Microsoft Woes

[noneoftheabove]

Does Microsoft care about their customers? Can it afford to leave their actual customers helpless at a time when the software they sell can be downloaded on the internet and used without paying a cent. I mean if they want to prevent software piracy they might consider respecting the people the legitimately purchase their software. I buy their product when so many others would pirate it, so it frustrates me that when i want to get a 64 bit copy of my windows vista home premium i would have to pay the full price of a separate operating system. It costs 10 dollars more and i would be willing to pay the difference but when i enter my key into the "request alternate media" box all i get is an error message telling me that my key is not valid for that offer. When i want to contact Microsoft about this i find that after ninety days prior to activation they no longer accept support emails or calls, unless i want to pay 59 dollars for it. Now pretty much every company on the planet will let their loyal customers email them; except for Microsoft. Hubris has inflated their head to such proportions that they refuse such requests like a king swatting away peasants who come to ask simple favors. I consider this request to be a simple favor. In fact all a want to do is ask a question. Can Microsoft give me this: NO.

[Ahura]

Ouch.....

Thing like that tend to happen as a company grew. A few boycotts now and then should be sufficient to remind them.

[TwoRails]

People are boycotting, in a way. I read an article recently that showed how Vista is doing compared to ME and XP when they came out. Naturally, ME lagged greatly behind XP... and Vista is lagging behind ME!! It's stuff like this that makes a difference and I have no intention of buying Vista (it's just to bad I didn't really have a choice when I got my laptop or it wouldn't even be on there :().

[EzyStvy]

Course Microsoft cares about its customers. Thats whay they go to great lengths to provide tons of information.

A list of Microsoft Knowledge Base articles is available to help you troubleshoot error messages that you may receive when you use the Windows Anytime Upgrade feature to upgrade Windows Vista
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930733/en-us


Windows Anytime Upgrade: Installation Overview and FAQ
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/buyorupgrade/windowsanytimeupgrade/faq.mspx


Can I change the system type during the upgrade (for example, switch from 32-bit to 64-bit)?
No. Your upgrade disc must match your current system type; 32-bit upgrades are valid only for 32-bit systems, and 64-bit upgrades are valid only for 64-bit systems.

[TwoRails]

I think that's the rub here. They don't really make it easy. I consider most of us here at PCM to be advanced users who know, pretty much, how to get the information they need. But that is not always the case. I'm an XP fan but had to use my list laptop recently for close to a month. I don't have time to spend trying to learn this screwed up, in my opinion, OS. Even trying to do simple things I had to to spend hours searching for answers, even going to several dedicated Vista forums, where even they didn't have the answers.

So no, I don't think they make it easy at all. Now factor in the millions of people trying to use their computers that are not anywhere near as savvy as us and you have problems. That is one of the reasons why I think Vista is doing so poorly.

[noneoftheabove]

No amount of stored information can rival actually talking to a real person when trying to get an answer to a question. I'm not saying that they should accept infinite numbers of emails but three or four per hundred dollar OS would be nice.

[doubledragon5]

People are boycotting, in a way. I read an article recently that showed how Vista is doing compared to ME and XP when they came out. Naturally, ME lagged greatly behind XP... and Vista is lagging behind ME!! It's stuff like this that makes a difference and I have no intention of buying Vista (it's just to bad I didn't really have a choice when I got my laptop or it wouldn't even be on there :().

I feel for ya TwoRails, the best bet is to buy another copy of XP as I have 4 and wipe the drive of Vista and install XP instead.. I did this with my Toshiba lapto although it had XP Home already it was awful with all kinds of problesm. So I purchased a retail copy of XP Pro and installed it instead..

[TwoRails]

If I used my laptop more, doubledragon5, I probably would. But, since it's on there, and it's just a backup unit at the moment, I'll guess I'll leave it on. I should learn it some, anyway, before I have to start helping people with it (LOL.. and I don't even know it myself). I have a couple of friends that buy only pre-builts and I know I'll be getting the questions soon...

[doubledragon5]

I need to learn more of Vista as well.. I find there are a lot of stuff that seem pretty useless and more complicated than it needs to be LOL!!!

