[LINK] Re: Windows XP versus Vista

[Ivan Trundle]

On 22/01/2008, at 2:14 AM, stephen at melbpc.org.au wrote:

> Now that the majority of the world has access to a computer
> and the Internet,

Is this so? 'Has access' is a very loose term, and I am sure that it  
would not be difficult to announce that 100% of the world 'has access  
to a computer and the internet' - it's just that they need to travel  
to a place with electricity, and a computer, and one with an internet  
connection.

> to maintain that access, Microsoft (the US)
> is demanding new hardware.

Why does this follow? I don't see the connection. In any event, why is  
the United States demanding new hardware?

> Instead, many in Asia and elsewhere
> will seek free alternatives, for example, Red Flag Linux (China)
> which is running on 80-95% of all of China's open source machines.

And if there were only 100 open-source machines in China, that would  
amount to almost 95 machines.

Sorry, but this appears to be a collection of sloppy statistics...

We might well ponder if the computer be made in the east or the west  
(it doesn't matter to me: I'm typing on a machine made in Shanghai),  
but it is inevitable that computers will be designed in places that  
stimulate the most innovation and creative thought, and made in places  
that offer the cheapest labour and manufacturing: the two won't  
necessarily be the same, and are unlikely to be so.

iT

--
Ivan Trundle
http://itrundle.com ivan at itrundle.com
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