Gates & Jobs: Microsoft and Apple's Epic Battle

Steve Jobs says “I’m fine, quit asking!”

2009-01-05T19:09:00.001-05:00

Today Steve Jobs issued a statement to apple fan boys, most still upset that they don’t get to see him this week, dispelling rumors that his chronic weight loss over the last year, and recent decision to ditch MacWorld, are signs that he will be leaving Apple, and possibly the planet.

Job’s statement was followed by an official release by Apple’s Board of Directors stating emphatically that if Steve ever decides to move on from being the CEO of Apple, we will know it.

Here is Steve’s announcement [ apple site ] :

Dear Apple Community,

For the first time in a decade, I’m getting to spend the holiday season with my family, rather than intensely preparing for a Macworld keynote.

Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some even publishing stories of me on my deathbed.

I’ve decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow.

As many of you know, I have been losing weight throughout 2008. The reason has been a mystery to me and my doctors. A few weeks ago, I decided that getting to the root cause of this and reversing it needed to become my #1 priority.

Fortunately, after further testing, my doctors think they have found the cause—a hormone imbalance that has been “robbing” me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy. Sophisticated blood tests have confirmed this diagnosis.

The remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple and straightforward, and I’ve already begun treatment. But, just like I didn’t lose this much weight and body mass in a week or a month, my doctors expect it will take me until late this Spring to regain it. I will continue as Apple’s CEO during my recovery.

I have given more than my all to Apple for the past 11 years now. I will be the first one to step up and tell our Board of Directors if I can no longer continue to fulfill my duties as Apple’s CEO. I hope the Apple community will support me in my recovery and know that I will always put what is best for Apple first.

So now I’ve said more than I wanted to say, and all that I am going to say, about this.

Steve

And here is the Follow-up from the BoD [ apple site ] :

It is widely recognized both inside and outside of Apple that Steve Jobs is one of the most talented and effective CEOs in the world.

As we have said before, if there ever comes a day when Steve wants to retire or for other reasons cannot continue to fulfill his duties as Apple’s CEO, you will know it.

Apple is very lucky to have Steve as its leader and CEO, and he deserves our complete and unwavering support during his recuperation. He most certainly has that from Apple and its Board.

Steve Dowling Apple

I know that it sucks that Steve is required to lay out his personal information to the world like that, but unfortunately that is the price of greatness, and I for one, am happy that he is “ok”.

Ballmer to kick off CES 2009 this Wednesday

2009-01-05T14:43:00.004-05:00

Last January, Bill Gates made his final CES keynote speech, and in September we were told that his replacement would be the man who had taken his position at Microsoft: Steve Ballmer. Ballmer, like Gates, will be assisted by Robbie Bach, head of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, during the 2009 International CES preshow keynote this Wednesday.

The festivities start at 6:30 PM PST in the Palazzo Ballroom at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. If you can't make it but still want to see the keynote as it happens, here are the links for streaming: 100k, 300k, and 750k.

TechCrunch is reporting that Ballmer will be discussing the following Microsoft announcements:

Windows 7 public beta: Vista's successor will easily be one of the biggest topics of the show
Windows 7's HomeGroups will be demonstrated (read more)
Windows Mobile will get Flash support by the end of the first quarter
Two new Halo titles will be released for the Xbox this year

I'm sure there will be more to it than that, as watching Ballmer speak is usually quite entertaining. CES 2009 will be taking place from Thursday to Sunday and you can bet that we'll be covering it thoroughly.

source: arstechnica.com

An hour with Bill Gates

2009-01-04T14:53:00.002-05:00

Interesting Charlie Rose video from last week, overlooked during the holidays: An hour with Bill Gates, founder and chairman of Microsoft.

I’m not a fan, as I know that MSFT is(was) the Evil Empire, but its interesting nonetheless

Steve Jobs to quit Apple

2008-10-17T12:32:00.002-04:00

Shocking news for fruity Apple fans – CEO Steve Jobs is planning on doing the absolutely unthinkable – he will quit Apple!

The revelation comes after Steve Jobs presented the new MacBooks, MacBook Pros, and an updated MacBook Air yesterday at an event. He told the audience present that the company is more than himself.

"Hey, look, Apple is more than Steve.” He said, “These are The Guys, the Goodfellas, the A-Team. They share the same vision I have. And they are going to push the company forward when I change my office chair for a hammock and caipirinhas on my private beach in Hawaii".

That was a downer of a statement from Steve Jobs, who generally is the star of the show. This was clearly a sign that he has transferred some money to a resort where he will spend the rest of his life in peace and tranquility, away from the bustling market.

Steve Jobs NEVER puts himself after Apple, as selfish as that may sound, it was a good thing because Billions of people across the world love and worship him for his genius. The statement he made only strengthens belief that he is going to quit and that there are other people in Apple.

In case you didn’t already know, Steve Jobs hasn’t quite been keeping well lately. Numerous reports of his health concerns have floated across tabloids, although Steve himself denied them. We know that Steve Jobs will remain with Apple the way Bill Gates will always stay with Microsoft, but Apple won’t be the same without its fruity guru.

source: www.india.com/technology/gadgets

Windows 7, The Future of Computing?

2008-10-16T11:56:00.008-04:00

Now All Vista Users Might not have felt the heat while using Vista but after Grabbing Windows 7 They surely will. Here Is windows , soon to be released Operating System , Windows 7.

Unlike it's predecessor , Windows Vista , which received Great changes from Windows XP version , Windows 7 has not changed so much.
It has Got around Three versions which are being tested currently, Milestone 1 , Milestone 2, Milestone 3 and some others are coming up now.
Windows 7 will be available for 32 bit and 64 bit but the server edition will only be available for 64 bit.

It is not much different from Windows Vista , (as many claim) but until we use it we cant blindly believe it.
The release date , according to internetnews.com is set to be June 3, 2009 , But some of the microsoft representatives have said different dates but I am sure it will release somewhere in mid 2009.

Milestone 2 of Windows 7 has a different taskbar than found in Windows Vista, with, among other features, sections divided into different colors.

Features like support for multiple heterogeneous graphics cards has been added. A all new Windows Media Center has also been added. It might also have the Ribbon interface , which is the best part of it, i.e it has all new design for paint and wordpad and other Microsoft designed Softwares like Word.

In the demonstration of Windows 7 at D6, the operating system featured multi-touch , Just like your Hp touchsmart PC (somewhat)
The price still remains a secret.

Few Leaked Screenshots -
source:www.etiole.com

Apple Notebook Event Oct 14 2008

2008-10-14T22:53:00.004-04:00

The highly anticipated Apple Notebook Event was held on Tuesday, October 14 2008. Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced us to the new Macbooks. We also see "The Brick" process, Apple's new production technique for notebooks. I would elaborate more on the event, but I think it would be better if you watched it yourself. Enjoy..

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

iPhone Runs Windows

2008-10-13T14:14:00.004-04:00

Dual boot OS not just for Macbook but for iPhone too. Here is a video from myPhone2008 courtesy of Norwegian application developer. Apple iPhone running Windows Mobile.

Apple to unveil new laptops Tuesday

2008-10-09T13:09:00.004-04:00

This is the main image from an invitation Apple sent to some journalists on Thursday morning.

Apple has just sent out invites to a special media event on Apple's campus for October 14. The invite reads, "The spotlight turns to notebooks," and has a ray of light shining over the back of an unidentified Apple notebook.

The invite-only event will be taking place at Apple's Town Hall in Cupertino on October 14, 10am Pacific Time.

As you are likely aware, October 14 has been widely rumored for several weeks now as the official date for Apple's update to the MacBook and MacBook pro line. Some of us had our doubts (myself included) that such an update would end up being announced during an Apple event, but Apple has come through once again.

What can we expect from this event? No one knows for sure, but supposedly leaked photos have been spreading across the web as of late. Ars will be there (with photos this time!) covering it live on our front page.

source:arstechnica.com

EXCLUSIVE: Apple to launch $800 laptop

2008-10-09T12:52:00.003-04:00

Some Apple retailers in the United States have been given price lists for a new Apple laptop line, and there’s a big surprise: an $800 laptop. The information comes from a source we would categorize as reliable, would have access to such information, and who has been accurate in the past.

According to the source, Apple retail stores have been given price sheets that list 12 price points for the new range, with prices between $800-$3100. Current lines only have 8 price points, 3 Macbooks starting at $1099, 3 Macbook Pros and 2 Macbook Airs. According to the source, retail outlets usually get the price lists 10 days before products hit the market. Technical specs for the new laptops were not included on the price sheet.

An $800 laptop would be the first sub-$1000 laptop offered by Apple, and would signal a shift from Cupertino to target a broader range of price sensitive customers for the first time. Whether this laptop is a sub-laptop or ultra-portable we simply don’t know, it could be Apple more aggressively pricing their new Macbook range, or it could be a completely new laptop altogether, presumably utilizing the much discussed “Apple Brick” manufacturing process (pic above). What we do know is that there will be four additional price points, so unless the updated versions of existing lines are offered with more options, we would presume that Apple may actually launch an entirely new laptop.

source:inquisitr.com

Strata Is The Codename of Microsoft's Cloud OS Environment

2008-10-09T09:46:00.002-04:00

Microsoft finally chose the codename for its Cloud OS Platform. Strata it is then. That's at least what the sessions page of Microsoft's Forthcoming Professional Developers Conference page pointed to earlier yesterday.

The page, that has now been modified and no longer shows any Strata-related info, has been captured by fellow blogger Kit Ong's and shows eight sessions dedicated to Windows Strata.

Microsoft though appears to be jumping "heavily" on the Cloud computing bandwagon, in a similar fashion to the u turn Bill Gate engineered back in the 1990's when it brought Internet (known then as the Infobahn) to Windows 95. No less than 34 sessions will be dedicated to Cloud computing.

Steve Ballmer has already acknowledged that Microsoft needs a cloud based operating system - fast - in order to catch up with the likes of Amazon or Google, both of whom have already deployed large scale Software-as-a-service implementations.

Not that Microsoft did not think about it before, it was just too early. They did speak about a Hailstorm project (which also comes from Clouds) back in 2001, described as a project to "make MSN-hosted user data available to the same users at non-Microsoft web site" - a bit like OpenSocial - and Lightning (which again, comes from Clouds), the original codename for Microsoft's Common Language Runtime.

Microsoft's PDC will debut on the 27th October in Los Angeles.

From Wikipedia, A stratus cloud (Plural = Strata) is a cloud belonging to a class characterized by horizontal layering with a uniform base, as opposed to convective clouds that are as tall or taller than wide (these are termed cumulus clouds). (ed: It also refers to geological layers as well)

source:itproportal.com

Microsoft Touchless:Fresh from Office Labs

2008-10-08T13:51:00.005-04:00

Microsoft lab rats have been in the dungeon cooking up some new software and technology and the results are very cool. I think the innovative side of Microsoft is starting to come out, about time, since Apple and Google have been been in the forefront of creativity lately.

What is Microsoft Touchless?

