Microcock Slanders Linux

[Caspa_tfng]

Microsoft is currently training Best Buy employees in the fine art of trashing Linux, teaching them how to best mislead honest consumers into buying Windows 7, otherwise known as Vista SP3.  A lot of what's been taught are nothing but outright lies, such as an apparently gimped hardware and games compatability.  Now I'm new to Linux (currently trying to get to grips with Fedora) and I've encountered no such problems.  The only real incompatability that Microsleaze have mentioned is the lack of Windows Live Essentials, which really, who cares?  I can use Skype, Pidgin and Notepad++ on Linux so there's that base covered.  There's also claims of not being able to install Adobe Photoshop.  I've not given this a try yet, but I'm sure DLotS and a few other Linux users here can elaborate further on that.  Don't exactly need Photoshop either though, there's still plenty of decent image editors out there which support Linux Distros.

As we reported Sunday, the slides, part of an ExpertZone training module designed for Best Buy employees preparing to sell Windows 7, assert that "Linux does not support many common applications and online services like iTunes, Zune, Quicken, Photoshop, and Office 2007." They also dismiss the claim that "Linux is safer than Windows" as a "myth."

One of the best ones, that actually made me chuckle was a quote from one slide.

Linux can require a lot of time to maintain.  For example, Ubuntu (a version of Linux) may have hundreds of updates a month.

This coming from a company that needs to patch its operating systems and products so much that it's got its very own Patch Tuesday where it lumps together vast amounts of patches for us to waste our time on.  Microsleaze are getting deperate because they know what a sham Windows 7 is and they'll do anything to get it to sell before they release a new operating system in 2011, because they know that if people were given a fair shot, they'd drop Windows in a heartbeat for something else.Unfortunately, we've still got a long way to go before that fair shot is seen and more support comes out for competing operating systems.

Here's a nice little collection of sources for you all.

http://www.overclock.net/windows/569458-mi...l-probably.html
http://www.techspot.com/news/36163-microso...-employees.html
http://www.neowin.net/news/main/09/09/07/m...s-targets-linux
http://blogs.computerworld.com/14687/micro...ource=rss_blogs

[Tessera]

Well... let's just use our heads and our common sense for a moment...

The *only* reason that a company like MS would start bashing a competing product (Linux) is
when that competing product has become a genuine threat to the sales of Windows.

That's my take on it. Because it is obvious to me that, thanks to Vista /Win7 (and how shitty it is),
a lot of users are slowly but surely making the move over to Ubuntu and other Linux platforms.

In fact, the only thing preventing *me* from making the same move is the fact that there aren't
enough virtual machines being created for Linux yet. I'm talking about virtual machine emulators
which will allow most Windows programs (games, in particular) to run flawlessly on a Linux OS.
"Wine" is pretty good... but it's not perfect and there are still a shitload of titles which won't
work with Wine or any other Linux VM.

There's also a shortage of hardware drivers for Linux, too... although that situation is improving.

Bill Gates is once again behaving like a dictator, instead of listening to his customers and adjusting
his philosophy accordingly. Ultimately, it is going to screw him up the ass. I can't wait to see the day
when MicroSlop declares bankruptcy. Yep... that's what I just said: bankruptcy. I'm expecting it to
happen in about five or six years, at the rate things are going. MS is heavily invested in all sorts
of "futures" and if Linux actually starts to eat away at their sales projections, then that huge house
of cards that Gates lives in will come crashing to the ground. Won't -that- be grand..? LOL.  

So to sum it up: the more you see MS bashing Linux, then the more worried they are about Linux.

And that's excellent.  

PS -- half of what they are claiming in that advertisement is a lie. WoW will run on Linux, for one thing.
And there are numerous e-mail clients and multimedia apps being produced for Linux by third parties.

[Tessera]

Here ya go, people:


http://www.ubuntu.com/GetUbuntu/download


There's your excellent alternative to Microsoft Win-Doze.
Just select a download location, as well as whether you
want the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Ubuntu Linux.

And it's 100% free... which is why I am posting this link.


PS -- the reason that Linux is free is because it is an ongoing and
community developed Unix project. Power to the people, baby.  

As we reported Sunday, the slides, part of an ExpertZone training module designed for Best Buy employees preparing to sell Windows 7, assert that "Linux does not support many common applications and online services like iTunes, Zune, Quicken, Photoshop, and Office 2007." They also dismiss the claim that "Linux is safer than Windows" as a "myth."

It is NOT a "myth."

99.999 percent of the viruses out there were compiled to infect Windows-based operating systems.
Thus, Linux is a MUCH safer OS than Windows, so far as viruses and malware are concerned.

Windows is also filled with "back doors" and other such security hazards. Linux, on the other hand, is not.

