Computers without Microsoft?

Thats true, but they do deserve credit for what they have done. I also think everybody should use a computer not just people in the profesissional/business environment (which wouldnt be as large without everyone using a computer). A computer is a great resource and source of entertainment for a home user so its great that Microsoft did aim towards the home user and not just the work place imo

If Mister Gates stayed ripped off when he oringally sold his rights to dos to ibm, then I believe the computer realm would have developed simular to the one that we have today.

I do give credit to MS for incredible marketing, but it's true, if you needed a computer, you would have Mac, and everything would be the same pretty much. MS pretty much pioneered pre-installed OSs with different computer hardware companies, Apple actually prefers it the way they are, I don't blame them for not wanting many people on their computers, only the targeted audience.

Apple is too 'village people' for me.

I don't get that... btw Village People suck... There should be a program, where people go to a facility to choose a computer. They get to test which on they like more, Mac or PC. People who aren't used to either interface.

As much hate as I have for Microsoft--I'd still take windows over an apple based OS any day.

Well then here's my question: how many hours of your life have you used OS X? If you've used Mac OS X for over one month, your opinion would change I'm almost positive. I agree, before that, OS 9 sucked, yet so did Windows 95, 98, and W2000/ME had a lot of problems. When I state my opinion about Mac vs. PC, I've had both OSs for years, and at first I hated Mac. But then I found Shapeshifter, and made my Mac look like Windows. Eventually I grew out of that, noticing many more goodies and cool things PCs can't do as well.

IMO, without Microsoft, people would be more aware of how computers work.
IMO, without Microsoft, people would be less aware of viruses. heh heh
it's true that MS is most attacked by viruses because it's the most popular, but anyone will tell you MS is not at all a very stable OS. quite inefficient too if you ask me. Linux doesn't even need an anti-virus program at the moment.

honestly though, if MS didn't do the whole GUI thing, someone else definitely would have.

If MS didn't emerge, then games and other common software would be made for OS's like Mac and Linux and i think Linux would be a lot more GUI oriented. Something like Ubuntu/SuSE Linux would have emerged in the late 90's and games would be compatible.

The reason most of the software around is mostly compatible with MS is because it's the most popular OS around because of it's ease of use. but if MS didn't become so big, some other OS would and games would be made for them instead,

Many people around the world believe MS is the best OS out there. MS is a great OS under certain limited conditions. a small change of those circumstances and MS is a mess. Anyone will tell you MS has only a fraction of the power that Linux/Unix has.

i haven't touched windows in the last 6 months or so and i must say, i'm VERY satisfied with Linux. Feels a bit like windows without the bugs and the viruses.

Originally Posted by Bazza` Fact is without Microsoft most software would not be as powerfull and stable as they are today, which in turn would would lead to less developed hardware (whats the point in making advanced hardware if the programmes dont need it?)

what do you mean? do you mean Microsoft is stable and powerful or did i misunderstand what you meant there?

:lol: Agreed. Linux is good. Linux is what Windows SHOULD be. I still think Mac is more of a a proffessional tool than Linux, but Linux is more stable than Windows, and like Mac doesn't have to worry about viruses or spyware. Mac is built off of Unix, and BSD somewhat.

Before my opinion...

Originally Posted by ismith Apple with Steve Jobs and a group of guys from New York invented the Mouse, and the GUI. W/O Apple, MS would be nowhere ^_^

Actually the mouse and the GUI were both invented by Douglas Engelbart in the 1960's... The Macintosh was however the first consumer computer with a GUI and an earlier Apple machine was the first to bring the mouse to the consumer.

Now my opinion - based on memory and possibly not fact...

Without Microsoft I don't believe the world would be the same as it is today!

Long before Windows - even before what we now know as PC's - everything was about proprietary systems for the home/small business user. If you bought an Apple machine you needed to get an Apple operating system and Apple hardware. There were Sinclair machines, (my first computer was a Sinclair ZX81 with a massive 1k of ram back in 1981), there was Commodore, Acorn, BBC, Dragon and many others but nothing was interchangeable between them. There was a brief try at doing things generically with the MSX systems from various manufacturers such as Toshiba and Panasonic but the market wasn't ready and it failed dismally.

Then came the PC with it's x86 processor and the ability to use ram/cpus/hds/floppies etc from a multitude of manufacturers. This brought prices down and made PCs 'affordable' to small businesses and even some home users. But everything was running in DOS which of course isn't very friendly to your average joe.

Apple brought out their GUI on the Mac, (which was originally going to launch with the Apple Lisa), but their systems were more expensive than PCs so only high-end users could afford them.

When MS Windows was launched the world of computing was opened up to a much wider audience and with the launch of Windows 95 PCs became more popular than ever and the more people that started using them at work the more people wanted one at home.

Without the multitude of home users the Internet wouldn't have developed into the World Wide Web and we wouldn't be sitting here today having this debate.

Sure someone else MAY have come up with a GUI as friendly as Windows and MAY have marketed it as well as Microsoft did - but when - and how far behind would computing progress be today if that had happened?

I'll just quote ismith again here... not picking on you mate...

Originally Posted by ismith ...If you've used Mac OS X for over one month, your opinion would change I'm almost positive. I agree, before that, OS 9 sucked...

Well if that's the case the Mac would never have gained the popularity that the Windows based PC has anyway and we would be a lot further back on the computing progress ladder.

Intel tried to pull back some of their CPU monopoly, what with numerous manufacturers basically copying their designs, when they first named their CPUs 'Pentium' - you can copyright a name but not a number... But fortunately for us that didn't stop companies such as Cyrix and AMD just making their own names and making subtle differences to the processor architecture... If that competition had been killed off then processor speeds probably wouldn't be what they are today.

If Apple was the main contender, producing only in-house hardware we wouldn't have the hard-drive sizes we have today... I remember visiting Seimens around 1991 and being totally amazed that they had their own hard drive that held a whopping 1GB of data... How pathetic does that sound today with 500GB drives coming onto the market.

One more ismith quote, and once again, I'm not picking on you, just that you are the biggest Apple advocate here I believe...

Originally Posted by ismith Apple actually prefers it the way they are, I don't blame them for not wanting many people on their computers, only the targeted audience.

Do you honestly believe that? Running a business is about providing a service or selling a product. Any business that sells product, (with the sole exception of some prestige brands such as Rolls Royce - who got bought out by Ford anyway), wants to shift as many units as possible for the greatest profit margin they can get away with. Apple would love it if they were the dominating force in computing - and they had the opportunity to be back in the day - but that chance is gone.

I think I've rambled on for long enough now