A multitouch software from Microsoft Office Labs that uses a regular Web camera and everyday objects as input. Touchless enables touch without touching by using a webcam to track color based markers. Like Microsoft Surface and Touchwall, the Touchless software makes it possible to create applications that turn hand gestures and physical objects into an input device like a mouse.Touchless includes two parts:

Touchless Demo is an open source application that anyone with a webcam can use to experience multi-touch, no geekiness required. There are 4 fun demos: Snake - where you control a snake with a marker, Defender - up to 4 player version of a pong-like game, Map - where you can rotate, zoom, and move a map using 2 markers, and Draw - the marker is used to guess what.... draw!

Touchless SDK is an open source SDK that enables developers to create multi-touch based applications using a webcam for input, geekiness recommended.

This project is an Office Labs community project, which means a Microsoft employee worked on this in their spare time. It is also an open source project, which means that anyone can view, use, and contribute to the code.

Microsoft's New Boy Band

2008-10-08T11:56:00.004-04:00

Jerry Seinfeld's high cost ads for Microsoft may have helped get people talking about the company again, but a new low tech conference commercial making the rounds on the web is actually winning positive commentary for one thing that the Seinfeld and "I'm a PC" ads lacked: self-deprecation.
The Internet ad features fictional ad execs in a pitch meeting and an odd little boy band. Meant to publicize the upcoming Professional Developers Conference where Microsoft will give away 160GB hard drives loaded with Windows 7, it has been circling around without any prime-time buys.
While the ad features some of the institutionalized strangeness that seems to spark decisions at Microsoft, it boasts a song that will have Windows 7 stuck in my head for the rest of the morning. Also, it is funny, even if it takes until the end to learn that the makers of the ad are in on the joke.

source:blog.wired.com

Apple to replace iPod with a Watch?!

2008-10-08T11:47:00.005-04:00

In a candid and slightly bizarre interview, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has admitted that the iPod’s popularity could be on the decline, and that Apple’s future may actually be in watches.

In an interview that is bound to have Apple’s PR team up in arms, Wozniak explained to theTelegraph about his fears that the iPod has run its course: “The iPod has sort of lived a long life at number one.

“If you look back to transistor radios and Walkmans, they kind of die out after a while.

“It’s kind of like everyone has got one or two or three. You get to a point when they are on display everywhere, they get real cheap and they are not selling as much.”

iWatch

And it’s not just the iPod that gets the death-knell treatment, as Wozniak believes that in these credit-crunching days, the whole computer industry should put the brakes on, saying that: “For 20 years we have been in this replacement and upgrade market.

“It is very easy to postpone that when there are financial irregularities.”

Perhaps most interesting of all, however, was what Wozniak thought may be in the pipeline for future Apple products.

Although he admitted that nobody, not even Steve Jobs, knows what the future holds for the company, he did hint that Jobs let slip that Apple could well be investing in the humble watch, called, unsurprisingly, the ‘iWatch’.

With no other details than Woza’s words, it’s hard to speculate too much, but the idea that Apple may try and revitalise the watch market is a very interesting prospect indeed.

source:steveranford.co.uk

Less than 6 days left before Rumoured ‘New Macbook’ Event

2008-10-08T11:36:00.003-04:00

With less than six days to go before Tuesday, October 14th and not a word from Apple, chances of a much-rumored media event on that day to introduce new Mac notebook offerings is growing slim.

A lot of emphasis has been placed on next Tuesday as the day Apple might summon the media to another special event ever since Daring Fireball author John Gruber predicted in passing that October 14th would serve as a launch pad for the company’s next-generation notebook offerings.

AppleInsider say that while the prediction remains sound and introductions on that date remain possible, history would suggest that the window of opportunity for Apple to do so in a media-filled forum is rapidly closing. Taking a historical look back at Apple’s surprise media events (below) reveals that only once in the last four years has the company issued invites to the media less than a week before the event was scheduled to take place.

That one exception took place in October of 2005, when Apple gave a select few in the media a five day notice about a special East Coast gathering in New York City that saw the unveiling of several professional Macs, as well as the the first version of the Aperture post production photography software. In all other cases, the company offered between 7 and 9 days notice (and in one case nearly a month’s notice).

The window of opportunity is not completely closed, however. Several scenarios for an announcement next week still remain. The company could simply provide reduced notice of an event next Tuesday or issue invites today for an event on Wednesday. Alternatively, it could elect to introduce redesigned MacBook and MacBook Pros next week without a formal presentation.

Apple has defied expectations of a special media event at least once in the past. For example, it introduced the first 13-inch MacBook - complete with a fresh industrial design - in May of 2006 with little fanfare, posting the announcement to its website alongside a standard press release.

Should Apple fail to introduce new notebooks next week, it would seemingly be in a race against the clock with the holiday shopping season rapidly approaching. The company would have approximately five weeks to introduce new models, fill pent-up demand, enter into a supply and demand equilibrium, and fill inventories around the world before the post Thanksgiving shopping bonanza kicks into play.

source:steveranford.co.uk

Amazing Apple Mac Music Video

2008-10-07T14:33:00.000-04:00

This video is worth watching, it was done by Dennis Lui, a young director (dennisaliu.com), on a Mac. I was extremely impress after seeing this, very good work. The actress in the video is Larkin Clark, and the song is "Again & Again" by the Bird & the Bee.

Review: Zune music player catching up to iPod

2008-10-07T14:08:00.008-04:00

Slowly but surely, Microsoft's Zune is staking its claim as a legitimate alternative to Apple's iPod line of MP3 players.

Last year, Microsoft focused its efforts on overhauling the Zune's hardware and public image.

This year, Microsoft has turned its attention to improving the Zune firmware and desktop software, while updating the storage capacity and pricing of new models to stay competitive.

Design

The design of the Zune 120 is almost entirely unchanged from the Zune 80 we reviewed last year. The back of the Zune is now black instead of silver and the face of the player is covered with a glossy plastic that, although pretty, is more prone to smudges and scratches than the metal finish on last year's model.

We're happy to see that the increase in the Zune's hard-drive capacity doesn't translate into a thicker design. The Zune 120 measures the same 4.3 inches high by 2.4 inches wide by 0.5 inch deep as the Zune 80. Also, no changes have been made to the Zune's navigation controls, headphone jack, hold switch, dock connection, and 3.2-inch glass-covered LCD.

Considering Apple's strategy of altering its iPod design every fall (for better or for worse), it's a little unnerving to see the Zune's hardware design at a standstill. The upshot of the Zune's lack of design tinkering is that it maintains the product's compatibility with the handful of accessories designed for the player.

Features

The bulk of the third-generation Zune's improvements are found by flicking through its main menu. New menu items for Games and Marketplace have been added alongside existing selections for Music, Videos, Pictures, Social, Radio, Podcasts, and Settings.

The Zune's primary purpose as a high-quality portable music player hasn't changed. If anything, the enhancements offered by the third-generation firmware have bolstered the unique music-discovery and sharing features that have differentiated the Zune from the very beginning.

One of the more notable new features on the Zune is a Marketplace selection in the main menu that allows you to browse, preview, and download music directly from Microsoft's Zune Marketplace online store.

Within the Marketplace submenu you can choose between browsing Top Songs, Top Albums, and New Releases, or search for specific music by keying in a few letters. Songs can be previewed for 30 seconds with the option to add them to your virtual cart or purchase and download immediately.

By signing up for Microsoft's Zune Pass music-subscription service (a free 14-day trial is available), you can download unlimited music to your Zune for a flat fee of $15 a month. Otherwise, you'll need to purchase songs a la carte by setting up a payment account in the Zune desktop software.

Your Zune needs to be connected to a Wi-Fi hot spot in order to take advantage of the Marketplace feature. Fortunately, Microsoft has improved the Zune's ability to step through public Wi-Fi hot spots, and it's even struck a deal with fast-food giant McDonald's to have the Zune supported by the Wayport Wi-Fi hot spots found in many McDonald's restaurants.

If your local Wi-Fi requires you to enter a password, you can enter it manually using the Zunepad. The Zune will remember and associate your Wi-Fi passwords so that you'll only need to enter them once.

The Zune already had one of the best FM-radio tuners available on an MP3 player, including support for detailed station and song information by way of the Radio Broadcast Data System (RBDS). With the third-generation Zune, Microsoft has taken the RBDS-enhanced FM radio even further, by allowing users to tag the songs they hear so they can download them later.

The radio-tagging feature only works with FM-radio stations that broadcast artist and song information over RBDS (we found five compatible stations in San Francisco). Tagged songs are added to your Zune shopping cart, just as songs added using the Marketplace feature are, and can be downloaded directly to your Zune over Wi-Fi or previewed and purchased using the Zune desktop software.

The radio-tagging feature is fun to use, but in our experience, the stations that were compatible with RBDS were typically mainstream radio outlets with a limited amount of new music in rotation. Still, we're happy to see Zune giving users as many ways as possible to discover and acquire new music.

The addition of games for the Zune helps keep the device competitive against the iPod, but it doesn't compare with the quality of games we're seeing for the iPod Touch. Two games, Hexic and Texas Hold 'Em, are included with the Version 3.0 Zune firmware, with new games soon to come for the Zune Marketplace.

The audio, video, and photo features of the Zune are largely unchanged from the previous generation--which isn't a bad thing, really. The Zune's music player supports MP3, WMA, protected-WMA (Zune Marketplace only), WMA Lossless, AAC, and Audible audio file formats.

The inclusion of the high-fidelity WMA Lossless music format on a high-capacity player like the 120GB Zune should make more than a few audio purists very pleased, and the continued support for AAC opens the door for iPod converts (although DRM-protected iTunes purchases are still unsupported). Audiobook enthusiasts should be happy to see a new gadget for taking their Audible and OverDrive audiobooks on the go.

The Zune supports WMV, MPEG-4, and H.264 video formats natively at a DVD-quality 30fps frame rate. Windows Media Center users will be happy to know that the Zune also imports DVR-MS recorded-video content. Although the Zune's screen displays at a 320x240 resolution, video files stored on the Zune can be as large as 720x480 and played at full resolution through the composite-video output built into the Zune's headphone jack.

An optional Zune AV dock can output video using a higher quality component cable. Unlike the iPod, the Zune's built-in video output mirrors its onscreen display, which means that all of the Zune's features (including menus) can display on your TV.

Selecting the Social feature from the Zune's main menu gives you a window onto your friends' (or total strangers') listening habits. Within the Social menu, you have an Inbox for messages and friend requests between Zune users, a Friends tab displaying any current Zune users you've befriended through Microsoft's Zune Social network, and a Nearby tab that detects the Wi-Fi signal of other Zune's in physical proximity to you.

You can dig deeper into the Social to preview and purchase the recent or favorite songs of people in your network, piggybacking on your friend's music tastes the same way you might with an online service such as iLike or Last.fm.

We're all in favor of getting music recommendations from friends, however, the slow adoption of the Zune means that your actual friends are nowhere to be found on the Zune Social, requiring you to befriend Zune-using strangers in an effort to make the Social feature feel useful. Having used the Zune Social for the past year, however, the pseudo-friends forged in the Social have routinely provided some surprisingly good music recommendations.

If you're a fan of audio and video podcasts, the Zune is one of the only alternatives to the iPod that provides integrated, hassle-free management of your podcast feeds. Like the iPod, the Zune's closed software and hardware ecosystem is able to automatically download new podcasts, load them onto your Zune, and clear out the old content.

