Rebooting Windows For A New Era Of Computing

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Is it just me or does everyone else hate the term "post PC era" as much as I do?

The next couple of years will be crucial for Microsoft, but I believe that the company has what it takes to surprise us, and that it still has a good chance of transforming itself into a company that can rise to the challenges and changes thrown up by the post PC era.
 
Is it just me or does everyone else hate the term "post PC era" as much as I do?

I'm sure someone said the same type of thing when the ICE came out. Horses are still around, but mainly used for pleasure, not serious work. If you get my drift.
 
Which is especially ironic, since most devices are becoming more and more PC like every year. If anything, the future will be the everything-PC era, where your phone, console, laptop, and desktop are all just different form factor PCs. ;)
 
Journalists love the idea of a "post PC era" since most of them are too stupid to even use an iPad with child mode on. Death of the PC simplifies life for them.
 
Which is especially ironic, since most devices are becoming more and more PC like every year. If anything, the future will be the everything-PC era, where your phone, console, laptop, and desktop are all just different form factor PCs. ;)

Ehh, people confuse the term "PC". You are correct though, there are just different form factors. An iPad is certainly a PC as well as a Surface Pro.
 
Journalists love the idea of a "post PC era" since most of them are too stupid to even use an iPad with child mode on. Death of the PC simplifies life for them.

"Post PC era" does not mean "death of the PC." And tech journalists hate the iPad.
 
Which is especially ironic, since most devices are becoming more and more PC like every year. If anything, the future will be the everything-PC era, where your phone, console, laptop, and desktop are all just different form factor PCs. ;)

Indeed. This is true in essence.
 
"Post PC era" does not mean "death of the PC." And tech journalists hate the iPad.
Its what this guy is implying:

"Despite numerous attempts by Microsoft, this is a situation that wouldn't change until Apple released the iPad at the beginning of 2010. Meanwhile on the post-PC front, iPads, iPhones and a whole raft of Android devices are inundating the market, while Microsoft is scrabbling to make real headway."

He's clearly one of the "iPads make PCs obsolete" guys.
 
Its what this guy is implying:

"Despite numerous attempts by Microsoft, this is a situation that wouldn't change until Apple released the iPad at the beginning of 2010. Meanwhile on the post-PC front, iPads, iPhones and a whole raft of Android devices are inundating the market, while Microsoft is scrabbling to make real headway."

He's clearly one of the "iPads make PCs obsolete" guys.

I own a Windows based phone, a tablet, and a couple PCs. They're easy to use and integrate perfectly with each other. My sisters and parents have done almost everything Apple, much to my dismay, but I've had them try out the Windows devices I have. They're able to use them just fine, and comment on things being easier than their Apple devices. Microsoft has done the interface right.

It's tech journalists that are discouraging people from even trying Microsoft products. A great many have been actively campaigning against MS for decades. The general population is just stupid enough to listen to them.

It's the same reason there's been such a shift to the left in voting over the last two decades. Stupid people listening to stupid reporters.
 
It's the same reason there's been such a shift to the left in voting over the last two decades. Stupid people listening to stupid reporters.
Mmmhmm, and it works.

"If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it, and you will even come to believe it yourself." Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propaganda Minister
 
Zdnet is just saying "post PC" to get people talking about a boring article because sensationalism sells and gets attention; it's cheap journalism.
 
Now you know how those "post-horse & buggy" guys felt a 100 years ago.

"Post PC era" doesn't mean the death of desktops but signals the switch to more mobile & portable PC-like devices being the center of our computing universe. Just as the horse & buggy took decades to completely disappear (they are seen in several 3 Stooges shorts), desktop PCs will be around for a long time but we all will slowly be using those devices less and less as the mobile devices keep getting more powerful and obtain additional capabilities.
 
Now you know how those "post-horse & buggy" guys felt a 100 years ago.

"Post PC era" doesn't mean the death of desktops but signals the switch to more mobile & portable PC-like devices being the center of our computing universe. Just as the horse & buggy took decades to completely disappear (they are seen in several 3 Stooges shorts), desktop PCs will be around for a long time but we all will slowly be using those devices less and less as the mobile devices keep getting more powerful and obtain additional capabilities.

I'm not alone in being annoyed with having to type on these tiny screens to message or email someone. I'm certainly not alone in avoiding reading web pages on a 5" screen, or even a 10" tablet screen. I really don't think people are going to continue this same trend after we have a whole generation of extremely nearsighted people who are too blind to even drive anymore.

I also happen to think it's a completely asinine idea to watch a movie on a smartphone screen.

Then again, this country has been quite nearsighted for the last several decades, in many ways.

PCs will not die, or go the way of the horse and buggy. People can't do real work on a smartphone or tablet. These teeny-tiny screens just can't hold the amount of information needed to get any real work done.
 
"Post PC era" does not mean "death of the PC."

Agreed.

