wow is this garbage.  i've never had so many problems with a new
product.  lucky for me i'm techy and can troubleshoot, i can't imagine
what other people go through with this.  it took them 5 years to make
this?  unbelievable.  well, i'm sure large businesses will go ahead
and buy it, forced onto all employees to use it everyday from a
decision made to buy it by an executive who hardly uses it.  this
thing is a joke.  no wonder the apple commercials making fun of it
have been a hit.  does microsoft really still have a future, or are
they now an ibm?

Um. . . what does that have to do with MSFT?  I don't care about
anyone's opinion of the OS.  I care if it sells.  I care if Office
2007 sells.  I care if Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and the rest sell
after the release next month.  Many people have a problem with
change.  That's OK.  My own opinion of Vista is irrelevant.  I care
about the numbers and what that means to my shares.

Oh, and BTW.  Have you even looked at IBM lately?

The fact that vista sucks has a lot to do with microsoft, how can you
possibly expect a poor product to sell (other than forced corporate
stations)? I am offered vista for $20 at my school, and I have not yet
bought it, and I know few who have. Also, i'm with you on IBM, I think
it looks like a very good company for the long term.

vista to the consumer is 12% of microsoft business,the rest is
corporate,that is all that needs to be said,ibm numbers up intel
numbers good,txm good,glw good,this is a sign that a lot of upgrades
and hardware turnover is happening,no corp is putting in apple,don't
kid your self.
The numbers will be fine i think it will get hit a little though

yo techy OP, i welcome you to the linux world with open arms :)

http://stockbb.com

Vista has been improved greatly since its release.  I have been using
it on one of my systems since March '07.   It requires more resources,
it is has problems with some older software, some of the features
suck, like backup, and the fact that the UAC does not have an "always
allow this action" setting.  However, live search is great.  The built
in troubleshooting tools are awesome (I could write volumes on this).
Its ability to discover unknown devices and find the drivers online is
very helpful.  Media Center works very well.  Ready Boost rocks.  I
understand the growing pains.  I wanted to go back to XP several
times, but this has been the case of most OS releases.  I am already
planning to upgrade several of my other systems to Vista over the next
6 months.  I was at a conference last month where the Microsoft Rep
asked a room full of 300 to 400 resellers to name what non-legacy
software had issues with Vista.  No one raised their hand.  I know
there is an issue with Visual Studio 2005, but 2008 is to be released
next month.

I'm not saying there are no issues.  I still have a few myself, but
Vista is a major impovement over XP.  That is why only one of my
systems has been running it until I am ready to deploy it to my other
systems.  I am comfortable converting my photo/video editing
workstations now.  These two workstations are my money makers.  I
place their importance above my servers.

Like I said earlier, I care about the numbers.  New systems are sold
with Vista.  Vista is on the shelves.  Vista has many new features to
offer.  I still see some Tablets offered with XP Tablet edition.  I
don't expect those to be around much longer.  It takes time to
migrate.  There are system still running Windows 2000.  Heck, I even
have a Windows 2000 Server still online serving files.  Not everyone
bought XP right away, or 2000 or 98 or 95, etc.

I'm always amused when the iSHEEP come to disparage Microsoft --
here's the originator's history of postings, most of which are on the
Apple board:
http://finance.google.com/groups/profile?enc_user=9TLVBhUAAAC1ZwtddIn...

Nice try, rawsushi . . . I can't help but wonder if you've even used
Vista. ;-)

Buy a Mac, save thousands on tylenol pills for headaches!   :0P

It must be nice to live in a dream where you pretend your OS (Windows
XP, Vista, whatever) works and isn't a crippled piece of yesteryears
software...

It took 5 years for MSFT to make an OS slower, buggier, and more
unstable than the one it replaced... imagine what they could do in a
decade  :0)

Oh, and my Mac can run Windows, but can your PC do that?  Don't think
so...lol

Actually my PC can run MAC...

New systems are sold with Vista? Only half true.

Whens the last time you looked in a Dell Catalog?  PC manufacturers
are backtracking with offering Vista, most now give you a choice of
Vista or XP.  The only reason 90% of people that have Vista even have
is because they are the iSheep blindly following and not knowing what
they are getting into.  Europe flat out rejects Vista, I bought some
laptops for family and they all went and had the HDDs wiped clean so
that they can instal XP.

The only reason people are "upgrading" to Vista is because the
majority are being forced to, not by choice.  If you look at the
explosive numbers Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is doing, thats people that
are upgrading because they love the product and know that its
superior!

Did you know that more XP copies were sold than that of Vista during
the same time?  What does that tell you.  You need to open up your
blinders and smell the coffee because you have become a lemming!  I
once was a lemming too, but using a Mac opened my eyes to how the real
computing user experience should be!  :0)

Not to bash MS, but some of this stuff is such BS its laughable!

If this weren't a financial board I would think you were really
cool... unfortunately, MSFT is going to crush earnings, Vista or not,
so bagging on the product which brings them excellent financial
results on a financial board is pretty pointless... I'm sure that
plenty of people on the Tech board would think you were the man.

exactly,good post.

