OT Has w7 slowed down recently

In article , Steve Thackery
wrote:
Ah hah! I've found a rumour, and let it be said that I always admit
when I'm wrong. :-)

I've been searching the web for evidence to support Jim's assertion
that Microsoft are pressurising vendors into using secure boot (where
the OS must be "certified" to the BIOS).

I've found one story which suggests that they may be pushing for it (or
even insisting on it) for W8 computers using the new ARM chip.

That is the kind of thing I've also read. But, like yourself, I have no
direct evidence as a lot of the dealings between big companies tend to be
'confidential' even if they end up costing the rest of us.

These will only be phones and tablets to start with, as the ARM won't
run any current Windows applications (which are compiled for the Intel
architecture).

I had thought that MS had said they will be porting Windows to ARM systems,
and I also think it likely that ARM based machines are growing rapidly as a
part of the 'computer' market. Although at present you have to be careful
here because of the way some may take 'computer' to mean the now
traditional desktop with mouse, monitor, etc, as distinct from 'tablets',
etc, which seem to be extending into various areas of use.

I'll see if I can find out more, and will post links later.

You may find it useful to also look at the background in terms of DoJ and
EU court actions wrt microsoft and its dealings with hardware makers, etc.
My vague recollection is that some details of their contracts have emerged.

Slainte,

Jim

--
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In article , Peter Duncanson
wrote:
On Sun, 13 May 2012 13:09:05 +0100, Stephen Wolstenholme
wrote:
[snip]
Yes, I know how to do all that as well, but 99% of PC buyers just want
to plug it in and use Windows.

It's a bit more than that. Windows is only a small part of it from the
user's point of view. They want to use the standard, common,
applications that run on a Windows PC.

Another way to put it is that 99% of PC buyers want a "default" system -
one which does not require them to make choices and decisions so as to
be able to perform normal tasks in a normal way.

I'd put that slightly differently.

The situation is that a large (but not necessarily "99%") of
domestic/office "PC" users have become trained/habituted to use a specific
type of OS and the 'usual apps' that 'come with it'. This happens by a sort
of mental 'immersion' over many years - starting at school and at home
perhaps even pre-school. Thus they either are unaware of any alternative,
or never even think of investigating. They know what buttons to push. So
just buy machines every few years when their training tells them it is
'time to upgrade'.

So no real thought - in the active sense of the word - goes into these
decisions. Fish aren't really conscious of water. (Although there are a few
exceptions. ;- )

It is this mindset, and the cartel that maintains it and exploits it, that
concerns me. Not the fact that the specific system happens to be Windows
plus a common set of MS apps. And if the number really *is* "99%" then I'd
personally regard that as indistinguishable from a monopoly. So it might be
nice if the USA decided to break up MS into half a dozen similar companies,
all with the rights to the same starting-point code, and having to then
compete. Odd that the 'land of the free' who espouse competition haven't
done this already... ;-

Slainte,

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
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In article , John
Rumm
wrote:
On 12/05/2012 17:34, Jim Lesurf wrote:


"Presumably" it means that some people chose in ignorance, or were mislead.

I would expect this to be true of most returners...

Although I'd be interested to know where you facts and figures come from.

Alas I don't recall all the sources, although I have read a few with
similar claims. At one point (as you might expect) MS was making a big
fuss over this. Dell had issues they reported on, but claimed that it
was mainly a failing in their advertising. People bought machines
attracted by the price, not realising they did not have windows.

I can quite understand that. I'd expect people who bought without being
ware they were *not* getting Windows to tend to then return the goods. It
is actually a sign of the way that we have a virtual monopoly supported by
habituation and training.

Some
more on Dell's comments he

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08...dows_netbooks/

Slainte,

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
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Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html

On Sun, 13 May 2012 12:24:10 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Martin
wrote:
On Sat, 12 May 2012 17:34:40 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , John
Rumm wrote:
On 11/05/2012 15:55, Stephen Wolstenholme wrote:

"Presumably" it means that some people chose in ignorance, or were
mislead. Although I'd be interested to know where you facts and figures
come from.

It's more likely that users couldn't find the applications they needed
and were without the knowledge to use to install and an emulator.

Yes, this is a consequence of people being trained/habituated into
"Computer = Windows" with no awaress of though of any alternatives.
Although it is interesting that many seem happy to adopt android (or
ithingies) for non-desktop uses. Perhaps because it falls outside the
'home/office' mental compartment.

I'm sorry - people don't "adopt" Android. They buy a device which does
what they want. The device as marketed and purchased is a unit that does
certain things. The vast majority of customers are interested in what it
does, not how it does it or what the various hardware and software
building blocks are inside the case.

(Those comments are about functionality. Companies like Apple make many
sales by appealing to fashion and trendiness.)

--
Peter Duncanson
(in uk.tech.digital-tv)

In article , Jim Lesurf wrote:
It's more likely that users couldn't find the applications they needed
and were without the knowledge to use to install and an emulator.

Yes, this is a consequence of people being trained/habituated into
"Computer = Windows" with no awaress of though of any alternatives.
Although it is interesting that many seem happy to adopt android (or
ithingies) for non-desktop uses. Perhaps because it falls outside the
'home/office' mental compartment.

They probably just haven't got the concept of "operating system", and fail
to realise that's what Android is, in other words the equivalent of
Windows but not Windows. In principle any operating system could be made
to run on any device, but if this is not what's usually done most people
will effectively be trained/habituated into "Phone = Android" and, as you
say, "Computer = Windows", as if it was part of the natural order of
things and not to be questioned.

