse to install on server, and require you to buy a 'server' version. So actually NO, server is only better than XP/Vista/2k when you're not using it as a PC, you're using it as a server.

        Funny that.
      • manacit2, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3@Tenoq: Have you ever used server 2008? I have it set up to look exactly like vista (aero and all that), and I have directx10 installed, all my drivers (you can just install the vista ones because they're using the same kernel), I put the UT3 DVD in, and it installed just like it did on Vista, runs like a pro too. Same with every other game I've tried. Please, don't talk about what you don't know...
    • aliguana, on 06/28/2008, -1/+4DOS! Don't need to steenkin windows.
    • init100, on 06/28/2008, -9/+3Windows XP >>> Windows Vista

      You asked for it.
    • sapped, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5Back by popular demand (but only for a limited time). Special licenses are for sale allowing you to make XP vs Vista bickering comments.

      Please forward all banking details. (Unless you are already using one of these products in which case we have all of that information already.)
    • Gudeldar, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3Even Bill admitted that the launch of Vista was screwed up. I don't have a link to the video handy but there is an interview of him somewhere and the interviewer asks him what he thinks the worst handled OS release was and Bill plays coy by saying something like "Ask me again after the next version of Windows comes out".
      • mikelieman, on 06/29/2008, -0/+1Yeah, "Our current product sucks, so I want to deflect your criticism by pointing to something you won't see for 3 years or more...."

        Nice.

  • n0odles, on 06/28/2008, -42/+30Microsoft will be replaced with OSS.
  • Ganja420, on 06/28/2008, -33/+7835+ years and only 4 things?
    • smartazz, on 06/28/2008, -23/+22Yup, and the list of things they ***** up is soooo much longer
      • stupidStan, on 06/28/2008, -13/+15let's see that list

        oh that's right, you just like to complain about MS because this is digg
      • Fartag, on 06/28/2008, -6/+20Wow, that's going to be tough coming up with more things that MS has screwed up than made better!
        A two button mouse that they really didn't invent (etc.) is tough to beat:

        1) used an incredible number of anti-competitive tactics only partially shown in findings of fact here:

        http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/f3800/msjudgex.htm

        2) corrupted ISO to force the ridiculous OOXML as a standard because if officially adopted would make it impossible for 3rd party to implement.

        3) used vague patent FUD threatening that Samba and some other OSS don't comply but never revealing it to dissuade people from using Linux

        4) Making deals with Novell to legitimize the whole patent FUD thing getting them to sign a contract basically guaranteeing their safety (and Microsoft suspiciously paying them $348 million to "protect" them)

        5) Funneled $86 million cash to SCO to use as a front corporation trying to tear Linux apart by ridiculous copyright claims.

        6) This: http://antitrust.slated.org/www.iowaconsumercase.o ...

        7) Some of these: http://boycottnovell.com/2007/10/29/exclusionary-d ...

        8) Forcing closed standards, closed protocols, non-intercompatibility, proprietary protocols by strength of monopoly

        9) Bought a license for CP/M, cloned it and sold it to IBM so BG got the contract and not Gary
        Kildall, and forever thereafter attacking software copying, open source, and computer hobbyists

        10) using embrace extend and extinguish tactics in numerous cases to destroy non-MS tech
        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embrace,_extend_and_e ... with some examples.

        Now all pro-MS propaganda abhors facts so the safety of this post is in grave danger.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -3/+12@stupidStan:
        Ok, how about creating an email reader with a built-in scripting language. Now email, POP3, SMTP and all that fun stuff had been around for a long time, and no one ever thought "Hey! Let's create an email program that will accept commands from any random ***** on the planet that happens to stumble on our address, and execute those commands as though they were the word of God himself, thus flooding the internets with GIANT STEAMING ***** OF MALWARE! Yes! I see the future!"

        There's inno-*****-vation for ya.Truly, it takes a Microsoft to have that kind of vision.

        /rant
    • fatjoe, on 06/28/2008, -9/+5uh.... they're more historical milestones.. and obviously the list could be even bigger if they tried
    • estvir, on 06/28/2008, -4/+11Did you not see what site this 'article' was written by?
    • mithrasinvictus, on 06/28/2008, -10/+231: the standard would have become a unix derivative otherwise ( /earlier )
      2: i'll give them the mouse button
      3: End users rarely pay for their os. They were forced to pay the microsoft tax on their hardware. (don't believe me? ask 10 random persons how much they paid for windows)
      4: Microsoft killed their competition and subsequently stopped progress on their browser. Are they seriously attributing mozilla's succes to microsoft?
      • mithrasinvictus, on 06/28/2008, -2/+10I have to take back no 2. Xerox got there first.

        I could have come up with better points if i wanted (and/or was paid) to suck up to microsoft.
      • FutureGuy, on 06/28/2008, -5/+3Yes the standard would have been Unix derived and I can see my Mom and Dad, typing way the commad prompt, but you can stick to whatever makes you feel better. Ohh also try asking 10 random persons how much they paid for the CPU. I can contradict everything else you said but that would be a waste of time.
      • BlueSkyfish, on 06/28/2008, -2/+4Futureguy, you know that Macs are UNIX systems too. You never need to use the terminal. Linux distros like Ubuntu and Mint can be fully used without ever touching the terminal, as long as you get your software through Add/remove programs or Synaptec package manager.
    • Julik, on 06/28/2008, -0/+11The article was not a list of Microsoft accomplishments, it was just a few major steps the technology industry has taken that Microsoft helped.

