Vista?
Are you using Vista? I am considering purchasing a new laptop next spring, but I am afraid of Vista. Evidently, very few developers are writing applications for Vista, which I assume means that they are waiting for Windows 7. I would also love to wait for the new OS, but that is not expected to roll out until 2010.
So, if you are running Vista, what do you think? Incidentally, Hitler hates Vista:
Showing posts with label microsoft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label microsoft. Show all posts
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle
I am relieved that Yahoo has rejected Microsoft's takeover offer, but I realize that this may not be the end of it. I am often amused by the search engine battles on the web. Google gets most of the search traffic, with Microsoft, Yahoo, and others lagging behind. So, theoretically, a merger is a good way to catch up.
There must be a better way. Google's ambitious goal to index the entire web is an impossible one, and I would argue that it is a stupid goal as well. Searching Google certainly gets lots of results, but so much of it is garbage. The same is true with Yahoo and Microsoft's Live Search. What we really need is an intelligent search engine that can distinguish between searches that appear to be identical.
For example, if I am searching for Juno, I think the reply from the search engine should be:
Select what you are looking for from this list: the movie, the Japanese model, the Juno Awards, Juno Records ...
When you click one of the terms, the search engine should add some search terms and construct a proper Boolean search, like: juno and (movie or film or theatrical release or motion picture). Most people have no idea how to construct a nested Boolean search, and only Yahoo supports it on the web anyway, but there are advanced search techniques in Google than can give you the same results.
The problem with search engines is that huge numbers of results come back at you, and research has proven that most people look only at the first two pages: the rest is irrelevant. I think we ought to be looking at smaller, better engines, like the human-powered Mahalo. It's database is slowly being compiled by humans. Don't run out an Mahalo yourself, because you won't be there, but you can add yourself. You might be a little underwhelmed at search results but I think, in time, search engines like this might prevail over the giants.
Oh, and the real reason I don't want Microsoft to take over Yahoo, is because then the evil empire will own Flickr, and that would be bad news.
I am relieved that Yahoo has rejected Microsoft's takeover offer, but I realize that this may not be the end of it. I am often amused by the search engine battles on the web. Google gets most of the search traffic, with Microsoft, Yahoo, and others lagging behind. So, theoretically, a merger is a good way to catch up.
There must be a better way. Google's ambitious goal to index the entire web is an impossible one, and I would argue that it is a stupid goal as well. Searching Google certainly gets lots of results, but so much of it is garbage. The same is true with Yahoo and Microsoft's Live Search. What we really need is an intelligent search engine that can distinguish between searches that appear to be identical.
For example, if I am searching for Juno, I think the reply from the search engine should be:
Select what you are looking for from this list: the movie, the Japanese model, the Juno Awards, Juno Records ...
When you click one of the terms, the search engine should add some search terms and construct a proper Boolean search, like: juno and (movie or film or theatrical release or motion picture). Most people have no idea how to construct a nested Boolean search, and only Yahoo supports it on the web anyway, but there are advanced search techniques in Google than can give you the same results.
The problem with search engines is that huge numbers of results come back at you, and research has proven that most people look only at the first two pages: the rest is irrelevant. I think we ought to be looking at smaller, better engines, like the human-powered Mahalo. It's database is slowly being compiled by humans. Don't run out an Mahalo yourself, because you won't be there, but you can add yourself. You might be a little underwhelmed at search results but I think, in time, search engines like this might prevail over the giants.
Oh, and the real reason I don't want Microsoft to take over Yahoo, is because then the evil empire will own Flickr, and that would be bad news.
Thursday, January 13, 2005
At the risk of portraying myself as some sort of TV addict, which I am not --we don't even have cable and get only a handful of snowy channels -- I'll mention a few things about stuff I have watched recently. But first, I just have to say that there are too many awards shows. The only one I ever watch is the Academy Awards, and I am certain that the Academy rarely honors the best in film. I mean, Angelina Jolie won an Oscar! She might deserve an Oscar for looking good, but not for acting. And so, I flipped past the so-called People's Choice Awards. If it is really People's Choice, shouldn't the people get a chance to vote on all shows, and not just the nominees? How is it that there were only three nominees for each category?
And so, on to Alias, a show I have watched religiously since it came on the air. I hate the new title sequence because it tries to sell the show on one aspect, that being the costume changes of the Sid. If I saw that opening, and didn't know what the show was about, I would keep on flipping. But, it's all a ratings move anyway, which is why the American network moved it to Wednesdays after Lost, but, for some incomprehensible reason, CTV is showing it at 4:00 pm on Sunday. Surely that is a ratings hole.
Scanning
I have been scanning like mad. Photos, that is. I got a ton of old photos from my mother and I have been scanning, identifying, and organizing. It's a big job. It turns out that there is only one baby photo of me, and it is blurry. I was the fourth kid, so I guess my parents gave up. Photos of me start showing up again when I am 3 years old. This is not good, but there is nothing I can do about it now. I was a damn cute three year old, but for some reason, I look sad in almost all of the photos. I think I was a sad kid.
Microsoft
I am thinking of sending a memo to Microsoft with a very simple request. I want to ask if they can create a patch that will stop Windows from crashing! It's driving me crazy. I plug in my MP3 player to my USB port, and it crashes. I scan photos, and it crashes (thankfully, not all of the time). I try to copy music files to my hard drive and it crashes. This is a brand new computer with a gig of RAM and a 120 Gig hard drive. It is a top-of-the-line Dell. Maybe they are too busy writing security patches to make time for something as simple as this.
Technorati tags: TV, awards shows, Alias, photography, Microsoft
And so, on to Alias, a show I have watched religiously since it came on the air. I hate the new title sequence because it tries to sell the show on one aspect, that being the costume changes of the Sid. If I saw that opening, and didn't know what the show was about, I would keep on flipping. But, it's all a ratings move anyway, which is why the American network moved it to Wednesdays after Lost, but, for some incomprehensible reason, CTV is showing it at 4:00 pm on Sunday. Surely that is a ratings hole.
Scanning
I have been scanning like mad. Photos, that is. I got a ton of old photos from my mother and I have been scanning, identifying, and organizing. It's a big job. It turns out that there is only one baby photo of me, and it is blurry. I was the fourth kid, so I guess my parents gave up. Photos of me start showing up again when I am 3 years old. This is not good, but there is nothing I can do about it now. I was a damn cute three year old, but for some reason, I look sad in almost all of the photos. I think I was a sad kid.
Microsoft
I am thinking of sending a memo to Microsoft with a very simple request. I want to ask if they can create a patch that will stop Windows from crashing! It's driving me crazy. I plug in my MP3 player to my USB port, and it crashes. I scan photos, and it crashes (thankfully, not all of the time). I try to copy music files to my hard drive and it crashes. This is a brand new computer with a gig of RAM and a 120 Gig hard drive. It is a top-of-the-line Dell. Maybe they are too busy writing security patches to make time for something as simple as this.
Technorati tags: TV, awards shows, Alias, photography, Microsoft
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