Tag: Microsoft

Microsoft: Oh, Contraire, Mr. Gutierrez

The cracks are forming in Microsoft’s latest crap legal battle against the Open Source community.  PC World is now writing articles clearly pointing to the Redmond Monstrosity’s soft white underbelly, hanging in the wind with this new ploy.

Why would a company like Microsoft go to the trouble of making vague threats about some 200+ patents years after they’ve already filed those patents?  They’ve used litigation many times in the past to stomp competition out of the market, as I’ve pointed out earlier.  Why not just pull the cord like always, and why on Earth would they have waited so long?  Because it’s all crap, and Horacio Gutierrez inadvertently hits the nail on the head of why:

PC World – Microsoft Patent Claims Hint at Internal Issues

However, Gutierrez also acknowledged that Microsoft’s decision to seek royalties for patents is a business one. “Microsoft invests over 6 billion in research and development a year, and that’s an investment that results in innovation,” he said. “Our shareholders have a right to expect that we are going to protect that innovation.”

Ah, but you haven’t innovated, and that’s the problem.  Not only has MS not innovated in a long time, they’ve either built crappy versions of other people’s software or just rehashed their own crap. Creating a new OS that’s totally incompatible with current software and hardware whose only stated “benefit” is the ability to prevent users from copying music (the chief reason that most new PC users cite for wanting a computer, actually) or use a bootleg version of the OS.  Ooh!  Where do I buy me a copy of that?

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Microsoft Plays Dirty Pool Again

The below-linked article is probably one of the best-written pieces of journalism on the subject of the Free Software/Open Source community and Microsoft’s relationship with it.  Non-technical readers, fear not!  The best part about this article is that, while it’s long-winded, it’s just technical enough to be accurate without being geek-centric like so many others in this genre. 

In fact, I highly recommend that you read it especially if and specifically because you are non-technical, as it does a good job of laying out the foundations of what is an extremely important issue in the computer world.  It also shows off just how sleazy Microsoft can get in a way which might make more sense to some than the monopoly suit of a few years back:

Microsoft claims software like Linux violates its patents – May 28, 2007

. . . now there’s a shadow hanging over Linux and other free software, and it’s being cast by Microsoft. The Redmond behemoth asserts that one reason free software is of such high quality is that it violates more than 200 of Microsoft’s patents. And as a mature company facing unfavorable market trends and fearsome competitors like Google, Microsoft is pulling no punches: It wants royalties. If the company gets its way, free software won’t be free anymore.

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What are You Searching For, Mrs. Dewey?

This is kinda funny. It seems Microsoft has created a new sorta virtual reality bot-type thang search engine called Mrs. Dewey. The comely mrs. Dewey doesn’t necessarily add much to your searching, as you might expect a bot to do. Rather, she serves as sort of a cheesy, wouldn’t-it-be-great-if automated personality that says things in response to what you type in for a search.

If you’re tempted to type filthy things just to see what she says, let me assure you, you’re not alone in your juvenile pursuits. And in fact, speaking of searching for adult content, perhaps Microsoft should have done the same thing (perhaps on Google, where you get good results) prior to hiring Janina Gavankar to star as the lovely Mrs. Dewey. In doing so, they might have run across Cup of my Blood (FAIR WARNING! There be naked boobs ahead, matie!), the soft-core film of her past.

Not that I personally think that this should really invalidate her as a pseudo-sexual talking Widget, you understand. But I’m afraid that some folks in the upper offices in Redmond will likely not approve.

Oh, God. . . Microsoft is Building Robots. . .

In a shock to self-ambulatory objects everywhere both robotic and organic, Microsoft has thrown down the gauntlet and declared that they can build much better bipedals than God:

Microsoft gives monopoly robotic legs | The Register

Microsoft has answered the robotics industry’s call for a monopoly standard with the release of a new software development package for powering devices of all sizes. The beasty hopes the software will make it easier for students and hobbyists to enter the robotics field and provide a common platform for companies to use.

Oh, my, but that is good news!  Let’s let Microsoft build the robots that do surgery on your eyes, and see what happens when you need a reboot half way through separating your retinas.

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Microsoft Makes Another Run For Cell-Biz

The AP got majorly spun on this deal:

Microsoft Announces Online Gaming Service – Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES – Microsoft Corp. co-founder
Bill Gates on Tuesday announced a cross-platform gaming service that integrates games played on cell phones, Xbox 360 consoles and the upcoming Windows Vista operating system.

“Cross-Platform” means that it’s available for Mac, Linux or any other Operating System (read: “Platform”) available. That is most certainly not what this is about. This is about squeezing out the competitors as usual. This is about Microsoft creating a platform for which online cell gaming is designed, which means eventually creating a Microsoft platform for cell phones.

Mind you, the mobil phone industry has thus-far been unwilling to entertain such an idea. Little wonder, since Microsoft can’t manage to create anything that doesn’t pose a virus threat. The idea now is to create a new market into which only a Microsoft solution can provide the needed infrastructure.

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Microsoft Windows Patch MS06-015 Causing Lockups

Who’d a-thunk it? Microsoft patched causing problems?

Here is information pertaining to the MS06-015 patch that was recently distributed. We will work with {snip} to determine a long-term resolution to this problem. More information to follow.

To all, A Microsoft security patch that was recently pushed is causing desktop problems at 2 Broadway. Please read on. Windows is now running a service called verclsid.exe. It?s a known issue with Microsoft. This is causing some Desktops to lockup in Outlook, Internet Explorer and other application hangs. It can be seen in task manager, processes tab (Seeing this on many Desktops at 2 Broadway Definitely causing issues if the users have any of these HP Devices:

  • ANY HP DESKJET PRINTER
  • HP SCANNERS
  • HP PHOTOSMART SOFTWARE
  • SOME HP CD/RW & DVD/RW

I?ve had 4 tickets this week on this little pest. ?Verclsid.exe.? Please make the other techs aware of this since it makes the PC act as if it where spyware. The quick fix is to kill the service in task manager and then rename the verclsid.exe to verclsid.old. Path=C:\Windows\System32 This stops the service from running. Here is a link for the Microsoft solution: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/918165

Updates to follow. . .

Now, keep in mind, this is the same company that also wants to encrypt the system bus with Microsoft-updated drivers.? Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, to me!