[Kandid]

The only reason I'm using Windows is that Linux with Wine doesn't run every game yet. When it eventually does, or even better, when publishers decide to fully support Linux instead of sucking Microsoft's little dick, it's bye-bye for uncle Bill.

[Tessera]

It is important to understand something, though. PC games have been running increasingly shitty on Windows ever since MS introduced Vista and DirectX 10. This has apparently been the fault of deliberate SABOTAGE on the part of MicroSleaze.

It has been leaked that the leaders over at MS have been trying to introduce malicious code into newer versions of Windows... code which makes PC games run poorly (as compared to previous versions of Windows, such as Windows 2000 and Windows XP). Now you may ask, "Why would Microsoft deliberately try to cripple my games..?"

The answer is simple: they have been trying for several years now to push ALL gamers over to their shitty Xbox 360 console system. And they have been paying mucho dollars under the table to their affiliates, too. Companies like nVidia, Creative Labs and so forth have all had their palms greased by Bill Gates & Co., in exchange for their cooperation in his slimy little "Let's drive everyone over to the Xbox console" scheme.

Well, I refuse to be bullied into playing on a kiddie konsole. Fuck you, Microslop. Go play your tin-plated dictator game somewhere else, Gates.

So when you think about it for a minute, you begin to realize that playing games on Windows may not be the best plan for PC gamers anymore. It might make more sense to install a dual-boot system if you are a gamer...

(1) Main partition: Ubuntu Linux (either 32 or 64 bit, depending on your computer)
(2) Gaming partition: either Windows 2000 Pro or Windows XP Pro x64 (normal WinXP 32-bit has no significant advantage over Win2000 for gaming, but the 64-bit version of WinXP does)

It is no more trouble to boot into an alternate OS for gaming than it is to drag out your console, load up a game and then play it on your TV. In fact, it is *less* trouble. So my advice to everyone is to seriously consider rolling back your Windows installation to either WinXP or Win2000 and then use it *only* for gaming. And as for your main operating system, just boot into Linux and smile at the thought that Microsoft hasn't made a single penny from you.

I vote that we all SHUN the next version of Windows, as well as Windows Vista and just follow the above advice. EVeryone screams that they want change in the software industry. Well, this is the best way to get what you want: by shunning any more garbage and deception by Microsoft... and voting with not only your wallets, but with your MINDS instead. Unless you enjoy being bullied and exploited, that is.

I will be ordering some new hard drives for my machine next month. And when they arrive, I will be installing the above described system on my computer. Ubuntu and WinXP x64 in a dual-boot setup. And as for the wonders of DirectX 10/11..? Microsoft can blow me. I have state-of-the-art graphics hardware and a HUGE HD widescreen monitor and do you know what..? DX10/11 doesn't look any better than DX9 and on top of that, DX10/11 makes my games run shitty BY DESIGN.

Switching over is win-win, people. And the fact that Linux is FREE and with no strings attached makes it an even bigger win.  

[anariel]

The only difference I see from Linux to Windows (from the user's end!) is the fact that the people are used to have their computers with Windows by default, and there may be a little complicated to put your computer to run. For example,  with my computer I had a hard time installing ubuntu because I still don't know if I use 32 or 64 bits architecture...
    And considering I only use Acrobat Reader, Word (or the OpenOffice in my Eee), BSplayer, alcohol 120%, Firefox, a .cbr reader (so winrar too...), and games... well, it's kinda too hard work to have WinXP for games and a linux for everything else.
   Ah, I tried to install WoW when I was trying with an Ubuntu here, but for some strange problem I was unable to scroll down the license agreement... so no way I could try the game itself :S (I know somebody who plays in a private server who does from linux though).


   Of course, the main position about MS doing this "advertising" campaign is the fact that 90% of the computer users are not aware of how easy is to use a linux (if you choose the right distribution... For example I had an Acer Aspireone with Linux during a week... Imagine my surprise when I found every file I had deleted still stored in the hard disk, in a hidden system location... My father is a Unix programmer and user, and it took him over an hour to figure how to delete those files, since when I deleted them in that "garbage can"... they just copyed themselves there again!). And for MS the fact that a lot of computers who are sold with Linux come with some kind of "shareware" version of a commercial Linux it's quite good. That and all those horrid films about hackers using Linux in a console-only mode, marking the SO as some kind of "complicated stuff who will only use the bad kids".

    In economics, that's called "monopoly", no matter what the courts dictate.

[Tessera]

I had a hard time installing ubuntu because I still don't know if I use 32 or 64 bits architecture...

Simply download a system information utility and then see what it says regarding your CPU and system bus.

