And you thought your day was bad...
Jun. 14th, 2006 10:16 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lordshipmayhemSome days it just does not pay to be Microsoft.
First, as of yesterday they'd reached a new 8-year low in their stock price. At one time they'd used stock options as a way of rewarding staff, but any issued over that period of time are likely underwater and therefore not useful.
Second, they're having a little (hah!) problem with their new Vista operating system ("OS"), with Beta testers saying that they've never seen a previous Windows version this buggy this late in the testing process. Complaints are also being registered that the OS is "too large, slow and memory hungry". Matches what I've heard about the insane hardware upgrades they're recommending - basically any computer you've purchased prior to now is too underpowered to run their new OS.
Third, there's a report, about how the new Vista isn't protecting as securely against rootkits as it might, as there are "legitimate" programs that use "rootkit techniques". They're using a less secure anti-rootkit technology in the 32-bit version (your computer and mine are both 32-bit). When the 64-bit version comes out, it WILL be more secure, as they'll be using two tools that are stronger than the current choice.
Contradicting Microsoft's repeated statements to the press, Trend Micro, an antivirus vendor, says that Open Source software is inherently more secure than proprietary software.
And they're in hot water over their corporate practices. Again. This time, it's Microsoft Genuine Advantage, which checks your system to see if you are running legitimate, licenced Microsoft software and not pirated versions. If you've had your system fixed at a professional shop, you might find your computer on the list of those running "pirated" OS's because of a touch of laziness on the part of the guys who fixed it.
Finally, they announced that this month's patches for both XP and Office would be the most of this year, with a high proportion of critical patches. Combine that with the discovery of "unfixable" security flaws in 98, 98SE and ME-tan (effectively "end of life"ing all of them), it has definitely not been a happy week to be either a Microsoft employee or user.
First, as of yesterday they'd reached a new 8-year low in their stock price. At one time they'd used stock options as a way of rewarding staff, but any issued over that period of time are likely underwater and therefore not useful.
Second, they're having a little (hah!) problem with their new Vista operating system ("OS"), with Beta testers saying that they've never seen a previous Windows version this buggy this late in the testing process. Complaints are also being registered that the OS is "too large, slow and memory hungry". Matches what I've heard about the insane hardware upgrades they're recommending - basically any computer you've purchased prior to now is too underpowered to run their new OS.
Third, there's a report, about how the new Vista isn't protecting as securely against rootkits as it might, as there are "legitimate" programs that use "rootkit techniques". They're using a less secure anti-rootkit technology in the 32-bit version (your computer and mine are both 32-bit). When the 64-bit version comes out, it WILL be more secure, as they'll be using two tools that are stronger than the current choice.
Contradicting Microsoft's repeated statements to the press, Trend Micro, an antivirus vendor, says that Open Source software is inherently more secure than proprietary software.
And they're in hot water over their corporate practices. Again. This time, it's Microsoft Genuine Advantage, which checks your system to see if you are running legitimate, licenced Microsoft software and not pirated versions. If you've had your system fixed at a professional shop, you might find your computer on the list of those running "pirated" OS's because of a touch of laziness on the part of the guys who fixed it.
Finally, they announced that this month's patches for both XP and Office would be the most of this year, with a high proportion of critical patches. Combine that with the discovery of "unfixable" security flaws in 98, 98SE and ME-tan (effectively "end of life"ing all of them), it has definitely not been a happy week to be either a Microsoft employee or user.
