General Discussions => General discussions => Topic started by: Brianna on March 24, 2009, 09:05:42 AM Return to Full Version
Title: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Brianna on March 24, 2009, 09:05:42 AM
Post by: Brianna on March 24, 2009, 09:05:42 AM
This is urban legend, but funny none the less.....
-Bri
GM vs Microsoft - Round 1
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated: "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving twenty-five dollar cars that got 1000 miles to the gallon."
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating (by Mr. Welch himself): If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would just accept this, restart and drive on.
4. Occasionally executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Only one person at a time could use the car unless you bought "Car95" or "CarNT." But then you would have to buy more seats.
6. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, reliable, five times as fast, and twice as easy to drive, but would only run on five percent of the roads.
7. The oil, water temperature and alternator warning lights would be replaced by a single "general car default" warning light.
8. New seats would force everyone to have the same size butt.
9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.
10. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key, and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
11. GM would require all car buyers to also purchase a deluxe set of Rand McNally road maps (now a GM subsidiary) even though they neither need them nor want them. Attempting to delete this option would immediately cause the car's performance to diminish by 50% or more. Moreover, GM would become a
target for investigation by the Justice Department.
12. Every time GM introduced a new model, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
13. You'd press the "start" button to shut off the engine.
-Bri
GM vs Microsoft - Round 1
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated: "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving twenty-five dollar cars that got 1000 miles to the gallon."
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating (by Mr. Welch himself): If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would just accept this, restart and drive on.
4. Occasionally executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Only one person at a time could use the car unless you bought "Car95" or "CarNT." But then you would have to buy more seats.
6. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, reliable, five times as fast, and twice as easy to drive, but would only run on five percent of the roads.
7. The oil, water temperature and alternator warning lights would be replaced by a single "general car default" warning light.
8. New seats would force everyone to have the same size butt.
9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.
10. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key, and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
11. GM would require all car buyers to also purchase a deluxe set of Rand McNally road maps (now a GM subsidiary) even though they neither need them nor want them. Attempting to delete this option would immediately cause the car's performance to diminish by 50% or more. Moreover, GM would become a
target for investigation by the Justice Department.
12. Every time GM introduced a new model, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
13. You'd press the "start" button to shut off the engine.
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: christene on March 24, 2009, 09:59:33 AM
Post by: christene on March 24, 2009, 09:59:33 AM
Gorgeous....perfect response and very correct.
I have not used a microsoft product in years and years....linux baby.
I have not used a microsoft product in years and years....linux baby.
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 10:29:11 AM
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 10:29:11 AM
Quote from: Christine on March 24, 2009, 09:59:33 AMAre you a linuxchick?
Gorgeous....perfect response and very correct.
I have not used a microsoft product in years and years....linux baby.
-Sandy
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Janet_Girl on March 24, 2009, 10:43:10 AM
Post by: Janet_Girl on March 24, 2009, 10:43:10 AM
I hate to reminded GM this but in response to:
General Motors was forced to break down into Chevrolet, Pontiac, Buick, Oldsmobile,and Cadillac thru the Anti-trust laws in the 70's.
And they have had their share of problems. At least with Microsoft the CPU doesn't catch on fire when the computer is off.
And yes, I am a Gates Groupie and I worked for GM in the 70's, but was laid off.
Janet
Quote11. GM would require all car buyers to also purchase a deluxe set of Rand McNally road maps (now a GM subsidiary) even though they neither need them nor want them. Attempting to delete this option would immediately cause the car's performance to diminish by 50% or more. Moreover, GM would become a target for investigation by the Justice Department.
General Motors was forced to break down into Chevrolet, Pontiac, Buick, Oldsmobile,and Cadillac thru the Anti-trust laws in the 70's.
And they have had their share of problems. At least with Microsoft the CPU doesn't catch on fire when the computer is off.
And yes, I am a Gates Groupie and I worked for GM in the 70's, but was laid off.
Janet
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Linda on March 24, 2009, 10:44:43 AM
Post by: Linda on March 24, 2009, 10:44:43 AM
9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.
Sandy, in a reply to a post I made you said "If you want to really expand your brain, speed up your laptop, and have a load of fun, switch to Linux instead of just putting Micro$oft back on."