The Zune desktop software allows you to browse, search for, and subscribe to podcasts within the Marketplace directory, or paste in the direct link for the feed. Podcast playback on the Zune supports autoresume, episode information, and the ability to unsubscribe from podcasts directly from the playback screen.

Finally, if you're a Zune Pass music subscriber, Microsoft has added a new feature called Channels that offers a podcast-like automatic rotation of new music playlists for your Zune. Channels are sorted by genre, affiliation (Grand Ole Opry, Fader Magazine), or type (Billboard Top 20), and content is updated weekly.

If you don't hold a Zune Pass subscription, you can still subscribe to Channels and hear 30-second song previews of any of the music included on the playlist, with the option to purchase tracks a la carte. If you've been waiting to bite the bullet on a Zune Pass until it seems like a better value, Channels offers an appealing way to inject new music onto your Zune every week without you having to lift a finger.

Zune desktop software

It wasn't pretty when Microsoft overhauled its desktop software alongside the release of last year's Zune. Thankfully, the upgrade to Version 3.0 has brought nothing but improvements and stability to the Zune's desktop client.

The software runs noticeably faster on our old Windows XP machine and includes menu settings that allow you to throttle the software's graphic performance to match the capabilities of your computer.

The latest software hasn't made any radical visual changes, but there are a few subtle enhancements. The software's background image is now white (goodbye pink swirls); there's a new Picks tab under Marketplace with personalized recommendations; your Zune Social card has now been integrated better; and the Now Playing screen offers an enhanced view with tastefully treated artist photos that float and fade like a custom screensaver.

The most interesting new feature included on the Zune 3.0 desktop software is a Mixview pane that graphically represents the currently playing song in relation to similar artists, songs, and top listeners. Using Mixview, you can explore the connections between artists, preview similar songs, and acquaint yourself with other Zune users, in a way that is much more visually engaging than the storefront design that permeates iTunes and Zune Marketplace.

The Zune software is far from perfect, however, and still lacks the fine-grain control that users can find in iTunes, Windows Media Player, and Winamp. If you're a power user, yearning to outfit your metatags with lyric data or import your FLAC music files, the Zune software isn't the place for you.

Unfortunately, the Zune hardware is only compatible with Zune's own desktop software, so if you can't stand the software's deliberately vanilla approach to music organization then you may want to consider another MP3 player.

Performance

The Zune's audio, video, and battery performance haven't budged since last year's model. Microsoft rates the Zune 120 at around 30 hours of audio playback and 4 hours of video. When our CNET Labs tested the Zune 80 last year, they found the numbers for video to be spot-on, but audio playback came in at 22 hours with Wi-Fi off, and 18.5 with Wi-Fi on. We'll have our Labs test the Zune 120 to see if there have been any changes in battery performance and we'll update this review with the results.

Despite its lack of EQ controls, the Zune 120 sounds amazing over a good pair of headphones. Unfortunately, most users won't hear the difference now that Microsoft decided not to bundle its quality in-ear headphones with the player. Instead, the Zune 120 box includes an attractive, yet average-sounding, pair of earbuds and the higher quality in-ear headphones are sold separately.

Video quality on the Zune 120 is unchanged, however, it's still one of the best video podcast players you can buy (the iPod Touch, with its larger screen and video-zooming feature, is even better).

Zune vs. iPod

The Zune still has a hard road ahead if it wants to catch up to the iPod. Microsoft is doing an admirable job, however, of carving out a niche of music fanatics who value the Zune's emphasis on music discovery and subscription-music gluttony. When it comes to high-capacity MP3 players, Apple and Microsoft are the two best options available, offering comparable features, file support, and audio quality.

But, unless you have a grudge against Apple or are tempted by the Zune's subscription-music service, the iPod's superior battery life and accessory options make it a better option for most users.

source: cnn.com

Apple Doesn't Need Jobs, Analyst Says

2008-10-07T13:47:00.007-04:00

'No reason' to think others couldn't carry the company forward

Apple Inc. doesn't need Steve Jobs, an analyst argued today.

Early on Friday, Apple shares slid below $100 for the first time since May 2007 after a false report circulated that Apple's 53-year-old CEO had suffered a major heart attack. The report, posted on iReport.com, a "citizen journalist" Web site operated by CNN, was quickly denied by Apple, but not before the share price had slid nearly 11%.

The panic was unwarranted, said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst at Technology Business Research Inc.

"Apple doesn't need Jobs anymore," Gottheil said. "He's established three sound businesses -- Mac, iPod and the iPhone -- and the company knows how to execute his fanatical devotion to design and usability. There's a stable management team in place, and they know what they're doing."

Investors have been nervous about Jobs' health since last June, when he appeared gaunt at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. Although company spokespeople said Jobs was under the weather from a "common bug," his appearance fueled speculation that he was again seriously ill, a reference to Jobs' 2004 announcement that he had had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in his pancreas. Jobs in July told The New York Times that he is healthy.

Since then, other incidents, including the accidental posting of Jobs' obituary by Bloomberg LP's financial news service in August, have caused investors to question the company's future sans Jobs.

They shouldn't be so worried, said Gottheil. "Without Jobs, Apple would have to pay a lot more to get the world's attention," he said, referring to the CEO's knack for promoting his company's products. "But he's got a company and a brand and an organization and a strategy in place. There's no reason to think that those things can't be carried forward without him."

If Jobs stepped down, Tim Cook, currently chief operating officer, would run the company, Gottheil said. Cook ran Apple while Jobs out in 2004 after his cancer surgery. Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior vice president for industrial design, would pick up the reins on product design.

The July hiring of former Segway Inc. Chief Technology Officer Doug Field as Apple's new vice president of design, Gottheil speculated, is an attempt by Apple to free up Ive to take on a more strategic view of product design.

That's not to say that Apple wouldn't be different. It would play things more conservatively without Jobs, Gottheil speculated. "It may not be able to make the inspired guesses that created the iPod and the iPhone," he said. But those leaps aren't necessary for Apple to continue. "We believe that sort of risk-taking is no longer necessary, and the current management can build very effectively on what Jobs has created," Gottheil added.

And Gottheil did note that Apple's shares will likely take a hit when Jobs does leave the company. "All this is not to say that the market won't react," he said. "Investors will certainly panic until they see proof that the management team can continue."

"But I see Apple after Jobs as Ford after Henry Ford," Gottheil said. "The acolytes have incorporated the main teachings of Jobs. He's created a process and a culture that will continue."

source:computerworld.com

I believe Apple would fail without Steve Jobs, just as they did when they fired him back in 1985. His return to the company has brought success, Jobs is the motivating force behind Apple's current success.

No depression, major recession, from US finance crisis: Bill Gates

2008-10-06T13:44:00.002-04:00

The richest man in America, Bill Gates, said in a television interview broadcast Sunday that the US financial crisis, while does not spell the end of capitalism and will not lead to a depression.

"It's a very interesting crisis," Microsoft founder told CNN, discussing the US Congress's 700-billion dollar bailout bill for Wall Street which was passed Friday to stem economic jitters spreading around the world.

The slump triggered by the collapse of the subprime housing market requires "some type of correction," Gates added, "but fundamentally ... companies' willingness to invest, right now we haven't seen a huge disruption in that."

"It looks like the economy may go down somewhat, but nothing like a big recession or a depression," he added.

On some experts' misgivings about the US bailout plan, Gates said: "it doesn't look like fixing these problems is going to derail the economy in some dramatic way."

Gates, who last month topped Forbes magazine's list of the richest men in the United States with an estimated 57 billion dollar fortune, said the future of the US and the global economies lies in the resilience and innovative spirit of businessmen and scientists around the world.

"The amount of innovation taking place, the amount of investment is actually greater today than ever," Gates said.

"Because you not only have more American companies with more scientists and engineers and innovators, but now you have ... people from all over, including lots of people in India and China, now contributing to new drug design, new software design, new energy generation design."

Gates said on CNN that the quest for new technologies to increase food production and reduce global warming through cheaper and cleaner energy sources "will deliver those advances" to push the world economy forward.

Gates retired from Microsoft in June to focus on running the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, aimed at fighting disease, reducing poverty, and improving education around the world.

He remains Microsoft's largest single shareholder and chairman of company's board of directors.

source:breitbart.com

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer doesn’t know that Macs can run Windows

2008-10-06T13:13:00.003-04:00

PC Magazine recently sat down with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to discuss a wide range of topics and, as invariably happens, a portion of the conversation turned to Apple:

PC Magazine: Microsoft is the icon of the PC. What do you think about the Apple commercials: "I'm a Mac, and I am a PC"?

Steve Ballmer: I think they need a little bit of correction, and you'll see us be much more vigorous about stating the case for the PC. The truth of the matter is, this is ironic. The PC outsells the Mac 33 to 1—32 to 1. And despite the fact that we don't sell PCs, we only sell Windows to people who make PCs. And the attack is actually on the PCs, interestingly enough. You'll see us defend the PC. We're going to talk about why—look, PCs are better than Macs. That is not something that can be debated. 32 out of every 33 times, somebody buys a PC instead of a Mac. I'm not saying that there are not some things that people like about Macs, apparently there are. But have you ever seen a cheap Mac? No.

MacDailyNews Take: Ballmer's definition of "better" needs a lot of work. Apple doesn't make "cheap" junk, but compare a Mac to a similarly-spec'ed PC and you'll find the Macs is very competitive and, oftentimes, even less expensive. And using every cash register and dumb terminal in the world in an attempt to diminish Mac "market share" is just plain pathetic.

• NPD: Apple took 20% market share of U.S. retail notebook sales in July and August - October 01, 2008
• Net Applications: Apple’s Mac OS share hit new all-time high of 8.23% in September 2008 - October 01, 2008
• NPD: Apple vaults to 10.6% share in North American notebook market - September 17, 2008
• Gartner: Apple Mac grabs 10.4 percent share of U.S. home market - August 26, 2008
• Gartner: Apple Mac #1 in Q2 08 Europe education market share - again - August 01, 2008

Ballmer continues: You know, they like to act like Macs are lightweight, there are much lighter weight PC notebooks. Macs—do they have the best battery power? Of course they don't have the best battery power. Macs tend to have nice screens, but can you get nicer screens for a PC? Of course. Do Macs work in business? No, they do not.

MacDailyNews Take: Ballmer's fear is palpable. Does he understand that an entire business unit of his company is dedicated to making Microsoft Office for Mac? (This is why Mac users should not buy Office, by the way; Microsoft will take your money and then immediately turn around and ignore your very existence). Do PCs run Mac OS X Leopard and iLife and many other best-in-class Mac-only apps? No, they do not. Only Apple Macs run all the world's major OSes and applications:

• Apple Macs run Windows Vista less awfully than PCs - April 17, 2008
• Windows to Mac switcher finds comfort in ability to run Windows, then leaves Windows behind - April 16, 2007
• Apple Macs that can run Windows are bad news for Microsoft - August 08, 2006
• Couldn’t you just buy a Mac and run Windows? Microsoft CEO Ballmer: ‘No, we prefer real PCs’ - April 29, 2006

Ballmer continues: You know, there are so many—you know, can you find Macs in—I'm very sensitive to exactly what mouse I have on my laptop. Can you find a range of choices? Of course you can't find a range of choices.

