It's not a matter of being offended. It's a matter of maturity and credibility to be taken seriously.

If someone hears you say "Microsoft Windows blows chunks," she's unlikely to take anything you say seriously. And asking people not to say "Windblows" or "M$" isn't "defend[ing] Microsoft." Apparently you think anyone who doesn't insult Microsoft or Windows is also defending MS/Windows.

And who is this someone? Who says I want to be taken seriously? This is the "General" forum of an internet forum, not a friggin' job interview or product pitch to a Fortune 500 company. What the hell do I care what some random stranger I will never meet thinks?

Well, if it's not defending Microsoft then it must be smug moral superiority. What gives you the right to decide what I or anyone else should or shouldn't say? What makes you an expert on maturity and seriousness? My personal belief is that Microsoft products generally blow chunks. I hardly think I am alone in this assessment. Does this mean that in your eyes I am hopelessly immature, and have nothing to offer society because I can't be "taken seriously"?

Again: this is a freakin' internet forum, not the UN General Assembly...sheesh.

No. What I think is that if anyone gets their feathers so ruffled because a few trolls on the internet say "M$" then you need to check your priorities. There is a great deal of bad sh*t in this world, and in the grand scheme of issues that need addressing taking potshots at MS is at the bottom of the list.

I would like to work as a Linux Trainer or Administrator but the jobs are all
pointing to UNIX Administrators which have knowledge in HP-UX and so on...
Till now I've only RHCT, and Iam looking forward to get the LPi2 Certification.
Linux whatever Distri I tried I love it more and more.
But in order to get every evening something on the blade I need to earn some cash.
And nearly 90% of the jobs I am looking at want a person with a WINDOOZE Certification. And the truth is I am worked not only in one company that supported WINDOOZE. So the one I am working currently at...
And I am afraid but they will still use there "FENSTER" longer then ... don't know!? For that DUAL Booting people - Its not a shame to use both. But if not you can mess around with WINE or CrossoverOffice and VMWARE or XEN, Terminal Server ...

bulliver, if you don't care for the opinions of strangers, stop arguing with me, then.

In addition to what kimvette said, Microsoft has got a few good tax models. These are called "license renewal tax", "upgrade software when you upgrade hardware or die from lack of support tax" and so on

Next - as kim said - their deliberate breaking of standards. "OpenXML" being a very recent example that I came across.

End

You are not seeing my point at all...it really isn't about calling Microsoft 'M$' at all.

I care very much for other's opinions. I respect their right to have them, but that doesn't mean I have to agree with them. Go back to my first post again and read this:

Admittedly it was a little inflammatory but it was _you_ that decided to take it personally and come back at me saying that I am immature and lack credibility, as well as some bollocks about what I am 'apparently' thinking. You felt you were within your rights to state your opinion, why do I not deserve the same? Why do you post your opinion here but then try to bow down when someone challenges it? I thought we were having a 'discussion' here, not an argument. I was trying to get you to defend your position, so that mayhaps we might _both_ learn something, or at least experience another POV.

Take two things from this discussion please:
1. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and to express that opinion no matter how dumb it is.
2. Getting upset about such opinions is a terrible waste of emotional energy.

Now go ahead and take your football and go home...I won't bother you any more.

We should not forget that Windows did bring the computing world available for everyone. Just a few years ago, the whole thing about computers was reserve to science people (which I am one of them) and other freaks alike. Now, I bet that most people here are working daily with a PC, and for most of us playing with it, at home, in the evening.

I am certainly not a big fan of paying everytime I want to use or install a new software. And I also like being able to setup my PC the way I want, and not follow somekind of Windows rules. But I don't turn my back on Windows.

Wether you call it by its real name or make a bit of childish jokes about it does not change the fact that M. Gates was able to bring a very complicated peice of machine and make it available for everyone. And by doing that, he could make quite a few bucks.