[TwoRails]

100% agreed. Ever notice they don't even have the menu bar, "File, Edit, View, etc." on a lot of windows? They've hidden it now... and you have to know the "secret" to show it now. What's up with that?

[doubledragon5]

Ya have noticed that.. I think MS made a huge blunder when they invented vista. They will find out later on that no one really cares for it..

[noneoftheabove]

I don't think there was any "inventing" about it. They just added some shiny interfaces and confusing menus. There is nothing innovative about this operating system except for dx10 which is the only reason i bought it.

[TwoRails]

Agreed again... some times I actually think they changed up the menus and the like just to make people think it's innovation when it's just razzle-dazzle. Like I mentioned above: why hid the menu bar?.....

[Lespaul20]

I don't think there was any "inventing" about it. They just added some shiny interfaces and confusing menus. There is nothing innovative about this operating system except for dx10 which is the only reason i bought it.


Get used to it. MS is not going to build another OS that is XP.

[TwoRails]

Why do we have to get use to it? If people think it's crappy, then MS should hear / know about it. It worked for ME and from what I've read, vista is selling far worse then ME did. Maybe after MS realizes what a flop vista is, they'll come out with something more decent.

MS seems to have a history of good, then crappy, then good, then crappy cycle. Many think that 95 was a beta for 98, and ME a beta for XP. I wouldn't doubt that vista is a beta for something better. The more folks speak out how bad an OS, the better the next one seems to be.

[noneoftheabove]

Their success goes to their head after they create something good and everybody is all ready to hail microsoft as god. So maybe its the consumer's fault or that of the press that they then think its ok to make something mediocre because they are in such good standing.

[EzyStvy]

Many people like myself like Vista and haven't had any issues with it;)

TwoRails, didn't you mention you haven't spent very much time using it? There is a large learning curve to Vista. Once you get over that, Vista will seem just like any other OS.

[shadowpr]

Many people like myself like Vista and haven't had any issues with it;)

TwoRails, didn't you mention you haven't spent very much time using it? There is a large learning curve to Vista. Once you get over that, Vista will seem just like any other OS.


Agreed

[Lespaul20]

Why do we have to get use to it? If people think it's crappy, then MS should hear / know about it. It worked for ME and from what I've read, vista is selling far worse then ME did. Maybe after MS realizes what a flop vista is, they'll come out with something more decent.

MS seems to have a history of good, then crappy, then good, then crappy cycle. Many think that 95 was a beta for 98, and ME a beta for XP. I wouldn't doubt that vista is a beta for something better. The more folks speak out how bad an OS, the better the next one seems to be.


ME was a bad attempt to use a dated DOS core. ME was bad because it was unstable and unreliable. The only popular dislikes of Vista seem to be that "it's not XP" or "my 15 year old software developed for W2k doesn't work with Vista." Both are not reasonable to label an OS a bad OS. Vista is just as stable and reliable as XP. Compatibility is not directly Microsoft's fault. In corporate environments XP is still available on new builds if needed. And last, to judge whether Vista is successful or not based on retail sales is just bad statistics. Vista sales is more likely not as high because of XP. Even if ME was a bad OS how is 98 and XP even similar? Expecting MS to make more of the old and same doesn't even begin to make sense.

[TwoRails]

Many people like myself like Vista and haven't had any issues with it ;)

TwoRails, didn't you mention you haven't spent very much time using it? There is a large learning curve to Vista. Once you get over that, Vista will seem just like any other OS.If you like it, then go for it!! - Heck, I'm a good example of liking things a lot of other folks don't. I've been a Norton fan for a long time... but then I don't have it currently installed on any of my machines. Hope that doesn't make me a hypocrite.. :eek: :)

Anyway, yes you are correct: I haven't used it much, but that reinforces what I'm saying. I didn't have any problem with XP and was using it almost immediately. Yes, the tricks and tips came later, but it was right off the bat in use. Same with ME. Same with 98. Can't remember for sure about 95, but don't remember anything bad. With vista, when you can't do a simple thing like looking at directories with going online for help, that's pretty bad, for one example. Hiding standard menu options is also pretty bad, like putting the radio in the truck in the new model truck. (trunk.. truck... just a little humor :))