MacDailyNews Take: This guy runs a company? (Yeah, into the ground.) Virtually any USB mouse from any company works with a Mac and, oh, by the way, this one does, too (for just one example of many from Microsoft itself): Microsoft Notebook Mouse for Mac: "Microsoft’s most portable wireless notebook mouse connects seamlessly to Mac’s using Bluetooth." We heartily discourage Mac users from buying products made by companies whose CEO's do not even know they make Mac products and who routinely disparage Mac users.

Ballmer continues: You know, anyway—can you find the applications you want on the Mac? Well, you don't really get full Microsoft Office.

MacDailyNews Take: Because I tried to have them cripple it in order to push more PC sales since we screwed the pooch with Vista, but it backfired: VBA returns to future Office for Mac versions - May 13, 2008. And, check this out, too: Fortune Small Business: The best PC for Microsoft Office is Apple Mac - August 08, 2008

Ballmer continues: So 32 out of 33 times people chose PCs, there must be something better about the PC, and that's a story that deserves to be told. I think it's a story of choice.

MacDailyNews Take: Yeah, the wrong choice: Mac vs. Windows in business case study: Macs have 1/3 fewer problems that are solved 30% faster - June 02, 2008

Full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Someone really should let Uncle Fester in on the news: Only Apple Macs run Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, etc. and their attendant applications. In other words, not only is the Mac able to run the world's most advanced operating system, Mac OS X, it can also slum it as a fast PC when the user so desires (or is forced to by Microsoft's many attempts at lock-in). Because Apple Macs also offer the full "PC experience," Ballmer's criticisms — and $300 million ad campaign — fail completely.

source: macdailynews.com

The 'Brick' is....

2008-10-06T12:47:00.005-04:00

The MacBook Brick is a block of high-quality, aircraft grade aluminum. It is the beginning.

The beginning of what?

It is the beginning of the new Apple manufacturing process to make MacBooks. It is totally revolutionary, a game changer. One of the biggest Apple innovations in a decade.

The MacBook manufacturing process up to this point has been outsourced to Chinese or Taiwanese manufacturers like Foxconn. Now Apple is in charge. The company has spent the last few years building an entirely new manufacturing process that uses lasers and jets of water to carve the MacBooks out of a brick of aluminum.

(Yes, this sounded a bit crazy to us as well. But our source is adamant so bear with us. He says Apple has built a manufacturing process that would make Henry Ford proud.)

This isn't entirely new. Steve Jobs has always had a fondness for having his own plant to produce computers. In 1990, he built a totally automated plant in Fremont California (thanks PED) that could build NeXT machines with only 100 workers. It was a "plant with just about everything: lasers, robots, speed, and remarkably few defects." Unfortunately, the demand wasn't very high at the time. However, Jobs remarked, "I'm as proud of the factory as I am of the computer."

One thing about Steve Jobs is that he seems to always return to his failures and then turn them into successes. That is where our information ends and speculation begins.

What advantages are there to manufacturing with 3D laser and water jet cutting?

Carving out of aluminum eliminates the need to bend the metal and create weak spots or microfolds and rifts.
There are no seams in the final product, so it is smooth.
Screws aren’t needed to tie the products together.
The shell is one piece of metal so it is super light, super strong and super cheap.
You can be a whole lot more creative with the design if you don't have to machine it.

As Peter Oppenheimer said at the recent earnings call, this innovation is something "Apple's competitors won't be able to match" for some time to come. We expect the process to drive down the prices of MacBooks over the next few years and at the same time allow Apple to continue to lead in the innovation department. Design changes should come much more rapidly with rapid prototyping.

The newly designed MacBooks are still on target for an October 14th announcement and the press should be getting invites within the next few days. There are still so many questions to be answered. I am sure Steve Jobs will enjoy answering them.

Where does PA Semi fit into this? What about former Segway CTO, Doug Field who was hired as Apple VP of product design a few months ago?

We realize that a lot of people will be skeptical but bear with us for a few weeks. Remember when we said there were going to be aluminum iMacs? Fat nanos? iPod Touch? Slim, MacBook Air? Basically, every major product that Apple has released over the past 15 months. We are putting a lot on the line here for this mother of all rumors...wish us luck :D

(oh, and sorry for the riddling...it was at the behest of our source)

source: 9to5mac.com

Craig Ferguson Apple & Microsoft Jokes

2008-10-04T13:33:00.007-04:00

Here are 2 videos of Craig Ferguson telling some Apple & Microsoft jokes, enjoy.

Microsoft, Wake Up and Smell Defeat!

iPhone Spanks Microsoft

Windows XP Gets Another Six Months to Live: Will Not Go Gently Into that Good Night

2008-10-04T13:16:00.003-04:00

According to a leaked email from a PC OEM, Microsoft has officially extended the life of its now-beloved Windows XP, moving the date of planned obsolescence from January 31, 2009 all the way to July 31, 2009. In the wake of its very expensive ad campaign promoting (in a roundabout way) Vista, the move is a bit surprising. Essentially, Microsoft is trying to let users skip Vista completely, moving directly from XP to its forthcoming OS, Windows 7. The deadline for OEMs to include Windows XP recovery discs has been pushed back a couple of times already, and apparently some Microsoft hardware partners want it even further in the future than July. XP has become the Bill Clinton of OSs (stay with me here): yeah, it was great at the time, but it's showing its age and its enthusiasm for the new guy is sometimes suspect. Windows 3.11 in 2008!

source:gizmodo.com

Sec Hunting for Steve Jobs Rumor Starter

2008-10-04T12:45:00.007-04:00

I'm sure by now we all have heard about the Steve Jobs so called "heart attack" was just a rumor. The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating “Johntw,” the as-yet unidentified rumor mongerer who briefly drove Apple stocks down nearly 10% Friday before Apple PR finally broke its silence and let it be known that Steve Jobs had not, in fact, suffered a heart attack?

Rumors are not uncommon for Apple, there have been negative and positive for the company. CNN says it is cooperating with the investigation, giving the SEC what information it has about Johntw (most likely limited to an IP number and an e-mail address), and it is possible that the Feds will get their man. Or woman.

I think if someone knowingly starts a rumor or passes on a rumor, they should be punished severely. This is even worse than insider trading. This is deliberate and malicious destruction of value and people’s lives. I hope the SEC gets this "Johntw" and make him an example for all those who find the need to start rumors.

It’s Official: Microsoft Freezes Hiring

2008-10-03T21:49:00.009-04:00

I don't blame Microsoft for the hiring halt, with the economic uncertainties , most companies will be doing the same.

Here is an article from gamercenteronline.com:

Today, according to AlleyInsider, Robbie Bach, who heads Entertainment and Devices (Xbox, Zune, etc), sent out an email last night announcing a freeze at his group at Micorsoft. Prior to receiving the news AlleyInsider questioned Microsoft for comment about the possibility of a companywide hiring freeze. Statement from spokesman Lou Gellos:

“Microsoft will continue to grow and add thousands of new jobs this year, but given the current economic environment we are taking the prudent step of reviewing our hiring plans and will make some adjustments as appropriate. We are optimistic about our prospects for growth and will continue hiring the talent we need to ensure our ongoing success.”

Microsoft Profits vs. $700 Billion Wall Street Bailout

2008-10-03T21:40:00.009-04:00

Microsoft has endorsed the $700 billion Wall Street bailout that President Bush signed into law on Oct. 3. But how’s this for some quick math: Microsoft’s annual profits could pay the entire $700 billion sum faster than some US homeowners can pay off their mortgages. Here’s how.

Let’s do some quick math. Microsoft’s net income was $17.681 billion for its fiscal year ended June 2008. Now, assume those annual profits hold steady until the end of time. (Hey, it could happen.)
If Uncle Sam invoiced Microsoft for the entire $700 billion bailout (and let’s assume we don’t charge Microsoft interest…), the software giant could pay off the $700 billion balance in roughly 39 years and seven months.

At that rate, Microsoft could pay for the bailout faster than some US homeowners will pay off their mortgages.
My Fellow Americans: Thank You

Brad Smith, senior VP and general counsel at Microsoft, isn’t offering to pick up the $700 billion tab. But he is praising the government bailout plan.

According to a statement from Smith released Oct. 3:

Congressional passage of the financial recovery package is a critically important step to bringing back economic stability in the U.S. and around the globe. This crisis affects more than just the U.S. financial sector, it affects every corner of the world economy, and today’s vote will help re-instill confidence around the globe. Microsoft is pleased to see members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate come together to pass this important legislation. I particularly appreciate the support of the Members of the Washington State delegation who cast their vote today to help preserve jobs in all sectors of the economy of Washington state and across the U.S.

Yada, yada, yada, thank you Main Street USA for bailing out Wall Street.

source:thevarguy.com

Apple Getting Sued-iPhone Antitrust

2008-10-03T19:45:00.008-04:00

Apple is getting sued for forcing customers to use AT&T after their contract ends, violating antitrust laws. Although I don't want Apple to get sued, part of me is happy because like many others, I would like to use another carrier with the iPhone.

Here is the link to the document filed: Case 5:05-cv-05152-JW Document 144

Citizen “Journalist” Hits Apple Stock With False (Steve Jobs) Heart Attack Rumor

2008-10-03T13:08:00.013-04:00

Seems like a lot of people want Steve Jobs dead lately....Here is an article from techcrunch.com...

Apple’s stock took a temporary 10-point hit this morning after a false report surfaced on CNN’s iReport that Steve Jobs had a heart attack. The report has been removed, but only after Silicon Alley Insider and others confirmed with Apple that Jobs did not have a heart attack. And the stock jumped right back up to its opening levels. SIA captured the original report:

Steve Jobs was rushed to the ER just a few hours ago after suffering a major heart attack. I have an insider who tells me that paramedics were called after Steve claimed to be suffering from severe chest pains and shortness of breath. My source has opted to remain anonymous, but he is quite reliable. I haven’t seen anything about this anywhere else yet, and as of right now, I have no further information, so I thought this would be a good place to start. If anyone else has more information, please share it.

Was this just a short seller trying to make a quick buck, or someone trying to see how fast and far they could spread a false rumor? And what does it say about the value of citizen journalists?

Rather than fight the rise of citizen journalism, CNN decided to try to co-opt it by launching iReport. CNN’s iReport site lets anyone put up posts and videos about the news. Its tagline is “Unedited. Unfiltered. News.” Sometimes these reports get on CNN proper (presumably, after being vetted).

But as this incident shows even the an unvetted report carries more weight than if it had appeared on Twitter or a random blog because it is on a CNN site. And that may be purely because it gets distributed more broadly. It could also be because people tend to believe what they read on CNN-branded sites.

Let’s not let one bad apple ruin the whole experiment, though. Obviously, there are a lot of smart people out there who can contribute to general news gathering. There needs to be a better truth filter on iReport and other sites that allow the anonymous reporting of news. A better reputation system for contributors would help. They should be encouraged to use their real names. And maybe a bigger disclaimer needs to be placed up top saying: “Read At Your Own Risk.”

