First, read this:
By Sean Fallon on Vista
According to Businesweek, HP has been quietly working on two projects aimed at bypassing unpopular features in Vista and possibly competing with Apple down the line. The first involves developing software that modifies Vista to make it easier to use. That much has been confirmed. However, rumor has it that a second "Skunk Works" operation has been going on behind closed doors that has a much loftier goal—building a customized replacement OS based on the Linux platform.
HP denies funding such an operation, but Phil McKinney, the chief technology officer in HP’s PC division, acknowledged that such conversations may have taken place below senior management levels. Still, he noted that such a project "makes no sense. For us it’s about innovating on top of Vista."
So why do it? Well, it would obviously make HP less dependent on Windows, and if executed properly, a custom OS would make things a little easier on mainstream users. However, HP may have another motive: competition from Apple. HP fears that Apple might eventually make a budget MacBook—cutting deeply into their business. By moving to an open source operating system, they could drastically cut costs. Again, nothing has been confirmed at this point and Microsoft is working hard on updates and spending lots of money on advertising in an attempt to create a more positive impression with consumers. So, we will just have to wait and see what develops. [Businesweek via Electronista]
Ok, now, seriously? Really folks? Easier on customers? Why don’t you go back and ask Steve Jobs how hard it was to get hardware and software support in the last 20 years. So now “customers” have to figure out what software will work and more likely what won’t and hardware? Forget it… nobody is going to waste their time writing and much less supporting drivers for such a mess. The LAST thing we need is another operating system.
Sighs….
It’s amazing how much cheaper computers are these days. I had been working out what I was going to do for a few weeks now, today the decision was made and I decided to upgrade my aging 2.4Ghz P4 to a new machine running Windows Vista.
There are several reasons behind this decision. First I wanted a Vista machine, I am constantly talking about it, I am part of a team to promote it at work, yet I still did not use it at home.
Second, it was time to step up to Dual Core. My machine was getting a little long in the tooth for power.
Lastly, I wanted to check out some of the newer PC games. I had all but decided to order a custom machine from Cyberpowerpc.com when I decided to take a trip to Costco today and see what they had to offer.
I have been out of the “hating consumer machines” mode for awhile now. Sure you have to remove a ridiculous amount of crap software to get it clean (one thing I love about Apple btw, no garbage software on their computers…this isn’t a slam on Microsoft, it’s a slam on HP, they are probably the worst!) So I removed all the crap and started getting stuff set up.
The computer is pretty decent, the basic specs are:
- Intel Core 2 Duo 2.66Ghz Processor
- 4GB Ram
- 400Gb Hard Disk
- nVidia GeForce 8600 GT with 512MB Dedicated VRam
- Windows Vista Home Premium SP 1
- 24″ 1920×1200 LCD Monitor
Not a bad system.
I am still installing software (waiting on Lord of The Rings Online to finish updating, sheesh. Look at the image, that’s right 11,104 updates!)
Then I will finish up with the Macromedia Suite, Office and Photoshop. After that I can start putting this machine through the paces. So far it’s quite snappy and I am really pleased with the features, appearance, etc.
I will get an update out by the weekend with some benchmarks and real world performance tests.
Last word, Damn….24″ Monitors are freakin’ huge.
