“Gates was merely the best businessman ever born. He was ruthless. But capitalism is ruthless. It is a system. And it is that system – not his operating systems – that made Gates so damned big. Gates was not an inventor and innovator and I’ll argue that – his prognosticating books aside – he was no visionary. He was an exploiter. His first product was another version of the Basic programming language. His master stroke was taking the essence of a now-forgotten operating system called CP/M and turning it into MS-DOS, the neurology of the personal-computer revolution. He took the tool that truly created the technology age, VisiCalc – the spreadsheet that let business people ask ‘what if?’, which is what put computers on every office desk in the world – and turned it into Excel, part of his Office suite that also included Word, which itself was really just an adaptation of WordStar. He took the art of the Apple Lisa and Mac and turned it into the clumsy painting-on-velvet, Windows. Gates took others’ innovations and turned them into products and profits. Every great invention needs a business genius to bring it to market. For software, that was Gates,” Jeff Jarvis writes for The Guardian.
“My teenage son and webmaster, Jake, a computer genius (if you’ll allow me a link of paternal pride) since the age of 3, has admired and even idolized Gates for giving him the tools he loved, tools that empowered and taught him and helped shape his way of thinking,” Jarvis writes.
MacDailyNews Note: Perusing Jarvis’ link to his son’s webpage, MacDailyNews reader “Dan” noticed that Jake dumped Gates’ Windows in July 2005 for the superior operating system: As of July 2005, I have discovered that I am a Mac addict at heart and have been from the moment I set my hands on my shiny, new eMac. Since then, I am always looking for new tricks to improve the already great OS X with everything from freeware to commonly-known keyboard shortcuts. – http://jakejarvis.com/
“But then came the internet, the great invention that by its very open essence defies productization,” Jarvis writes. “In spite of government fears in the U.S. and the EU – and try as he might – Gates couldn’t take it over and exploit it. This was not his only failure. Gates tried to become a media mogul – in a local listings service, in a news magazine, in a TV network, and in a web portal – but that eluded him. In an era when everyone can now master media, Gates could not. So perhaps this is indeed the end of the Gates era. And if anyone is smart and ruthless enough to know that, it’s probably Gates.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Tsk, tsk, nary a mention of illegal acts. Yes, capitalism is ruthless, but there actually are rules. Gates and his company broke them. Repeatedly. Gates should never be lauded as “the best businessman ever born.” That simply is not true. And should Gates really be praised for sprinkling his ill-gotten gains upon charities worldwide? Isn’t that merely his penance to be executed without praise? Where was the charity for Netscape and their employees? Or for Gary Kildall? Or for innumerable others?
We can all now look at Gates and ask, “What did he really give the world?” Bill Gates gave the world an upside-down and backwards bad simulation of the Apple Mac and a bloated, insecure Office suite. He sold it to so many because so many early on were ignorant of what a personal computer was for and they lacked the ability to imagine what it could be. They bought what their equally-ignorant friends, family, and co-workers bought. It’s that simple.
What we really want to know is: will we ever be able to measure the extent by which Bill Gates retarded the world’s progress? Any Mac user who’s seen their Windows brethren struggle so mightily trying (and often failing in frustration) to do something that is easily accomplished on a Mac understands what we mean. So, what do you think, how many years worth of progress did Bill Gates cost the world? 10 years? 20?
[UPDATE: 2:55pm EDT: Added Jake Jarvis switcher info.]
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Related articles:
Will Bill Gates really be able to stay away from Microsoft? – June 15, 2006
Bill Gates to transition out of a day-to-day role in Microsoft – June 15, 2006
If he is ruthless why is he so interested in donating money to the poor?
he has donated more money to poor african nations than any other company in the world.
5 years,
first!
MDN: “Any Mac user who’s seen their Windows brethren struggle so mightily trying (and often failing in frustration) to do something that is easily accomplished on a Mac understands what we mean.”
FUD and stupid, MDN.
I can do the same thing in Windows on my Mac as with OSX.
You think writing an e-mail, surfing the internet, using Word, editing a photo in Photoshop is different in Windows than in OSX?
Sheesh you guys are lame. Can you tell which OS on my Mac I am using to write this note?
very publically donating to charities (he name a foundation after himself) was one of the smartest business moves he ever did. people couldn’t despise his wealth, and with every purchase of windows, they could say, “I’m helping out a good cause in the end.”
