Windows 8 and Slate First Impressions

Yesterday I went down to the Microsoft Store in Fashion Valley.  Normally the store would be fairly empty on a Saturday but today it finally was just as busy as the Apple Store that was only a few doors down from it in the mall.  The Microsoft Store was filled with curious people like me who were interested in Windows 8 and the new Surface tablet featuring Windows 8 RT.  I got there after noon and was able to sit down with a Surface and a laptop that had Windows 8.   My first impression was a good one overall.  I would have liked to have bought a Slate but I did not walk out with one.  I also did not walk out with a new copy of Windows 8.

How GOG.com Changed The Software Industry By Going Mac

GOG.com is an online digital game distributor.  They started by offering old PC games originally released for DOS and Windows 95/98.  They were able to do this because fans of these games still wanted to play them.  Before GOG.com you had to still own an old copy, buy a used copy on eBay, or resort to getting a copy from an Abandonware site.  GOG.com negotiated with publishers so that fans could legally buy DRM free copies of their "Good Old Games."  This week GOG.com announced that it would be offering some of those same PC games on Mac computers.  With this newest step GOG.com has effectively changed the way we use software, or at least how software companies want us to use software.

Microsoft Is Missing An Opportunity On The Virtual Corporate Desktop But It Is Not Too Late

I like my iPad but it does have its limitations.  I still like my Windows desktop PC with its full featured operating system, applications, peripherals, and hardware.  The iPad has a long way to go to fully replace the desktop PC.   My iPad hasn’t replaced my PC experience, it has supplemented it.  Microsoft has nothing to worry about in losing me as a customer any time soon.  But according to an article in CRN Microsoft is worried that I will virtually login to my desktop PC at work and somehow they will be losing money.  Microsoft feels that since I will be getting the “Windows PC experience” on a device with a non-Microsoft operating system they have lost money.  Microsoft believes that anything with an operating system that isn’t sold by them is a lost sale.  Starting with Windows 8 Microsoft will be charging corporate users extra for logging into their work PC’s with their non-Windows devices.  They will not be charging corporate customers to login to their PC’s if they are using a Windows 8 tablet though.