Apple can also learn a lesson from this. The stock would not have dropped so much if there wasn’t already a deep level of concern for Steve Jobs’ health and if the market knew who might take over in case of an emergency.

Here is a previous post on how Steve Jobs responded to his death rumors.
http://gatesandjobs.blogspot.com/2008/10/steve-jobs-responds-to-accusations-of.html

The Real PC Guy

2008-10-03T02:09:00.010-04:00

Here is an Ad by Microsoft, trying to discredit Apples stereotype of PC users in their "I'm a Mac, I'm a Pc" Ads. The point is simple: Not all PC users look like John Hodgman. Its so funny how much the guy in this ad , Sean Siler, looks like the PC guy, John Hodgman, from the Apple ads. One of Microsoft's latest commercials had Sean Siler's email address right inside, you can email "him" at sean@windows.com if you want.

15 Funny Apple Ads

2008-10-03T01:59:00.009-04:00

I absolutely love the "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" Ads, they are creative and funny. I believe this ad campaign has done well for apple, sure they have had great returns from it, as Microsoft has started to campaign with its own ads. Below is a video of some of my favorite apple ads.

Microsoft Vietnam Assists SMEs in Legalising Software

2008-10-02T16:30:00.009-04:00

Microsoft Viet Nam has launched an open license publication (OLP) programme to help small- and medium-sized enterprises legalise their Windows software applications during the fourth quarter of 2008.

With the exception of the Windows operating system, it will be possible to transfer other Microsoft products purchased under the open license publication from one computer to another whenever an enterprise upgrades or replaces its old PCs.

According to a report published recently by the Software Business Association, Vietnam’s copyright infringement rate has reduced from 88% in 2006 to 85% in 2007. However, the country still suffers losses of 200 million USD per year as a result of copyright infringements.

Microsoft is planning to publish additional information relating to the OLP in the near future to help businesses improve their understanding of Microsoft’s licensing mechanisms.

source:vnbusinessnews.com

Windows 7 to Finally go Public in Late October

2008-10-02T16:16:00.008-04:00

I'm curious to how Windows 7 will do, after a disappointing Windows Vista, I'm ready to move on.

Attendees at Microsoft’s Professional Developer Conference next month are in for a treat: everyone going will get a 160GB hard disk with a copy of all the software on show, including Windows 7. “Software + Services” is the company’s big idea at this PDC, and, as previously announced, Microsoft will be showing off—and giving out—a new cloud computing framework.

Though there’s sure to be interest in the cloud computing software, the software giveaway just got a whole lot more exciting with the news that attendees will receive a “pre-beta” build of Windows 7. Mindful of the lukewarm reception that Windows Vista received on its eventual release, Microsoft has thus far kept quiet about the next version of Windows; this time around, the company wants to make sure that expectations match with the software that will actually be released.

Past demos have shown off the OS’s new multitouch features, and it has been confirmed that many built-in applications will be removed and replaced with “Windows Live”-branded downloads. More speculatively, it’s likely that there will be improvements to the taskbar, greater resolution independence, faster booting (and generally better performance), and an improved installation experience. PDC will be the first time developers get to see Windows 7 in its entirety and this is sure to be a highlight of the event.

One issue that MS has remained quiet about is the all-important question, “When will 7 be released?” Some time in 2009 has been widely assumed (thanks in no small part to some loose words by Bill Gates), but more official statements are “three years after Vista,” where “three years” means anything from “three years and zero months” to “three years and eleven months.” Vista went RTM at the end of November 2006 and was made generally available at the end of January 2007, so that pushes 7 to the end of 2009 or, more likely, to 2010.Although the 2009 claim has been made often, it seems rather optimistic if past Windows releases are anything to go by. Microsoft’s ambitions for Windows 7 are more modest than they were for Windows Vista. Indeed, its server counterpart has already been named “Windows Server 2008 R2?, which gives a sense of the scale Microsoft is aiming for; if it weren’t for the stigma attached to the Vista name, I doubt anyone would even be talking of “Windows 7.” This release will be “Vista R2? in all but name. Microsoft’s last release with this kind of scale was Windows XP. As such, a comparison with XP’s development seems appropriate.

An alpha of “Windows Neptune” (a home-oriented update to Windows 2000) was made in December 1999, with a later beta release in April 2000. Neptune was then combined with “Windows Odyssey” (a minor update to Windows 2000 for business users) to create Windows Whistler—the codename that XP used during its development. The first Whistler beta shipped at PDC 2000, on July 13th. Beta 1 was released in October 2000, beta 2 in March 2001, Release Candidates 1 and 2 both in July 2001, with the final build in August of 2001. This gives between 12.5 and 14.5 months from first beta to final software.

To finish in 2009, therefore, would require Windows 7 to go from “pre-beta” to RTM within the same timeframe as it took XP to go from beta to RTM. This isn’t impossible, but it doesn’t leave much room to maneuver. To get into stores for the holiday season would leave even less time; given the two month lag between RTM and retail availability, 7 would have to be finished less than a year from now.

Windows 7 has already been in development for a couple of years (if not more), of course, which might give it an advantage over XP, but in practice I don’t think that this will allow MS to significantly condense the beta period. Real user testing takes time, and there’s not much that can be done about that. Further, in spite of its longer development, Windows 7 will be at a slightly less advanced stage than XP was on its first public outing (pre-beta, whatever that may imply, versus beta). It wouldn’t be surprising if we had to wait another few weeks to get a true beta.

After the missteps of Vista, Windows 7 has got to hit the ball out the park; Microsoft needs this release to win back the mindshare that it has lost in the time since Vista’s release. The company can’t afford to let quality slip just to attain a release date. Putting it all together, I wouldn’t expect to see Windows 7 before early 2010. 2009 just seems too far, too fast.
The above image is from Microsoft Paint, which would see a major facelift since its Windows 95 applications installment. Similar enhancements are expected in a lot of while the Sidebar may be omitted from the design. But that doesn’t mean, that the Widgets would be gone altogether. You can now add them to the desktop directly.

sources: clipbit.com, sizlopedia.com

iTunes Shutdown Threat Probably as Dangerous as Large Hadron Collider

2008-10-02T16:09:00.006-04:00

Today the US Copyright Royalty Board is going to decide if they agree to increase music royalty payments as requested by the National Music Publishers Association, and for some reason the British are panicking over the idea that the Apple iTunes Music Store will shut down because of this. The reason for their hysteria is a Board at the Library of Congress deposition by iTunes vice president Eddy Cue in 2007:

If (iTunes) was forced to absorb any increase in the... royalty rate, the result would be to significantly increase the likelihood of the store operating at a financial loss - which is no alternative at all. Apple has repeatedly made it clear that it is in this business to make money, and most likely would not continue to operate [iTunes] if it were no longer possible to do so profitably.

As a result of this, the limey yellow press and the BBC are talking about music apocalypse today, Nostradamus style, as if they were one of those crazy potheads who keep writing to us about how the Large Hadron Collider is going to assplode and take the reality fabric with it.

Well, here's a note to all those who are trying to spin this for their own benefit, saying that Apple is "holding its customers to ransom by threatening to shut down its iTunes music download site": Not only there's no ransom because Apple's protected material keeps working even while the store is not but, quite simple, it's just not going to happen.

source: gizmodo.com

Microsoft still paying people to search

2008-10-02T15:52:00.006-04:00

Microsoft seems a little desperate these days, and who can blame them, they have major competitors like Apple and Google giving them sleepless nights. But the act of desperation route won't work, paying people to use your service, as it would show weakness to the public. Customers should not be corralled into using your product, one should provide the incentive, that the product works for the customers benefit and will help them.

Here is an article from cnet.com:

Microsoft's latest effort to get people to use its search service is something called SearchPerks, which gives people points for using the search engine that can later be redeemed for prizes.

Users who agree to download a small program to track their usage get one "ticket" per day for every Live Search query, up to 25 per day. The program runs through April, at which point users can "cash in" the tickets that they get and trade them in for prizes or donate them to a charity.

It's the latest in a series of financial incentive-related projects from Redmond, joining such efforts as Live Search Club, Search and Give, and Live Search Cashback, a program Microsoft introduced in May.

The latest project doesn't just require one to use Microsoft's search engine, however. At least for now, it also requires Microsoft's browser (Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher) as well as a Windows PC. Microsoft said those latter restrictions are not necessarily permanent.

"At this time, SearchPerks is a limited promotion, though we remain open to expending availability of the promotion to different browsers and operating systems based on consumer interest," Microsoft said.

There's also the broader question of what it says about Live Search overall that Microsoft has to keep coming up with gimmicks to get people to try it. Not to mention the fact that Microsoft has continued to struggle to make inroads on Google in overall share, promotions notwithstanding. According to figures recently released by ComScore, Google increased its share of the U.S. search market in August--it's at 63 percent--while Yahoo and Microsoft both slipped a bit, to 19.6 percent and 8.3 percent respectively.

In an interview, Live Search Senior Director Frederick Savoye said that the new business models, as Microsoft likes to refer to these programs, are just one part of a three-prong strategy that includes continued improvements in core search as well as in vertical search, or "simplifying key tasks" in Microsoft parlance.

Microsoft has seen mixed results with its incentive programs. Live Search Club, for example, gave Microsoft an initial boost, but its gains appear to be directly tied to its level of incentives. With Live Search Cashback, Microsoft said it has seen some advertisers boost their Live Search spend. eBay, in particular, is spending 50 percent more on Live Search thanks to Cashback, which Microsoft says offers significantly higher conversion rates than traditional search.

On the broader goal of boosting Microsoft's share of the commercial search business, Savoye said, Cashback has yet to make a meaningful shift in share. "We haven't seen it move significantly yet," Savoye said.

PR Director Whitney Burk said that programs such as SearchPerks are still needed to introduce people to Microsoft's search product.

"We know we have some challenges with the brand and perception," Burk said. "Simple awareness is still a challenge for us."

People can sign up for SearchPerks through the end of the year, or until Microsoft reaches its target of 250,000 participants. Rewards can be earned through April, though Microsoft may decide to extend or expand the program.

In pilot testing, Microsoft said it saw those in the program perform three times the number of searches they had been doing. Savoye noted that in the airline industry, for example, loyalty programs have become a standard part of doing business.

"Over the long-term these programs have changed people's behavior," he said.

Apple Drops iPhone Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA)

2008-10-01T19:18:00.012-04:00

Apple has announced that they have dropped the iPhone Non-Disclosure Agreement for released iPhone software.
We have decided to drop the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for released iPhone software.

We put the NDA in place because the iPhone OS includes many Apple inventions and innovations that we would like to protect, so that others don’t steal our work. It has happened before. While we have filed for hundreds of patents on iPhone technology, the NDA added yet another level of protection. We put it in place as one more way to help protect the iPhone from being ripped off by others.

However, the NDA has created too much of a burden on developers, authors and others interested in helping further the iPhone’s success, so we are dropping it for released software. Developers will receive a new agreement without an NDA covering released software within a week or so. Please note that unreleased software and features will remain under NDA until they are released.

Thanks to everyone who provided us constructive feedback on this matter.

