Windows 8 has built-in advertising

Ed Bott justifying Windows 8’s built-in advertising:

And representing the Grand Old Windows Party, Paul Thurrott is outraged, I tell you, that any part of Windows 8 has ads. It “cheapens” the OS, he argues. He believes that those ads exist to allow Microsoft to sell Windows 8 upgrades for a mere $40, in the belief that those ad revenues go toward the Windows division’s bottom line.

Paul and John are both mistaken. Those apps aren’t part of Windows 8. They are part of a separate Microsoft project specifically designed to create showcase apps that will “inspire Windows 8 app developers.” (I’ll get to those details later in this post.) Although I’m sure the head of the Online Services Division would love it if I were wrong, I am willing to bet those apps will not be money-making machines in and of themselves.

Oh and those apps with advertising that aren’t part of windows 8?

  • Games
  • News
  • Finance
  • Sports
  • Weather
  • Travel

Sure sounds like “apps that are separate project that will “inspire Windows 8 app developers”.

So here’s the amusing thing. Most of my online work is paid for by ads. Paul Thurrott’s newly redesigned Windows SuperSite (looks great, by the way) is paid for by ads. Gruber’s site is paid for (handsomely, if rumors are to be believed) by a single ad placed discreetly alongside the content on his blog, and by ads in his RSS feed and podcasts.

But the Windows 8 apps are different, right? Well, no. I’ve gone methodically through the Windows 8 apps collection. Each app typically has one discreet ad situated to the side of all content. Just like Daring Fireball, except in color and with pictures.

Paul Thurrott and John Gruber aren’t charging people $40 to get access to their content to then drop-in ads. As Ed Bott stated, these publishers are being paid by ads. If these publishers were putting up a pay wall and then hitting with ads it would be an apples to apples comparison of what Microsoft is doing.

Just own the fact that Microsoft chose to adopt Amazon’s model.

Microsoft’s Windows 8 tablets, running on ARM chips (less power consuming than Intel’s offerings), are finally due in mid-2013.
By this point Apple will already be on their 4th Generation of iPad.  Talk about late to the party.

Killing Microsoft's Courier: the right decision, but not the right reasons

Killing Courier was the right thing to do. Microsoft is a platform company, and the great strength of iPhone is the iOS platform. Platforms make sense, and jeopardizing platforms for an appliance was never a sensible proposition.

Why does it have to be Courier v. Windows 8?

The great strength of iPhone is not just iOS. The great strength of iPhone & iPad is a wonderful piece of hardware that works seamlessly with the software. Courier was exactly this concept. Hardware and software both built to work together seamlessly.

It is clear that Microsoft didn’t say, “for Windows8 there must only be one User Interface that can reign supreme. Metro UI vs Windows UI. Fight!” So why did it have to be either Courier or Windows 8.

Killing the Courier project was Safe not Smart.

I believe the decision came down to the typical Microsoft decision, “slowly update by versioning Windows OR be revolutionary and leapfrog to the next big frontier”. Ballmer chose to do what Microsoft always does, play it safe and slowly update their software and trudge along.

During the D8 conference Bill Gates admitted that he admired Steve Jobs’ ability to focus in on the next big frontier and get there. Yet, no one from Microsoft has figured out how to make these decisions.

The Courier was interesting hardware that many people would have enjoyed using. This boneheaded decision means that we will all just go on using our Moleskines & Field Notes until a non-jackass gives us a digital replacement.

The iPad is Dominating

iPads dominate among tablets in driving digital traffic. In August 2011, iPads delivered 97.2 percent of all tablet traffic in the U.S. iPads have also begun to account for a higher share of Internet traffic than iPhones (46.8 percent vs. 42.6 percent of all iOS device traffic).

With iPad owning the tablet market, I think Windows 8 devices will be a year too late to make a dent.

Running Metro style IE plug-in free improves battery life as well as security, reliability, and privacy for consumers.
Sorry guys it’s no longer just Apple saying that flash is bad for mobile/portable device performance and user experience.