      The one about paying for software.. Microsoft did not invent paying for software. But they showed a lot of people who were not familiar with it why paying for software is beneficial for them. There are hundreds of companies out there now selling software to people and companies around the world because paying for software is just what (most) people do now.

      It is just about how Microsoft being as big and as popular as they are they were able to expose a large number of people to things like the 2 button mouse...
      • ScottMitchell, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1Don't forget that when MS was in its infancy, personal computing was still mainly a hobby. With the ease of copying software, many hobbyists didn't like the notion of paying, especially considering how expensive the hardware was in the first place.

        Don't forget BillG's open letter to the Home Brew Computing Club in 1976 deploring software piracy.
    • FutureGuy, on 06/28/2008, -4/+3These are only the major once, by any means exhaustive for e.g. when you use the digg down button to on this comment that technology behind the scene that make it possible, now called AJAX, was invented by MS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AJAX), and that made the so called Web 2.0 possible, so if you love Gmail well think of it an implementation of AJAX. But that is not as big as having created the OS that put a PC on every desktop.
    • Gudeldar, on 06/28/2008, -2/+6I couldn't even get past the first article where the author claims that monopolies encourage innovation. *****, if MS didn't have a monopoly on desktop computer they would be able to force everyone who buys a new computer to buy Vista with it too. They are cutting off new sales of Windows XP just so they can force OEMs to package Vista instead of XP, when in reality most people don't want Vista. If they had some serious competition from Apple or Linux in the Desktop realm then they wouldn't be able to get away with this ***** (I'm not talking about quality just market share). OEMs could say "You won't let us have XP? Well screw Windows were switching to Linux/OS X".
    • eeinw, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3I thought the same exact thing...
  • eva616, on 06/28/2008, -14/+3great job!
  • mattearle, on 06/28/2008, -32/+35They may not "get any credit" from the likes of faddy tech publications like Gizmodo but the world has voted with their dollars to make Microsoft the biggest and most profitable technology company. Dissing M$ after collectively making it the biggest tech company in the world is kinda like hating on George W after voting for him.
    • dkapuchino, on 06/28/2008, -15/+6No, responding to this comment with "I voted for G.W and now I hate him" will not make you original funny or unique. It will however get you dugg up, so if you're whoring for diggs, go ahead.
    • jpqsat, on 06/28/2008, -9/+1I wonder if M$ have a big market in State of Florida....
    • srg13, on 06/28/2008, -4/+16"but the world has voted with their dollars to make Microsoft the biggest and most profitable technology company."

      When? Last I heard, it was Microsoft's deal with IBM that let them become a de-facto 'standard' in the industry. Then they marketed themselves to the clones, and eventually got a stranglehold on the OEM market...

      Microsoft has only ever been on anybody's computer because of the business dealings they had with hardware companies... Never because they were competitive or had a better product at all.
      • libkarl2, on 06/28/2008, -5/+6Thankyou for setting the record straight. Every time I hear someone pop off about how M$ came to dominate the market, they usually just assume that it happened within the frame of a Free Market(tm). Snopes needs to address this urban myth.
      • CosmicJustice, on 06/28/2008, -5/+2Wow, your inability to face reality is mind boggling.
    • santasing, on 06/28/2008, -1/+9That's like saying AT&T customers voted with their dollars for having crappy plans. In a monopoly, you don't really have much of a choice.
    • BonersMilloy, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0Or not voting for anyone
    • LZeppelinJ0, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1"M$" stopped being funny, clever, and edgy about 5 minutes after it was created. Dugg down.
  • m00nstone, on 06/28/2008, -18/+13It's only in the Vista age that I would say Microsoft truly deserves the criticism they are getting. And still the criticism of Vista is misdirected. Never mind the things Vista "breaks". It's just not innovative or remotely interesting for that matter.

    Having said that, I don't blame Bill Gates for Vista.
    • 2Deluxe, on 06/28/2008, -5/+13Personally, I quite like Vista. I've not had any problems at all. I don't enjoy going back to XP.
      Each to their own.
    • srg13, on 06/28/2008, -1/+6What about 98? That was the most unstable software I think I ever ran. It would crash my computer at least twice a day before I jumped ship.

      I'm glad I never used ME as well - that was just worse!
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -2/+3The entire 16-bit line of Windows was crap-tacular... I remember back in the 3.1 days you regularly had to re-install the whole fricking thing on a regular basis (but that wasn't too bad because it was only, what, five or six diskettes). I do have to give MS credit for this: the 32bit platform (NT, 2k, XP) was a HUGE improvement, on par with color TV vs. black & white.
      • Rudegar, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2yeah 98SE was miles ahead of ME
      • Alex.w, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2@doctechnical
        Win 95/98 were both 32bit kernels. But I of course agree they were horrid. NT wasn't so much an improvement over the 9* series though. It was a completely separate series of OS and Kernel.
  • HigherLogic, on 06/28/2008, -19/+13How many times is this header image going to be used? I swear, I've seen it on at least 5 articles on Digg this week, two of which (that I know of), are from Gizmodo (they even link to one of the articles that uses it).

    ...and Vista > XP.
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -2/+5Count your blessings. You'd prefer that shot of him doing the "sexy recline" while throwing floppy disks at the camera? Christ that picture gives me douche chills.
  • mitch37, on 06/28/2008, -25/+30Watch this video: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/billg/vide ...
    Microsoft really isn't as evil as all these tech blogs make them out to be.

