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Wow
Normally the Linux guys get out in support of these sorts of articles. I can't remember a flame-bait article like this that's had such little support for Linux in the comments.
I certainly agree with others that there's not much in this article to suggest Ubuntu is going to blow away Windows 8 (which, of course, is not the only option. Many - probably most - people will stay on Windows XP or 7). And the language in the article is far too strong.
As someone that logs into servers all day long, the Remote Login feature sounds interesting to me. Having applied more thought to it, I don't know that I would actually use it. There are certain people out there that would appreciate it a lot, but it's not a mainstream feature that's going to drive people away from Windows.
I agree with the author about app installation. Windows has remained old-school on this for a long time. I believe they are introducing an app market with Windows 8 so perhaps that's about to change.
As for the other 8 points - they are all very weak. I can save two clicks when I want to search Amazon??? Wowee!! I actually agree that a good API around this could open up a lot of cool integrations in the future. I seriously doubt companies will be investing time to do it for Linux though. When such an API is built in to iOS people will start using it.
Dash Previews? Do you realise every advantage you listed has been available in Windows since, what, 2000?
Efficient interface? I didn't see a lot that sounded game-changing. I'd expect Ubuntu to have better keyboard support given the nature of its users. Windows has always had pretty good keyboard support too. Very few people actually use it though, so again it's hardly going to drive people away from Windows.
Integrated web services - do these need setting up. If so, wheres the advantage of just installing the existing applications that do this for you already (I remember using a toolbar app that notified me of new gmail messages several years ago).
UI change - yeah, this could certainly be a sticking point for Windows 8. History shows that when Microsoft releases big changes like this people hate it, but a few years later couldn't imagine going back. In any event, this isn't a differentiator. In fact, your description of the changes in Unity sounds like you were describing Windows 8! A massive/contentious change, but you can go back to the old way if you want to.
Same interface for tablet and PC - I'm not sure how you missed this, but Windows 8 is doing this too.
Performace - Windows 7 and 8 both make great use of hardware, and run on low-performance machines.
File sharing - I would have thought Dropbox has this market cornered. And I tend to believe in monopolies for these sorts of things - it works best when everyone uses the same system. Perhaps something new will come along and replace Dropbox, but it will take a platform with a critical mass (like iOS) to make that shift happen. It doesn't even matter if the Ubunut file sharing is superior.
Overall, this is a disappointing article, but not unexpected from Jack.
I certainly agree with others that there's not much in this article to suggest Ubuntu is going to blow away Windows 8 (which, of course, is not the only option. Many - probably most - people will stay on Windows XP or 7). And the language in the article is far too strong.
As someone that logs into servers all day long, the Remote Login feature sounds interesting to me. Having applied more thought to it, I don't know that I would actually use it. There are certain people out there that would appreciate it a lot, but it's not a mainstream feature that's going to drive people away from Windows.
I agree with the author about app installation. Windows has remained old-school on this for a long time. I believe they are introducing an app market with Windows 8 so perhaps that's about to change.
As for the other 8 points - they are all very weak. I can save two clicks when I want to search Amazon??? Wowee!! I actually agree that a good API around this could open up a lot of cool integrations in the future. I seriously doubt companies will be investing time to do it for Linux though. When such an API is built in to iOS people will start using it.
Dash Previews? Do you realise every advantage you listed has been available in Windows since, what, 2000?
Efficient interface? I didn't see a lot that sounded game-changing. I'd expect Ubuntu to have better keyboard support given the nature of its users. Windows has always had pretty good keyboard support too. Very few people actually use it though, so again it's hardly going to drive people away from Windows.
Integrated web services - do these need setting up. If so, wheres the advantage of just installing the existing applications that do this for you already (I remember using a toolbar app that notified me of new gmail messages several years ago).
UI change - yeah, this could certainly be a sticking point for Windows 8. History shows that when Microsoft releases big changes like this people hate it, but a few years later couldn't imagine going back. In any event, this isn't a differentiator. In fact, your description of the changes in Unity sounds like you were describing Windows 8! A massive/contentious change, but you can go back to the old way if you want to.
Same interface for tablet and PC - I'm not sure how you missed this, but Windows 8 is doing this too.
Performace - Windows 7 and 8 both make great use of hardware, and run on low-performance machines.
File sharing - I would have thought Dropbox has this market cornered. And I tend to believe in monopolies for these sorts of things - it works best when everyone uses the same system. Perhaps something new will come along and replace Dropbox, but it will take a platform with a critical mass (like iOS) to make that shift happen. It doesn't even matter if the Ubunut file sharing is superior.
Overall, this is a disappointing article, but not unexpected from Jack.
Posted by gechurch
20th Oct