It'll be interesting to see if this changes if MS does manage to sell
Windows for Phones in any quantity. At least the existence of similar
devices with different operating systems, and Windows in the minority (at
first anyway) should make people aware that there are alternatives.

Rod.
--
Virtual Access V6.3 free usenet/email software from
http://sourceforge.net/projects/virtual-access/

In article , Peter Duncanson
wrote:

Yes, I know how to do all that as well, but 99% of PC buyers just want
to plug it in and use Windows.

It's a bit more than that. Windows is only a small part of it from the
user's point of view. They want to use the standard, common,
applications that run on a Windows PC.

They also want telephone technical support when they can't understand how
to do something. They want to know how to run programs, how to load and
save files, how to connect to a wireless network etc, all explained click
by click in words of no more than two syllables. How many companies
provide this for Linux?

Rod.
--
Virtual Access V6.3 free usenet/email software from
http://sourceforge.net/projects/virtual-access/

In article , Peter Duncanson
wrote:
On Sun, 13 May 2012 12:24:10 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:


Yes, this is a consequence of people being trained/habituated into
"Computer = Windows" with no awaress of though of any alternatives.
Although it is interesting that many seem happy to adopt android (or
ithingies) for non-desktop uses. Perhaps because it falls outside the
'home/office' mental compartment.

I'm sorry - people don't "adopt" Android.

So what word seems appropriate to you in the above statement?

They buy a device which does what they want. The device as marketed and
purchased is a unit that does certain things. The vast majority of
customers are interested in what it does, not how it does it or what the
various hardware and software building blocks are inside the case.

I agree. What is interesting is that they buy it without making the same
assumptions as they might when buying what they might call a 'PC'. In each
case they don't think of any possible distinction between the hardware and
the code that runs on it. For me, the point is that it falls outside what
they have been trained/habituated to expect for a 'PC', so they don't take
for granted that it will behave 'like Windows'.

The difficulty with talking about this is the extent to which buyers
conflate things without much thought or awarness. Symptoms of having been
trained/habituated in a specific way.

Slainte,

Jim

--
Please use the address on the audiomisc page if you wish to email me.
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Armstrong Audio http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/Armstrong/armstrong.html
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html

On Mon, 14 May 2012 08:53:33 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Stephen
Wolstenholme wrote:
On Sat, 12 May 2012 17:25:49 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Stephen
Wolstenholme wrote:


But who would buy a PC with anything else pre-installed?

I would. Not only that, I have done so.

The point being that lets me and the vendor ensure in advance that an
alternative of the kind I prefer does, indeed, install and run OK on
the specific set of hardware I'm buying from them.

Of course, I can then (and do) wipe that and install for myself to
ensure I know what is on the machine, etc.


Yes, I know how to do all that as well,

Then I'm puzzled by why you asked your 'question' if you knew quite well
why some *do* buy a "PC" sic with "anything else pre-installed".


but 99% of PC buyers just want to plug it in and use Windows.

Where does your "99%" figure come from?


Sales enquiries from when I was selling.

From a sellers point of view it makes life easier. I don't want to
produce multiple versions of my software just to suite the tiny minority
of users who use a PC without Windows. I have been through that loop
once and only sold one copy!

That shows the advantage of open software which allows other to either
compile/install from source or modify to suit their system.


No way. The effort to convert existing software to recent "open" is
too much work. I've tried it with one product. It took a long time and
resulted in one sale. AAMOI the customer has since gone back to
Windows.

Steve

--
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EasyNN-plus. Neural Networks plus. http://www.easynn.com
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JustNN. Just Neural Networks. http://www.justnn.com

Jim Lesurf wrote:

but 99% of PC buyers just want to plug it in and use Windows.

Where does your "99%" figure come from?

OK, it's an underestimate. Try 99.9%.

Bill

On Mon, 14 May 2012 08:53:33 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Stephen
Wolstenholme wrote:
On Sat, 12 May 2012 17:25:49 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Stephen
Wolstenholme wrote:


But who would buy a PC with anything else pre-installed?

I would. Not only that, I have done so.

The point being that lets me and the vendor ensure in advance that an
alternative of the kind I prefer does, indeed, install and run OK on
the specific set of hardware I'm buying from them.

Of course, I can then (and do) wipe that and install for myself to
ensure I know what is on the machine, etc.


Yes, I know how to do all that as well,

Then I'm puzzled by why you asked your 'question' if you knew quite well
why some *do* buy a "PC" sic with "anything else pre-installed".


but 99% of PC buyers just want to plug it in and use Windows.

Where does your "99%" figure come from?

From a sellers point of view it makes life easier. I don't want to
produce multiple versions of my software just to suite the tiny minority
of users who use a PC without Windows. I have been through that loop
once and only sold one copy!

That shows the advantage of open software which allows other to either
compile/install from source or modify to suit their system.

But only *for those people who wish to do that.*

The majority of people want to buy a PC the way they buy a car. They
want to choose between makes, models, engine sizes, etc. but they want
to come away from the dealer's with a fully working car.

They do not want to have a kit of parts delivered to their homes leaving
them to assemble the gearbox to the engine, put it into the body, set
the parameters in the engine-management-system that they chose, etc,
etc.

Similarly they don't want to be forced to choose between different
arrangements of driver's controls - foot operated steering (like rudder
control on an aircraft), hand operated brake and accelerator, or perhaps
a multipurpose joystick. They want the normal, familiar arrangement of
hand and foot controls.

Standardisation and familiarity are enormously important to the vast
majority of people.

--
Peter Duncanson
(in uk.tech.digital-tv)