    Companies aside, I think Bill Gates has a MUCH better character than Steve Jobs (see Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation)
  • CCmachined, on 06/28/2008, -20/+15"Microsoft popularized the concept that software has value and is worth paying for it." < yeah, windows is worth paying for. LoL [piracy of Windows harms other platforms, before you idiots take that the wrong way]

    "it often drives companies to try to outdo the behemoth, after which Microsoft strives to catch up before getting leapfrogged again." < no, this is WORSE than a free market. competing products on equal ground should always strive to outdo eachother when it comes to innovating and implementing new features, not allowing minority products (as in, not the monopoly) to sit on some advantages for a while before the monopoly holder copies these features.

    this article is lame.

    [Microsoft: its not even worth using. get Linux]
    • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -2/+9Microsoft popularized the concept of price-gouging software. It's silly when a comapny that turns out a tenth the volume can charge just a few hundred dollars more for a suite of video editing software than an industry behemoth charges for an office suite. Where the hell is this economy of scale that I've been told existed? microsoft is the Wal*Mart of software. By any reasoning, their things should be less expensive because they churn them out en masse, but I guess that was the point of running everyone else out of business, so that they ould charge whatever they wanted and everyone else would have to pay because there was no other viable option.
      • Ravatar, on 06/28/2008, -8/+2Price-gouging? lmao.

        HOW DARE A COMPANY CHARGES WHAT THE MARKET WILL BEAR.
    • chewy5000, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1Don't use a company? WTF!?
    • Albumen, on 06/28/2008, -3/+4"[Microsoft: its not even worth using. get Linux]" = Douchnozzle

      Microsoft is not perfect by any means, but in terms of productivity and inter-connectivity between their other technologies Microsoft is way ahead of the competition. In addition to that, you don't have to spend six weeks in your mom's basement learning how to use it.

    • sniper68, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3"[Microsoft: its not even worth using. get Linux]" maybe when whine 10.0 comes out, until then, I would rather have something that works.
  • DarQraven, on 06/28/2008, -12/+13Wow, and I'm sure that was all part of MS's plan!
    "Hey guys, let's become a software/OS monopolist, that way we'll catch a lot of criticism and that will drive the industry forward! Furthermore, we'll give the world a global developing platform because our software is force-bundled with every gawddamn PC sold in any gawddamn store!"

    I'm 100% confident that money was not a factor in this decision.

    You can hardly give people credit for things they did by accident.
    • nbulp, on 06/28/2008, -3/+13Sir Alexander Fleming + penicillin + accident = Nobel prize.
      • DarQraven, on 06/28/2008, -7/+1His discovery was an accident yes, but his realization of what he had just discovered wasn't, nor was his further research into penicillin and making it public to the world.

        What MS did is more like robbing a man of his wallet, and thereby unknowingly preventing that man from buying a gun and shooting someone later that day. Not exactly the same.
    • FutureGuy, on 06/28/2008, -3/+2yes the PC makers had so many options back then, how old are you? 10?
    • say592, on 06/29/2008, -2/+2And you dont think that Apple is in it for the money?

      They are company, of course they are in it for the money! If they dont profit, they cant bring about any money for innovation.

      If they were in it for just the money, wouldnt they build an overly simple OS, package it on hardware that only they can sell, and make everything incredibly sleek and "hip".

      The two innovations that Apple has created are the iPod, and the fact that a company can hold such a small market share for so many years, and survive without accomplishing anything for a good 10 years.
  • flogistan, on 06/28/2008, -30/+23What the ***** is this PR push from microsoft? Bill gates is a dick, he always will be, and microsoft sucks for a million different reasons. Public relations can't change that.
    • stupidStan, on 06/28/2008, -7/+8he is a dick because flogistan says so!
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -3/+14Given what I've read of Gate's interpersonal skills - telling programmers that they were stupid and their code sucked - I'd rather work for a *****-flinging ape than him.
      • Ravatar, on 06/28/2008, -9/+1Yeah the truth hurts eh? It also helped them become one of the greatest companies on the planet, primarily due to their development staff. The turnaround rate for developers at Microsoft is notoriously low. But it's okay, go back to your fairyland world where all the managers think your code is the cure for cancer.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+8"The turnaround rate for developers at Microsoft is notoriously low."

        Kind of like the post office, and I'm guessing for largely the same reasons.
      • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -0/+9@ravatar: You mean turnover rate? Turnaround would be the time between the placement of an order and its fullfillment. That is NOT notoriously low at microsoft. You must mean turnover, the rate at which employes jump ***** because they can't ***** take it any more.
      • flogistan, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2jump ship-p-p
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4I liked "jump *****" better :p
      • flogistan, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2I will say, if I'd made this statement in 1997... and if digg had existed, I would have gotten almost all diggs for what I said about bill gates. Looks like about 50/50 now. I guess public relations really does work.
      • fuzzlog, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5On the other hand, if my boss called me an idiot (which I certainly am) and told me I sucked at my job and paid me millions, I think I'd stick with the ship, make my own name and leave notoriously to other missions like many did.
    • doshindude, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3I think you have Bill Gates mistaken for Steve Jobs.
    • FutureGuy, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1I just see a dick somewhere here and its not Bill.
    • cannonballtrane, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2Doesn't this PR tsunami just make you sick? I mean, even the BBC put out some inane, fawning documentary on Gates, and this seems to have been going on for some time now from numerous vendors.

