[News] Microsoft Office and Vista Miss the Mark
High Plains Thumper
companies nowadays to overshoot their product lines. Here is
what is said of Microsoft Word:
http://blogs.bnet.com/harvard/?p=255
[quote]
The 37th Button On Your Remote Control
By Sean Silverthorne
March 21st, 2008 @ 8:19 am
<....>
Missing The Mark
In the literature on disruptive innovation, this is called
“overshooting.” Companies want to keep upgrading their existing
products with incremental innovations, but at some point they
overshoot. A feature is added that the customer will accept but
not pay for. And that’s when trouble sets in. “Overshooting
creates conditions that encourage the formation of disruptive
attackers who change the game through simplicity or low prices,”
says Anthony.
Here are some classic overshoots I’ve noticed:
* Too Wordy. Microsoft Word is the classic whipping boy for
unusable innovation. Many writers I know have jumped ship to
simpler tools such as Scrivener and WriteRoom.
[/quote]
OTOH, StarOffice and free counterpart OpenOffice are still full
featured products and worthy of consideration by all.
Vista is another example of overshoot. Linux GUI's have all that
is needed for a decent user experience. I even have the useful
Weather Report 2.20.0 docked in my Ubuntu Gnome menu bar, which
is a part of the Ubuntu repository. It is now showing a 72 Deg F
temperature, with local weather specifics when mouse is hovered
overhead.
GUI is more than offered with Windows 2000, Windows XP, but is
not an overshoot.
User wants what is familiar to them and is easy to use. I could
care less for the camera, calendar and music player in my cell
phone. I use my phone for of all things, making and receiving
telephone calls.
Linux does what a user wants, this is why I enjoy Linux.
OpenOffice meets my needs here at home. Why do I want your
expensive, distracting featured products, when even at work the
most I do is compile multi-paged reports, financial analysis and
correspondence?
Even Microsoft Outlook 2003 and earlier variants do not do word
wrap of my schedule items in its calendar, which is a PITA.
The user is tiring of missing the marks at the expense of the
user. The user is tiring of paying for products that keep
reminding him/her that they only have a license to use, and that
although they paid good money, that product can be taken away
from them easily by the terms of the EULA. Or that they have to
call the company, when then product errs as though they were a
non-paying customer.
The trolls in this newsgroup keep bringing the idiocy of failed
arguments of Linux market share at only 0.6%, Linux GUI is still
immature, that the only way for truly great products is to pay
through the nose for them, or opt for a 5 year old copy of the
product sold at bargain prices.
Your are overshooting, when the customer really wanted a tyre
swing with a single rope on a tree to swing from.
In reality, Linux has expanded quite nicely in many arenas,
companies, Government offices and home users are taking back that
which is rightfully theirs, within their needs, and above all,
SAVING MONEY in the process.
Need I say more?
--
HPT
Erik Funkenbusch
> * Too Wordy. Microsoft Word is the classic whipping boy for
> unusable innovation. Many writers I know have jumped ship to
> simpler tools such as Scrivener and WriteRoom.
> [/quote]
>
> OTOH, StarOffice and free counterpart OpenOffice are still full
> featured products and worthy of consideration by all.
Except, apparently, those above mentioned "many writers" the author knows.
I notice StarOffice wasn't mentioned as one of those "simpler tools".
Kind of defeats the entire purpose of your long winded diatribe, doesn't
it?
> Vista is another example of overshoot. Linux GUI's have all that
> is needed for a decent user experience.
Except consistency, of course.
> User wants what is familiar to them and is easy to use. I could
> care less for the camera, calendar and music player in my cell
> phone. I use my phone for of all things, making and receiving
> telephone calls.
Yet you bought it anyways. And nobody was forcing you to buy that phone.
Mark Kent
Well (assuming you meant couldn't), I could myself. One feature I've
always appreciated since back in my Psion 5mx days was the calendar
sync, but the problem has always been Microsoft's unwillingness to
provide any kind of open interface. I'd like to be able to sync my
Motorola A780 with my work and home calendars, but the real stumbling
block is the works MS Exchange server.
>
> Linux does what a user wants, this is why I enjoy Linux.
> OpenOffice meets my needs here at home. Why do I want your
> expensive, distracting featured products, when even at work the
> most I do is compile multi-paged reports, financial analysis and
> correspondence?
I agree. I've been using Linux for work desktop for about a year, now.
It's excellent. I use the web interface to the Exchange server for
email.
>
> Even Microsoft Outlook 2003 and earlier variants do not do word
> wrap of my schedule items in its calendar, which is a PITA.