Give Bill Gates his due reward, in business and being generous with his money he beat Steve Jobs every which way.
I think this guy is pretty dead on in describing the Gates legacy as it pertains to technology. The guy is not a visionary, but an exploiter is the best possible description. In many way, Microsoft gained their marketshare dominace without any competition. They took advantage of the one factor that holds true in many markets perticularly the US market in that people rarely are smart enough to see value beyond the initial price point, and commoditizing Windows onto every crap PC box is what made MS what it is today.
***TRY GOOGLE WORD EDITOR FOR FREE! GO TO MADETHISUP.GOOGLE.COM!***
Bet you can’t tell which word editor I am using!
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” /> *smug superior Linux look*
***USE GOOGLE FOR YOUR ONLINE SEARCHING….GO TO http://WWW.GOOG……okay, you get the point already i guess***
“Steve [Ballmer] is the best CEO I could imagine for Microsoft – he is changing the company in ways it needs to be changed. He is bringing in new leadership at all levels. And, he is focused on the long-term – making Microsoft a great company not just today but for decades to come.”
– Bill Gates
Many (all?) of Bill’s donations come with strings attached. Read an article about him donating millions of dollars and it usually turns out that he’s donating millions of dollars worth of Windows computers, not cash!
It’s also worth noting that his philanthropy didn’t start until well after he married, and his wife essentially pushed him into it.
Acknowledging Gates’ ruthless business tactics in no way diminishes his charitable works. Unless, you consider some of the money he has as ill-gotten. And there are things to question there…
Though I believe he has others’ interests at heart, there is a financial reason for him to establish a foundation. It allows him and his family to avoid many taxes while drawing a large salary from the pile of money they sit on. This is common. What else could he do with such a pile of cash– buy Cuba?
He is no saint, but he’s also no devil. Like everyone, he has many sides, so to pin him as one thing or another is ridiculous and shortsighted.
Gates was the best businessman ever born.
Business is like football (soccer). He was a scum bag on the playing field, clipping people when the ref was not looking, tugging at outfits, nimbly talking his way out of red card after red card, but he scored and the fans loved him.
fans = stock holders
Bill Gates donates his money in a very public way to maximize the public relations benefit of his donation, as is his right.
Steve Jobs donates his money in a very private way and completely avoids tooting his own horn, as is his right.
Personally, I prefer the latter approach.
Lets not get carried away with the thinking the Gates is a uber generous saint to the worlds poor… the amounts he has donated are meger at best considering his net worth. He just makes sure it gets front page coverage, thus making him look like a hero.
If a give a dollar to a homeless person is “that” worthy of a lead story on the 5 o’clock news? Should I also get a merit badge and a key to the city?
Paleeeeeeeeese!
MW: ever
as in will people “ever” get a clue?
no carpenter keeps using a hammer whose head keeps falling off every time he tries to drive a nail. I have never understood why people keep buying Windows.
Yah, and Steve Jobs is a huggable teddy bear….
To Windows on a Mac
In Windows can you easily make a song? Can you easily take red eye out of a picture with one click? Can u easily edit video and put in any type of music? Can you easily make themes for dvds and burn one? Can you easily change the type of file just by changing the type of the name (such as changing a mp3 to a wav just by changing .mp3 to .wav file formats) I could go on and on with all the stuff you can easily do in OS X over XP. Its just simple. It just works.
FSCK BILL GATES!!!
HE didn’t do SQUAT. It was all IBM aka “Big Blue” which already had a large presence in American and world businesses with typewriters and other office equipment.
When IBM wanted to get into the personal computer market, Bill Gates BOUGHT QDOS (Quick and Dirty Operating System) from a small startup and renamed it Disk Operating System, later MSDOS.
Then Apple came out with the Macintosh GUI and Bill Gates STOLE THAT.
Steve Jobs PAID XeroX in Apple Stock to borrow ideas from the PARC project.
BILL GATES STOLE. BILL GATES DIDN’T INVENT OR CREATE SQUAT!!!
Bill Gates just so happened to be in the right place at the right time.
THEN JOHN SCULLY BETRAYED STEVE JOBS and that’s what caused Apple to be where it is today.
“Widgets” Gadgets” were called “DESK ACCESSORIES” way back in the early Mac OS days, long before ANYONE HAD THEM!!!