Apple is expected to release a new version of the NDA next week which will still cover unreleased software and features. This move should open up discussion between developers as well as publication of books on the iPhone SDK. Both activities have been limited due to the continuation of the non-disclosure agreement.

source:macrumors.com

Microsoft Surface-I Can't Wait

2008-10-01T10:16:00.012-04:00

In 2007 Microsoft launched its new product category called "Surface", a tabletop computer that breaks down barriers and provides effortless interaction with information using touch, natural gestures and physical objects. I was blown away when I first saw it, Surface is amazing and will change computing on the whole.

Currently its only for sale to commercial entities, such as Restaurants, Hotels, Retail Locations and Casino Resorts, where consumers can interact with it. It does carry a hefty price tag, but Microsoft plans to release a cheaper consumer version, which I can't wait for. It has futuristic capabilities and very user friendly. think Surface will get Microsoft back in the innovative part of the computing industry, as they have been tagging along behind Apple for last 5 to 7 years. I'm curious to see what Apple will come up with to compete with Surface.

Microsoft's Surface Ad

Microsoft Surface Demo

Microsoft Launches Website for New Xbox Experience

2008-10-01T01:14:00.006-04:00

Microsoft still hasn't given an exact release date for when the "New Xbox Experience" dashboard overhaul will be released, but if you want to get an early impression of what to expect (coated in a delicious glaze of Microsoft's promotional exaltations), then head over to their new website -- itself modeled on the new navigation method coming in the update -- that's filled with videos that do just that.

Among the promotional videos to watch are an overall recap of what the new features will include (hosted by none other than Xbox Live GM Marc Whitten and Xbox Live corporate vice president John Schappert), as well as videos specifically showing off the new friends features, and how the Avatars work. That Avatar video, by the way, has the tag-line "Dress yourself up, or go a little wild," which at least seems to indicate the ability for virtual streaking, but it's more likely just an unfortunate choice of words.

Again, there's still no release date, but a recent rumor indicated this overhaul would go live in November. We'll have more on the New Xbox Live Experience soon, so stay tuned.

source: 1up.com

Steve Jobs Responds to Accusations of Dying

2008-10-01T01:01:00.014-04:00

In case you missed my personal favorite moment of the Apple Let's Rock Event, here's how Steve Jobs responded to early leaks of his own death.

source:gizmodo.com

Apple's Digital Music Showdown

2008-10-01T00:52:00.007-04:00

A ruling this week could force online music sellers to pay publishers more money - as an Apple threat to close iTunes looms.

NEW YORK (Fortune) -- For five years, Apple's iTunes Music Store has been the Internet's most successful music store. But as music publishers have sought a higher share of its proceeds, Apple has threatened to shutter iTunes.

The Copyright Royalty Board in Washington, D.C. is expected to rule Thursday on a request by the National Music Publishers' Association to increase royalty rates paid to its members on songs purchased from online music stores like iTunes. The publishers association wants rates raised from 9 cents to 15 cents a track - a 66% hike.

Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) declined to discuss the board's pending decision or its previous threat to shut down iTunes. But it adamantly opposes the publishers' request. In a statement submitted to the board last year, iTunes vice president Eddy Cue said Apple might close its download store rather than raise its 99 cents a song price or absorb the higher royalty costs.

"If the [iTunes music store] was forced to absorb any increase in the ... royalty rate, the result would be to significantly increase the likelihood of the store operating at a financial loss - which is no alternative at all," Cue wrote. "Apple has repeatedly made it clear that it is in this business to make money, and most likely would not continue to operate [the iTunes music store] if it were no longer possible to do so profitably."

The Copyright Royalty Board is a three-judge panel that oversees statutory licenses granted under federal copyright law. That includes setting royalty rates for music sales. The current proceeding followed the expiration last year of a 1997 decision that had governed sales of so-called physical music products like CDs for a decade. The board's forthcoming decision, its first affecting digital sales, will set royalty rates for the next five years.

It's hard to believe that Apple will actually shut down iTunes if it doesn't get its way. Apple has shrewdly used the store to help sell iPods, its most popular product. Before the computer manufacturer opened the store in 2003, there was virtually no place for iPod owners to purchase digital music on the Internet. So iTunes helped grow the market for the device by appealing to people who didn't want to patronize illegal file-sharing services and risk a music industry lawsuit.

A fee hike nobody wants to pay

Piper Jaffray estimates that Apple will sell 2.4 billion songs this year, giving it an 85% share of the digital music market. But Apple's rhetoric illustrates the challenges that the nascent digital music industry faces.

The Recording Industry Association of America says sales of digital songs and albums rose 46% last year, to $1.2 billion. But as Cue notes in his statement, Apple's profits from iTunes remain slim. This is because Apple doesn't think the market is strong enough for it to raise its 99-cents-a-song price.

"I have no doubt that an increase in the per track price would lower total music purchases at the store," the Apple executive said in his statement.

Apple pays an estimated 70 cents of every dollar it collects per song to the record companies responsible for each track. The record companies turn over nine cents to the music publishers who control the copyrights to these tunes.

The record companies are in no mood to pay the proposed royalty increase out of their pockets. Not when CD sales, their one-time cash cow, fell last year by 20%, to $7.4 billion. They are asking the Copyright Royalty Board to abandon the fixed per-song payment in favor of 8% of wholesales revenues.

The Digital Media Association, which represents Apple and other online music services, is seeking an even lower rate of 4.8 cents a track, or 6% of "applicable revenues."

"No one disputes the impact of rampant Internet-based piracy in the marketplace," the association's lawyers said in July 2 filing. "The result is drastic reduction in the sales of recorded music in all formats and intense downward pressure on retail prices - along with a brutally difficult competitive environment."

The music publishers are unmoved. They argue that the digital music market is growing and that they should get a higher rate because all parties in this squabble will ultimately prosper. "I think we established a case for an increase in the royalties," said David Israelite, president of the National Music Publishers Association. "More importantly, we were able to beat back the proposal that could be a [royalty] cut."

Israelite said he opposed any attempt by companies like Apple and its record label allies to do away with the fixed royalty rate. "Apple may want to sell songs cheaply to sell iPods," he said. "We don't make a penny on the sale of an iPod."

source: cnnmoney.com

What's The Worse Apple Can Do?

2008-10-01T00:34:00.009-04:00

Once again, it's a tale of Apple restricting what can and can't be done with its devices. Apple's heavy-handedness has been slammed in all quarters. Developers are horrified, and podcaster Dave Weiner put their dilemma succinctly:

I wouldn't invest in or develop an iPhone app because Apple could decide not to approve it, and if they don't approve it you can't sell it. You can't even give it away. You don't find out if you've been approved until the last step, after you've fully invested, so you could lose, totally, if Apple says no.

It's crazy how Apple is taking advantage of their loyal customers. They are completely restricting open source to an extreme. Not being allowed to talk about your product and be able to further it developmentally is ridiculous.

click on image to enlarge

How To Make Microsoft Cool Again

2008-09-29T21:53:00.013-04:00

After leaving everyone a little confused with the Seinfeld portion of their Crispin Porter + Bogusky helmed ad campaign, Microsoft aired the second installment last night. The new commercial, titled “I’m a PC,” goes straight at Apple’s “Mac vs. PC” ads with a bunch of people (including Pharrell) claiming that they’re PCs, implying that they’re not actually lames like Apple says they are. While these new ads are better than the first bunch, we’re still kinda confused.

We thought these ads were supposed to tell people why Window’s isn’t wack, but they don’t even mention Microsoft or Windows, let alone any of its features. WTF? Who cares if astronauts and animal trainers use it? You’re supposed to be telling the people who want to look cool with a Macbook why they should stick with Microsoft. Now, before we get ahead of ourselves, Microsoft still has the computer game on lock with a damn near 90% market share, but they got problems. Maybe they should focus on them instead of making commercials. We got some suggestions on how they can step up…

1. MERGE THE XBOX AND WINDOWS TEAMS
Ask anyone under the age of 40 what the best Microsoft product is, and they’ll probably tell you Xbox 360. Besides the dreaded Red Ring of Death, everything about the 360 is dope. It has the best game selection, powerful hardware and, most importantly, the best software available on any console. Playing online with friends on PS3 is straight up painful, while Xbox Live makes it effortless and it looks great. Two things that are seldom said about Windows.

2. BE MORE PROACTIVE
For a company as large and rich as Microsoft, you would think they’d be a beacon of innovation. But most of their consumer products seem to be answers to products that are already successful, like the Zune and Windows Live. Now the Zune and Windows Live aren’t bad products, they’re actually pretty damn good. But it’s hard to stand out when you’re #2. They need to take more risks with their products, bring in some innovators and stop trying to create things to destroy popular products.

3. FIRE STEVE BALLMER
Besides their slick, attractive, innovative products, there’s one reason Apple is able to stay on top and his name is Steve Jobs. People only hear or see Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer when he’s pissed off and ranting about one of their competitors. No one wants to buy products from him. Microsoft needs a charismatic figurehead that people actually like to peddle their products to the masses. A good salesman can sell anything, no matter how wack. Just ask Diddy.

4. FOCUS AND SIMPLIFY

When they launched Windows Vista, they launched FOUR different versions! When your average user walks into the computer store, they just want to pick up Windows and keep it moving. If they get confused at all, that’s a problem. And when it comes to Windows, people have been very confused. They need to trim the fat and focus on doing a couple things really well.

5. OPEN MICROSOFT RETAIL STORES
Microsoft seems to think that their main problem is one of perception. That people only think Windows sucks because Apple and a lot of the media has said it sucks. And they’re kinda right. If they want to really change people’s perception of Windows and all things Microsoft, they need to let people experience it first hand, on their terms. They need a Microsoft retail store. The only time people experience their products is when they go to Best Buy or some other store where they speak to poorly-trained sales people. If Microsoft had their own store, they’d be able to give people the entire Microsoft experience. Whatever that may be.

Source: Complex.com

Anatomy of an Apple rumor: ‘The Brick’

2008-09-29T11:04:00.010-04:00

Like nature, the Apple rumor mill abhors a vacuum, and for much of this month it has been filled with talk of “the Brick.”

What is the Brick? The question was first posed the day after Steve Jobs’ “Let’s Rock” keynote address by Cleve Nettles on the Apple blog 9 to 5 Mac. He wrote that a tipster with “a solid track record” told him that the mid-October introduction of a new line of MacBooks (see here) is “all about the Brick.”

“What does ‘The Brick’ mean?” Nettles asked his readers. “Can anyone out there help us out?” (link)

Readers were happy to oblige. Hundreds of messages, dozens of blog postings, and at least two reader polls later, no definitive answers have emerged. Speculation reached a fever pitch this weekend after The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) reported that Apple had e-mailed resellers with instructions to remove and destroy all Apple TV displays and literature by 5 p.m. Sept. 30, when a webcast “kick off” was supposedly scheduled. Could the Brick be the long-awaited arrival of Apple TV, Take 3?

The Sept. 30 deadline, it turns out, is the anniversary of the debut of those Apple TV store displays, which suggests that the company may simply be destroying some outdated print material containing screen shots whose permissions have run out. (link)

But that hasn’t slowed the flood of ideas about what Steve Jobs might have up his sleeve next. As is often the case with Apple watchers, the speculation says more about their needs and fantasies than Apple’s (AAPL) product plans.

