Same Old Microsoft

I checked my feeds this morning and found to my surprise that Windows 7 was released today in the UK, ahead of the rest of the world. We currently have postmen and women determined to make life difficult for those who rely on the mail, so copies of Windows 7 were posted early to those who'd ordered them online.

Like the rest of the Microsoft proxies hiding behind the label of "independent journalists" the BBC are doing their bit to keep their employers happy.Like many of their Microsoft related articles, it verges on a splog at times. Everything is a sales pitch about how wonderful and glorious Windows 7 is, without pointing out which of those same functions are also available on either OSX or Linux. At the very end of the video there's a brief error message which is brushed aside with a quick comment about it being "a new product with teething issues". Is this balanced? I think not. I eagerly await the same attention being paid to Ubuntu 9.10 which is released soon, oh and OSX Snow Lepard which is already out. Don't forget to mention the guest user data deletion bug when you do your 4min promo video on OSX. I'm guessing the BBC's employers wouldn't approve of this as it dilutes the Microsoft visibility.

They even give several other Microsoft proxies the chance to tell you why Windows 7 must not fail, all under the guise of "independent" analysts and commentators. This basically amounts to Microsoft sales people in disguise telling you to "help a poor mega corp, give them money for nothing and upgrade now, please. You rejected the last offering, please don't reject this one, just upgrade now and we'll consider all your sins forgiven". On Windows 7 itself I noticed this part:

However, be aware that many simple programs for handling things like instant messaging are missing from Windows 7 on install; instead, the idea is that users will begin to use the cloud-based services that form Windows Live.

Most Linux distros by comparison include a multi-protocol Instant Messenger client by default, so you can connect to MSN, AIM, GoogleTalk, Yahoo etc all from the first boot. They also offer full office suites, graphics manipulation apps etc from first boot too. With Microsoft, they want to try and sell you everything even remotely useful. Are Microsoft opening yet another anti-trust move?

They keep trying to convince people they've changed, yet they continue to do the same things over and over and over again. They will never change. Microsoft want to lock users in to their products, services, protocols and formats. Any pretence at "interoperability" is just that; pretence. When they seek to divert the EU regulators attention with vague promises, it's just that; a diversion.

They tout cloud computing with a Microsoft solution just days after Microsoft lost a LOT of data from Danger and T-Mobile? Being the responsible company that Microsoft are, they seek to blame everyone but themselves for their own failures. They now face a class action lawsuit from those people who were fooled into trusting their data to Microsoft and lost it. It's not a great advert for "Microsoft Cloud Computing". Many IT people are sceptical for various reasons about the concept of cloud computing as the answer to our problems, but even those who believe in the concept wouldn't be stupid enough to trust it to Microsoft, specially when Google offer a much more reliable service built on *nix stability and security.

Where is the "balanced" journalism in pointing out other cloud based services other than Live? Did someone (directly or indirectly) employed by Microsoft edit that part out? Or did you just know not to bother trying to slip it in, knowing it'd be clipped out? Many services we use are done through a web browser, so Live is just a click away from any other offerings. Google is the brand most associate with "web stuff", so why no mention of them? You interview Microsoft proxies about Google stories, who not unsurprisingly cast doubt over them.

I guess I can't really complain on a personal level as I don't have a TV License, nor will I buy one despite the intimidation, so it's not my money that's being used to promote Microsoft products and services.