      TFA is total CRAP because it's another example of a clueless "tech journalist" spraffing off about something they know nothing about - as usual. I mean take this one:
      "Yes, Microsoft fosters innovation"
      *****! they foster innovation (of a stunted and polarised sort) on their own platforms, and ***** everyone else over as hard as they possibly can. For example, have you ever tried to use CSS or AJAX/Javascript on IE? It's like shoving paper clips under your finger nails their software is so crap! You like DIGG? I'd bet money DIGG's web developers don't like MS..............
      • jleq, on 06/29/2008, -1/+1Have you ever tried to use AJAX? If so, you can thank Microsoft for that. They invented the XMLHttpRequest object... the foundation of AJAX.
    • Niz1, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1wow gee that has to be the most convincing argument ever!
    • Sparkster185, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1He's a dick? He's a dick who has given billions of dollars away to the less fortunate. You sir, are a ***** moron.
      • flogistan, on 06/29/2008, -0/+2He never gave a penny to charity before the feds twisted his arm behind his back. He wouldn't even part with a buck to lobby congress. You can trace his career to the day when warren buffet sat down with him and explained how the world works. His entire persona changed when he went from being an outsider to an insider, because he paid a company to change it.
  • jellygraph, on 06/28/2008, -18/+33Right.... I guess Gizmodo is going to be doing one of these for the Bush administration when they leave.... c'mon, Microsoft has done far more harm for the industry by having become the monopoly it is. It may have once been a good thing, but now its not
    • mochaman, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2Yeah! leave it Gizmodo to come with a crapy list of accomplishments.
    • endus, on 06/28/2008, -3/+1Its not a monopoly. It just happens to be the only enterprise focused OS. Develop another OS with a strong enterprise focus and you'll probably make a lot of money and unseat microsoft. No one is addressing big business' problems in the same way MS is, and that's why they are dominant.
      • Gudeldar, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2I'd call a 91% market share of OS a ***** monopoly. Internet Explorer used to have a 90% monopoly on internet browsers before Firefox came along.
      • philhatesyou, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3"Develop another OS with a strong enterprise focus and you'll probably make a lot of money and unseat microsoft."

        No you won't. If you develop the OS(some, including myself, would argue that this has already happened), then you need to get the standard software that people use ported to your new OS. But the software companies won't port the software if no one uses your OS. But no one will use your OS if there's no software for it. But then the software companies won't port the software if no one is using your O... *****... it's a ***** catch 22 that you can never escape. This, by any definition of the word, constitutes an unreasonable barrier to entry into the market and as such, qualifies MS Windows as a monopoly.
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1Really? Then just ask the guys at Be how well it has gone for them trying to compete with Microsoft.
  • bono4u, on 06/28/2008, -13/+23How much more advertising is a monopolist corporate firm getting here on digg?
    They got rich, they control the OS market isn't that credit enough?
    Do i have to hug them now or what?
    • Sparkster185, on 06/28/2008, -1/+7Your seriously going to say that about MS when Apple is constantly ***** sucked by digg. Wow, you're a *****.
  • jman583, on 06/28/2008, -10/+13Check any storage device under 2 gigs (thumb drives, SD card, etc) and it will most likely have a file system made by Bill Gates, which is FAT16.
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -6/+24....which is the stupidest, least efficient and most error-prone file system I have ever had the misfortune to use.

      No - wait - I take that back. There was an operating system for the Ohio Scientific Challenger III that required you keep a listing of the floppy on a piece of paper, track by track. That was, admittedly a bit more annoying than FAT.

      NTFS is by comparison so much better that I refuse to believe MS actually created it. I'm positive IBM did the heaving lifting for that file system back when they and MS were developing OS/2 jointly.
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -1/+4IIRC, Microsoft created HPFS/NTFS without any help from IBM.
    • secrity, on 06/28/2008, -0/+15FAT16 was not chosen for technical merit, it was chosen because it is the least common denominator.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6FAT is an acceptable FS for a floppy drive, but for anything bigger than a few megabytes, it's insanely broken. Using FAT (12 or 16 or 23 or whatever) on a hard drive is just wrong. When CHKDSK is your primary diagnostic tool and you've got a scheduled defrag to run every single night you know your file system sucks 32 inches of Hg.
    • LavosPhoenix, on 06/28/2008, -8/+7Sorry, the file system is not created by Bill Gates. He's not some sort of WE CONJURE THE SPIRITS OF THE COMPUTER WITH OUR SPELLS superman that programmed everything in Windows. Seriously, I think it's time you get back to your Ford Truck and your case of Budweiser, of which won't be American made, for long.
    • init100, on 06/28/2008, -2/+6Which sucks.
    • nittanylion06, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2ext2/3 >> ntfs
  • hugolp, on 06/28/2008, -12/+25Is this some kind of joke?

    Xerox invented the mouse and Ms added the second button... Wow? well, maybe not.

    But the best part is: Microsoft's intimidation leads to innovation. (WTF)

    I think that the guy who wrote this didnt like MS but had to wrote this anyways, so he made this crappy list. I am not a Windows user but it sounds imposible to me that MS only development worth to point out is as ridicule as putting a second button on the mouse.
    • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -2/+9Apparently releasing an API that a chimp could use to churn out ***** software quaifies as spurring innovation. I think that Giz needs to look up the definition of innovation.
    • PhireN, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6Alto mouse, look it has 3 buttons:
      http://www.digibarn.com/collections/devices/alto-m ...
      • evilgourmet, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2Well in 2012, Bill Gates travels back in timeto the 1960's, due to sun spots and nilla wafers, and invents the 3 button mouse.
  • cheerybounce, on 06/28/2008, -2/+3This feels silly.. If there had been "vista" mentioned in the uri, I guess here would have been tons of pro-microsoft -clauses, like in other vista -'news'. Independent about whether the article bashed or promoted vista.

    Now here is about the opposite. *makes me to ponder*
  • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -25/+76This list is massively full of fail. Point-by-point:

    1) Windows being a big platform for developers: CP/M did it first. Anyone remember Wordstar or dBase II? Both were big successes and both were written for CP/M long, long before Windows was a twinkle in Billy's eyes. These were the first apps that actually put computers (before there were "PCs") in small businesses.

