Yes I know... What on earth does this have to do with Susan's.  Well to stretch the issue a little we all use an OS of some kind to enable us to access Susan's

I use OS X 10.+ on my iMAC

Steph

Sure wish the forum would let you pick multiple answers in polls

I use multiple versions of Windows: 98,NT4, 2k, 2k-Server, 2k3-Server, XP
Plus throw in a sprinkling of Unix and Linux for good measure.

I'm am however giving serious consideration to the new MacIntels especially since people are having success with dualbooting into XP.

Macintel dualbooting?  Mmmm, sexy!  But seriously, I use the intel iMac.  Interesting that so many here use Windows.  So much for my theory that we're a bunch of revolutionaries, lol.

Viva dos zapatos!

Teri Anne

I mark other cause I used Windows 98SE when I visit Susan's. But I also use my XP Pentium II for alot of stuff. I have them both connected to the same keyboard, mouse, speakers and monitor. I switch them with a hotkey combination. I don't like Microsoft but whats a girl to do.

Jillieann

I still use Windows 98 mainly because I am too lazy to upgrade to a newer package.  I figure if its not broke, why mess with it.  A girl like me can find better things to do than upgrade a computer. 

Shannon 

Glad to see I'm not the last person on Earth still using NT4.

We use NT4 on computers used to control ship navigation systems.  It is quite stable in our configuration and changing to 2k or XP would cost us hundreds of thousands of dollars in testing and safety validations.  Just not worth upgrading.

I use Windows XP pro and can't wait to upgrade on new Windows Vista  .

Michelle

I use Windows XP and not another operating system because of games.  Many games that I have can't be played on Linux or Macs.  However, when it comes to setting up web servers, Linux is preferred and if I am just doing web programming, a Mac would work just fine.  So, it really depends on what I am doing and I am not in one particular camp when it comes to the OS wars.

Melissa

I use, Win98, 2000, xp (which I hate) and NT4 on my server and my clients servers.

You gain somethings and lose somethings each time you go to an "impoved" operating system.

Sarah

Quote from: Teri Anne on March 29, 2006, 09:25:31 PM
So much for my theory that we're a bunch of revolutionaries, lol.

Hey, I held on to my Amiga for many, many years before being assimilated!

AND, I/we used Macs here at work from the late 80s through 2000 or so. But then compatibility issues kinda forced us to comform.

When I first read this post, I had nothing to contribute. Then I reread it when it reappeared in "unread since last visit".

Sarah I couldn't agree more. You always gain and lose something by upgrading an operating system.

At the risk of going off topic, I proceed cautiously.

I perceive The need for upgrading everything in our lives is a systemic problem in consumerist culture. Yesterday I attended the annual advisory board meeting for the art and music department at a local college, especially focusing on the what level of technological savvy (i.e. digital technology) students should have be they more creative or technological in focus. While discussing the importance of keeping up with new products and technology and the differences between using a piece of gear (or an operating system) and understanding what a piece of gear (or operating system) does and why you would use it over another, one participant mentioned with some futility, that Apple recently announced that it was going to attempt a 14 week life cycle on all its new products.

In other words, every 14 weeks, they are going to attempt to make obsolete, or at least create a perception of obsolete, for their products. You just bought an iPod, and in 14 weeks, they will recently a new iPod that will attempt to make you feel as though your old iPod is no longer good enough. It is a bad enough already to feel compelled to upgrade our operating systems every year or so, but any less seems to me a form of cultural madness.

Yes, anything can be advanced or improved, but as you mentioned Sarah, you always gain and lose something. In this technological arms race, I see less actual improvement and more opportunity for increased corporate profit at our expense, an expense I believe is generally unwarranted, unnecessary, and a form of legalized extortion through emotional manipulation.

While it may not have been your intention Stephanie, beyond the practical reasons for an online service to know what kind of browser and operating system their patrons are using, in my mind you have also inspired potentially intriguing dialogues. Apart from the broader cultural context I have mentioned already, I would also be extremely interested in reading about various attitudes towards technology, capitalism, and modern culture from the point of view of various genders. How do views on these topics vary depending on gender identity? Do you believe your decisions on technology, operating systems, how often to upgrade, etc.. are affected by stereotypical notions of masculine and feminine attitudes? If so, how?

What Operating System indeed! What OS and why?

I currently use Windows XP pro, and have always used Windows, primarily due to financial considerations. However, my personal style and preference would have me choose Apple. Yet rationally I know that choosing between one or the other is little more than an aesthetic issue. In my case one might attribute it to an image or fashion issue, which could be stereotypically considered a more feminine attribute. However, looking beyond the obvious corporate options I also consider switching to open source solutions such as Linux. This for me is an issue of philosophy and progressive economics. I perceive open source solutions as a form of freedom, liberation from corporate consumerist culture. At this point I ponder whether that stems from a more male or female attitude. On one hand I see my vague gender dysphoria and a quest for understanding and acceptance to be a journey to freedom and liberation. Is that male, female, or simply being human?

In regards to ever shrinking product cycles, do you feel compelled to purchase the newest latest thing? For the girls: do you upgrade technology like you might keep up on fashion? For the guys: do you actually feel driven to have the latest gizmo as form of status, even if you recognize that the product life cycle is artificially shortened? For the ambiguous: Do you think your ambigious gender identification affects your decisions on keeping up with the latest and greatest? There are already clues to some of these answers in this topic.

While this may be a stretch, but Stephanie implied that the entire topic might be a stretch, how much do you think your gender identification plays into your decisions about technology (e.g. what Operating System or other software/devices you would use) and how?

While this may seem a bit off topic, I believe various interesting discussions could be born from such a simple question. if this is too far off topic or nebulous, feel free to smite me, and I will pretend that I never had these thoughts.