And tech journalists hate the iPad.

This is certainly not the universal view of mainstream tech blogs like The Verge or Engadget. The iPad is constantly praised for its build quality, screen and app store size but gets little criticism for lack of on device expansion, exorbitant markups for storage pricing (16 to 32 GB for $100?) and it's overall locked down nature.

Don't get me wrong, I think the iPad is a great device and is overall the best touch tablet platform out now. They are great tablets for use as consumption devices.
 
In the article he says Microsoft is trying to push people from laptops to tablets. My question is, why?

Why does Microsoft care if you type up a document on a tablet rather than a laptop?

My answer is that because tablets are typically underpowered and replaced often, Microsoft thinks they can fool us into moving to the Cloud. This means subscription based Office, OneDrive, buying apps through their store, and replacing the cheaper Microsoft branded hardware more often.

Not gonna happen.
 
I'm sure someone said the same type of thing when the ICE came out. Horses are still around, but mainly used for pleasure, not serious work. If you get my drift.
This is kind of ironic, since I think the opposite will be true of the traditional PC form factor. They'll still be around for serious work, but maybe less and less for pleasure.
 
"Post PC era" does not mean "death of the PC." And tech journalists hate the iPad.

And car journalists hate Kia.


I mean come on. You can't group them up like that. I'm sure a ton of tech journalists hate the iPad, but I'm sure a ton of tech journalists do love iPads.
 
Why does Microsoft care if you type up a document on a tablet rather than a laptop?

x86 Windows 8.x doesn't care. Be it a laptop, desktop or tablet you have access to whatever desktop apps you want, support for keyboards, mice, touch and pen on any of those form factors and of course Windows Store apps. So I don't see how Microsoft cares if Windows doesn't care.

My answer is that because tablets are typically underpowered and replaced often, Microsoft thinks they can fool us into moving to the Cloud. This means subscription based Office, OneDrive, buying apps through their store, and replacing the cheaper Microsoft branded hardware more often.

Not gonna happen.

Thing is right now Microsoft's direct interests in PC hardware in the Surface line is pretty limited. There certainly isn't anything most would consider a cheap Microsoft branded PC out right now. And now that Windows is free for smaller screens Microsoft isn't making any money directly on these devices, so it might be great for OEMs to churn more devices and part of Windows 8 and a push of tablets is about getting people to buy hardware. There's just not that much direct benefit to Microsoft for this kind of hardware though.

But sure, the cloud and subscriptions and the Windows Store is about monetizing those lost software license sales. It's easy to say Microsoft should just give away Windows and screw the cloud and subscriptions and The Windows Store but that's not much of a plan without some revenue to back it up.
 
And now that Windows is free for smaller screens Microsoft isn't making any money directly on these devices, so it might be great for OEMs to churn more devices and part of Windows 8 and a push of tablets is about getting people to buy hardware. There's just not that much direct benefit to Microsoft for this kind of hardware though.
Oh come now sir! You don't think they make money from the Microsoft Store and by having searchers with Bing, through "Windows 8.1 with Bing"? :D
 
Oh come now sir! You don't think they make money from the Microsoft Store and by having searchers with Bing, through "Windows 8.1 with Bing"? :D

Of course they do, that's kind of the thing they have to do if they are going to start offering free versions of Windows. And I understand that people don't like cloud services, Bing or The Windows Store integrated into Windows. But unless one has a realistic way for Microsoft to monetize Windows beyond the traditional licensing model which has been predicted for a long time to go into decline, then I don't see what other options there are. Apple makes is money on hardware and Google makes its money on ads through it's platforms. Microsoft is probably going to have do a little bit of everything to generate revenue and grow.
 
I'm pretty sure that's still illegal in many places, but... as long as the horse doesn't mind. ;)

*cackle* That's not exactly where I was going with that, but whatever floats yer' boat.
 
Its what this guy is implying:

"Despite numerous attempts by Microsoft, this is a situation that wouldn't change until Apple released the iPad at the beginning of 2010. Meanwhile on the post-PC front, iPads, iPhones and a whole raft of Android devices are inundating the market, while Microsoft is scrabbling to make real headway."

He's clearly one of the "iPads make PCs obsolete" guys.

He's referring to sales figures; PCs plummeted when the iPad debuted. Which is sort of the point of the post PC era.

PCs are trucks, iPads are cars. Most people don't drive trucks, but they're still around and still important. One doesn't eliminate the other. That's what most people fail to grasp about the post PC analogy.
 
He's referring to sales figures; PCs plummeted when the iPad debuted. Which is sort of the point of the post PC era.

If memory serves the first iPad was launched in 2010 and the first year of the current PC sales decline didn't occur until 2012. Indeed if the iPad had caused an immediate downturn in PC sales it's hard to imagine that Windows 7 would have be the mega success that it was, launching just 6 months prior the first iPad.

