Windows 8 as the "New Coke"...

[alexpgp]

There's a lot of buzz out there about Windows 8, and a lot of it would not appear to be of the kind to make Microsoft's marketing department happy. See, for example, Windows 8—Disappointing Usability for Both Novice and Power Users which summarizes itself as follows:

Hidden features, reduced discoverability, cognitive overhead from dual environments, and reduced power from a single-window UI and low information density. Too bad.

Ouch!

After reading that and other articles, I began to see how the introduction of Windows 8 might be an attempt to replay the masterful "New Coke" ploy that allowed Coca-Cola to fundamentally change its products under the guise of "listening to its customers" after having strayed from the right path.

Think of it as a sort of corporate version of "rope a dope."

We lived in Jacksonville, Florida, when Coca-Cola introduced "New Coke," and to say the product did not do well was an understatement. Several months after the new product was introduced, I recall seeing six-packs of small "old" Coke on sale privately in our neck of the woods at outrageous prices (one six-pack was on sale for $50, if memory serves).

Eventually, Coke apologized to its customers and "brought back" the "old" Coke, and while die-hard Coke drinkers admitted it tasted a lot more like the Coke they remembered than the "new" stuff, most such Coca-Cola lovers—myself included—were convinced the formula had been subtly changed (no doubt to the benefit of Coca-Cola's bottom line).

I suspect the same might happen with Windows 8.

While tablets are just fine for some kinds of web browsing and email, they are, in my arrogant opinion, just not suitable for hard-core Internet research, day-in-day-out wordsmithing, or number-crunching. I have translated short documents on my iPad, provided there were no embedded objects to deal with or too many words to look up. No way would I use a tablet to translate any document of substantial size and/or complexity.

Therefore, I suspect we are about to see—after a suiable period of yelling, screaming, and gnashing of teeth following product launch—a realization by Microsoft that its approach with this latest iteration of Windows was all wrong, an acknowledgment of having made a misstep, and corrective action.

In the end, I would not be surprised to see that what will emerge will be a two-tiered level of computing that will mesh well with the respective skill levels of a novice (must be able to fetch, open, and view files, but not so much edit or extensively comment them) and power user (must be able to do everything). The former may end up being all cloud-based; the latter will probably come in a box, with a suitably "professional" price tag.

And no disrespect for some managers of my acquaintance who are very technically savvy, but these skill levels pretty much match those of managers and the people they manage.

I'd love to be wrong on this. In the meantime, I plan to hang on to Windows 7 for as long as I can.

Cheers...

Comments

[fidelioscabinet.livejournal.com]

I think you are completely correct about tablets. They're wonderfully portable and easy to use for people who need only a device for casual usage; I could no more conveniently do my job with one than you could, and for any extensive writing you want at least a laptop. I can't imagine anyone doing design work managing with one either. It's like carving the turkey with a paring knife. You might could manage it, but f there's an alternative you're not going to waste time trying.

I'm afraid you are also right about Microsoft. They have reached the point where IBM was when Gates told them they weren't ready for the latest version of computing.

[alexpgp.livejournal.com]

That's the potential rope-a-dope aspect.

Microsoft may just want to have everyone start counting them out because they look like they've turned into dinosaurs, when the real plan is to fundamentally change the way we compute.

Of course, one could argue that Apple and Android—with their restricted app environments—have already gone a long way in that direction, but one technique in which Microsoft has repeatedly demonstrated great skill has been "taking charge" of innovations made popular by others.

Cheers...

[fidelioscabinet.livejournal.com]

We can hope. Because they've also shown a gift for messing things up and leaving them that way.

[platofish.livejournal.com]

Last week I played with a Windows 8 machine with a touch screen monitor. In my limited time it struck me as being the perfect computer for a desk I have built into in the kitchen. For casual stuff, like playing music or reading e-mail the touch screen is perfect, and having the option of being able to type or do something more complex makes it even more ideal. That said, I disliked a lot of the Windows 8 UI (I disliked the 'flatness' - its not obvious when an icon is informational, or clickable). That said, for the most part the overhead of running two interfaces probably won't be noticed by most people.

But in principle I agree with your point. I think Microscoft have tried to make an OS for everyone, and ended up with a system that isn't great for anyone.

[alexpgp.livejournal.com]

Funny you should say that, because a few years ago, I had much the same opinion of Linux (i.e., good for casual stuff).

The latest Ubuntu (12.10) I have running on a spare laptop is head and shoulders above that level, though I think it will require a pretty big push to get it over the top (and past software compatibility issues).

Cheers...

[platofish.livejournal.com]

I think the rise of the 'smart phone' is resulting in the dumbing down of computers. Most people seem to just want some apps, a browser and perhaps Microsoft Office. All in all, the kind of software that would run ok on just about any old computer!

[n5iln.livejournal.com]

I already note that some market analysts indicate sales of Win8 have fallen well short of Microsoft's forecasts.

Speaking just for myself...if I can't get to a command line, I want nothing to do with the OS. Some issues are simply easier to diagnose and correct with a command-line statement than trying to navigate a GUI troubleshooter.

[alexpgp.livejournal.com]

No command line? What're they, nuts?

[n5iln.livejournal.com]

I'm given to understand that it's not unlike Windows 98 or ME...it's there, but you have to do a great deal of hunting to locate and use it.

[bookfoole.livejournal.com]

I think that's when they went from sugar to corn syrup. I've heard Mexican Coke still uses sugar and tastes the way it should.

[alexpgp.livejournal.com]

Well, speaking for myself, although it's been decades since I've had "old Coke," the taste of the product bottled in Mexico—and I've bought it in Colorado, here in Texas, and on the road from there here—does seem an awful lot like that original product.

Cheers...