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Microsoft and the Lifeboat test

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There is a lot of discussion about Microsoft and RSS (Really Simple Syndication) call it publishing of content on the web. When I started out life on the world wide web…. never mind stick to the point. Whenever MS embraces a new technology, always one that it did not invent, and usually arriving late to the party. They bring to mind a life boat test I remembered long ago. Even before the web (makes me sound older and wiser doesn’t it).

The test goes something like this;

You are stranded on an Island, not even a bad island. You are stuck there with one other person. The only problem is that in order for you to survive on this island, and maybe escape, you need this other person, and he/she needs you also. You are dependent on each other for your survival.

The good thing is, you get to choose who you want to be stranded with!

The choices you have are these two.

A) A bitter, but rational, enemy?
or
B) A good, but irrational and untrustworthy, friend?

It comes up like a rock and a hard spot question. My answer has always been questioned by people I know. And is usually a great conversation starter in these days of survivor TV.

Where would you place Microsoft (A or B) and which would you choose?

More Mactel things

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I received an email with a good point about my rant on MacIntel’s

We’ll see, I guess. I think the CPUs themselves will be standard,
but that the motherboard designs will not.

Why use standard CPUs? Because they’d be cheaper than custom fabs.

In the past Apple boards utilized fewer chips than PC’s instead relying on software and CPUs and ASIC’s. This would make a Pentium unable to perform as fast running windows as a PC type board would. While this would still work, no one would want to install and run Windows on an Apple Intel system. Running Windows Applications, Yes, Windows OS NO! Custom ASICs are more expensive than dedicated chips for I/O etc. So Apple is going to go cheap, then a generic PC mother board via Intel. And we are back into what distinguishes Apple from Dell. Something in hardware is got to give.

But from the Rosette emulation only translating G3 code currently on the Pentium 4 that makes the P4 a third class citizen to the PowerPC G5. The Pentium 4 will need to take two steps forward to put Apple back into the same place it’s at. Again making the idea of a different Pentium being in the works. Not custom, but a new Pentium that doesn’t comply with generic Windows design.

One other note, Why not a new Pentium customized for Linux, It’s the Hear no evil, See no evil, Do no evil. I don’ hear any manufacture asking for a Pentium for Linux, I don’t see anyone building a system for Linux, and I don’t do custom CPU’s without a customer.

Pentium M, Yohan and beyond

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Every one is talking about Chips, Apple will use the same chips as PC’s. What will Apple do to distinguish it’s product from other Dell PC’s using the same chips. What will prevent OS-X from being put on generic PC’s?

The first question one should ask is, will the chip be the same as one available to Dell?

Thinking back to the days of the PowerPC, were the G3, G4 and G5 the same as other chips that IBM manufactured? Answer: No, they all had been created or modified from generic PowerX architecture. The G5, the last, was NOT a Power4 or a Power5 CPU like the ones IBM uses in it’s servers.

Why would you think that the CPU’s from Intel made for the Mactel’s be any different, or rather the same as the CPU’s available for Dell? They won’t be, trust me they will be made to order, and released on Apple’s release schedule, not Intel’s normal method. Do you believe that any discussion with Intel would not include Core designs, release schedule’s and confidentiality?

Intel’s Pentium designs have been to keep up with Microsoft designs. The core, instruction sets and architecture have been compliant with Microsoft’s Windows compatibility in mind. There is no such requirement for a chip designed for Apple. An Intel chip designed FOR Apple does not even have to be compatible with Microsoft. (note this is also the easiest way to prevent OS-X migration (hacks) into the PC world, implement special instruction set extensions, Altivec on Pentium anyone?)

Intel engineer’s are probably dancing in cubicle space with the news that the new chips do not have to be backward compatible with windows. There is freedom in Intel land today. And now you will see innovation in chip design.

And now comes AMD, why not include AMD. The only reason I can think of is AMD is tied to Microsoft designs. And while they have pushed the architecture into 64 Bit instructions better than Intel, it’s still a windows roadmap. AMD is a creative imitator, not a creative innovator.

Think Different

More Windows and Linux issues

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Earlier this week I was helping my wife’s teacher colleagues with fixing windows on a generic Packard Bell computer. Well now my wife’s Sony Laptop, appears to be on the injured player list as well. While she has not been kind to the Sony over the years, it has managed to work. But lately it has been causing her grief. She did manage to drop the thing on the Netgear 401 WiFi adaptor (PCMCIA) and it looks to have broken the connector from the mother board. Windows continued to work and I managed to get her wireless again with a Belkin’s USB WiFi adaptor. And this worked for a while.