Actually, I don't think they did. My first computing experience was on a Commodore Vic 20. All of my friends either had that or an Apple; later, we upgraded to the Commodore 64 and the Apple IIe, respectively.

It wasn't until I was much older (i.e., 19 and in the military), that I ran into my first Windows machine. This was in the 1990/91 timeframe. Up until 1994, I was using the Commodore platform and looking at buying a new Commodore.

If you want to argue that Windows opened up the world of computing, I think it would be more accurate to say that DOS was the impetus; after all, Windows 3.x, and even Windows 95 to an extent, was based on DOS.

However, I do not believe the Micro$oft lie that they were the saviors of the computer universe for the lowly and oppressed. They just happened to take the marketing ball away from Apple, TI, Commodore, and a few others to garner the lion's share of the, then, up-&-coming home computer craze.

I find it hard to believe that back in those days all your friends had computers. Normal desktop computers wern't really commonplace before 1990. Sure, they existed, but they definatly wern't in every home. Not around the country or world anyway... where did you live? Maybe if you lived in silicon valley or something where all that stuff boomed then you had one, but I know my family didn't have a computer in 1990. I think it was like 1993 or so before we got one, and it was a used 386 with GEOS ontop of DOS (I think it was called a Laser or something). We got 2 486's from my grandma (Packard Bells) like a year later that ran Windows 3.1 and Windows 3.11 for Workgroups. Wasn't until 1997 or 1998 until we got a brand new one after that (only 300MHz, my friend and I built it) Then when I turned 19 I went ahead and bought my own laptop brand new (1.4GHz, 512DDR2, 80GIG EIDE.)

Now I have a bunch more of course... I actually got alot more older ones before my laptop after the 300MHz one, but they were like used or ones I built out of spare parts, the next new one was my laptop. I think I actually have a Timex Sinclair sitting in my closet somewhere that still works. With the membrane keyboard and uses a TV as a monitor and a tape recorder as the drive... I found it in my Nanna's basement, lol. Prolly could sell that thing for alotta money these days. I also have a Apple Macintosh SE/30 sitting in my closet that I repaired (it's scsi drive was dead when I traded 2 old 15 inch monitors for it.)

a lot of people in the world have nothing to eat and more serious problems than you all....

totally useless and mindless discussion!!!

my pet peeve is my natural curiosity being forced to read this *g

EDIT - Double entry, I apologize

LOL, I had typed a nice reply to this, but had it deleted when I was forced to re-enter my password after taking too long to type, I guess.

I have been a geek for a long, long time, and hung around the other geeks in school. My father, after having worked for IBM, Xerox and then, subsequently, in the US Air Force during Vietnam (he was drafted away from those companies) knew the value of computers. We, my family and my friends, have had computers in the home since 1982/83, that I can remember. According to the Wikipedia entry on the Commodore VIC-20 and the C64, they had over 1.5 million sales worldwide. That's a lot of homes; and, that is just the Commodore market.

I'd bet you're right, somebody would pay a LOT for that old, working Timex Sinclair =); however, I would definitely keep it. I am currently trying to find a good deal on an old Amiga. I loved those computers. The Amiga 500 was my first introduction to a mouse, and I hated it, LOL.

ROTFLMAO - there are starving people in the world & with more serious problems then we have, according to you; yet, you STILL find time to save the world and occupy yourself with reading these inane arguments AND respond to them.

Commendable!

i think we should stop using those kind of "language" ... it wont do good things to linux by any measurements left alone trying to introduce linux as a fine desktop operating system that everyone who own a computer should have and only use(if thats possible) ...


//nope ... i'm fscking sure that i never read all the postings , just the thread title ...


.

I don't think we should have everybody change to Linux. If we do that, the major corporations will jump on the bandwagon and would soon corner the market.

It's already happening, look at the players currently supporting and offering Linux solutions, at a price, of course: Novell, IBM, Apple, Red Hat, etc.

The more people adopt this as their primary platform, the more the major corporations will see this as a money-maker and find a way to exploit and then own the technology.