So what’s on their wish list? A sampling of what some have suggested the Brick might be:

An Apple TV with a built-in Blu-Ray disk, TV receiver, digital TV recorder and its own App store (link)
A new Apple-branded gaming system (link)
A Time Capsule with “smarts” that functions as an iTunes server (link)
A redesigned and much more powerful Mac Mini (link)
The announcement that Apple has aquired TiVo (TIVO) and is discontinuing the Apple TV (link)
A tablet-sized Mac with a touch-screen keyboard (link)
A low-cost MacBook to compete in the sub-notebook market (link)
A wireless USB hub that that links keyboards, mice, DVD drives, networking, hard drives, new displays (link)
Nothing brick-shaped, but rather a product or group of products sexy enough to “smash” Microsoft’s (MSFT) Windows once and for all (link)
My favorite reader comment, posted by “cardiomac” on TUAW in response to a suggestion that the Apple TV was “not meant to be a computer,” borrows from the “The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock“:

No! I am not a computer, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advise the prince; no doubt, an easy tool,
Deferential, glad to be of use,
Politic, cautious, and meticulous;
Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse;
At times, indeed, almost ridiculous—
Almost, at times, the Fool. (link)

Source: cnnmoney.com

Young Bill Gates

2008-09-28T18:03:00.009-04:00

In 1977 Bill Gates was arrested for speeding.

A Look At Apple's 2 Steves

2008-09-28T16:23:00.006-04:00

A picture of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak (Founders of Apple), taken in 1976.

Microsoft's Jerry Seinfeld & Bill Gates Ads Not Cancelled!

2008-09-28T15:55:00.006-04:00

What is going on with Microsoft, first they cancelled the Bill Gates & Jerry Seinfeld Ads, now there are reports that the Ads are not axed. Microsoft should do itself and everyone a favor, and don't do anymore of those boring Ads.

Here is an article I found of gizmodo.com

Microsoft Ads featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld Not Cancelled.

From a trusted Crispin Porter + Bogusky source, we've learned that some sites have jumped the gun and that the Microsoft Gates/Seinfeld ads have not been axed. It's true, Microsoft apparently asked the agency to focus on the new "I'm a PC" spots. And it's true, the agency has gotten plenty of "I don't know what this means" response in their measured statistics of the Gates/Seinfeld ads. But no one has pulled the plug on the dynamic duo just yet.

In fact, CPB has another completed spot featuring the lovable, affluent couple in the can, ready to air (even though it won't quite yet). And while the agency has prioritized development to the anti-Mac ads, there are still full plans to go ahead and produce more Seinfeld/Gates spots unless Microsoft were to pull the plug first (which, once again, they have not at this time).

It's good to know that in a time of economic uncertainty, Gates and Seinfeld haven't been laid off just yet.

UPDATE: We talked to our source again after speaking to Rob Reilly from CPB. While Rob Reily has denied that another Gates/Seinfeld ad is sitting in the ready, our source confirms, once again, that it is. Our source explains that if the Mac/PC ads running now prove to be successful, there's a good chance that last Gates/Seinfeld spot will air.

However, there's even more of an indication now that Microsoft aggressively cut the Gates/Seinfeld spot production short, canceling the shoot for a fourth spot just three days into production. The spots were intended to be part of a running series with up to 12 planned spots conceptualized. Now it's unclear whether or not we'll even see the last spot air, let alone Seinfeld come back for reprisal.

Want Windows 7 Early? Gotta Go To Conference

2008-09-26T14:12:00.004-04:00

Who isn't ready for Windows 7? That wiser, stabler, more streamlined OS with Vista's good looks but an even prettier Start button and an alleged 15-second boot time? Heck, even Bill Gates is excited to get on to the next version. You can get your hands on a "pre-beta" version of Windows 7 by attending the Professional Developer Conference (PDC) in LA October 27 to 30, or the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC), also in LA shortly after, from November 5 to 7. Go get them, and then report back to us with some new info.

Microsoft's $300 million ad campaign tumbles with new PC ads

2008-09-26T13:45:00.005-04:00

It wasn't hard to see this coming, Microsoft's ads have been very mediocre and boring. Below is an article from AppleInsider.com.

Microsoft's bizarre campaign to turn $300,000,000 into a marketing message took an even stranger turn Thursday with the airing of the company's latest television commercial: "I'm a PC."

What began as an attempt to associate Microsoft with a smart and comic social relevance turned mean and condescending before being placed on hold indefinitely and replaced by a more defensive series of ads (below) that actually draw attention to Apple by referencing its Get a Mac campaign.

The Mojave Experiment

The first element of Microsoft's effort was the Mojave Experiment, which portrayed the problems of Windows Vista as being a big misunderstanding.

Critics presented that the Mojave ads seemed to portray customers as stupid while delivering a controlled demonstration that tried to deny Vista's widely reported issues rather than answer them with an straightforwardly apologetic solution.

The ads about nothing

Just as Mojave began running into widespread criticism, Microsoft turned attention to a series of ads with Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfield, which promised to "tell the story of Windows."

Instead, the first two ads offered up a story about how Gates buys discount shoes and then the tale of how an unlikely pair of rich house guests might upset teenage girls and slam the door on a star-struck young service person.

Rather than making Gates appear more human, the ads departed from the track and went tumbling off toward the random and often non-sensical comedy style of Seinfeld. The problem of course, is that Seinfeld was an entertainment show 'about nothing' that people watched for passive entertainment; this was an expensively produced advertising message that failed to say anything.

Microsoft promised that the first ads were just a teaser leading up to an expanded series that would get to the point. Yet after seeing the public reaction to the ads, Microsoft's PR group, Waggener Edstrom, put the series on hold, trying to spin the apparent cancelation as a planned progression to phase two, suggesting that the plan all along was to pay Seinfeld $10 million for two surreal teasers.

That story was outed as false when it was revealed that a third ad with Gates and Seinfeld had already been produced, but hasn't yet been aired, and that there is no current plan to publish it.

Crispin Porter + Bogusky

The Seinfeld ads were the work of Crispin Porter + Bogusky, a group with a reputation for doing more daring and original marketing campaigns to get people talking about a product. Interestingly, the group is profiled on Apple Canada's Pro website, related to a project that put four Mac minis hooked up to capture video from mini cameras installed in a Volkswagon Rabbit painted to look like a cab.

For two weeks, the campaign drove the car around New York City "offering perfect strangers free taxi rides in an effort to demonstrate the Rabbit’s ability to negotiate extreme city traffic."

In addition to the Mac minis installed in the car, which the producers described in the article by saying, "we could count on them being dependable and reliable throughout the process," the campaign also set up a series of seven Mac workstations in a hotel room so they could edit and compress the footage and get it up on a website within 24 hours.

It's somewhat ironic that Microsoft's upper management, after hiring Crispin Porter + Bogusky to inject some new life in the the company's brand, hastily decided to yank the ads before they had a chance to go anywhere. Of course, it's also ironic that they chose Seinfeld, who was not only featured in a Think Different ad by Apple back at the height of his popularity (below), but that Seinfeld also prominently displayed Macs in his fictitious apartment throughout the entire run of his TV show.

The circumstances of the Seinfeld ads left the appearance that Gates was trying to buy cool by running along after Apple looking for things to copy, the very thing Microsoft was trying to convey that it wasn't doing.

Your creative is too creative

Additionally, the Seinfeld skits seemed to be doing the opposite of what they intended to do; they actually ending up making Gates look more disconnected, arrogantly infatuated with his own sense of genius, and dismissive of the "regular people" who pay to use his company's products. In dumping them, Microsoft has revealed plans to more directly to take issue with Apple's Get a Mac TV spots.

Gates has bristled at the Get a Mac ads on several occasions before, which comically present John Hodgman as a PC character befuddled by problems, often with Vista. When asked in an interview if he identified himself with the PC character in Apple's ads, Gates stormed out of the studio.

The entire campaign seems to be more focused on Gates' intent to erase his perceived slight in being portrayed as a befuddled nerd rather than in presenting Microsoft as a strong and attractive brand. Microsoft already avoids using its company name on products it wants to market as cool, including the Xbox and Zune.

Those products are nearly irrelevant in comparison to the desktop Windows, Office, and server products that make up the vast majority of the company's revenues and all of its profits. Windows and Office are very high margin products that have enjoyed limited competition.

Get a PC?

Apple's Get a Mac ads are taking a bite into Windows Vista premium sales and more importantly creating a more positive impression of Macs at a time when even the Windows-oriented tech media is complaining about Vista. Allowed to continue, Apple might pull the cornerstone from Microsoft's monopoly machine that sells Windows licenses automatically with every new PC sale.

Microsoft hopes to reverse things by defending the image of the PC character, in part by presenting a generic Hodgman clone complaining about being "stereotyped," and by presenting a series of celebrities and other "everyday PC users" identifying themselves as a PC.

The problem of course is that Apple presents the Mac in contrast to PC because it wants to avoid any unnecessary mention of Windows. By copying Apple's line, Microsoft will be spending millions to advertise the PC rather than the Windows brand.

Further, as PC companies such as Dell and Acer continue to seek new ways to use Linux in place of Windows, and as the top PC vendor HP begins its own efforts to create a Windows alternative as reported by BusinessWeek, the idea of advertising "the PC" would do even less for Microsoft.

Microsoft's 'I'm a PC' campaign created with Macs

2008-09-26T13:29:00.009-04:00

Well what do ya know, good old Microsoft has been busted using Macs to make their ads, what more can I say but, "Priceless".

Here is an article I found on AppleInsider.com

Metadata found on Microsoft's creative copy used in its 'I'm a PC' ad reveals that the graphics were actually produced using Macs running Adobe Creative Suite 3. After the details were published on the Flickr photo sharing site, Microsoft scrambled to polish off the embarrassing details last night

Microsoft's new ad features contrasts a "stereotyped PC user" dressed up like John Hodgman in Apple's Get a Mac ads with a number of people who say, "I'm a PC" apparently to affirm that they run Windows.

However, not even Microsoft itself can wean itself off the Mac, as the metadata discovered by Flickr user LuisDS points out. Microsoft was not only using Macs but also Adobe's software in place of its own Expressions Studio, which the company bills as software that "takes your creative possibilities to a new level."

Boring Ads by Microsoft

2008-09-26T02:05:00.006-04:00

After seeing Microsoft's new ads with Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates , the first thing that came to my mind was, Boring!!. They did a horrible job at these ads, they don't make any sense, and I don't know what they are selling, software? , computers?.

They took a good actor and a good CEO and put them together in lifeless and boring scenarios. Microsoft did a good job with the "I'm A PC" ads, they should have stuck with that.

Here is a video of the first Seinfeld Gates ads launched earlier in September, it seems they are selling shoes.

Steve Jobs' Favorite Sayings

2008-09-25T23:05:00.006-04:00

Here is a video compilation of Steve Jobs and his most favorite and used quotes. Includes quotes such as "Mere mortals" , "Un-belie-vable", "Huge", "Wouldn't it be great", and "pretty cool huh".