Any of those utilities will tell you whether you are running on a 64-bit or a 32-bit machine, regardless of what your operating system is.

A popular example of such a utility would be "CPU-Z" and there are several others... all of which are free to use.

[tepesimpaled]

I would make comments about how some of the Slanderous words are true, but I won't.  To be honest I like FreeBSD, Kubuntu, Windows 98se (I love the Xwing and Tie Fighter games too much), Windows XP and Windows 7.  Right now BSD is the only one not currently installed.  They each have their own purposes.  Until game devs take *nix seriously I will have to keep up with Windows.  For gamers yes Windows is the best choice, for the average every day user, *nix would work well enough.  I'm sorry but OSX if anything is the biggest scam, just a overly pretty FreeBSD that is no longer free.

But back to the topic, Best Buy always lies even without the help of MS, they will say what takes to make a sale.

[Tessera]

The only thing "true" about what Microsoft is claiming is that a lot of stuff that is built into Windows is not built into Linux.

BUT...

That's because those applications SHOULD NOT be built into the operating system. All of them are freely available as separate, third-party programs which can be easily installed into Linux. Games, multimedia apps, anti-virus software, word processors, graphics suites, web software, spreadsheet programs... you name it. So you can simply pick and choose which apps you want, and avoid the ones that you don't need.

Which is as it should be. That's what fosters fair competition amongst third-party developers and in turn, increased quality overall. But... Microsoft doesn't want any competition. They have a sordid history of doing everything that they can to squash it, which explains why their own quality generally sucks these days. That, plus the fact that they outsource half of their coding to a bunch of cut-rate trained chimps in Bombay... but that's another whole can o' worms.

There's a reason for why MS has been hauled into court about a dozen times each year for the past decade: unfair business practices and their attempts to shut out fair competition, by integrating far too much into their OS.

Our operating system should be the empty stage... not the whole show.

[Kandid]

I've also been thinking about this "Microsoft deliberately cripples PC gaming to sell XBox" theory and it makes sense. When XBox 360 was announced, MS said that it'll use very similar architecture to a PC with Windows, but it's obviously a big lie after playing an Xbox to PC port for a few minutes. Every so-called "big title" who's been ported to PC from 360 is a big fiasco, none of these games make use of high amount of RAM or video RAM because the fucking toy only has 512 MB RAM. GTA IV comes to mind. I'm sure some of you are familiar with the stupid bullshit to be able to run it on PC.

The only thing "true" about what Microsoft is claiming is that a lot of stuff that is built into Windows is not built into Linux.

BUT...

That's because those applications SHOULD NOT be built into the operating system. All of them are freely available as separate, third-party programs which can be easily installed into Linux. Games, multimedia apps, anti-virus software, word processors, graphics suites, web software, spreadsheet programs... you name it. So you can simply pick and choose which apps you want, and avoid the ones that you don't need.

I think Microsoft is promoting its OS to people who know next to nothing about computers, who buy premade Dell computers, who think their disk tray is a coffee cup holder, etc. Therefore they're bragging with the ease of use of Windows, its accessibility, instead of its useful features (if there are any! ).

[Cat]

I've also been thinking about this "Microsoft deliberately cripples PC gaming to sell XBox" theory and it makes sense. When XBox 360 was announced, MS said that it'll use very similar architecture to a PC with Windows, but it's obviously a big lie after playing an Xbox to PC port for a few minutes. Every so-called "big title" who's been ported to PC from 360 is a big fiasco, none of these games make use of high amount of RAM or video RAM because the fucking toy only has 512 MB RAM. GTA IV comes to mind. I'm sure some of you are familiar with the stupid bullshit to be able to run it on PC.

The only thing "true" about what Microsoft is claiming is that a lot of stuff that is built into Windows is not built into Linux.

BUT...

That's because those applications SHOULD NOT be built into the operating system. All of them are freely available as separate, third-party programs which can be easily installed into Linux. Games, multimedia apps, anti-virus software, word processors, graphics suites, web software, spreadsheet programs... you name it. So you can simply pick and choose which apps you want, and avoid the ones that you don't need.

I think Microsoft is promoting its OS to people who know next to nothing about computers, who buy premade Dell computers, who think their disk tray is a coffee cup holder, etc. Therefore they're bragging with the ease of use of Windows, its accessibility, instead of its useful features (if there are any! ).

yep

[anariel]

I had a hard time installing ubuntu because I still don't know if I use 32 or 64 bits architecture...

Simply download a system information utility and then see what it says regarding your CPU and system bus.

Done... seems I have a 64 bits architecture (as I thought at the time). However, the ubuntu 64 I tried to install didn't worked at all (a lot of errors I can't remember :S), but the 32 bits version did work fine... As I always say, my PC has picked up some eccentricities just because it's mine... XD.