This got me to thinking,, sounds fun. Are there hardware issues with installing an OS such as Linux onto a system designed for MS-xphome?
And which Linux version would be best for a person with some skills and little money?
Thank you,
Linda
Sandy, in a reply to a post I made you said "If you want to really expand your brain, speed up your laptop, and have a load of fun, switch to Linux instead of just putting Micro$oft back on."
This got me to thinking,, sounds fun. Are there hardware issues with installing an OS such as Linux onto a system designed for MS-xphome?
And which Linux version would be best for a person with some skills and little money?
Thank you,
Linda
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Ellieka on March 24, 2009, 11:30:27 AM
Post by: Ellieka on March 24, 2009, 11:30:27 AM
I'm a huge linux girl. I still have a Winbox for those rare moments that I just have to use it but 99.9% of the time I use linux.
I recommend Ubuntu Linux for ease of use and compatibility. Its free so what have you got to loose?
I recommend Ubuntu Linux for ease of use and compatibility. Its free so what have you got to loose?
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 12:56:11 PM
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 12:56:11 PM
Quote from: Linda on March 24, 2009, 10:44:43 AMYes, there are hardware issues. Usually the hardware runs faster. :D Really though, yes there are some issues. There are some devices that have proprietary drivers that only have windows drivers. For the most part, many vendors have made available either open source equivalents or the Linux community has reverse engineered a solution. These days only the more exotic devices have driver problems. Usually such things as off brand scanners and such. If you have a mainline computer I.E. bought from a big-box store, installing Linux shouldn't be a problem.
9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.
Sandy, in a reply to a post I made you said "If you want to really expand your brain, speed up your laptop, and have a load of fun, switch to Linux instead of just putting Micro$oft back on."
This got me to thinking,, sounds fun. Are there hardware issues with installing an OS such as Linux onto a system designed for MS-xphome?
And which Linux version would be best for a person with some skills and little money?
Thank you,
Linda
There are literally dozens of distros available. The most popular these days seems to be Ubuntu. It is easy to install requires a minimum of expertise and has a good selection of desktops to choose from. Most of the distros are free to download. Check out the sites and you should see a download button or section. It usually comes as a couple of ISO files that you burn directly to the CD or DVD. They also sometimes offer to sell the CD directly.
Additionally, there are some distributions that offer a No-Install Installation. Basically you boot off the CD and it runs from there. It allows you to test drive the OS without having to scrape off your boot drive.
And you can start to get extreme and put together a dual-boot configuration which will let you boot either windoze or Linux depending on your need.
Oh gawd, my geek is showing!
-Sandy
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 12:58:57 PM
Post by: Sandy on March 24, 2009, 12:58:57 PM
Quote from: Janet Lynn on March 24, 2009, 10:43:10 AMThat's ok, Janet, we still love you!
And yes, I am a Gates Groupie...
Janet
-Sandy
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: imaz on March 24, 2009, 02:03:32 PM
Post by: imaz on March 24, 2009, 02:03:32 PM
Quote from: Linda on March 24, 2009, 10:44:43 AM
9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.
Sandy, in a reply to a post I made you said "If you want to really expand your brain, speed up your laptop, and have a load of fun, switch to Linux instead of just putting Micro$oft back on."
This got me to thinking,, sounds fun. Are there hardware issues with installing an OS such as Linux onto a system designed for MS-xphome?
And which Linux version would be best for a person with some skills and little money?
Thank you,
Linda
Ubuntu is nice, I have it as dual boot together with Mac OSX on my Intel Mac Mini and everything seems to work OK.
Also have Xandros on an Asus Netbook which works pretty well too.
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: sd on March 24, 2009, 05:08:02 PM
Post by: sd on March 24, 2009, 05:08:02 PM
I love Windows, it keeps paying my bills. :P
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Linda on March 25, 2009, 05:05:30 AM
Post by: Linda on March 25, 2009, 05:05:30 AM
Thank you all,
I've been doing the research on Ubuntu, and that mini mac is too cute.
I've been doing the research on Ubuntu, and that mini mac is too cute.
