Windows XP update issues

[Greg Phillips]

A little off topic, and apologies to the Linux Unix and Mac crowd, but I just went through problems with my computer with what turned out to be an issue with a Microsoft security update and some HP software (sorry Paul).

The problem was that when I tried to save files in OUtlook, Word or Excel to a different directory, the program would crash. I thought it was only Office products but it also later happened in Adobe Photshop Elements. The problem was whenever you used the shell.

Explanation and fix is at this site:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/918165

I fixed my computer by uninstalling the HP Share-to-web software.

Greg

[MikeD]

Being a Linux guy, I don't mind you posting solutions to problems you've encountered with an operating system that "just works!" In fact I find it very entertaining. And, sorry to sound callous, but this particular problem is exceedingly humorous as it exemplifies the reason I am a Linux guy. I mean come on, seriously, think about what you just wrote, it is truly funny, no?

[Greg Phillips]

It is funny from the outside but was quite irritating going through the exercise.
If my computing needs were simple and mostly web related, Linux would be great. But I am not sure that Adobe PageMaker (or InDesign) is available for Linux, (although Mac is covered) and so I struggle on with Windows XP and keep Bill Gates happy

Greg

[Kim Crosser]

Being a Linux guy, I don't mind you posting solutions to problems you've encountered with an operating system that "just works!" In fact I find it very entertaining. And, sorry to sound callous, but this particular problem is exceedingly humorous as it exemplifies the reason I am a Linux guy. I mean come on, seriously, think about what you just wrote, it is truly funny, no?

Cool - let us know when Linux reaches 4% of market share...

Those of us who build and sell software for a living don't have much of a choice as to desktop OS - with Windows owning right around 90% of the desktops, Linux and Mac each around 3.5%, if you would like to actually sell a lot of systems, Linux isn't your target market.

p.s. As a former Mac evangelist who watched the clean, reliable Mac OS evolve into another bloated, fragile imitation of Windows, I have my doubts as to whether Linux will be any better in the long run. As "features" keep getting added, systems just get bigger, more complex, and consequently buggier. Once Linux has all the "automatic" maintenance features of Windows to help the naive users (which many of us quickly disable), why should we believe it will be any more stable or maintainable?

[MikeD]

Cool - let us know when Linux reaches 4% of market share...

Those of us who build and sell software for a living don't have much of a choice as to desktop OS - with Windows owning right around 90% of the desktops, Linux and Mac each around 3.5%, if you would like to actually sell a lot of systems, Linux isn't your target market.

p.s. As a former Mac evangelist who watched the clean, reliable Mac OS evolve into another bloated, fragile imitation of Windows, I have my doubts as to whether Linux will be any better in the long run. As "features" keep getting added, systems just get bigger, more complex, and consequently buggier. Once Linux has all the "automatic" maintenance features of Windows to help the naive users (which many of us quickly disable), why should we believe it will be any more stable or maintainable?

Hahaha. That's always the come back. If a Windows advocate can came up with an original line I would take them to Ruth's Chris for dinner. But we know that will never happen, don't we?

So, by your own logic Kim, you should be driving a Camery or Accord, since those are what 90% of the people drive.

And, BTW Kim, I do build software for a living. But my software is enterprise class (i.e. thousands * thousands of users all at the same time), so I can identify with siding with mass market... but my customers have higher standards than your average desktop user.

Kim, you crack me up. You are so hard core into Windows that you just can't let something like that pass by without a defense. Should've known... then again maybe I did. I wonder if maybe you are trying to convince yourself, cause that argument sure doesn't convince me, or anyone else that Windows is the right choice. My mom always asked me this funny question: "If your friends jumped off the Cornado bridge would you?". Apparently if 90% of the population was doing it I would have to.

Ever hear the term "Methinks he doth protest too much"?

[Kim Crosser]

Mike - you are way too easy to spin up on the Windows / non-Windows subject.

Actually, we do thousands of concurrent users also. But, we need to really support them with true five-nines availability (little things like Computer-Aided Dispatch for police, fire, and EMS - life and death sort of stuff) - which we do on peer-to-peer Windows systems. Redundant Unix/Linux servers don't help, because our distributed dispatch centers have to keep running even if we lose network connections. Our dispatch centers can keep running as long as one workstation survives. Oh, and our users insist on being able to run their MS Outlook e-mail and MS SQL*Server databases on our computers, so we don't have the luxury of specifying the workstation OS.

"... hard core on Windows ..." - boy, if most of my staffs (past and present) could hear that. I have always hated the "evil empire" in Redmond, but my real point is that when reality strikes, you need to pay attention. What I really hear is technological "elitism" in your answers ("my OS is newer / cooler / better than yours").

"... doth protest too much ..." mmmm... or maybe it is size envy from the little guy?

[MikeD]

Are we part of the same conversation? You went from A to M with nothing in between.

I'm a technological "elitist"? Huh? How did you come to that conclusion? I merely poked a little fun and Greg's misfortune. You go off the deep end about how wonderful it is to be in the Windows family. Citing cool sounding statistics on how great it is to be in the majority. And I am somehow the elitist here? I don't get it.

Size envy? Why on earth would I care at all what the majoriy are doing? You must be talking about someone else.

And yeah, "hard core Windows guy". Of all the computer related professionals we have in the club (and, according to your statistics, 90% of which will be Windows based) who have no doubt read this thread, you are the only one to jump on the bait. And, I knew that if anyone would jump on it, it would certainly be you.

[martinreinhardt]

"Microsoft broke Volkswagen's world record: Volkswagen only made 22 million bugs!"

[rshon]

Wow. And I thought the original reason we all bought Porsches was so that the girls wouldn't notice that we were really nerds...

[gulf911]

Are we part of the same conversation? You went from A to M with nothing in between.

I'm a technological "elitist"? Huh? How did you come to that conclusion? I merely poked a little fun and Greg's misfortune. You go off the deep end about how wonderful it is to be in the Windows family. Citing cool sounding statistics on how great it is to be in the majority. And I am somehow the elitist here? I don't get it.

Size envy? Why on earth would I care at all what the majoriy are doing? You must be talking about someone else.

And yeah, "hard core Windows guy". Of all the computer related professionals we have in the club (and, according to your statistics, 90% of which will be Windows based) who have no doubt read this thread, you are the only one to jump on the bait. And, I knew that if anyone would jump on it, it would certainly be you.

The only reason I didn't jump on it was because I thought it was so absurd you would compare Linux to Windows. Anyone who has to build and configure a Linux server, example: build and relink Kernel for drivers it doesn't recognize, would laugh at your statement. I build both types of servers from small business to enterprise and Windows is just as reliable as any Linux box, and is much easier to configure. Face it, if linux was that much better and more robust, people would be leaving Microsoft in droves, they are not. I care what the majority is doing because selling to a 90% market share has just a bit better return than selling to 4%, enterprise or not. Diatribe over...

[RickK]

People actually pay for Linux stuff? The only attraction I could ever see was the open source, no cost advantage. The companies providing Linux softwre today are the same ones that used to push UNIX. Really they just started calling everything Linux because it was "the in thing".