OT: Windows XP Annoyances

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J

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Windows XP is fine for me. It's not like past versions of Windows
where there are resource limitations, memory leaks, instability if not
restarted everyday etc....

I still have to do a lot of things that a non-techie user would have
problems with. Right now, I need to change a setting in my Palm
hotsync preferences on my desktop. The little icon doesn't show up,
however. If I were a user that's not technical, they would be lost
and probably would reboot.

I know I can fix it by going into the task manager, looking for the
hotsync.exe process, stop it (and any multiples), and then start it up
again and it will show.

For the average user, this isn't good -- yeah XP is stable, but I
think MS's OS has a way to go. Without serious competition, however,
it can move at a snail's pace.

The Mac OS will never challenge Windows (will Macs be able to run
Vista, I doubt it). Linux probably won't either, but I would so much
like an alternative.

Bill Gates is such a philanthropist. Big deal ... if I had a
judicially recognized Monopoly funneling billions into my personal net
worth, I would be out there trying to solve the world's problems too.
 
Hi!
Windows XP is fine for me. It's not like past versions of Windows
where there are resource limitations, memory leaks, instability if not
restarted everyday etc....
Click to expand...

I don't really care for XP. There's too much about it that I don't like, and
it has its own set of unique stability issues.

I'm still (and will likely be doing so for some time) running Windows 2000
Professional. It's fast, doesn't require a ton of hardware to run well
(though it does like RAM) and I've had no complaints about the stability.
The little icon doesn't show up,
however. If I were a user that's not technical, they would be lost
and probably would reboot.
Click to expand...

Logging out and then back in might fix it too. At least on Windows 2000, not
all of the system tray icons seem to show up reliably on a fresh start/first
login.
Without serious competition, however,
it can move at a snail's pace.
Click to expand...

Even with some semi-serious competition (look at how Firefox and its
popularity have spurred the IE team into motion...at least in some ways...)
they don't seem to be "getting it".

I really don't like IE7 (have played with all the betas so far) and it won't
matter much to me anyway. The UI seems clumsy, the nonmovable tool bar above
the menu bar seems dumb, and I'm not sure how much better it is going to do
in terms of security.

On the other hand, they have brought out a lot of nice functionality with
the new IE7, and some of it is quite well implemented. I do like some of the
new program artwork, the RSS reader is a nice touch, and I hope the Phishing
Filter concept works out well.
The Mac OS will never challenge Windows
Click to expand...

Don't bet on that. It may take a while, but I think it could be seen as
happening.

In 2001 I wouldn't have considered buying any Mac. Today (two Mac mini
computers later) is a different story. There are some things about the OS
that annoy me, but it's stable, usable and (sometimes) fast. Mac OS X 10.4.x
is great, and 10.3.x, while not as feature packed, is a stable operating
system that just runs and runs for the most part.

Each release seems to get better, though I don't know about ponying up the
full price when it comes out...
(will Macs be able to run Vista, I doubt it).
Click to expand...

Apple could always do anything, but there's no reason the hardware in most
of their new Intel-based Macs can't run Vista.

With the success of the "Boot Camp" beta so far, I see no reason why they
wouldn't continue. Even if they don't, you can always run Windows in a
virtual environment, and it runs quite well there.
Linux probably won't either, but I would so much
like an alternative.
Click to expand...

Linux has such great potential. But it's still got some silly shortcomings
and things that would have a new user wondering what they've gotten
themselves into.

I even got to wondering that same thought after playing with xf86config
under a fairly modern release of Debian Linux for a while. It seems that the
routine would save most parameters that you chose while running xf86config,
but that it didn't actually go so far as to specify the name of the video
card driver you needed to be using. Considering that the routine *asked*
what type of video card I had, it should have been able to specify the right
driver in the xf86config file. It took me a while (and some outside help)
before I was able to piece things together and finish up the work with a
text editor.

This is not the first time I've been there, and I'm not exactly a dummy when
it comes to computers. I have been able to figure it out, but sometimes I
just don't want to expend that much effort. (Here is where I a draw a
parallel to Eric Raymond's "The Luxury of Ignorance" article, available at:
http://catb.org/esr/writings/cups-horror.html .)

Sorry...I think I got a bit carried away there. I do, however, want to see
Linux get more "desktop and average user" friendly than it is.

William
 
Sorry...I think I got a bit carried away there. I do, however, want to see
Linux get more "desktop and average user" friendly than it is.
Click to expand...

That's what is limiting its takeup. WinXP for all its failings
works out of the box, slot in the CD, go away and make a cup
of tea, come back to find a (semi-functional) OS.
 