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Linus on March 25, 2009, 06:48:22 AM
Post by: Linus on March 25, 2009, 06:48:22 AM
I wonder where virtualization would fit into the GM vs Microsoft world.
Personally, as long as the OS does what I need it to, I'm happy. I've used all variations of MS (except for Bob and ME/Vista -- I won't touch ME/Vista with a ten-foot pole!); a variety of *Nix (Solaris, RH, Suse, Slackware, Knoppix, FreeBSD); Mac (from OS6 to OS X) and heck, even a bit of Novell.
The quote about Macs being limited on the road they run is not as valid since Macs now use Intel and theoretically any x86 OS should run on it (hardware be damned!). It's rock solid. Add Fusion to the mix and yer set. :)
Personally, as long as the OS does what I need it to, I'm happy. I've used all variations of MS (except for Bob and ME/Vista -- I won't touch ME/Vista with a ten-foot pole!); a variety of *Nix (Solaris, RH, Suse, Slackware, Knoppix, FreeBSD); Mac (from OS6 to OS X) and heck, even a bit of Novell.
The quote about Macs being limited on the road they run is not as valid since Macs now use Intel and theoretically any x86 OS should run on it (hardware be damned!). It's rock solid. Add Fusion to the mix and yer set. :)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Sandy on March 25, 2009, 08:39:18 AM
Post by: Sandy on March 25, 2009, 08:39:18 AM
Quote from: Linus on March 25, 2009, 06:48:22 AMCongratulations, you've out geeked me.
It's rock solid. Add Fusion to the mix and yer set. :)
Fusion?
-Sandy
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Linus on March 25, 2009, 08:45:29 AM
Post by: Linus on March 25, 2009, 08:45:29 AM
VMware Fusion allows you to run any other OS at the same time as Mac OS on a Mac. :)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Sandy on March 25, 2009, 08:47:39 AM
Post by: Sandy on March 25, 2009, 08:47:39 AM
Quote from: Sandy on March 25, 2009, 08:39:18 AMI should have looked it up first. Fusion is the mac VMware. Now I'm back on track.
Congratulations, you've out geeked me.
Fusion?
-Sandy
Actually I use the free Sun Virtual Box software. There is a flavor for OS X as well.
*Sandy reclaims her geek crown*
-Sandy(girl geeks are cool!)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Constance on March 25, 2009, 03:19:03 PM
Post by: Constance on March 25, 2009, 03:19:03 PM
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fpunditkitchen.files.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F03%2Fpolitical-pictures-bill-gates-nickle-windows.jpg&hash=e2ce492dc8f74ba3ad345a877af95bfa1a122f3e)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: sd on March 25, 2009, 07:48:25 PM
Post by: sd on March 25, 2009, 07:48:25 PM
Quote from: Linus on March 25, 2009, 06:48:22 AMThe quote about Macs being limited on the road they run is not as valid since Macs now use Intel and theoretically any x86 OS should run on it (hardware be damned!).Yes, most pc operating systems will run on it, without VMware.
Then you have us weird folks who prefer to run Mac on a pc. Yup, hardware be damned.
Quote from: Shades O'Grey on March 25, 2009, 03:19:03 PMLove the Gates pic. ;D
pic removed
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: christene on April 21, 2009, 03:08:33 PM
Post by: christene on April 21, 2009, 03:08:33 PM
HA, this is great...I had no idea there were so many linux geek chicks out here! Now, I feel even MORE at home in this place... :)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: Constance on April 21, 2009, 03:12:50 PM
Post by: Constance on April 21, 2009, 03:12:50 PM
And yet another one from http://punditkitchen.com (http://punditkitchen.com).
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fpunditkitchen.files.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fpolitical-pictures-bill-gates-failure-windows.jpg&hash=7ada2a19655bf5963a45e63e09072462c98b7ad5)
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fpunditkitchen.files.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fpolitical-pictures-bill-gates-failure-windows.jpg&hash=7ada2a19655bf5963a45e63e09072462c98b7ad5)
Title: Re: GM vs Microsoft
Post by: christene on April 21, 2009, 03:43:40 PM
Post by: christene on April 21, 2009, 03:43:40 PM
That guy really should pluck his nose hairs...