The new Microsoft ad: I'm a PC...as a bunch of other people

So, Microsoft has decided to ditch Seinfeld and the all idea of "Microsoft and the future" and went on to adopt a new approach in their marketing campaign, where they focus on the idea that there are a lot of PCs out there and that, in spite of the stereotype created by the "I'm a PC" guy from the Mac ads, they can achieve great things. See the ad for yourself:



Even though the ad itself was made on a Mac, I still think it is better than the previous approach of placing Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld on a "higher level of the society" that is trying to "connect with the simple people".

However, it is still not there... because they show all these people but they still don't say why do they use Windows and not other operating systems. Maybe they use it because they have to, maybe it's because they don't know the alternatives, or maybe they are in fact not happy with using Windows but are too afraid to switch to Linux or Mac. And most of all, they don't show how all those people react when they get a BSOD and loose their work :-)

Source: The Mac Newbie

Funny stuff: the new version of the Microsoft/Gates/Seinfeld ad

The first version was no fun, this one is better:



Source: bit.ate (in Portuguese)

The Seinfeld/Gates/Microsoft ad

As I posted before, Seinfeld was being recruited by Microsoft to be a part of the new marketing campaign to try and take down the negativity brought by years of those "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" ads. And even though Jerry Seinfeld was once part of one of Apple's "Think Different" ads, he accepted the offer from Microsoft (after all it was $10M, who wouldn't?) and crossed to the "dark side".

The following video seems to be the first ad of the new Microsoft's marketing wave. However, this feels more like a teaser, since nothing much is divulged. Basically, Seinfeld assists Bill Gates in buying some nice shoes at affordable prices (like if any of them needs it) and in exchange gets a glimpse of the future at Microsoft...See for yourself!



I sure hope there's more to it than this, because I don't quite see how this is going to change people's perception of Windows. It is basically trying to create a hype for the upcoming Microsoft technology (Windows 7?) in a attempt to divert people's attention from the failure that was Vista.

Let's wait... for now! :-)

We use Macs because we want to...not because we have to

CNET's "The Open Road" blog has come up with a diagram that shows an interesting behaviour in web search regarding operating systems (Blue = Microsoft; Red = Linux; Orange = Apple) for the last 90 days:

In case you're wondering, the A mark corresponds to the day when iPhone 3G went on sale and the B mark corresponds to the day when iPhone 3G was announced. But the interesting behaviour is not related to iPhone 3G. It's that noticeable valley-shaped lines for Microsoft and Linux (Blue and Red lines, respectively). And before you ask, those valleys correspond to weekends.

So, what does this means? Well, this is somehow speculative, but it seems that Microsoft and Linux users only "deal" with their operating systems during the week, when they are working, i.e., when they "have to". On the other hand, if you look at the orange line (corresponding to Apple-related searches), you'll see that this is stronger during weekends, exactly when people tend to do things they "want to", instead of the things they "have to" do.

Bottom line... it looks like Apple has figured out how to make us "want to" use our computers, by making it simple, fun and intuitive.

Source: The Mac Newbie

Retro-blogging: best posts of September 2007

Previously, on "The Tech In Me":

• A paradoxal myth
• Steve Jobs gives iPhone early-adopters $100 back
• Just use your head
• Flight simulator on Google Earth
• Windows Vista vs. Linux-based ISP
• Why you shouldn't unlock your iPhone: reason I, II and III
  

Apple's answer to the Microsoft's answer to Apple's "Get a Mac" ads

It turns out that Microsoft's answer to Apple's "Get a Mac" ads (hiring Seinfeld to the next Windows Vista's marketing campaign) has already been debunked by an old Apple's "Think Different" ad (I saw it here):



Source: The Mac Newbie

Microsoft's answer to Apple's "Get a Mac" ads

Everybody knows that Apple has been doing a great job with the "Get a Mac" ads (by the way, there a few new ones that you should have a look at). They're funny and entertaining, but most of all, they show how Mac can be a real (and better) alternative to PCs, especially those with Windows Vista.

But Microsoft is getting tired of this marketing domination and has decided to bring out the big guns. The new marketing campaign, which will star Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates, is said to be based on the idea of "Windows, Not Walls," stressing the need to "break down barriers that prevent people and ideas from connecting." Basically, Microsoft will try to change the public's negative opinion of Windows Vista, for which the Apple's "Get a Mac" ads have made a large contribution :-)

Well, let's wait and see...

Source: The Mac Newbie

Rotate screen display in Windows Vista

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Update on this blog: read here.

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"OMG! My screen just rotated!" - this was the message I received from my wife through MSN. She was working on the computer at work and all of the sudden, a certain combination of keystrokes made her screen display rotate 90 degrees to the left, which basically meant that she was entering the text on MSN with her head tilted all the way to the left too.

I never used Windows Vista before, but a quick Google search allowed me to discover the correct shortcut that you can use to turn your computer display back to normal: the shortcut Ctrl + Alt + Arrow key shortcut rotates the display in 90 degree increments.

Just thought this could be useful to other Windows Vista users out there that will freak out if their displays flip upside down :-)

Standards a la Microsoft

Am I the only one that finds it strange that Office 2007 fails to comply with the new ISO Office Open XML Standard, which was ironically "imposed" to be accepted as a standard by Microsoft?

Image Source

Windows vs. Mac: a picture that says it all

I've just stumbled upon this picture, which made me laugh inside and think: "This is so true!"

The picture actually says it all, and I know what I'm talking about. I've been a Windows user for many years until I recently decided to switch to a Mac. And due to the Apple philosophy of "things just work", the switching process was pretty peaceful.