Even I (resolute hater of Windows, not necessarily of MS) believe that B.G. is/was a genius, not because he created anything, but because he convinced an entire planet that they needed his companies load of crap.
That kind of genius combined with the creative/innovative genius of Apple, and we might see some near miracles in the computing industry. Sorry, but you have to admit that Bill did actually, verifiably do that. I don’t like him for that very reason, but he did it.
If he is ruthless why is he so interested in donating money to the poor?
Because he’s racked with guilt over his behaviors to achieve what he has gotten.
And infliting the world with the piece of shittte operating system called Windows.
he has donated more money to poor african nations than any other company in the world.
Because he see’s Africa as the only market left for his malware.
It’s only my opinion, but saving lives is probably more important than arguing over which OS is better. On balance, making Explorer the default browser is a sin that’s probably more than compensated by spending billions on trying to eradicate third world diseases.
I love Bill – but hate MS. I hate Steve – but love Apple.
If he doesnt donate so much the government will just take it.
Lauding Gates for being the best business man ever born is like lauding OJ for being the best publicist ever born.
Anyone that is the richest person in the world should be donating money to charity.
he was no visionary . . . I think he’s seen what apple is cooking and jumped ship.
I’ve often said that Microsoft IS an innovative company. The problem is, their innovation is found in the offices of their business and legal departments. They have developed innumerable ways of forcing inferior products on the people of the world, and their talent for taking money out of consumer’s wallets in return for shoddy goods is second to none. Good for Gates and Company – Bad for the World.
As for Bill Gates’ charity work. I’d pat him on the back, but just a little. The numbers look great on paper but when you look at what percentage he gives of what he actually has, I deserve the same pat on the back for dropping $20 in the Salvation Army bucket at Christmas.
“I love Bill – but hate MS. I hate Steve – but love Apple.”
iDon’t, you are one twisted puppy.
Jamie: “Steve Jobs donates his money in a very private way and completely avoids tooting his own horn, as is his right.”
Then how would you know if he donates any money?
Twinkie: Answers: Yes.
You act like Windows has no software. There is more software for Windows than Macs and it can do everything and more than Mac software.
Bill is a genius.
Using his monopoly illegally and stealing from other companies is only part of the story
He lives and works in the most litigious country on Earth. His company has been putting out substandard software products for over 2 decades. Neither he nor his company, Microsoft, have ever been faced with a class action suit based on their shoddy merchandise. Billions of dollars worth of lost productivity due to his products’ failures and yet no lawsuits.
You gotta buy some major American political clout for that kind of protection.
Way to go Billy. What a consummate businessman. He certainly has American Capitalism down pat, doesn’t he?
Of course, every master of the stage knows when it’s time to exit stage-left….
Ah… but not right out of the box, included. And certainly not as elegant and easy to use.
George Soro donates a lot of money to charity too but look at what he did to many Asian countries back in 1997-1998 and caused the Asian financial crisis. Many families were reined and many college educated people had to beg out on the street in Thailand!!! It took almost a decade for those countries to recover from hardship. George Soro is evil and so is Bill. For those who praise Bill Gates’ charity work but don’t know sh@t about Bill Gates’ past and M$ history, how he bullied and destroyed competitors illegally, you should hit yourself in the head and try to learn more facts!!!!
Facts:
1) We know that Bill Gates and the Gates Foundation has donated more to charity than anyone in history. This is a public fact. You may not like his computer business practices but he is a humanitarian.
2) Jobs, on the other hand may ‘privately’ donate to charities, or he may not. We don’t know much or little he chooses to give; there is no public record. Anyone who says he gives alot is just speculating and trying to play PR person for him.
Let’s try to be mature and insightful enough to differentiate between Gates’ business and philanthropy lives.
To Windows on a Mac
Name applications on Windows that do all the stuff that iLife does.
iWeb – Make simple webpages without having to know HTML coding
iPhoto – make quick and easily adjustments to photos such as adding effects and taking out red-eye
iMovie – EASILY make and edit videos and slideshows (Windows Movie Maker is not comparable to iMovie)
iDVD – easily make dvd with themes and burn them
Garageband – Make your own songs with loops or your own recorded music
Big Al made a great point. Consider the irony – Microsoft causes billions of dollars of loss to industry around the world, but no one sues them. An iPod gets scratched because someone was careless with it and Apple gets lawsuits up the wazoo.