William said:
Sorry...I think I got a bit carried away there. I do, however, want to see
Linux get more "desktop and average user" friendly than it is.
Click to expand...

I'd like to see that, too - but don't look for it anytime soon. While
the Linux kernal has a leader to give it direction, the Linux community
as a whole tries to move in too many directions at once. Each developer
works on what interests him, and some things that would benefit those
who are not developers are shuttled to one side. The community needs
more coordination. That is the downside of the Linux model.

The upside is that developers aren't tied down to plugging the security
of an OS that has more holes than a screen door. Any OS will have bugs
and potential security problems, and Linux has it's share, too. The
difference so far (and I can't speak about Vista. I know nothing about
its structure.) is in the basic design. The design of Linux tends to
prevent the ability of malware that affects one machine from spreading
to another. Windows in the past has made it easy for things to spread.

TJ
 
Tell you what, I'll be happy if you just donate at the same percentage
level of your net worth that Bill Gates has decided to...

It IS A BIG DEAL. The money he and now Warren Buffet are investing in
solving worldwide health issues will save millions of lives, and change
the very nature of the developing world. You can discount Bill Gates
for Microsoft if you wish, but the kind of money he has donated and will
continue to donate, which is over 90% of his personal wealth, is unheard
of for someone of his age. Also, he is doing it in a very hands-on
fashion, not just armchairing the activities and money transfer. It has
also inspired others to do the same, and will hopefully continue to.

For many years, I was critical of Bill Gates both due to some of the
business practices at MS and for his lack of more financial
philanthropy. But what I recently discovered is he has been heavily
involved in this philanthropic giving for over 12 years, he just didn't
make an issue of it.

Considering how many industrialists amass billions of dollars which they
simply pass on to their children, what Gates and Buffet have done is
worthy of praise and thanks. They were under no obligation to do so,
other than a moral imperative that they took on in spades. The Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation is about developing a methodology to give
people around the work equal opportunity to health, improving high
schools throughout the US, and to furthering free public libraries.

Some people just need something to b*tch at, it would seem, and there
certainly is enough to do that at, but of all the events that have taken
place in the last few weeks, I find it absolutely amazing that you could
dump on the kind of selfless acts that Gates has targeted.

Your jaded attitude is easy when you don't have to walk the walk
yourself. Whether you agree with how Gates made the money he did, he was
under no obligation to disseminate it as he is. I give him kudos for
recognizing the need, and working to help change this planet by creating
more equality for those in need.

When I think of all the despotic governments and individuals in this
world, one would think you could find someone more appropriate to kick.

Art
 
Arthur Entlich said:
Tell you what, I'll be happy if you just donate at the same percentage
level of your net worth that Bill Gates has decided to...

It IS A BIG DEAL. The money he and now Warren Buffet are investing in
solving worldwide health issues will save millions of lives, and change
the very nature of the developing world. You can discount Bill Gates
for Microsoft if you wish, but the kind of money he has donated and will
continue to donate, which is over 90% of his personal wealth, is unheard
of for someone of his age. Also, he is doing it in a very hands-on
fashion, not just armchairing the activities and money transfer. It has
also inspired others to do the same, and will hopefully continue to.

For many years, I was critical of Bill Gates both due to some of the
business practices at MS and for his lack of more financial
philanthropy. But what I recently discovered is he has been heavily
involved in this philanthropic giving for over 12 years, he just didn't
make an issue of it.

Considering how many industrialists amass billions of dollars which they
simply pass on to their children, what Gates and Buffet have done is
worthy of praise and thanks. They were under no obligation to do so,
other than a moral imperative that they took on in spades. The Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation is about developing a methodology to give
people around the work equal opportunity to health, improving high
schools throughout the US, and to furthering free public libraries.

Some people just need something to b*tch at, it would seem, and there
certainly is enough to do that at, but of all the events that have taken
place in the last few weeks, I find it absolutely amazing that you could
dump on the kind of selfless acts that Gates has targeted.

Your jaded attitude is easy when you don't have to walk the walk
yourself. Whether you agree with how Gates made the money he did, he was
under no obligation to disseminate it as he is. I give him kudos for
recognizing the need, and working to help change this planet by creating
more equality for those in need.

When I think of all the despotic governments and individuals in this
world, one would think you could find someone more appropriate to kick.

Art
Click to expand...

Art
I couldn't agree with you more.
Bill Gates has well and truly earned his money with incredible vision and
enormously hard work that is the envy of most of us; to give so much of it away
is a lesson that we could well learn from.
In my country there is an expression "Tall Poppy Syndrome", in other words
knocking down the tall poppy is a sort of sick sport.
Good for you Art for responding, I thought about it but you did it!
Tony
 
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