ME was a bad attempt to use a dated DOS core. ME was bad because it was unstable and unreliable. The only popular dislikes of Vista seem to be that "it's not XP" or "my 15 year old software developed for W2k doesn't work with Vista." Both are not reasonable to label an OS a bad OS. Vista is just as stable and reliable as XP. Compatibility is not directly Microsoft's fault. In corporate environments XP is still available on new builds if needed. And last, to judge whether Vista is successful or not based on retail sales is just bad statistics. Vista sales is more likely not as high because of XP. Even if ME was a bad OS how is 98 and XP even similar? Expecting MS to make more of the old and same doesn't even begin to make sense.Some folks love(d) ME, just like some love vista. I still have at least a couple of builds out there that are still running ME... so it can't be all that bad, in those terms.

How can you not equate poor sales to success? If a car maker has a model that doesn't sell... they don't make it anymore: it's not popular. vista sales will increase, surely, as it is a monopoly and there is no real alternatives for the masses, meaning it's not like cars where you can get a different model or go to a different dealer. (Yes, there are alternatives, but not for the masses... and amazingly, Apple is doing well.) -- What's Dell or HP going to do? Sell Apples? They are stuck with vista and that is what will increase sales as in time people need new systems and don't have the money for an Apple. (In actuality, I have no idea how vistas sales are going to do in the future--nobody does. Currently they are very poor. Heck, after a couple of service packs, it may be OK... maybe not. I'm not saying that vista won't ever take off, but it still is on the ground.)

98 and XP do have a lot in common. First, both worked very well from the git-go and both were followed by that were / are not well received OSs. Both were much more user friendly.

I never mentioned that MS should make this or that, but making something easy to use isn't a bad idea, is it? Why do experienced users having to search online to learn how to do simple, basic things?

(speaking in the generic "you" not the personal "you": ) If you like vista, that's great. Nobody is twisting your arm to like it. On the other hand, though, why are so many of the folks that like vista wanting to insist that the people that don't like it, should? Choice and personal preferences are what makes the world go 'round.

TR :)

[usnavyretired]

When Bill Gates himself says that if he had to do it over he would have been done it differently (speaking about the development of Vista) seems to suggest he might be a little disappointed with the product. I have Vista on my laptop but I have not really played with it much but based on what I read in here, for ever one person that seems to like Vista, there seems to be three or four who don't. It's well documented that corporate America is balking at making the jump to Vista. Like I said, haven't played with it enough to form an honest opinion but based on what the masses say, it ain't that sweet.

[TwoRails]

Ya, I think there was / is a uTube video on that...

[Beezle_Boss]

They shoulda kept it in development so there wouldn't be any of these problems were all having. It seems like a lot of things shoulda been held back these days.

[jvillarreal1000]

I have a Dell laptop that's two years old and I was thinking about upgrading to Vista, are there drastic improvements going from XP to Vista? Would you all recommend it or should I just stick with XP and do a clean reinstall? Thanks!!

[doubledragon5]

I have a Dell laptop that's two years old and I was thinking about upgrading to Vista, are there drastic improvements going from XP to Vista? Would you all recommend it or should I just stick with XP and do a clean reinstall? Thanks!!

It all depends some people have no issues with Vista and some do.. I do believe it has become what ME was to 98 and bad OS.. I would just stick with XP especially if your not having any issues and don't need to upgrade...

[kilgoretrout]

I have a Dell laptop that's two years old
Enough said. Vista is slow on new hardware with 2GB of ram; it will probably crawl on your two year old Dell. You will definitely take a performance hit going from XP to Vista and get very little in the way of new features. Save your money.

[Confused]

I have a Dell laptop that's two years old and !

I have had a terrible experience trying to go to Vista. Only reason I did was that my production PC was having major hardware problems and I needed to build a new one. I figured that XP would eventually not be supported and I might as well go to Vista. I cain't even get Quicken (2006 Premier) to run properly and after a week I started over with a reload of Vista.

I would at the very least wait until SP1 comes out and then check the forums to see if there is any improvements to Vista.

I just wish that MS had kept tweeking XP and charge me for the tweeks rather than foist this debacle upon the public before it is ready.
Chas