Abut the windows Vs All battle... From an economist POW, they are doing the best they can to be a monopoly, or to force an effective one (that is, without serious competition) by establishing as much barriers as they can to any newcomer. The old USSR has the same production politic (one company per thing, a monopoly property of the state) and you all saw how that ended (no disrespect intended, just fact: no competitors => no need to be the best you can, since you already are the best anyone can find...).
Sorry if it's bad explained, 4 hours of sleep and 3 of speaking nonstop tend to leave me drained :S

[Caspa_tfng]

Well I've got a lovely little twist for you guys.  I've tried mentioning this on another forum, hoping the intelligence levels had risen since I was last there, and fuck was there a backlash on the issue.  Cretin central.  Here's the link for the full thread, if you want to enjoy it, along with my latest comment.

It is not vista.  There's a reason it's not Vista SP3.  It's a new operating system.  (Have you even tried the RC?)freeware on the market" and still expect people to buy it.

Jesus fucking Christ. Do I need to explain again that Vista and Windows 7 are vastly better than XP? Holy fuck. I'd have thought more people would begin to realize that XP is truly showing its age against Vista and XP. And, W7 is not a stripped down Vista - it's a brand new core, which is why it's called Windows SEVEN. SEVENTH incarnation of the kernel.

And now for those of you who are either too thick or have your heads shoved too far up Ballmers arse to understand.  Microsoft stripped down Windows 7 to it's base platform and rebuilt it.  It is not a brand new platform.  It is not a brand new core.  It is the Windows Vista platform.  It is the Windows Vista core.  If you have troubles believing this, then feel free to go over to the Microsoft website and read up on this for yourself.
The key reasons why it is not Windows Vista SP3 are;
-Stripping down resource hogging DRM, cleaning up the sloppy coding and removing unnecessary bloat from Windows Vista via an update in a way that won't break the rest of the operating system is not cost effective enough to justify.
-Windows Vistas reputation is currently so low that it's scraping along the ground.  A mere service pack would not alleviate this problem.
-A "new" operating system, if launched successfully could stand to earn Microsoft billions.

As Banshee has correctly pointed out, even with all the bells, whistles and trinkets disabled, Windows Vista is still noticably slower than Windows XP.  Windows Vista is also considerably more restrictive towards the user, with or without the User Account Control switched on.  With it switched on, it will scaremonger you about each and every action you take and fight you every step of the way, sometimes blocking you completely, if you attempt to make changes in the Windows or Program Files folders.  It seems to have no issues, however, with programs and scripts making random and unauthorized changes to your Windows or Program Files folders.

These issues are lessened by Windows 7, but they still remain.  I know it would be rather unfair to attack Microsoft for incompatibility issues on an operating system which is still in the RTM stage, but what if the biggest incompatibility issue comes from Microsoft hardware?  I say it's fair game.  To answer Arborlon Elfs' query, yes I am currently testing out the Windows 7 RC.  It would be rather pretentious for even me to call faults on an operating system I have no experience with, and the biggest compatability issues I've so far are with my motherboard, mouse and webcam.  Asus have solved the motherboard issues with their own drivers, as have Logitek with my mouse issues.  My Microsoft Lifecam, on the otherhand still has problems.  The original drivers, and also the new drivers from Microsoft are apparently so dangerous that Windows 7 flat out refuses to allow me to install them.  Microsoft's operating system refuses to support Microsoft's products.  Could this be any more ridiculous?
Once again, if you strip away all of the shiney shiney, 7 is still slower than Windows XP.  Not bad from a newer and apparently superior operating system.

I could rant on plenty more.  I could even tell you how to change the bastardized OS X lovechild taskbar back into a Windows taskbar, but I honestly can't be bothered right now.  I'm gonna come down off my soapbox and let you get back to jerking off to furry porn.

EDIT:  Sometimes I feel that I'm greatly benefiting their community, simply by showing up

[Tessera]

Caspa,

You can inform those rabid MS fanboys of the following discovery:

If you dig into the Windows 7 RC kernel code, then you will indeed discover that it is
actually just Windows Vista build 6.1 and not "an entirely new operating system."

That's the facts, Jack. Windows 7 is simply the latest version of Vista... complete with
a deceptive new name and an equally deceptive new paint job.

Don't be fooled (again) by worthless hype, people. "Windows 7" is just another insidious
attempt by MS to get people to buy Vista. It is essentially the exact same OS.  

[Caspa_tfng]

Yeah, I've tried to explain that.  I'm hoping with my last post I covered all the bases, but idiots will always be idiots.

[Tessera]

So then, go over there and post a link to this thread.

It's in our public area, so anyone can read it.