    2) Two button mouse: The Amiga came out of the box with a two button mouse and an operating system that used it, back in 1985. Windows 3.0 didn't come out until 1990.

    3) Software has value: Whined about it is more like it. Bill Gates ran a full-page add in Dr. Dobbs (if memory serves me correctly) whinging about everyone making copies of the paper-tape version BASIC. Given that he developed that product on univerity computer time and therefore the taxpayer's dollars, he should have STFU and enjoyed what ill-gotten gains he did wind up with. At any rate, Ashton/Tate was selling software and making money long before Billy Boy joined the game.


    4) Fear creates innovation: This is so stupid it hardly deserves response. Why does the rabbit run faster than the fox? The fox is running for dinner. The rabbit is running for it's life.
    • Spuy767, on 06/28/2008, -4/+16Agreed, this list is lamer than FDR's legs.


      Too soon?
    • nickbyfleet, on 06/28/2008, -8/+2Your inability to appreciate a company that has done some really great things for the industry, thats what I call fail. How many people would be out of a job if it weren't for Microsoft? Methinks a lot.
      • Gudeldar, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6Your job argument is so full of fail that I have a hard time believing that you fired more than 5 neurons coming up with it. Did you stop to think how many MORE people would have jobs if there were a lot of companies competing in areas where MS has a monopoly. You do realize that mergers usually eliminate jobs, because there are jobs in both companies that are redundant with each other. If there were seperate companies all competing with each other there would be far more jobs.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3I've been in this industry since Microsoft's employee count was still in the single digits, so I think I can appreciate what they've done just fine.
    • LogicalMind, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5Good points. I was going to write similar things. Anyone who isn't old enough to know their true computer history should watch the documentary "Triumph of the Nerds". It will show you how MS and Apple have got where they are today.

      As for the jobs comment below, you have to also remember the anti-competitive practices of MS that have put many companies out of business. Costing many many jobs over the years.
    • Typhoon2009, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2Harvard isn't a public school. :3
    • nittanylion06, on 06/28/2008, -1/+12) Two button mouse: The Amiga came out of the box with a two button mouse and an operating system that used it, back in 1985. Windows 3.0 didn't come out until 1990.

      Nothing in the article suggested that Microsoft created the concept of a 2-button mouse. Let's face it, there's nothing more annoying than Apple's 1-button mouse. I believe the author is merely pointing out that had Apple's and Microsoft's positions switched, we'd all be used to 1-button mice by now. Steve Jobs can pry my 9-button mouse out of my cold-dead hands.
      • zenbyo, on 06/30/2008, -0/+1Isn't the second point titled "Microsoft is basically responsible for the two-button mouse. "? If they are not suggesting this, then why put it in there?
  • atliberty2say, on 06/28/2008, -7/+26Bill Gates is Gandhi now, Vista really doesn't suck etc... Well thanks for hosting 'Billy Gates fest' Digg, I nearly stayed awake.
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -2/+9I'm reminded of when Richard Nixon died, no on had a bad word to say about him.
  • iDoraemon, on 06/28/2008, -17/+9I see that the Linux elitists have begun to set up camp in this thread already. :P
  • beermad, on 06/28/2008, -9/+23Remarkably few things to credit M$ with.

    Could this be because most of what people think Microsoft created was either copied or bought in?

    For example:
    Windowing: copied from what people like Xerox were doing
    Excel: bought in
    Hotmail: bought in
    Powerpoint: bought in
    Three-fingered salute: copied from elsewhere, but certainly popularised by Microsoft.
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+14You're right, but you forgot DOS, which is what put Microsoft on the map in the first place. MS didn't write it, they bought it whole hog from Seattle Computer Products. And even then it was basically a knock-off of CP/M for the 8086 family.
      • philhatesyou, on 06/28/2008, -2/+4And don't forget their original products having been developed on stolen university computing time.
      • digudown, on 07/02/2008, -0/+1>And don't forget their original products having been
        >developed on stolen university computing time.

        just like google's.
    • srg13, on 06/28/2008, -0/+12"Could this be because most of what people think Microsoft created was either copied or bought in?"

      Some people I know (with remarkably less knowledge about computers than most digg users) even think that Microsoft did things like 'invent the internet' and other ridiculous things like that.

      But nothing could be further from the truth - they grabbed the TCP stack from BSD after the internet 'unexpectedly' (to them at least) caught on...
  • wumd2b, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0test
  • wumd2b, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0testfsdfsdfsdf
  • crazyjake, on 06/28/2008, -23/+37from the comments: "I wish you guys would stop calling Vista crap."

    i wish vista would stop being crap.
    • itsthebrod, on 06/28/2008, -14/+9It's not crap. Anyone saying it is has either A.) not given it a chance and is jumping on the "Vista sucks" bandwagon, or B.) an idiot who can't properly configure a computer.
      • crazyjake, on 06/28/2008, -6/+9ooohhh... i think we found an early adopter. it's ok, you can let your dissapointment show. I do have to thank vista for one thing, it gave me the final push i needed to switch to linux!

        thanks vista!!
      • fuzzlog, on 06/28/2008, -7/+7Vista is crap. Anyone not saying it has either A.) not given a chance to other alternatives, has been using windows because they don't know better and is jumping on "Apple sucks" bandwagon or "Linux sucks" bandwagon or any "other OS sucks" bandwagon or all of them, or B.) an idiot who can't properly configure a computer.
      • KingFog, on 06/28/2008, -3/+4Hmm, crazyjake, and fuzzlog, you two are clueless!