Hello Madison

I think that your answer to the topic is spot on and you pose another interesting question at the end that others can expand on when they answer the pole.

Steph

Madison in light of your post, I thought this quote was fitting.  It was on the chalk board when I went to class today...how fortuitous....

"If there is technological advance without social advance, there is, almost automatically, an increase in human misery." - Michael Harrington

I see a lot of things in the extortion though manipulation view but that is a large part of capitalism too... Look at all the car commercials, honestly, how often do you need to get a totally brand new car? ... There isn't enough of a base market just in and of itself (cars last to long) so a market must be manufactured.


^*shrug* I currently use WinXP Pro (XP home is the worst OS I've found to date by the by and the only one I have found to eat itself when you restart it when it wants like it wants, during normal boring operation. ^*chortle*)

I prefer FreeBSD running Fluxbox to be honest, but a large enough segment of my 'necessary' programs require windows so I use it more than anything else.

I will 'upgrade' to Windows Vista when it comes with a new system, and not before. Just as I did with Win XP Pro with this computer. My FreeBSD box dual boots with Win2k, which was the first windows version worth a damn


^*wink* I do not keep up with fashion, and I have never had the funds to keep up with technology. There is some value in having the latest and greatest (such as > 10fps in some games ) but there is a lot of merit to the though pattern of if it is not broke, do not fix it.

From where I sit I am inclined to not point my finger at gender influences in spending/wanting habits but rather point at society. Or perhaps societies' take at what the genders should want. Regardless, it is an interesting line of thought

By the by for reference, I solidly identify as female, but reject the vast majority of society.

So true (IMHO) Valerie. Technology without meaning or social context seems to bring with it confusion and anxiety. On the other hand technology seems invaluable when answering real questions or actually enhancing quality of life, not manufacturing markets and needlessly cluttering our mindscape.

Kimberly, while you do not point a finger at gender influences on your technological decisions, I read into your response, a very pragmatic approach to life and technology, which in some ways points to a stereotypical male trait. But you fully identify as female. I agree that these issues are largely societal and not gender based, but that was part of my curiosity when inserting the gender issue to an otherwise non-gender related topic. Gender and related traits may not be an overt factor in certain decision making, certainly it plays some role, if not simply in how we choose to identify with the world around us. What are the qualities of different genders that create percieved gender traits, and to what extent is that line blurred regarding different topics. I assume you have other qualities that people would consider stereotypically feminine, even if that does not involve fashion (hmmm, with the wink though I find the statement highly suspicious ) or the notion of feminine whimsy. And that is the part that is fascinating to me, especially in a TG environment. Assuming that most people consider pragmatism a stereotypically male trait, your very existence as a female pragmatist challenges those notions of what masculinity and feminity are, and what they mean.

I on the other hand am rarely pragmatic. I am often driven by whimsy and even superficial desire. I like fashion, though I rarely follow what is "in style". I can easily be influenced by style. If it weren't for a ferocious intellectual side, I would likely be the most frivolous person around. While the function of an operating system or software is important to me, I have been known to sacrifice some functionality for style. It makes no sense intellectually, and I can see that as a feminine trait in our current culture, but that does not mean that has anything to do with being female. I simply care about how my envirnoment looks and feels. I may be a rare case, but I am very much aware of how my personality traits affect my decision making process, and it is extremely interesting to me, which of those traits are mapped by society as being male or female (considering my unique gender related circumstances), and to what extent those traits actually make up male-femaleness.

Regarding the larger societal issues of social manipulation, manufactured consent, and consumerism I think we need a whole other topic for that. I can talk for days on these subjects, a bit of a hobby of mine, some might say obsession.

Stephanie thank you for seeing my connections. There is so much rich thought and experience within this (and all) community, and sometimes I think we can find brilliant insight into ourselves by exploring odd connections and topics.

Quote from: madison on March 30, 2006, 04:48:04 PM
...
Kimberly, while you do not point a finger at gender influences on your technological decisions, I read into your response, a very pragmatic approach to life and technology...

Pragmatic.

Yes I am pragmatic, although I would not have described myself as such previously. I had to take a step back and look (and then I got snowed under with work!), so my apologies for the slow reply.

I am inclined to think my pragmatic natures stems from, or perhaps it is just reinforced by, multiple years of (pure) logic related problem solving (I.e. programming), with a unhealthy dash of desperate urgency. By the by, the harder I try the less well things work, lol.

^*shrug* I think anyway.

So anyway perhaps I am just an oddball by nature (true!) or perhaps most of it is just learned responses, although I think at best it would be described as learned reinforcement.

But anyway...


(p.s. I mentioned the harder I try the less well things work? Prime example: I wanted to legally change my name this month, goal and all. My finances are so screwed this month it isn't funny )

I use both XP (dedicated to audio and music production) and OSX.4.6, the latter for internet. Quite a bit more secure. Does most things perfectly out-of-the-box, easier on the eyes, uses its resources better. The XP machine has to be taken care of, like owning a dog. Not to get into the emotional aspects of the one religion vs the other, but the very fact that Apple makes an OS, they make the computer for that OS, and Microsoft does not (one is at the mercy of the vagaries of the marketplace there), equals integration at a level that anyone that is less than a computer builder will be hard-pressed to achieve.


Posted at: April 12, 2006, 11:38:01 AM

---

oh Kimberly, you are right about a new system for Vista, you will need it. Even though MS don't make computers, every new OS will have such a bigger footprint one needs the hardware to run it. XP isn't the worst, surely - did you use Windows before Win2k?
If I didn't have some apps essential to what I need to do, I would be done with Windows. Of course it's issues have taught me a lot...

Windows XP

the horrid Win7 Homie Edition