[LINK] Even thieves don't want Vista

Richard Chirgwin rchirgwin at ozemail.com.au
Mon Sep 1 14:41:09 AEST 2008


David Goldstein wrote:
> So Karl... what are the facts? I assume you know them? I don't claim in any way Microsoft is perfect, but it's not as bad as made out on this list either. So I guess it's a case of you think you know what's right, or what I was saying. But then, I guess, your prejudices don't make for your story.
>
> As for Richard - some of your complaints are about Office 2007 and not Vista. So some of your complaints are to do with getting to know Office, and while I've never tried to work out if it could be done, I was under the belief you could revert to the pull-down menus if you wanted. And as for the "Microsoft nag screens, and partner nag screens", in over 12 months of using Vista I've not had one of these.
>   
Well, I just looked below, and it was "Microsoft bashing" rather than 
just "Vista bashing" that launched my little rant...  Office is 
Microsoft as much as is Vista, and I hated both the new Office and 
Vista. And I ask again: what is there about Microsoft that it warrants 
defence against perceived unfair treatment or opinions, such that 
anti-MS opinions are nothing more than a "usual Microsoft-bashing 
exercise". (Even if that's true, so what?)

Some less contentious points:
You can't revert to pull-down menus, unless you go out and buy a 
third-party add-on. That caused a certain amount of pain in my life, 
until I found the add-on product ("Classic Menus for Office", from 
http://www.addintools.com). I can live with most things - but not with 
having to support every other user in the house asking "how do I? ..."

Yes, this *is* a complaint about "getting to know Office". It's an 
extremely mundane program - WP, spreadsheet and presentations - and 
there's no good excuse to say to users "we want you to do things our way 
and if you don't like it, tough, because we're ditching the menus and 
we're ditching the macros". In this, at least, I feel no compunction 
calling on the cliche that "the customer is always right": why should I 
change my ways of working, just because someone in the design office got 
bored with menus?

In the case of Vista and Office, having given me sufficient impetus to 
make me go and learn Linux, MS has lost any chance of selling me any 
product, any time. These are experiences, and (finally) a reasoned 
decision - which doesn't fall into the same bucket as prejudice. 
Heavens: I only started into the Linux world a few months back.

RC
> David
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Karl Auer <kauer at biplane.com.au>
> To: Link List <link at anu.edu.au>
> Sent: Saturday, 30 August, 2008 1:52:07 PM
> Subject: Re: [LINK] Even thieves don't want Vista
>
> David Goldstein wrote:
>   
>>> Ahh, the usual Microsoft bashing exercise on Link... 
>>>       
>
> Ah, the usual "my opinions are facts, other people's opinions are
> prejudices" line.
>
> Regards, K.
>
>   



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