        @ crazyjake: I've been using Vista for a year, so I am one of the "earlier adopters", and guess what, I liked it. Ok, it was buggy, fine, I expected that for pretty new software, and it was always stuff I could handle. After SP1 it's become much stronger. I've certainly never been too dissapointed. Vista can be irritating, but if you actually bother to persevere with it and learn, you'll be fine.

        @fuzzlog: Vista isn't crap. And I have given chances to other OS's... I use Linux on my old laptop, which is good, i'm really happy with the various Distro's i've tried, I also use Mac OSX at work and XP/2000 at school. I like all of them for their separate benefits, and dislike all of them for there problems... So i'm pretty sure i've got a decent enough knowledge of OS's to call ***** on your first statement. And if you can get Vista to work well on a PC, you're obviously not an idiot.

        You two have proven itsthebrod's point... Well done.
      • itsthebrod, on 06/28/2008, -2/+5@fuzzlog

        You're right, I haven't given a chance to alternatives. Why? Because Vista suits me fine, and since I have a REAL job in the REAL world I have to use applications that are Windows-specific.

        Windows Media Center alone has been worth getting Vista, as I can stream my live and recorded TV to all my Xbox 360s throughout my house (which means I can watch TV where I don't have cable jacks).

        Windows Vista isn't perfect (which OS is?) but it's certainly not "crap." Windows ME was crap. Vista has better security, features, and looks than any previous Windows OS.
    • grimward, on 06/28/2008, -7/+6I seriously don't get why everybody else has problems with Vista, yes if you're using the first pre-SP1 version, you're pretty much *****, I don't think anyone would argue for that versio. But with the SP1 version it does work. And having installed it on multiple platforms myself, I know it's stable too, so really .. what IS the problem with you people and Vista?
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -4/+4Oh, don't you know? It's cool to bash Vista.
  • smacksaw, on 06/28/2008, -12/+11Not the most perfect list, but the mouse is a great point. I think it says a lot about what Apple thinks of the expertise and/or intelligence of their users as they have decided that two mouse buttons is simply one too many.
    • atliberty2say, on 06/28/2008, -3/+7Amiga invented the two button mouse. I don't think the amount of buttons on your mouse is indicative of intelligence, but believing it is, is probably a good indicator.
      • smacksaw, on 06/28/2008, -2/+2What I'm saying is that as innovation has progressed, Apple has chosen to adopt some and shun others. If you want to use the Amiga as an example they did not copy the CLI, which was a good thing. CLI was the difference between a straightforward Mac and a more customised Amiga experience.

        That logic does not work with the mouse, especially today. They have had plenty of time to include a 2 button mouse. If they want us to buy a 3rd party mouse, fine. But on the portables we have to take what Apple has been giving (or not giving) us since the PowerBook days.

        Apple does not want to complicate users with having to type commands. But a 2nd mouse button isn't a complication. Clicking and holding for a context menu is a complication. Not having that menu, right there at your fingertips is a complication. They have always believed that people would not know which button to use, as if every new Apple user is my mom. That's simply not the case. Even my mom learned that if she simply wants to do something it's the left button and if she isn't sure and wants options, it's "the other mouse button" she presses.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3I've honestly never understood the mouse-button flamewars. I've used two-button mice on the Amiga and PC, I've used both on Macs, I've used touchpads (my personal choice), *****-mice, light pens, la-de-da-de-da. To me it's like arguing who's cooler: R2D2 or C3PO. On the one hand, 3PO can talk and has opposable thumbs. In the other, he sounds like half a fag. Whatever.
    • srg13, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2Doesn't Apple's mighty mouse have three buttons? And I'm fairly sure that OS X (at the very least) has always worked with third party two or three button mice.
  • 2Deluxe, on 06/28/2008, -11/+2I'm not afraid to say that I actually like the guys that everyone else seems to hate because it's 'in'. Why you would care about being 'in' in the nerd crowd is beyond me, but whatever. You guys gotta be hatin' on something right?

    Microsoft, Vista, I love you!
    • cheerybounce, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5What is a nerd crowd?

      I've read this same message so many times that it makes me bored. Why not just write the last paragraph? It's what you meant anyway.

      You just wrote, that anyone who has any will to find out things hates microsoft because it's 'in' in the group they mysteriously create, and then you add these same people always hate something.

      "Rain drops down, because it's 'in'!!!" OMG! ASS COVER!
  • thomas, on 06/28/2008, -2/+24Number 2 is clearly bull. The Xerox Alto (1972) and the commercial version the Star 8010 (1981) both had multi button mice.
  • Altotus, on 06/28/2008, -9/+28They had nothing to do with the 2-button mouse and scroll wheels, or the activate/option pattern for clicks (which had already been in use elsewhere for years by the time they caught up).

    Creating a common platform that "anyone can write for" is a little misleading; they became the dominant platform mostly through good marketing staff, buying out competitors, and good old fashion underhanded business tactics. This way, they could eschew industry standards entirely, keep much of the product's APIs hidden, break compatibility to force upgrades, etc. This isn't so much innovation but a sad twist of fate.

    They did take software as a service and turn the concept into software as a standalone product. To do so, they had to also pay to have others invent DRM, copy controls, and form their own corporate policing agency (the Business Software Alliance). Ironically, it's particularly the companies that reject that model are making the most money today.

    The last point is the most true: by being evil, they spur people to be better; by eschewing standards and releasing schizophrenic products, they highlight how important standards are; in being closed and secretive, they show the importance of being open, etc.