>
> The user is tiring of missing the marks at the expense of the
> user. The user is tiring of paying for products that keep
> reminding him/her that they only have a license to use, and that
> although they paid good money, that product can be taken away
> from them easily by the terms of the EULA. Or that they have to
> call the company, when then product errs as though they were a
> non-paying customer.
>
> The trolls in this newsgroup keep bringing the idiocy of failed
> arguments of Linux market share at only 0.6%, Linux GUI is still
> immature, that the only way for truly great products is to pay
> through the nose for them, or opt for a 5 year old copy of the
> product sold at bargain prices.
It's marketing hype for a failing monopoly. It's not working any more.
>
> Your are overshooting, when the customer really wanted a tyre
> swing with a single rope on a tree to swing from.
>
> In reality, Linux has expanded quite nicely in many arenas,
> companies, Government offices and home users are taking back that
> which is rightfully theirs, within their needs, and above all,
> SAVING MONEY in the process.
>
> Need I say more?
>
Probably not :-)
--
| mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
| Cola faq: http://www.faqs.org/faqs/linux/advocacy/faq-and-primer/ |
| Cola trolls: http://colatrolls.blogspot.com/ |
| Open platforms prevent vendor lock-in. Own your Own services! |
Sinister Midget
It's getting increasingly difficult to buy phones that don't have
those things any more. Sorta like how difficult it became to buy a PC
without that goofy Microsoft junk on it for awhile. Thankfully that's
made small steps toward reversing itself.
--
Be different: conform.
DFS
> OTOH, StarOffice and free counterpart OpenOffice are still full
> featured products and worthy of consideration by all.
They're worthy of consideration if you literally cannot afford $150 every
4-5 years for MS Office apps.
> Vista is another example of overshoot. Linux GUI's have all that
> is needed for a decent user experience. I even have the useful
> Weather Report 2.20.0 docked in my Ubuntu Gnome menu bar, which
> is a part of the Ubuntu repository. It is now showing a 72 Deg F
> temperature, with local weather specifics when mouse is hovered
> overhead.
>
> GUI is more than offered with Windows 2000, Windows XP, but is
> not an overshoot.
Yes, it's clear now that only MS products can "overshoot."
> Linux does what a user wants, this is why I enjoy Linux.
> OpenOffice meets my needs here at home. Why do I want your
> expensive, distracting featured products, when even at work the
> most I do is compile multi-paged reports, financial analysis and
> correspondence?
What, you can't concentrate because of all the shiny buttons?
> Even Microsoft Outlook 2003 and earlier variants do not do word
> wrap of my schedule items in its calendar, which is a PITA.
Try Evolution... it's a throwback.
> The user is tiring of missing the marks at the expense of the
> user. The user is tiring of paying for products that keep
> reminding him/her that they only have a license to use, and that
> although they paid good money, that product can be taken away
> from them easily by the terms of the EULA.
If you dweebs had any idea what users wanted, Linux wouldn't be stuck at 1%.
> Or that they have to
> call the company, when then product errs as though they were a
> non-paying customer.
uh huh... the product knows how much you paid.
> The trolls in this newsgroup keep bringing the idiocy of failed
> arguments of Linux market share at only 0.6%,
A huge failure, especially for a free product.
> Linux GUI is still immature,
I don't know if immature is the right word. Incompetent, rough, sloppy,
ugly. Take a look at KDE 4.0, and Amarok, and kcron, and Gimp, and so many
other half-ass Linux/OSS apps.
> that the only way for truly great products is to pay
> through the nose for them
Almost universally true. I can't think of a free software product I would
consider great.
> or opt for a 5 year old copy of the
> product sold at bargain prices.
No doubt.
MS Office 97 Pro is a fantastic deal for $75
http://castle.pricewatch.com/s/search.asp?s=Office+Pro+97
> Your are overshooting, when the customer really wanted a tyre
> swing with a single rope on a tree to swing from.
But the customer has never said they wanted a tire swing. The customer said
they wanted a thrill ride, and that's what they gladly pay for.
http://www.microsoft-watch.com/content/business_applications/the_year_of_office_2007.html
> In reality, Linux has expanded quite nicely in many arenas,
> companies, Government offices and home users are taking back that
> which is rightfully theirs,
How can they take back what was never taken in the first place?
> within their needs, and above all,
> SAVING MONEY in the process.
Above quality and stability and usability, that's for sure.
Like I've been saying for years, free of cost is by far the most important
thing to you cheapos.
> Need I say more?
Yes - you now need to explain your hypocrisy and why you've let open source
degrade your standards.