Other than people who design posters and t shirts there really is no
need for a mac.
The real business world is microsoft.
Not sure how many offices run apple office!!!

Maybe so, but AAPL will crush MSFT in 12-36 mos too, you can't deny
that! As for MSFT earnings, I hope it does well cuz I wanna see people
get returns on their investments.  If only MSFT could make products
that support their propoganda... :0(

oh, and read on guys, the following article highlights what users have
to say about Vista, read the comments.
http://digg.com/microsoft/Windows_Vista_Helps_Boost_Sales_Of_Windows_XP
I'm not bashing but I hate when people blurb utter nonsense.  Coming
from a both a Mac/PC world, in all honesty, the only thing a PC is
good of is cracked warez and pirated stuff, because there is so much
available!  So you running a cracked version of OSX that has functions
disabled and crippled on your porsche of a custom PC does not impress
me.  Mac plays Windows XP or Vista out of the box.  No cracks, no
hacking, no illegal "i hope this file doesn't have a virus cuz i got
it from bit-torrent" patching...

I'll admit, I run XP on my Mac through virtualization in an app called
Parallels, and it works great!  But I don't miss it one bit.

Ahhh, another iSHEEP is heard from:
http://finance.google.com/groups/profile?enc_user=BdFV6xkAAABF9S5CU-y...

The problem that Apple faces, and will continue to face, is that all
REAL advancements in the computing industry happen on the PC side,
anymore.  Sure, Apple can package things in aesthetically pleasing
packages, but, until one can go out and build his own Mac, like one
can with his own PC, all the most important advancements will continue
to be on the PC side, as that's the platform that the true computer
wonks will use, and Apple will be relegated to trying to catch up, by
making those advancements "look cool." ;-)

I work with WIndows, Linux, and OS-X, and while Linux is, without a
doubt, THE most customizable operating system out there . . . Windows
is second.  The OS-X is simply the least customizable operating system
of the three.  Now, while computing amateurs may appreciate that
simplicity, I want more user-definable systems, which I can get from
Linux, and from Windows.

*shrug*

Nice try, Michael.Wachala, but you're just another iSHEEP hoping to
bash Microsoft with "coolness" and aesthetics, but no real
computational advantage.

Oh my god, you caught me!   What a joke, lol...  Your the iSheep
blindy following anything Mr.Softee throws at you.  :0(

And you can build your own Mac, buy a Mac Pro.  Things I don't miss
from the PC side.  VIRUSES and paying for anti-virus software that i
can hope can only protect me from all the VIRUSES!

and whats the point of spending $2500 building a Porsche PC just to
RUN Vista if I can get an iMac for less than half, depending on Screen
size.  Vista is a hog.

I built my own PC before (and I'm no fool), but honestly, My PC was
obsolete within 2-3 years.  I bought a Dell laptop that was obsolete
after they finally shipped it to me!  But when I bought a PowerBook
years ago, it was even faster after 5 years of working when I
installed OSX Tiger on it.  Thats when I said "Wow", which according
to MS advertising (which I dont see anymore either) is supposed to be
reserved for Vista.  Sorry, no "wow's" there for Vista.

I like XP, despise Vista, love OSX to death... because I am iSheep?
No, because I'm not a lemming trolling in line to the ditch.

:0P

Oh my god, you caught me!   What a joke, lol...  Your the iSheep
blindy following anything Mr.Softee throws at you.  :0(

And you can build your own Mac, buy a Mac Pro.  Things I don't miss
from the PC side.  VIRUSES and paying for anti-virus software that i
can hope can only protect me from all the VIRUSES!

and whats the point of spending $2500 building a Porsche PC just to
RUN Vista if I can get an iMac for less than half, depending on Screen
size.  Vista is a hog.

I built my own PC before (and I'm no fool), but honestly, My PC was
obsolete within 2-3 years.  I bought a Dell laptop that was obsolete
after they finally shipped it to me!  But when I bought a PowerBook
years ago, it was even faster after 5 years of working when I
installed OSX Tiger on it.  Thats when I said "Wow", which according
to MS advertising (which I dont see anymore either) is supposed to be
reserved for Vista.  Sorry, no "wow's" there for Vista.

I like XP, despise Vista, love OSX to death... because I am iSheep?
No, because I'm not a lemming trolling in line to the ditch.

:0P

Actually, it took a while for me to make the mental switch to PC. ;-)

I was raised on Apples -- my father bought one of the first Apple II
computers (it had a four-digit serial number), and that's what I
learned computing on. Yeah, in my mind, Apple was "IT," and for years.
I had a Mac Plus in college, in the 80s.  I would rant about how Apple
had revolutionized the computer industry, inventing the modern GUI
system.  Of course, it turned out I was wrong, because Xerox invented
that GUI system, and Apple virtually stole it from them.  But, at that
point, in my mind, Apple could do no wrong.

I, too, bought in to the illusion that Mac was the ONLY computer to
use for graphics functions . . . but, that hasn't been true for
probably 15 years, anymore -- PC, with more graphics software
available to it, is every bit as good for graphics functions (if not,
better) than Mac, anymore. Period.