But getting back to the picture, it really represents my state of mind towards the two operating systems. On Mac OS X, things are made simple and for most of them to work you just have to find the on/off button, which most of the times it is as easy to find as that big yellow button on the picture. It's really that simple and intuitive. Whereas in Windows, things are by nature complicated and most of them don't even work properly. And if you decide to pop up the hood and fiddle around with the settings, you may end up with a busted machine.

And while the picture may seem to favor the Mac way, it actually also reveals the dark side of Apple. Ok, things are simple, intuitive and they work. But what if you would like to change something? For example, what if instead of having the big yellow button on the engine of the car on the picture, you would like to see that button on the dashboard of the car? That's where things can go wrong.

Apple designs things to work in a specific way and they do it very well. But they do it by controlling what the user has access to. By limiting the user experience to the known-to-work-without-any-problems features, they avoid any "bad press" about their products.

Don't get me wrong, as I said above I love the Apple philosophy since it is the way to go with unexperienced users. But sometimes, when my nostalgic college Linux-geek part of the brain kicks in, I wish I could change some of the settings of Mac OS X. And to do so, you have to be an experienced user because if you take a wrong turn somewhere, you may end up like the guy in the picture. But not the one with the smiley face...I'm talking about the frustrated one next to the broken car.

Source: The Mac Newbie

Using Windows sounds to make a music

There are a lot of things that you can do if you have some free time. And then, there are some things that you can do if you really have a LOT of free time. Like this:



Source: Digg

ATM + Microsoft Windows = Security Problem

I already suspected that using Windows on an ATM machine was not a good idea. But recent security tests proved that Windows-based cash machines are easily hacked.

Security experts have hacked ATMs to show how easy it is to steal money and bank account details from modern cash machines.

Network Box illustrated this threat by showing that only the personal identification number was encrypted when information was sent from a U.S. ATM to networked bank computers. The card numbers, card expiration dates, transaction amounts, and account balances were clearly readable in plain text to anybody intercepting the data as it traveled through the network.

Since ATM Machines are basically equivalent to desktop PCs (they usually are based on Intel hardware and Windows operating systems), they have the same vulnerabilities as a normal house computer. That is, an exploit that works on a home or office computer, will also work on these ATMs. In fact, the risk may even be greater as the update process of such machines may not be as frequent as in a normal user's computer.

Dear Windows, it's over

This has got to be the most genius goodbye letter anybody has ever written to an operating system :-) Ubuntu's fans are going to love it.

Retro-blogging: best posts of February 2007

Previously on the Tech in Me:

• SETI@Home was looking for aliens, but only found a stolen laptop
• The great wall of Norway's censorship
• Water-proof MP3 players
• Control the Earth using lights, with my Google Earth Led Torch Controller
• Vista successor already?
• How to really diagnose and optimize your Windows XP?
• Take your apps with you, with PortableApps
• Steve Jobs says: "No more DRM"
• Play more games: it's good for your eyes!
• Hide data in pictures

Get Firefox

Have you ever noticed what you get if you put http://www.ie7.com on your web browser? No, it's not Internet Explorer 7 download page!!

Windows on an ATM machine: is this really a good idea?

Having Windows running on machines that are supposed to be running flawlessly for a long, long time, might not be a good idea (as the BSOD in Frankfurt Airport shows).

Just this week, while I was browsing around for Christmas presents for the family in some shopping mall here in Portugal, I found this odd screen for an ATM machine:


Here's a magnification of the previous picture:

If you still can't read it, this is what it says:

"Windows NT could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
WINNT\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEMHardware Profile\Last Know Good menu" (I don't know if this last word is actually "menu")

"You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows NT setup using the original Setup floppy disk or CD-ROM. Select 'r' at the firt screen to start repair."

BSOD in Frankfurt Airport

I was browsing along my photo library searching for some work-related photos and I ended up finding this masterpiece:

This was taken the last time I passed through Frankfurt Airport towards some connecting flight, which was last summer.

I sure hope airplanes' auto-pilots are not equipped with the same software as these airport flight timetable displays :-)

Apparently it's Windows fault!

Last August, 16th, Skype users must have noticed that they couldn't connect to the network and perform phone calls. For two days the network was completely unstable and people were starting to think that there was some kind of attack to the Skype infrastructure.

Well, yesterday Skype Inc.'s boss has issued a statement where he "blames" the Windows Update Service for this catastrophic failure. How? Easy: apparently it was in this same day that Windows Update "suggested" the update of some Windows patches. When millions of Windows users performed the necessary updates and restarted their computers (as most of them have the option of starting Skype along with Windows), the Skype network was flooded with millions and millions of log-in requests, thus causing a chain reaction that resulted on the total breakdown of the Skype network.

Although I'm not a big fan of Windows and the fact that I don't particularly like the updating process of Windows, I have to admit that this "blaming" process from Skype towards Microsoft is quite far-fetched. First, because most people don't perform the updates as soon as they are available and second, because not everyone restarts the computer right after the updates. You'd need a huge coincidence for all Windows users to actually perform these two steps at the same time.

Skype has to learn the lesson and improve its infrastructure instead of blaming others for their mistakes.

Source: Skype

The infamous Windows blue screen

Ok, I know the Windows Error Blue Screen can drive a person crazy, but to actually tatoo the entire message on your arm....???


Has anybody told this guy that tatoos are forever?

Source: Engadget

What NOT to do in Power Point

I stumbled upon this video which is quite useful for people who use Power Point a lot to do business presentations. Check it out: