Windows Vista sp1

Well, this week SP1 for Windows Vista came out. I haven’t had any problem with Windows Vista so I wasn’t really waiting for the update but my Windows update icon popped up and said “A new update is available for you“.

Before starting the update I checked the small print on the Microsoft website. There are some drivers which are a problem but Microsoft has build in some kind of mechanism which prevents the automatic update of PC’s with such drivers. I didn’t seem to have this problem so I started the download.

The whole SP1 package is something of 470MB. The update of my machine was only 82MB and was downloaded quickly. Installing the update took about 15 minutes and went on without any hiccups. After the reboot my machine was ready and everything seems to work.

I have been reading on the net about people complaining about not getting the updates, the fact that drivers are not compatible and that Microsoft is not offering the help people want. I agree that Microsoft should do more that only “their best” in solving the problems with driver. On the other hand people should also complain with the other manufactures for not providing drivers which are “Vista compliant”. I recognize the same problem when I have to explain to a customer why a certain software package cannot be used because it is not “Windows XP certified” and the supplier doesn’t want the certify it because it thinks it is costing to much. If only the manufacturer had started of with building a software package which is based on the Windows software principles.
I remember, many years ago,  getting my hands on the Apple Software bible. It was a handbook on how Apple software should be constructed and what requirements it had to meet. If only there weren’t so many manufacturers who are looking for the quick buck and make to many shortcuts.

Scoble goes (again) into a non-issue discussion

Again Robert Scoble has started a discussion about whether Apple is better than Windows Vista (link).
Just like the other instances he is trying to compaire apples and oranges.

Apple
Apple is a hardware and software supplier. It produces software (application and a OS) which will only run on hardware produced and sold by Apple.

Microsoft
Microsoft is a hardware and software supplier, but mostly a software supplier. It produces software (applications and OS) which will will run on any hardware, produced and sold by anybody, as long as it is based on the old PC design.

In his new post Robert complained about that his new Dell which gave him a blue screen while booting. I’ve been using Dell, Fujitsu, Asus, Compaq, Tatung and HP machines and I agree that there are qualilty differences between the brands but also between the models within a brand. None is trouble free and every model I have used needed two or three firmware updates in order to solve problems with OS during it’s lifetime.
So I ask Robert; Is a blue screen the problem of Microsoft or the problem of the hardware supplier.

Windows Vista or not

This weekend I took the plunge and tried Windows Vista on my desktop PC at home. The result: I like it! It is quick, the graphics are refreshing new and most of the software I own works. I know that as with most systems if you do a fresh install, the speed of the OS is the first thing you notice. So comparing it with a 2 year old Windows XP SP2 installation with loads of updates and installs and uninstalls of not fair.

I have been trying Vista since it came out in Beta. I have installed it on Tablet PC’s and as a virtual machines under VMware. Most of the problems I had were due to some hardware features which were not yet supported under Vista or where VMware did fully supported of the OS.
There has been a lot of flag about the security messages a user gets when he or she is doing something the OS things to be a security issue. I cannot say that I find this a problem. I am used to locking down desktops and making it impossible for users to install software and making change the OS. That of course is in a business environment. But I think home users should apply some of principles at home as well.

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Amazon Kindle

Robert Scoble has published his one-week review of the Amazon Kindle. The Amazon Kindle is an eBook Reader much like the Sony Reader and the iLaid from iRex Technologies.

Of the six comments Robert has, some of them are legit but most of them show that he is looking at this too much from a PC point of view.
What is an eBook Reader and what should an eBook Reader be like.
An eBook Reader is an device which should give an user the same user experience when he/she is reading a newspaper or book. That includes:

  1. Be quiet, no fans, no humming, etc.,
  2. Always on, always available,
  3. Size should be book-, tabloid- or full newspaper size,
  4. Weight should be light,
  5. It should be flexible like paper,
  6. User Interface should that of a book or newspaper.

As it is an electronic device, it should be able to:

  1. Refresh content, subscribe to e.g. newspapers and libraries,
  2. Connect Wireless and not be dependent on a connection with a PC,

Suggestions like:

  1. No Social network,
  2. No touch screen,
  3. No ability to send electronic goods to anyone else,

are nonsense and show that Robert is trying to make an eBook reader yet another PC.

The Kindle looks like a nice device but is still no replacement for the user experience of an actual book and newspaper.