Windows On A Mac: you’re just arguing for the sake of arguing. Everyone knows Windows is a huge mess and that it’s much more difficult than it needs to be. End of story.
What do those applications have to do with Bill Gates a business man?
I echo Realist – let’s try to be mature and insightful enough to differentiate between Gates’ business and non-sequitors.
Twinkie,
iWeb – FrontPage? iWeb pages aren’t that much to look at, frankly.
iPhoto – Adobe Photoshop Elements, or any other dozens of freeware/shareware
iMovie – Adobe Premiere Elements (not that hard, I was able to do it without looking at a manual)
iDVD – Roxio
Garageband – I’ll give you that, although I’m sure there’s shareware/freeware out there
Windows on a Mac’s point stands. You’re unfairly comparing Windows to iLife, when it should be Windows to OSX. Can OSX, and OSX ALONE, do what iLife does? I didn’t think so.
R’s point is more valid, that iLife is more elegant and easier to use. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t any equivalent software on Windows.
MDN – One small point. Gary Kildall TURNED DOWN the offer from IBM (He was arrogant from what I have read, and felt DRI was going to take CP/M and make it the standard on their own). Gates took the opportunity afterwords. If not for Gary turning down IBM, there may have never been a Microsoft as we know it today. THAT WAS THE PIVITAL MOMENT.
On a side note: I NEVER missed an episode of Computer Chronicles with Stewart Cheifet and Gary, and I forget the other guys name (he wasn’t always on)
Realist, Twinkie non-defense :“Let’s try to be mature and insightful enough to differentiate between Gates’ business and philanthropy lives.” What is so “be mature and insightful” about you when you guys are not even looking at the whole picture? Your kids could be an angle in front of you but that could be drinking alcohol and smoking drugs when they hang around their peers. So let’s not mix up you kids’ family live and their rotten lives outside your home hah? Like I said, George Soros and Bill Gates donate but they are evil when you look at the whole picture so be ‘mature and insightful’ about it.
*sigh*
Take what you said and with it around……. Can you take just Windows and do just about anything wiht it? The OS is nothing wihtout any appliacations. Every window in Windows is launched in a Internet Explorer window. Every window is OS X is opened in a Finder Window. An OS is nothing without other software. You can’t do much with just an OS
Bill is trying to to change his legacy. I think it’s a good move. Anyone remember what Alfred Nobel invented that gave him his fortune? It is possible to change your life’s legacy. Here’s hoping.
Twinkie,
…but.that’s.the.point! Your original question was “name me an application in Windows that does this!”, implying that there’s nothing in Windows which can do what iLife does. A bunch of people here proved you wrong, and now you’re moving the goalposts…and yes, you can do just about anything in Windows, OSX, Linux or any other OS. Someone out there is smart enough to code it for you. It’s all about those people, NOT JUST MS, NOT JUST APPLE, who have a passion for developing software for their platform of choice.
Ah, screw it. There’s no point arguing with you. I bow down to your superior knowledge. And Bill Gates is evil, Steve Jobs qualifies as a saint, Windows sucks, etc, etc, etc.
Realist is right, I have no love for MS, but
Gate’s acts of philanthropy are admirable. I
just want MS to give up some market share, or at
least they could earn the market share that they
now enjoy (through means other than bullying).
You think writing an e-mail, surfing the internet, using Word, editing a photo in Photoshop is different in Windows than in OSX?
Hell yes it’s different. what’s the air like on your planet? I download email attachments and surf the web without fear of certain infection as I would with Windows, and Photoshop for Windows is a nightmare to use after using Mac versions. Why torture yourself when you don’t have to?
Windows if for people with low self-esteem, who don’t feel they deserve better, and misery loves company.
And lets not forget he copied the GUI from mac prototypes.
Doesn’t anyone ever ask the question…why did donating the money take this long to d?. He has been filthy rich for a long time but his philanthropy is really a recent thing.
Its all just legacy. Does he care…that is debatable. The money he gives barely puts a dent in his wallet particularly when he gets back a chunk of it in tax deductions. At that level of richness, this stuff is meaningless to him…as someone said, its his wife not him. Don’t get me wrong….I am glad the cash is flowing to areas where it can actually benefit people.
At the end of the day, all he wants is people to think kind of him…uber rich people apparently think they can buy this. The sad part is that they probably can…..