While Macs remain the choice of simplicity, given the limited amount
of software options available to it (most of which are made by Apple,
to the exclusion of other software companies' efforts), PC is the
choice of options and functionality.

Oh, and one can build a Porsche PC for FAR less than $2,500.  But,
it's cute that you think that expensive, "cool," Apple-like pricing
would transfer over to the PC market. ;-)

Ahhhh, the trendy wailings of those iSHEEP . . . there's nothing
"cooler" to be heard, is there? Heh. ;-)

Eh, who cares.  I'm not here to battle.  I know what I know, and I
don't buy Macs because they are "cool".  I buy them because they just
work.  And so do millions of others.  Most, maybe not you Rouge, but
most PC users buy PCs and Windows XP/Vista, because they don't know
any better, because everyone else has one.  So tell me, who is the
iSheep, lemming?   ;0)

IBM PCs did gain the upper hand when Apple stumbled though, YEARS
AGO... but Apple is more than back with a vengence, its on its way to
becomming the #1 comp manufacturer and OSX is gaining bigtime!

And saying that a PC runs more software than a Mac is false, because I
can run all the software my Mac runs + anything Vista/XP with
Parallels or Bootcamp.   :0)    Another lemming propoganda
dispelled!   Both have their strenghts and weaknesses though, but the
Macs only weakness is that it isn't as mainstream as PC.

I honestly think MSFT has lost it since 01...  the market is shifting
and it is gravitating towards the Mac platform.  Not because its
cooler, but because it works better.  And with that change of flow
towards the Mac will also come profits for AAPL.

Later, fellers!  :0)

I can't believe this is even an argument.  Apple has less than 10% pc
market share.  Virtually no business market share.  Until someone
comes up with a product that can compete with office (what is iWork
market share btw?)  This will not change.  I hope apple sells a ton of
computers...  Cause they will all have office on them and msft will
get paid nonetheless.  Look for apple to smoke msft in 12-36 months?
I don't even think the credit crunch will be over in 12-36 months.
How is apple going to smoke msft when the consumer is not there?
Apple's vast majority of products are sold to the American consumer,
and if you haven't been reading any news, I'll let you know the
american consumer is not looking to good right now

Look for apple to begin it's climb again once the consumer is back.
Sorry, but I don't think a 400 dollar ipod, 400 dollar phone, and a
3000 dollar mac air are going to be hot sellers in a recession.  But
this is just my opinion

what makes you think we're in a recession?

listen closely:  the media continues to speak of
recession FEARS.

in other words, most of the panic is merely
the anticipation of what MIGHT happen, not
what IS happening.

People will buy iPods and iPhones (and later iMac and MacBooks) no
matter what...

Zunes will sit on the shelf collecting dust...maybe Xboxes will sell
but who cares cuz MSFT takes a hit on those anyways...

So what will MSFT do after the decline of Windows?  All they have is
Zune (failure), Xbox (money loser), Windows (Declining) and Office...
Oh yeah, don't they make like some keyboard/mouse thing too?

So MS Office is what your betting on?   Thats A Joke, Maybe you should
bet your money on the keyboard/mouse instead...  last time I checked,
almost every office runs OLD MS Office software anyways and nobody
wants to pay a couple hundred bucks to upgrade anyways.

The ONLY reason MSFT is where it is today is because Windows comes
preinstalled on almost every PC.  If users had some kind of a choice,
I'd bet they would use something else, but there is no other choice
(unless you count XP vs Vista)...

Hey - don't talk to me about Apple stock ... do you know how thrilled
I am to have been able to pick up shares at 130 on this latest dip?!
All I'm saying is bagging on Microsoft for their product which
increased revenues by over 70% year over year is a pretty silly idea
on a financial forum.  I don't care if they were selling pregnancy
tests to virgins and geriatrics, 70% growth is 70% growth ...
everytime someone has to call tech support for Vista Microsoft smiles
- they are making massive profits on a sub-par product.

Apple is sexier, faster, and all in all (this coming from a hard-core
Microsoft fan) better ... I make stock trades over my iPhone, I use
ALL applications that I used to run on my PC on my Mac, and they run
faster, smoother, less errors, etc. Products are only one aspect of
business - and Microsoft outperforms Apple on one key component:
business to business partnerships.  Microsoft has so many inroads to
so many businesses and business systems that it doesn't matter if
these companies had been 'fixed' - they 'need' Microsoft's pregnancy
tests because others can't conveniently do business without them...

... maybe I took the analogy too far, but you get my point.  Both
companies are awesome as financial institutions.  Apples product line
is superior right now - but MSFT has far superior business to business
relations ... their ability to innovate is still superb. Furthermore,
MSFT probably has a superior talent pool to work with to make projects
come to life....

I use a Mac but own Microsoft stock.  I need to get that on a T-
shirt.  My Mac can run Vista, which is why Microsoft will always be a
more stable and stronger company than Apple.  Microsoft is a software
company and they know it.  Apple refuses to be a software company.
They use their great OS to get people to buy their hardware because
they say they are a hardware company.  Hardware is a commodity, but
software will always be a service.