PCs are trucks, iPads are cars. Most people don't drive trucks, but they're still around and still important. One doesn't eliminate the other. That's what most people fail to grasp about the post PC analogy.

I think just about everyone in this forum understands the basic principle you're pointing out here. PCs used to be the only way to do many of the things that people do today on smartphones and tablets that just 5 years ago required a PC. And the mobility of these devices gives them capabilities that are impractical on desktop and laptop PCs.

So a PC is truck. But is an iPad or Android tablet a car, motorcycle, moped or bicycle? Clearly iOS and Android tablets are fantastic for consumption, the question is how good are they at production? I don't really know if they are good enough to be considered cars for that purpose. x86 Windows 8 tablets are an significantly different beast. Lacking the app count of iOS or Android, they clearly aren't bicycles but x86 Windows 8 tablet with a good pen digitizer running OneNote can be a car and in some ways a truck because it can do very productive things that even desktops can't do.
 
Is it just me or does everyone else hate the term "post PC era" as much as I do?

Howsabout something just aneurysm-inducing.

Web 3.0, on the cloud, in the post-PC era. Talk about a paradigm shift!

Excuse me, I'm going to go start spurting blood out of every cranial orifice at high pressure now...

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Desktops are still the best machines for getting serious work done by a long shot. Tablets are for casuals, kids, and old people. The whole concept of a post PC era is retarded.
 
Should be called the post-Microsoft era.

I can see what you mean. When it comes to mobile and casual computing what you said makes sense. But when it comes to more productive computing activities, we're quite far from a post-Microsoft era.
 
Yeah, they could surprise us all right. With an actual Operating System ... Compact, Secure, Robust and taking full advantage of the vast incredibly powerful computers we have ... instead of crippling them with bloat and crap and horrible compromises for the sake of past compatibility.

In other words, do what you should have done 15-20 years ago. Zipperheads.
 
PCs are trucks, iPads are cars.
I prefer my analogy that PCs are cars, and iPads are segways. One is practical and necessary for the US economy to function, the other is generally overpriced and something most people buy to be seen using. :D
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I'm sure someone said the same type of thing when the ICE came out. Horses are still around, but mainly used for pleasure, not serious work. If you get my drift.

It's the other way around, IMO. The post-PC devices are used for pleasure while the PC is sticking around for serious work.
 
I own a Windows based phone, a tablet, and a couple PCs. They're easy to use and integrate perfectly with each other. My sisters and parents have done almost everything Apple, much to my dismay, but I've had them try out the Windows devices I have. They're able to use them just fine, and comment on things being easier than their Apple devices. Microsoft has done the interface right.

It's tech journalists that are discouraging people from even trying Microsoft products. A great many have been actively campaigning against MS for decades. The general population is just stupid enough to listen to them.

It's the same reason there's been such a shift to the left in voting over the last two decades. Stupid people listening to stupid reporters.

More like there's many many times more choices for your sisters and parents and everyone else when using Android and Apple devices. It's well and good that Microsoft can make intuitive devices, but they need the app base to pull in Apple and Android users. They're probably only pulling in Blackberry users at the moment.
 
More like there's many many times more choices for your sisters and parents and everyone else when using Android and Apple devices. It's well and good that Microsoft can make intuitive devices, but they need the app base to pull in Apple and Android users. They're probably only pulling in Blackberry users at the moment.

The apps stores for Windows and Windows Phone are definitely a very weak spot for Microsoft mobile platform. However when looking at tablets there are some advantages for x86 Windows tablets. You do get some options with the desktop, even on tablets, that aren't there for Android and iOS. And there a lot things for Android and iOS that require apps that don't on Windows tablets because of Flash support.
 
Journalists, most of whom are hacks with less knowledge than your average [H] poster, have been bleating about the 'death of PC' and awaiting the glorious age when everybody will suddenly trash their pc's and use iPad's for everything. Guess what, that day hasn't come and will never come. Tablets are just another content consumption device, the moment you need to do real work you need a proper keyboard. The big change is the rise of hybrid ultrabooks.

Funnily enough, these same idiots never have a bad word to say about their precious MacBooks, it seems their predictions of 'death of PC' are limited to Microsoft.
 
The apps stores for Windows and Windows Phone are definitely a very weak spot for Microsoft mobile platform. However when looking at tablets there are some advantages for x86 Windows tablets. You do get some options with the desktop, even on tablets, that aren't there for Android and iOS. And there a lot things for Android and iOS that require apps that don't on Windows tablets because of Flash support.

You won't get any arguments with me about tablets. My iPad Mini has been collecting dust since I got my first gen Surface Pro from my boss for Christmas.

But I'll take my iPhone 5s over a Windows phone any day. As I said, Microsoft needs to give app developers more incentive to write code for them and I'll give them another look in two years when it's upgrade time.
 
I enter a new era of Windows every month, immediately after patch Tuesday.
 
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