mdillenbeck
Distinguished
It wasn't only marketing it early on systems that couldn't handle it, it was also the redesign in the layout of applications (such as MS Office's "ribbon" layout). They no longer follow the same core design that was entrenched in the Windows 3.xx days.
They also hurt themselves with the tiered system they established, with Utimate users like myself mainly paying for a name (course, academic software meant a difference of $5 from business pricing).
Again, there is the catch 22 with 3rd parties who refuse to support the product until we consumers buy it - and so we don't buy it until we see 3rd party support for it.
However, I like to think of solutions rather than just gripe. There are two things which Microsoft could do to keep the consumers happy.
First, they could have included a free license and media for XP with Vista (2 OSes for the price of one) - Home with XP Home, Home Premium with XP Media Center, Business with XP Pro, and Ultimate with XP tablet PC (which is Pro version with inking capabilities).
Alternatively, develop a DX9 virtualization system that is installed with the OS that is tied specifically to that system.
Either of these solutions would solve the compatibility issues that people have, with the first being better if people have performace related issues. The latter could still be done by using the former if the end user waits for something like VMWare 6.5 to hit the market.
As to the Apple marketing - Microsoft has been about as responsive to this as Obama has been to McCain's horrible attacks (McCain says Obama is personally responsible for gas hitting $4 a gallon and says he questions Obama's judgement - last time I checked, Obama doesn't personally set the price at the pump... but I digress). Instead, they sit there and do nothing as every PC user gets called a fat, uncreative, socially inept, middle-aged geek.
They also hurt themselves with the tiered system they established, with Utimate users like myself mainly paying for a name (course, academic software meant a difference of $5 from business pricing).
Again, there is the catch 22 with 3rd parties who refuse to support the product until we consumers buy it - and so we don't buy it until we see 3rd party support for it.
However, I like to think of solutions rather than just gripe. There are two things which Microsoft could do to keep the consumers happy.
First, they could have included a free license and media for XP with Vista (2 OSes for the price of one) - Home with XP Home, Home Premium with XP Media Center, Business with XP Pro, and Ultimate with XP tablet PC (which is Pro version with inking capabilities).
Alternatively, develop a DX9 virtualization system that is installed with the OS that is tied specifically to that system.
Either of these solutions would solve the compatibility issues that people have, with the first being better if people have performace related issues. The latter could still be done by using the former if the end user waits for something like VMWare 6.5 to hit the market.
As to the Apple marketing - Microsoft has been about as responsive to this as Obama has been to McCain's horrible attacks (McCain says Obama is personally responsible for gas hitting $4 a gallon and says he questions Obama's judgement - last time I checked, Obama doesn't personally set the price at the pump... but I digress). Instead, they sit there and do nothing as every PC user gets called a fat, uncreative, socially inept, middle-aged geek.