I won’t!
To “*sigh*” and/or “Windows on a Mac:”
Related articles:
Enough about Windows on Mac: most users choose Macs because of Mac OS X and iLife – April 21, 2006
Thurrott: ‘Nothing on Windows approaches the quality of Apple’s iLife ‘06’ – January 31, 2006
Attempting and failing to duplicate Apple Mac’s iLife ‘05 functionality on Windows – August 05, 2005
Sorry Windows users – to get iLife you’ll have to get a Mac – February 09, 2004
AP: Apple’s iLife ‘04 ‘could even persuade some longtime Windows users to relent and buy a Mac’ – February 05, 2004
Paul Thurrott reviews Apple iLife ‘04; calls for ‘iLife for Windowss – February 04, 2004
Baltimore Sun: iLife devoid of ‘hassles and conflicts common to the PC world’ – February 13, 2003
“You think writing an e-mail, surfing the internet, using Word, editing a photo in Photoshop is different in Windows than in OSX?”
YES, on a Mac you do it without swamping the net with millions of spam messages and thousands of viruses, while your PEECEE is controlled by criminal gangs without u knowing it —– YOU IGNORANT IDIOT!
Bill Gats has destroyed the internet, costing users BILLIONS of dollars in damages every year, with the help of all you STUPID MINNIONS!
I HATE his OS but love the fact that he is so generous to kids.
Got to give him “props” for that. I think the press toots his horn for him as well they should. Hopefully other companies pitch in as a result.
neomonkey: “I download email attachments and surf the web without fear of certain infection as I would with Windows, and Photoshop for Windows is a nightmare to use after using Mac versions.
Hey, Me,too. What world do you guys live in? I´ve got Windows on my Mac never had a virus or anything doing any of the things you say. Just FUD from you, neomonkey.
Photoshop in Windows works the same way – I have it on both OSs. Never have a problem with any version.
————————-
neomonkey “Windows if for people with low self-esteem, who don’t feel they deserve better, and misery loves company.”
neomonkey – What total, utter, juvenile, arrogant B.S. Aren´t you the dweeb that said in another post you just use your mac for writing email and surfing for porn?
WindowsOn…, I don’t think you know crap about Photoshop. Try nudging a layer one pixel at a time. Windows won’t let you. And keyboard shortcuts with the Ctrl key, what a joke.
And no, I don’t surf for porn, asshole. I like the real thing, but a gay boy like you wouldn’t understand.
neomonkey – you forgot one difference of Photoshop on an IntelMac vs. Windows.
It´s slower! LOL.
Porn on dude!
Your try nudging a layer one pixel at a time – man, I do that all the time! LOL.
Dude, From the WINDOWS Photoshop Help file:
“- How to move a layer one pixel at a time:
Select Object in layer. Select the Move tool in the toolbox.
– Press an arrow key on the keyboard to nudge the objects 1 pixel.”
One pixel at a time, dude. No brainer —-if you got a brain that is. Tip – Wanna move it 10 pixels – hold down the Shift key when you punch the arrow key. Amazing stuff.
And you say you´re a pro? LOL. And you think there is something wrong with gay people?
I have windows XP installed on my MacBook Pro and Photoshop. The combination is great. I just hate using photoshop on the windows side as I don’t like the interface. Not as nice looking as the mac side. It’s very, very fast on the Windows side and I use it to convert large numbers of files and then I transfer them back to the mac side. does save alot of time.
Ok, so it’s Friday time for some fun. I know you guys have been asking yourselves this question:
HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE TO KILL BILL GATES WITH AN AXE?
http://www.lanceandeskimo.com/paul/bill.shtml
Fsck this, Gates is a fscking big crook, modus operandi steal it and argue about it later, he’s got a bent lawyer for a father:
http://www.evergreenpolitics.com/ep/2006/01/how_preston_gat.html
Donations to charity? – see the strings attached. Even then it was just to buy PR credits, he didn’t give a single dime until he started to get real bad press about how rich he was and how crap his products are.
Last I heard there were still 200 court cases against Microsoft for patent violations, outright theft etc.
No single person, not even GWB, has done so much to harm the world in the last few decades.
Put BillG in prison forever, give his fortune to a real charity like FOE.
Is there a reason why the members of this forum are so juvenile? Are all Mac users like this?
neom – “And keyboard shortcuts with the Ctrl key, what a joke.”
