Comments on: Microsoft’s latest sucker ploy

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Fri, 17 Jun 2005 02:32:23 +0000

This will be a good reason for the Christian Right to switch to Linux

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 06:52:57 +0000

I had personal experience with how people are suckered by Microsoft and Gates foundation marketing. I previously ran a Linux server (Internet access, Mail server, fileserver, etc) for the Planned Parenthood Federation of Canada (PPFC) in their office, and hosted their website. At one point they received money from the Gates foundation and things started to change: I started to get more questions of why the servers weren’t running Microsoft software, and why I was only supporting Netscape email rather than Outlook, and why I was using StarOffice (this was prior to the release of OpenOffice.org ).

The licensing fees for the Microsoft versions of all this software would have been about the same amount of money as they were receiving from the Gates foundation, meaning that using Microsoft software would have effectively nullified the Gates “donation”.

I haven’t done any work for PPFC for a few years now (I don’t use, support or create “software manufacturing” software), and last I heard they ripped all the non-Microsoft software off their network and moved their website to a Microsoft server.

While this groups mandate was to promote planning and choices for parents and potential parents, all it took was a small donation from the Gates foundation to not only make them want to switch their own software, but to turn them into volunteer marketing arms for this corporation.

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 03:51:15 +0000

no, it’s here: http://www.inthehive.com/sweet_stuff.aspx as i posted in the first two messages above.

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 03:36:51 +0000

It’s at the bottom in a very faint words…

*…

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 22:55:15 +0000

Looks to me like an ingenious way of creating a large
unpaid IT tech support staff.

Stay away.

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 22:19:49 +0000

Microsucks never does stuff without trying to increase the bottom line somewhere. So what is it this time? Too many IT representivites in the help section? Or too many on the W2K section? Could it be that if successful that some of those could be laid off?

Maybe it’s none of the above. However I hesitate to grant them the idea that this is solely a “out of the goodness of our hearts” thing. Wk2 support ends soon with Microsucks. Considering that it is the most popular software in use with Corporations (rated at still above 50%) and that many corporations have refused to use the SP1 upgrade; I will watch this most carefully.

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 22:06:24 +0000

Gee thanks Bill =)

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 21:10:59 +0000

The member with the most points in each category wins. See the full contest rules for details.

http://www.inthehive.com/sweet_stuff.aspx

By: Reader's Write

Reader's Write — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 21:09:57 +0000

the * means you get your postings rated by users. the more points you have, the more chance you have to “win” something.

from http://www.inthehive.com/sweet_stuff.aspx

“You’ll receive points when:

* You post messages and content in The Hive forums
* Other members reply to your messages
* Others rate the value of your posts and content
* You post files in the download section (coming soon)”