Now Windows XP was never stable on this laptop. It regularly locked up, took long pauses for no discernible reason, or generally blue screened. This was something she took in stride, and was fine with. Until the Sony became really unstable. Now it may have been the damage to the PCMCIA mount, or not. And with the assumption that it just needed to have the OS reinstalled, she proceeded.

It’s been three days now, the Sony has yet to operate on windows. After three failed attempts to reinstall Windows. Everything from the install CD’s failing on the third disk with an unknown error, to not being able to install the virus software, to having to uninstall the XP service pack 2 and reinstall it.

This brought my wife to her current dilemma, and breaking point. She has known for a long time that Mac’s just work. And that I have been a supporter of Linux. So we embarked on a journey of exploration for a User friendly Linux install for her Sony. I personally had been dying to try out the different distro’s and had quite a selection. We started with Mandrake (now Mandriva) 10. I had this on CD from one of the magazines. This installed great all three CDs full, and seemed to be going great up until we found we couldn’t use the built in track-pad. Nothing I tried would get mandrake to recognize the mouse.

On to XanderOS this I thought would be good, as one of the applications my wife uses a lot were the MS Office suite. Having CrossOver office on it made it interesting. Mind you we have been Installing OpenOffice on the school machines she is in-charge of at her school. So she was comfortable with the Star Office in this distro. So on to the the install, not a problem even the track-pad worked this time, and I even managed to get it on the internet. On the built-in ethernet adaptor. There was nothing I could do to get it to recognize the Belkin USB adaptor. My wife, a fan of WiFi, (why have a laptop if you can’t use wireless) found this useless.

Lycorius never finished installing, Knoppix, while fine on the liveCD, it was too crude for my wife. And I couldn’t easily install Gentoo, or Ubuntu.

This could just be a broken Sony Laptop, But that’s only part of the problem. While Windows XP did install, it did not provide any better service than it’s previous erratic behaviors. But worse were the Linux installs, either they were too hard to install, or did not provide enough coverage of the hardware to produce a viable laptop operating system. Now I know that Linux may work better on a more generic desk side mini tower. But really, how many people are really using simple generic systems. And how do you win the hearts and minds of the general public, who can barely manage to install Windows XP, if the alternative is in the Linux distro’s which are so bad.

As another thought, from what I can tell, Linux will never be a widely used desktop, until one of the big PC builders Dell, Sony, HP or someone else starts building Linux configured Laptops and desk side systems. Then Joe user could rightly migrate from Windows XP to a safer, and stable Operating system.

I hope someone, an Outsource builder, or overseas manufacture will fill this role. Maybe Lenovo will utilize the IBM think pad design’s and pump out Linux laptops. That would be something to see, something my wife could buy and use.

Mac’s vs Windows and Broadband

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My wife and I spent last Thursday night attempting to get another teacher’s Windows XP system up on their new broadband (DSL) modem. They had been talking to the Eircom techie’s for almost 2 months, the duration of the free trial trying to get connected. As a last resort, this teacher ask my wife, who is the ICT coordinator at the school they both teach in to help. So my wife, a PC user, dragged me, an Mac user, along to help.

I brought my 3+ year old iBook (500Mhz) and the first thing I tried upon arriving was to plug in my laptop. Sure as anything, the Mac pickup the ethernet line and DHCP from the modem, and I was Online.

Knowing that the modem, and the DSL line was working, I proceeded to attempt to get the XP system to connect, I tried the ethernet, I tried the USB, remove network places, reinstalled the DSL software kit. And guess what, nothing. (but you knew that was coming)

What was evident was the spy ware infestation, possible virus’s or worms that were slowing down this 1+Ghz Windows XP system.

End result for the night, nothing. We left them just as we came, no working Broadband. We sent them a CD the next day with anti-spy ware on it, not really expecting it to work. And told them if it didn’t work, find the original install CD’s for their system, and reinstall the OS from the ground up.

I cannot, for the life of me understand how people in the Windows XP world live with an operating system so prone to failure.

Perhaps now that there are a few stores in Cork that are carrying the Mac Mini, which I attempted to sell the people, there my be a turn around.

Perhaps Apple is missing an opportunity here, Mac Mini’s loaners? Let people with PC take one home for a week or so, show them what they are missing. Could be a big thing here in Ireland.