    If there's ANYTHING Microsoft deserves credit for, it's demonstrating just how far you can get if you squeeze every last bit out of you marketing and legal departments and have them wok together.
  • YodaJones, on 06/28/2008, -1/+23Looks like Gizmodo's technical prowess ends at Lego. You should stick with what you know. Buried.
  • krusade, on 06/28/2008, -5/+15A lot of stories on Digg lately about how microsoft and Bill are god's gift to mankind. And how we should all give credit and be thankful. Surprisingly these stories get commented by a lot of grateful ms users. I smell a huge astroturf effort. It's either that or people are so gullible they deserve to be bent over and screwed.
  • bobangitanov2, on 06/28/2008, -5/+12Woohoo! They invented the ***** scroll mouse (whatever).
    It's not the intimidation that leads to innovation. Linux/BSD wasn't created because of Microsoft's monopoly.
  • avatarpalin, on 06/28/2008, -16/+10What only four reasons???

    With a company the size of 56000 people worldwide, Revenue of 11.4 Billion every three months...

    And they have contributed over the past 32 years of computing to only contribute to the computing world

    1. Two Button Mouse
    2. A standard
    3. Software has a value
    4. Intimidation leads to innovation

    Wow, what a legacy.
    • eth3l, on 06/28/2008, -7/+2You mock it, but without that stuff we dont have the economy and market that developed in the 90's. The world is a very different place without a 2 button mouse!
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5Bartender? I'll have a shot of whatever eth3l's drinking.
    • dazparkour, on 06/28/2008, -1/+7Except that all four of those points have been greatly disproven all over the place.

      Now Gates is gone, all people know is that Balmer may throw a chair at you.
  • avatarpalin, on 06/28/2008, -4/+8Good point, Damn Amiga's were good!

  • thedp, on 06/28/2008, -5/+16I've never read a such a huge pile of ***** in my whole life.
    The only true part there was the "4. Microsoft's intimidation leads to innovation".

    The writer is either on Microsoft's payroll or is high on grass; Either way, stop writing *****!
  • LavosPhoenix, on 06/28/2008, -8/+131. Created because MS bullied OEMs into only using Windows, or they wouldn't get a license to install Windows on the computers they sell. Too bad the GUI is a pain to program for, and sometimes if you want your application to run across different versions of Windows, Good luck.

    2. No, XEROX is responsible for bringing the mouse to market. Most respectable computer scientists actually had decent computers, and not your general Macintosh POS you paid out of the ass for.

    3. Microsoft may have tricked people into thinking software has value, and continue to do so. But of course, there is plenty of free alternatives now, and if you are still hung up on buying Photoshop CS3 because you have spatial recognition problems, or brain damage, (not stemming from an actual mental retardation), that's your fault.

    4. Yes, it is true that Windows's ***** helped create Linux and Firefox.
    • runtheplacered, on 06/28/2008, -4/+1remind me again why it matters who did what first? I keep forgetting..
      • dazparkour, on 06/28/2008, -1/+4It matters in a conversation about who INVENTED it and who is RESPONSIBLE for it.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.
  • HardBap, on 06/28/2008, -1/+15"What else should we give credit to Msft under Bill's watch?"

    Unless my history is wrong we can thank MS for Ajax. They developed the XmlHttpRequest and the first Ajax web app, Outlook Web Access.
  • reticulate, on 06/28/2008, -15/+13Vista is garbage?

    Nobody told me.
  • liuite, on 06/28/2008, -2/+2vmware has changed corporate data center environment. i wonder how it will change corporate desktop environment.
    i don't see windows vanishing on business machines unless users all become familiar first with ubuntu or red hat. many business are not willing to train users for new os, so ony companies with tech savy employees have switched.
  • pandaslist, on 06/28/2008, -4/+5How can everybody switch to Apple...I see more and more over the internet people talking about Apple being the most powerful company in tech but Microsoft has certainly served us better for years and Apple will behave with such quality and reliability just as long as Microsoft is the dominant player and with the most market share!
    I wondered if Microsoft is really still the most powerful company in the world? (as, in my opinion, they used to be)
    So i took a look at what companies dominate the world and i wondered, who is the most powerful company nowadays?
    So i took a ride on google and came across this website which might give me an answer in a month, check it out:
    http://www.themostpowerfulcompany.com
  • Stonekeeper, on 06/28/2008, -6/+7"Windows is on the vast majority of the world's computers, creating a virtually ubiquitous platform that anyone can develop for. That actually breeds innovation and development."

    I think you'll find that the DoJ and the EU would disagree.
    • aliguana, on 06/28/2008, -1/+8and while they're at it the DOJ and EU should force apple to stop bundling iTunes with their OS, it is uncompetitive. iTunes should only be bunded with iPods, and even then they're on shaky monopolistic ground.

      No-one's forcing people to use Windows. They can buy a Mac. Install Linux. They could have used Amigas, os/2, be-os, next, whatever. Microsoft won because it offered business what it needed. A trained (in Microsoft products) workplace buys Microsoft products for home, because thats what they know and feel comfortable with. If Apple had gone the Microsoft route back in the day, concentrated on shipping their OS to the emerging IBM-clone market and stopped making pretty boxes, then they would be in the position Microsoft are in today. Or even better.
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2"Microsoft won because it offered business what it needed."

        A bribe.
      • dragossh, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1Oh, BeOS. BeOS would have been used by far more people if Microsoft wouldn't have threatened the OEMs.

        Let's see how well Microsoft does if OEMs stop bundling Windows with their PCs.
      • aliguana, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1@ Dragossh: yeah, and OSX would have been used by far more people if Apple wouldn't have threatened the OEMs. Anyhow..
    • FutureGuy, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1Ohh you mean the goverment disagrees, they also hate piracy by the way.