Windows Vista Not So Bad

2008-09-25T11:57:00.009-04:00

I recently got a new laptop from my church, for church purposes only, but it gave me a chance to fully work and examine Windows Vista. I currently own an iMac running Mac OSX Tiger and and IBM laptop running Windows XP. I did use Vista before, but not to a full extent. But after 3 weeks of working on it, I have to say, I kinda like it, the interface is nice and clean and windows on the hold seems more organized and functional. I did have any serious problems with it. The UI is attractive, its not as pretty Mac OSX, but it is unique in its own way.

Of course there are some flaws, every OS has them, but one thing that really ruins Vista is all the security alerts. It is extremely annoying, everything must be authorized, every time you try to do something a security prompt pops up. I also had some minor application compatibility issues, which will eventually be resolved with updates by Microsoft, so not worth detailing.

I'm thinking about installing Vista on my iMac(intel) via Vmware or Bootcamp. I'm curious to see how Vista will run an Mac hardware.

Microsoft may have thrown Apple an iPod nano headache

2008-09-24T16:47:00.006-04:00

This is an article I found on Appleinsider.com, the battle continues.

Microsoft may have thrown Apple an iPod nano headache

Apple is notifying some of its customers this week that it will be unable to meet quoted delivery times for its new 16GB iPod nanos, fueling rumors that the company was forced to make a last minute change to the product line, possibly at the hands of rival Microsoft.

In an email to customers Thursday, the Cupertino-based company informed online shoppers in the UK that delivery of 16GB iPod nanos originally slated to arrive between September 17th and 22nd won't ship until the 25th. They're now scheduled to land on customers' doorsteps "on or before" September 29th.

"Please note that these dates are estimated lead-times only. Once your order has dispatched, you will receive a Dispatch Notification email, which will provide you with detailed delivery information," Apple wrote. "Your business is very important to us, and we apologise for any inconvenience that this change may cause."

In the same email, Apple contends that demand for the new iPod nano "has been higher than anticipated" and that it's shipping units "as quickly as possible, but cannot meet the dispatch" dates originally quoted.

That said, there's been an increasing amount of evidence to suggest that 16GB models remain unavailable simply because Apple's original plans for the fourth-generation iPod nano leading up to last Tuesday's event called for only 4GB and 8GB configurations.

As such, it's likely manufacturing ramp of the 16GB models didn't begin until just recently because Foxconn, Apple's iPod manufacturing partner in the East, was busy pumping out 4GB and 8GB models instead. Though unannounced last Tuesday, those 4GB models mysteriously began cropping up at European retailers earlier this week.

On Wednesday, the German blog Cyberbloc quite confidently claimed that that it was told the 4GB models were the result of a production fault that stemmed from Apple's initial intention of marketing only 4GB and 8GB models.

The official response from Apple was on the matter was that it decided to produce a "limited number of 4GB iPod nanos for some international markets." The statement suggests the 4GB models were the afterthought as opposed to the 16GB model, but doesn't explain a motive, why availability of the 4GB models will soon cease, or why they're priced relatively close to the 8GB model.

Separately, AppleInsider has learned that some Apple retail stores actually received marketing material last week for the fourth-generation nanos listing only 4GB and 8GB models, which they were then asked to return. Those materials were said to have priced the players in line with the third-generation nanos -- $149 for a 4GB model and $199 for the 8GB.

This has led some industry watchers to question whether it was Microsoft, for once, who caught its longtime rival to south off-guard and possibly pressed its margins in the process. On Monday September 8th, just one day before Apple chief executive Steve Jobs announced the fourth-generation iPod nano, reports surfaced on Microsoft's plans to introduce an 8GB Zune at $149 and a 16GB Zune at $200 around the same time.

Jobs isn't one to let himself be shown up on capacity claims.

"Both of these are shipping out of our factories. The 8-gig should be in stock the next few days," he said while announcing the new nanos last Tuesday. "The 16-gigs, uhh, hopefully this weekend. Early next week at the latest."

Both of Microsoft's new Zunes contain Wi-Fi functionality and other features absent from the new nanos. Meanwhile, Apple's online store in the US currently lists immediate availability of the 8GB nanos, but a 2 to 4 day wait for the 16GB models. Apple retail stores contacted by AppleInsider said they just began receiving 16GB nanos today, but only in a few colors.

If industry speculation is accurate, and AppleInsider believes the evidence supports the case, then Apple's rumored last-minute switch-up may have saved the company same face.

Even given the higher capacity nanos, the Associated Press on Thursday ran a joint review of the new Microsoft and Apple players, noting that updates to both lines have made the buying decision a difficult one.

"The Zune has a long way to go to become a threat to the iPod," wrote the news agency's Rachel Metz. "But it is getting closer."

Apple moving up in Rank

2008-09-24T16:32:00.007-04:00

Apple has been raking in major profits, with iPhones, iPods, new computers, operating system, and software, making me want kick myself for not buy stocks from them in the 90's when Steve Jobs took over. The company seems to be getting better and better at what they do. I'm always under expectation for what new delicious products they will introduce.

Here is an article from arstechnica.com.

Report: Apple now sixth among worldwide PC manufacturers

Riding the wave of good news about Apple's explosive growth over the past years, market research firm Gartner now says that Apple is the sixth largest PC manufacturer in the world.

Apple has been making significant inroads in the US with both the Mac and Safari browser, enjoying 50 to 60 percent year-over-year growth in Q3 and Q1 2008, respectively. While Apple became the fourth largest PC vendor in the US in Q1 2008, it still doesn't have much of a worldwide market share to speak of when compared to the big hitters like HP, Dell, and Acer who are increasingly competing in low-cost and budget-friendly desktops and notebooks. Nevertheless, after tallying the numbers from PC manufacturers' 2007 sales, Apple is now in 6th place worldwide according to Gartner's numbers, right behind Toshiba who is hovering just under 20 percent.

While this is good news for Apple and its shareholders, Gartner echoes other assessments that Apple may have a tough road ahead considering that PC manufacturers have brought the budget battle to ultra-portable, ultra-cheap notebooks. Asus' Eee PC and its many competitors are ushering in a new era of $400 notebooks and cheap desktops which, as we noted back April, are very appealing to areas like Asia and South America where markets aren't as saturated.

Gates-Chan

2008-09-23T14:24:00.008-04:00

I found this article on networkworld.com, its pretty funny, reminds me of The Simpson's' episode where homers face was used on a Japanese product.

Who the heck is Gates-chan?
Submitted by tkopczynski on Tue, 09/23/2008 - 4:50am.

Ok, I about busted a gut when a co-worker of mine brought this can of interesting food in for me from Akihabara. The can of food is called Oden （おでん）. As you can see from the following picture, there is an interesting little guy on the front whose name is Gates-chan. Yes, that is supposed to be good old Bill Gates!

Not to be confused with a traditional Japanese food, these Oden food cans are apparently very popular within the Japanese Otaku culture. In fact, there is one vending machine in Akihabara that is very famous for dispensing Oden food cans, from which this can most likely came from. :>) On my next trip, I will try to take a picture. Also, on an interesting side note… there are many different foods that you can get in an Oden can. These foods range from Oden-currey, Oden-bread, Oden-ramen, etc…

The whole concept is just buy, pop, and eat!

Before the "I'm a PC, I'm a Mac" Ads.

2008-09-23T13:58:00.005-04:00

With both Apple and Microsoft now battling with Ads, I wanted to take a look back in time, the year of 1984, to where it all possibly started.

Steve Jobs revealing Apple Macintosh live for the first time, in front of 3000 people:

Bill Gates about the Apple Macintosh back then

Microsoft takes the offense in the Ad war

2008-09-23T13:49:00.003-04:00

Well it's about time Microsoft rolled up their sleeves and started to fight back. They have released an Ad to combat Apple's brutal "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" Ads. I think they did a good job, offering a broad perspective of PC users, common, interesting, unusual, famous and important people.

Take a look at the video:

Anyone else thinks Steve Ballmer is Crazy?

2008-09-23T13:23:00.003-04:00

The first time I saw Steve Ballmer(Microsoft's CEO) in action was at a Microsoft Keynote Conference, and I was left in utter shock. He came out shouting, running, screaming, jumping, possibly spitting and scratching. It was horrific, some in the crowd seemed to enjoy it, while others where probably thinking what I was thinking, "This guy has lost his marbles".

I'm not sure what he's trying to do, you can tell its a major act, maybe he's trying to motivate or convince others that Microsoft isn't the boring, uninventive, and non cultured company that is seems to be. I prefer Bill Gates than Ballmer, I'm not a big fan of Gates, but he is more humble and doesn't try to perform, he's just himself.

I found a post on gizmodo.com, showing Ballmer acting crazy again. here is the link:

http://gizmodo.com/5052680/steve-ballmer-goes-nuts-again-to-sell-windows

Steve Jobs #82 on Time's "The 2008 Top 100"

2008-09-23T13:06:00.001-04:00

Steve jobs was listed as number 82 on Time's "The 2008 Time 100". He is was listed under category of "Builders & Titans". Steve Jobs has done an exceptional job increasing Apple's marketability, Apple has seen major growth and successes since Jobs took over as CEO.

Here is the article:

Steve Jobs (Builders & Titans)
By Barbara Kiviat

Steve Jobs is great at playing the countercultural icon. He's a college dropout who once backpacked around India looking for spiritual enlightenment, and he takes only $1 a year in salary. There are righteous battles to fight, and with Macs and iTunes and iPhones, Jobs fights them, taking on the entrenched megaliths that try to dictate our tastes in computers and music and mobile phones.

But don't let the black mock turtleneck and denim trousers fool you. More than anything else, Jobs is a canny CEO who knows how to sell product. Steve Wozniak was the technical genius behind the first Apple computer; Jobs saw the marketability. He now presides over a company with $24 billion in annual sales and 22,000 employees. Jobs, 53, is revered by tech and design geeks, but the world's business-school students may have the most to learn from him. Apple's stock has shot up more than 70% over the past year, thanks to Jobs' strategy of focusing on his most profitable customers and coming up with new things to sell them—the ultra-thin MacBook Air most recently—rather than just chasing more market share.

Jobs may be a celebrity CEO, but he doesn't jump out of airplanes or traipse around Africa with bundles of cash. He is always in character and always on message, so much so that when late-night TV parodies him, he's invariably rolling out some new iProduct . Jobs gets called mercurial, egomaniacal, a micromanager. If that sounds a little like a CEO doing his job, maybe that's because he is—and a mighty fine one.

Battle of the Computer Giants

2008-09-23T00:47:00.004-04:00

The age old battle between Mac and PC, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, and OS X and Vista still continues. For the past couple of years however, it seemed like there was a truce between the two companies, as apple moved to intel chips, allowing windows to be installed on macs, microsoft releasing mac friendly applications, Microsoft designing Vista with Mac OSX type features, also releasing their own portable mp3 player to compete with the iPod. There is a level of competition still there, but one could see these two companies getting closer, as their platforms have already made the step closer.

Could a merger or buyout be possible, if the economy continues in the path its on, it could happen.

This video sums up the battle in a humorous way. Gates versus Jobs

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2008-09-01T00:01:00.001-04:00

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