Windows vs Linux, take 346,782

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I just read Paul Thurrot’s blog, taking John Dvorak to task for ripping Microsoft about the outrageous price of Windows and Office. Dvorak’s concl
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I completely agree. Microsoft thinks they can get away with ridiculous prices because everyone uses their software anyway, but pretty soon people will start using Linux and OpenOffice.org. I don’t know how much they’ll charge for the Windows 7 upgrade from Vista, but in my opinion it should be pretty cheap, especially since Vista is so bad and Windows 7 is just the fix.

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The DIY is a minuscule market. This “calculus” does not apply in the general market where people buy complete systems. They do not assemble their own desktop computers. Microsoft does not charge HP, Dell, Acer, Lenovo, ASUS the same price for the OS as they charge Paul, you, or me.

Yes, Office is expensive, but it is becoming increasingly irrelevant. I find myself rarely using anything besides Outlook and I am pondering whether or not it is time to retire it. More-and-more, people spend their time on their computers in their browsers where Office is of no use. This non-Office computing experience is reinforced by smartphone use where spreadsheets, word processors and presentation tools are non used.

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Actually, most of us Home Users process documents and do spreadsheets, and we do not want our data tied up on line in the event of an Internet outage. So I use OpenOffice.org, which is free and does everything I want. Only a few file-type incompatibilities with MS Office, and I can live with that.

Cloud Computing is a wonderful pipe-dream, if only the Internet were reliable and safe. But it is neither.

As for the OS, which is the focus of this entry, I can live with whatever comes with the PC. Just let Woody and his colleagues here keep warning us about MS screwups, and I will be a happy camper, whether it’s Windows XP or Windows 7. (No Vista for me, please!)

Since you can’t (easily) buy a computer without paying for the OS, I’ll take mine ready-made, thank you. But I will switch off IE 8 and use Firefox 3.1 when it comes out. That’s all I would change. And as I say, security for free is good enough these days, so no need to buy anything there — just download free programs and set to auto-update.

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I am just waiting for the Windows 7 realease. I am just so excited about it. Xp and Vista will be long gone !!!!!!!

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