ATTN: neomonkey
In Photoshop:
Windows: Control Key = Mac: Command Key
Windows: Alt Key = Mac: Option Key
Everything else is the same is using shortcuts.
Why do you think are keyboard shortcuts with the Ctrl key are a joke??? – In the Mac it is same shortcut just using the Command key.
You got a mouse with a right click button yet?
GATES AGAIN COPYING JOBS? I think he is a visionary – at least he can see the future.
– He is getting ready to leave the company.
– He can see the downfall of MS as it is now.
– He will stay out for 5 – 7 years in its downfall.
– He will come back at a very low point.
– He will again try to emulate Steve Jobs’ performance and “resurrect” MS.
Sad, Sad, Sad.
He will again try to emulate Steve Jobs’ performance and “resurrect” MS.
Heh, what’s Gates gonna do? Start EnSUE Computer Co., develop the EnSUEStep OS and OpenWalk API’s, and bring it back as the new Windows in several years? Maybe he’ll do an iBlog music player too.
Jobs has always been about hiring the best of the best & doing the whole gadget.
Gates hired Ballmer, and has always been about making mishmash products with other companies.
No way Gates could do it all over again. Mommy & daddy can’t land an exclusive IBM contract for him this time.
“”I love Bill – but hate MS. I hate Steve – but love Apple.”
And I hate getting bills but I love applesauce. I would hate getting MS but I love St. Eve. Your turn.
I hate how Billy doesn’t donate money to me but I love Mac OS X. Next!
“Requiem for Bill Gates”
Requiscat in pace, disilluminati.
MDN is slightly off-beam with its take: Microsoft succeeded not so much because of users’ ignorance but because it got in early and became the default on most manufacturers’ PCs. Having every PC maker on the planet (except Apple) sell your OS, you can’t lose.
Proof that users don’t choose Windows for its quality: Windows 3.1 had over 80% market share.
MW: “lack”. Nuff said.
And Gates won mainly because Jobs did not make the right decisions early on. If Jobs had been less ego-oriented Apple would rule the world instead of the 2% market share it has.
So hats off to Gates for seeing the big picture. Stevego Jobs was too busy thinking about me, me, me – me right, me know everything and made the wrong strategic decisions in spreading the Apple product.
And because Steve is Apple, Apple is totally vulnerable to him leaving. The day Jobs announces his retirement is the day Apple is dead. Again, poor strategic management by Jobs – all me,me,me ego.
Gates was a visionary on one occasion: He wanted Apple to do the OS and Microsoft to do the applications. Alas Apple didn’t share his vision.
The day Jobs announces his retirement is the day Apple is dead. Again, poor strategic management by Jobs
Here’s something to ponder: would have Job’s been able to rise to CEO under a boss like himself?
Steve casts a HUGE shadow, and as long as his mind’s sharp it’s going to be extremely tough for anyone to rise up and fill his shoes. I’d say there are very few people on this planet who’d be able to prove themselves good enough.
It’d be among THE toughest job interviews ever. I’d rather run for U.S. president!
>MDN: Gates should never be lauded as “the best businessman ever born.”
Agreed! There is no way to be the end-all/be-all best at anything, That’s like saying this is the best burger in the world (implying a person can sample all the burgers in the world).
>MDN:And should Gates really be praised for sprinkling his ill-gotten gains upon charities worldwide?
A resounding yes! What is the benefit of discrediting someone for doing good in the world? Is there any?
>MDN: Isn’t that merely his penance to be executed without praise?
If you are to judge when, where, and to whom praise is given, what time is left in the day to get anything done? Judging people and being bitter takes up so much energy. If someone does somthing good, I’d rather pat them on the back and be part of the positivity than continually spite them. Let go already!
>MDN: Where was the charity for Netscape and their employees? Or for Gary Kildall? Or for innumerable others?
Doesn’t Apple bundle a browser? a imaging app? video app? widget (that someone else invented)? anti-competitve DRM policies?
You can apply much of Microsoft’s “sins” to Apple! MS took the hit because it’s the bigger fish.
So happy Fathers’ Day to everyone – Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, everyone…
Bill Gates says he is retiring – but there are no hysterics that Microsoft is dead. Gates has wisely set up a long term transition period out of the company.
