I'm just wondering what the average Linux user thinks of Microsoft and ALL there products.(Xbox Windows Zune so on and so on.)
Please Simple short answers.
(Just to clear up I am a Linux user and have been for about 6 months now and I'll tell you what I think of Microsoft later on so there's no copying or something like that I don't know but ya)

Can anyone give a simple short answer as to what this last sentence means?

I have no opinions about Microsoft, or about their abusive business practices, or about SW which has evolved in layers of mediocrity, or about all the intellectual vegetables they have created among the computing masses. I also have no opinions about the deployment of the hordes of lawyers and lobbyists looking for every angle to preserve their obscene monopoly. ....or about Bill Gates--portrayed as a great philanthropist, but actually a small giver when measured in terms of percentage of net worth. .....or about the great blustering bully, Steve what's-his-name.

Sorry---no opinions.

Please tell me, Mr. zero-post-count, what is the point of this thread?

Would you also like my opinion on McDonalds' hamburgers or General Motors' vehicles?

One more question: Is it school holidays in your part of the world at the moment?

@ rkelsen - that must have been love at first post for me.

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As for the thread: I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE Microsoft. It's like.. great, you know? Like I can do internet exploring? And chatting with my buddies? And like .. all those things that linux doesn't have?

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Also: rkelsen, what is your opinion on Mickey D's hamburgers?

Basically, the OP - probably being used to a life in which he has been surrounded by idiots who can't make up their own mind and express a honest opinion - said that he would not answer his own thread because he doesn't want US to copy his opinion, because we love him so much.

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GM makes crap cars, but that's nothing new people buying them just pay too much and after that can't admit they've made a bad move.

MD's hamburgers..they taste good if you never eat them, and smell good if you stay far enough so the taste doesn't catch on you.

To the OP: I believe these "short, honest" answers are found all over the web. From the mouths of those who got hit by the lawyer army, and those who never tried anything else but MS products. There is no simple answer to what I personally think about the company and it's products, it depends so much about what exactly I'm asked the opinion about. Generally it's pretty neutral, but certainly not positive.

Short?

I really don't care.

Umm ok hamburgers. And Cars.
Well I got one somewhat post that answered what I asked not to much though. And The rest were about hamburgers. I didn't ask about hamburgers I just want to know what most Linux users think about Microsoft. If you all want you can make another post about hamburgers and cars. But If you want you can answer the question at hand.

I dont know but i think that if you ask the average linux user what they think of MS the answer would not be positive. If it was positive you would not start this thread.

I think following:
1.
They are hard on competition, really hard and ruthless, like Texas cowboys on Holywood movies.
This I don't like
2.
They really pet their employees, it seems like they carry them around like precious drops of water on the hand ;-). The people who work for them must have great fun and enjoy they self very much. No deadline ever met, didn't conform to any standard long time so far. It must be pure joy to get paid for that. They really appreciate the labor of them and pay a lot for little if any.
This I admire a lot.

I wish i could live like that...

i absolutly, love some microsoft prodcts....
thir keyboards and mice.

if you ment softweare then i wont touch it with a barge pole

+1 to that.

My opinion on Microsoft, as a long time user and IT support for MS:
Negatives:
- They're overpriced, and want to charge for almost every little extra bit you get from them.
- No true productivity software comes with the OS without some sort of charge.
- Their security model has lots of holes that they are now attempting (miserably) to patch with Vista.
- Their apparent attempts to rid the world of opposing OS's isn't cool, and they don't play fair (monopolies and other tactics).

Positives:
- With care I've been able to keep 2000 and XP computers relatively stable for years without major crashes. But I have to be VERY CAREFUL about what software I install, and what sites I visit to prevent malware and instability.
- Gameplay is well supported.

At this point in my technical career, I prefer Linux. I appreciate the philosophy and community behind it. I also appreciate it for its extensibility and freedom. It is nice to know I can type one or two commands to install any of a wide variety of softwares I desire, rather than have to purchase online or at the local store. Stability is great.

+2 on that

Micro$oft's hardware products are good, fully functional and not expensive. Both on my office and home machines I have ms keyboards, a ms optical trackball at the office and my laser habu mouse at home

Can't say the same about the software.

I know you're probably kidding... but the word "permatemp" was coined by ex-MS "employees".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permatemp

I hate them. Entirely.

- The Zune is filled with DRM, even though it's been mostly killed. I love my Walkman more thankyouverymuchMS.

- Never liked Windows all that much. The few times I miss it, I have Wine & ReactOS, and an old copy of Win2k.

- Copy of Word, Money, (& methinks) Excel 97, the only office they did right. Not counting the "Office 2000 Proffessional Edition" on that win2k machine, with almost all the crap MS sells for office... (It used to be in Nortel Networks back before the bomb.)

- XBOX series should not be in the console market. Neither should Sony, though I have to admit, PS3 is very nice... Like the Gamecube, but slightly more evil. (My reason for this one is that shitty consoles shouldn't be subsidised by a parent company's other markets. We need another Nintendo or Sega, someone dedicated to consoles)

- Windows servers. Are a joke.

o.o Woo hoo for me.