Googolplex
@comcast.net
| A touch of saninity.
Before we get the inevitable flood of "I hate Firefox" and "I hate IE" posts, I'd like to point out that variety is good for EVERYONE. Remember, that no matter how much you like a particular browser, if everyone used it, we'd be back in the same situation again, where a single security hole in one browser is a massive problem.
Though admitedly if that one browser is open source, we'd at least have made *some* progress, as it wouldn't be controlled by any single mega-corporation.  |
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orion940
Paralyzed By Confusion
Premium
join:2001-12-23
Windsor, CT
 ·AT&T Yahoo
| said by Googolplex:
Though admitedly if that one browser is open source, we'd at least have made *some* progress, as it wouldn't be controlled by any single mega-corporation.
Thank You .
O. |
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justin
Australian
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Brooklyn, NY
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| reply to Googolplex
yes. variety is a key to resistance against lethal disease and hence survival. The browser market is big enough (kiosks, mobile devices, etc etc) to support more than one browser codebase. IE on everything was always a dumb idea. Firefox on everything is a dumb idea as well. IE should be one of several options. Microsoft should recognize this and unbundle IE from the OS. They would be able to enhance it faster to meet the challenge that way anyway. |
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BM Fan
join:2004-08-20
| Microsoft could never get away with unbundled IE with windows, think about it . grandma get her new computer home from walmart unpacks it hooks it up sets the internet connection. then what ?
most computer users are non techie. whats grandma going to do with a computer with no web browser. a browser is a part of the os. they cant ship windows with no browser, and there certainly not going to ship XP with firefox
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"Well, I lost my virginity in a car. But it wasn't a very nice one."" -Brittany Murphy |
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justin
Australian
join:1999-05-28
Brooklyn, NY
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| said by BM Fan  :
Microsoft could never get away with unbundled IE with windows, think about it . grandma get her new computer home from walmart unpacks it hooks it up sets the internet connection. then what ?
How about it boots up normally - and gives her a choice of browser if she wants to hook the PC to the net.
Click one and a tiny program downloads the installer, and installs it. I don't see the issue.
If that is too hard, someone can market PCs with (some browser) pre-installed. Just like they do for a lot of other things. But microsoft convinced people this is somehow impractical. And probably gets Dell etc to sign agreements saying they won't even try. |
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KAD Imaging
Just Shoot It
Premium
join:2002-09-21
Hialeah, FL
·AT&T Southeast
| reply to justin
said by justin :
yes. variety is a key to resistance against lethal disease and hence survival. The browser market is big enough (kiosks, mobile devices, etc etc) to support more than one browser codebase. IE on everything was always a dumb idea. Firefox on everything is a dumb idea as well. IE should be one of several options. Microsoft should recognize this and unbundle IE from the OS. They would be able to enhance it faster to meet the challenge that way anyway.
Ah...but you see this makes sense, and we all know that common sense is the antithesis of bottom-line profits. 90% of companies never do what's right/makes sense, but what puts the most $$$ in there pockets.
An example:
Frontpage and IE go pretty much hand in hand, meaning you can damn near flub all the code and IE will take it all in stride. If I use a different browser, (that is more standards compliant) then I more than likely going to use Dreamweaver or another product. Hence, less FP sales which = less $$$ for MS.
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-CK
Q: "What does a cold air intake, headers, catback, highflow cat , & Port Polish give you??
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BM Fan
join:2004-08-20
| reply to justin
wll for you or me that sounds good myself w would prefer my os to come as just an os no browser no media player nothing but the components needed to run a system. and i add the features and option i want. but i think windows is what it is because thats what the majority of people want. I know people that to them there computer is no more then an appliance no different from a toaster or microwave. they don't want to download browsers and search for and install program. the just want the device to function, thats it. for example my mother knowledge of a computer it for the most part limited to the start button. now i'm not suggesting that everyone. but thats what microsoft caters to making computers accessible and easy to use. easy for someone whos never touched a computer before to operate. so they make windows as complete as possible include all the funcinality built it they possible can. so for the user whos never touched a computer before this is great makes things alot easier on them. for me or you its anoying and bloat. what i think would be a good idea would be for MS to offer two OS's one that is geared for the home user novice. that includes as much as possible to make learning and using a computer as easy as possible. and another lean mean bare bones OS geared for advanced/business users.
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"Well, I lost my virginity in a car. But it wasn't a very nice one."" -Brittany Murphy |
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stridr69
join:2003-05-19
San Luis Obispo, CA
2 edits | XPHome, XP Pro
Microsoft already offer's two different OS'S, so your point is moot(XPHome, XPPro).
Now that SP2 will be shipping witn newly purchased computers for Joe/Jane Public, security issues should be easier to deal with.
Unfortunately, Macintosh still kicks ASS on the "ease of use issues", due to accross the board standardization(I.E. both the hardware/software controlled by one entity).
The EMachines computer I purchased 2 years ago came with Netscape6 as well(due to pressure from the Feds, hehe), so Joe/Jane Public has access to Mozilla products too-and was VERY easy to set up(yes, I use Netscape6, 4, Firefox 0.9.3 as well...but I tend to be a bit "Geeky" here...). |
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VirtualLarry
Premium
join:2003-08-01
| reply to BM Fan
Re: A touch of saninity.
said by BM Fan :
Microsoft could never get away with unbundled IE with windows, think about it . grandma get her new computer home from walmart unpacks it hooks it up sets the internet connection. then what ?
most computer users are non techie. whats grandma going to do with a computer with no web browser. a browser is a part of the os. they cant ship windows with no browser, and there certainly not going to ship XP with firefox
Funny, Win95 shipped with no web browser, "integrated" or otherwise, and users had a choice of which to download and install, among early versions of IE, Spyglass Mosaic, Netscape Navigator/Communicator, and a few others.
A web browser is hardly "part of" the OS, although it is certainly a useful tool that should arguably be included as a part of an OS distribution, just like an FTP and Telnet client should be. (Back then, you had to use the FTP client to download IE from MS's FTP site, or install one off of your ISP's installation CD.) |
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BM Fan
join:2004-08-20
| xp home and xp pro are hardly two different os's. technical a web browser is not part of the os. but i think most people expect it as part of there os
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"Well, I lost my virginity in a car. But it wasn't a very nice one."" -Brittany Murphy |
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