If Steve Jobs announced he was stepping down – the headlines would read “Apple is dead”. Jobs has no apparent long term strategy for Apple and continues to make himself the only face of Apple computer. Not good.
Gates won because he forced manufacturers into contracts that excluded other players (the were subsequently ruled illegal in the a series of anti-trust cases) intentionally altered MS software to break competitors products, published slowed down API calls publically while keeping the *useable* APIs in Windows 3.1 etc secret so that no one else could *possibly* produce products that could compete with them on that platform, etc, etc, etc.
With the possible exception of Excel MS *never* had the best product in any category. Ever. They won in the marketplace almost entirely through illegal or shady behavior and abuse of monopoly power. The field is littered with people they screwed (frequently illegally).
Remember Stac? The guys selling disk compression software? MS started moving forward to partner with them, got a lot of engineering cooperation, got access to their code, etc. Then, they terminated their business arrangement with Stac and incorporated their code into MS Dos 6.0. Stac evetually got a pittance in when they won in court.
Remember DR DOS? Remember ‘Windows isn’t done till DR won’t run’? MS wrote code into Windows that intentionally broke Windows when running on DR DOS. DR DOS was superior in everyway to MS Dos, but MS used Windows to drive them under… DR (or rather their anticedents at SCO) eventually got a pittance when they won against MS in court.
Remember Spyglass? Those were the folks who got Mosaic from NCSA. MS cut a deal with them to license Mosaic as the basis for IE. Spyglass got a *really* good percentage cut of the revenue for every copy of IE sold… but a large percentage of $0 is still $0… MS drove them under.
Remember OS/2? Funny, no one computer manufacturer wanted to pay for a second OS, since the MS contracts required them to buy MS DOS and Windows for every machine they built whether they shipped with it or not.
Remember BeOS? Funny how no computer manufacturer would take them up on their offer for free licenses to install BeOS as dual boot… because their contracts with MS forbid it…
Remember Wordperfect? Isn’t it funny how Wordperfect kicked Words ass up till the Windows transition, and them WP 5.2 used the public Windows APIs, while Word used the private ones… funny how Wordperfect was really slow isn’t it…
The list goes on and on and on… the history of MS is a history of abusing monopoly power, cheating business partners, breaking laws, and stalling out long enough that they don’t care about paying pittances out when they loose in court.
Bill Gates did a lot for the computer industry and for consumers. While Windows is still pretty lame, what Microsoft did that everyone seems to forget is to drive down the cost of computers and software so that everyone could afford them. That is a huge benefit to industry and to the world.
Microsoft didn’t cause Apple’s problems – Apple did that through bad mangement over a long period of time, until Steve came back. Apple and Microsoft need each other, and benefit from both cooperation and competition.
re: If he is ruthless why is he so interested in donating money to the poor?
he has donated more money to poor african nations than any other company in the world.
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FFS – He is actually personally richer than any company in the world!
So bloody what – he has alot of money.
It’s not money that the poor areas of the world need.
Remember he has a personal fortune of billions.
He has left M$ so he can spend all his money to aviod paying inheritance tax on his fortune.
He may even buy enough world leaders so that they give him a Nobel Peace Prize.
Bill Gates, the savior of the world!
ROFL! I just saw a pig fly by!!
Bill Gate’s idea of helping the poor in the world:
‘Give them windows and internet access’
Steve Jobs of helping the poor in the world:
‘Give them food, water, shelter, grain and tools to grow their own food’
With Bill Gate’s ‘vision’, the poor with starve to death while looking at western porn on the internet using their virus ridden Dell.
Re: quadrupole
Nice examples of Bill’s work.
Do you also remember the cort case where M$ were being sued for anti-trust and they faked evidence and got caught out too??
In any other country, in any other court in the world Bill Gates would have spent 30 years in prison.
BUT, in America all he got was a slapped wrist.
Just goes to show how many people in power Bill gates has bought, from laywers, to Senators and yes, even the President (George Bush).
THIS is Bill’s true legacy to the world – NOT his charitable donations (which he only gives anyway to further his own means and to get teh taxman off his back).
bill gates is a fucker
Houses are not very cheap and not everybody can buy it. But, personal loans are created to support different people in such situations.
I had got a desire to make my organization, however I didn’t have enough of cash to do it. Thank goodness my close friend recommended to use the loans. Hence I took the college loan and made real my old dream.