      I accidently reported the above comment, ignore that.
  • eth3l, on 06/28/2008, -6/+13Windows is installed on something like 1 billion computers in use around the world ... Apple has sold something like 100M computers.

    game over.
    • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -7/+8Like Ford vs Ferrari.

      I'm not going to eat ***** just because a 10^15 flies say it's great.
      • DarQraven, on 06/28/2008, -2/+5That would be a good analogy if macs were actually faster and would get you laid.
        Mind I am not some linux fanboy with a hatred for Windows and Mac, I currently use windows. It's not an optimal system, but I need a lot of software that is only available for windows.

        What I DO hate is MS's business tactics and general lack of ethics, and apple fanboys elitism.
        Do people have the same kind of 'wars' about which coffee machine they own?
      • doctechnical, on 06/28/2008, -3/+2I'm just pointing out the fallacy of "X is better than Y because more people use/buy X". By this standard the greatest gastronomical experience in the world is a Big Mac Value Meal, Harry Potter is infinitely better literature than Shakespeare, and one of the best things ever broadcast to television screens was "The Beverly Hillbillies". It's just a silly comparison.

        @stalinnnn: Insult the 'Stang? Not on your life.
      • TJATL, on 06/28/2008, -3/+4Macs are actually faster. You can look at PC Worlds (I think they did it) fastest Vista laptop, and at that time it was the MacBook Pro using bootcamp. Not to mention that the Mac OS is way more memory efficient then Vista, that will increase your performance. Having said that, what software do you run that has to have windows? Sure there is some software like AutoCAD, but you can always run that through bootcamp. Since the switch to intel processors, Apples are really the best choice and give you the best of both worlds.
      • DarQraven, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2Lots of technical stuff. Solidworks, Maya, AutoCad, Alias Studio, Cambridge Engineering Selector, Moldflow, etc. While macs don't exactly have shortage of Adobe-style creativity/productivity software, it falls severely short in the engineering department.

        Sure, I could run all that via emulation or dual booting, but that's more of a hassle than an advantage.

        Btw, how was the testing for that article conducted? Since macs are typically twice as expensive as a homebuilt PC for the same level of hardware, I don't see that matching up. Sure, a mac might be faster with hardware X than a PC with the same hardware, but for the amount I need to spend to get one, I can simply get a much faster PC, which also offers upgradeability.
  • polalion, on 06/28/2008, -16/+9Article loves Microsoft. Digg hates Microsoft. Digg hates Article.

    Yeah sure I get it. I'll fit in.

    Boooo Microsoft sucks! Windows sucks! Everything Bill Gates touched is a piece of *****! Microsoft can't be credited for anything because it was a result of ruthless business strategy which is a result of pure evil! Boooo
    • dazparkour, on 06/28/2008, -6/+5Your post whines. Digg hates whining. Digg hates your post.
      • polalion, on 06/28/2008, -5/+2It insults Microsoft!

        Surely it makes up for that fact. It always has been.
      • MercFox1, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6Digg whines all the goddamned time.
  • Karmavs, on 06/28/2008, -3/+11“Now most stuff works and looks the same across an OS.”
    Windows Media Player, Windows Live Messenger, Microsoft Office, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer.

    The five programs Microsoft expects you to be using the most on your computer, and not two of them 'work & look the same' as each other in Windows; XP or Vista. (IE & Explorer are close , if the versions match the OS release (IE 6 for XP, IE 7 for Vista) but they're not the same. There's no reason for them not to be)
    • reticulate, on 06/28/2008, -3/+1How does Windows Explorer not look like IE?

      It's essentially the same thing with different contents. How else could they make them more alike without throwing out the file and folder metaphor?
      • Karmavs, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4The green toolbar in Explorer has a silver equivalent toolbar in IE7 (the one that doubles as a tab bar) The display of sidebars is different; the address bar is differently styled; but in actuality I'm making up excuses because I'd never before opened IE7 on Vista. (firefox, while just as bad as the other apps on UI consistency, is a much better app. And consistency only really works if its everywhere, anyway.) My memory was telling me it had the navigation in a shiny black toolbar, and a few other differences.
  • EEdesigner, on 06/28/2008, -3/+9And we should give credit to GM and Ford because since they built the world's crappiest cars, they caused the influx of quality Japanese cars, eh? Oh, and 78 rpm records should be held in high esteem because they led to 33s....etc. Face it, Microsoft has built crap, is building crap, and will build the crap of the future.
  • linuxelite, on 06/28/2008, -10/+11The biggest software platform is not Microsoft Windows, it's the Web.
    • AuSSi3Styl3, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5Meaning UNIX rules?
    • inkswamp, on 06/28/2008, -2/+3Meaning you don't understand what a platform is?
  • Phocion55, on 06/28/2008, -3/+9I'll add another: Windows XP Tablet Edition. In an interview, Bill expressed some disappointment into it not doing as well as expected.

    Their tablet software was awesome! Still use my Fujitsu Lifebook after 5 years.

  • Maxpower57, on 06/28/2008, -4/+12If this said apple instead of Microsoft it would have a ton more diggs instead of crappy comments
    • planetfinder, on 06/28/2008, -1/+3If this said Apple instead of microsoft there would be a very long list of contributions instead of 4 items some of which are pretty close to oxymorons.
    • inkswamp, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4Enough with trying to encourage platform bickering, already. There's plenty as it is without people like you trying to start more (and yeah, I know you're so far above that, right?)
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