Computer, End Program

Contrary to what you might think, I don't think of myself as the only intelligent/sane person in the world. One of the few intelligent/sane people in the world, sure. But there are times when I feel like I'm alone. A good example has been the talk about the upcoming Windows 10.

First of all, there's a distinct flaw in the premise which no one seems to be noticing. The story from the media has been that Microsoft knows it needs to hit one out of the park, so they've designed an interface that will be suited for the PC, tablet, or phone. Am I the only one who noticed that the reason Windows 8 sucked was because the tried to give it an interface suited for the PC, phone or tablet? They're trying to fix a problem by repeating what caused the problem. 

Then there's the new HoloLens that they revealed along with the preview of Windows 10. There was tremendous excitement about it. In fact, the wow-factor seemed to deflect the cynicism that usually accompanies a Microsoft product announcement.

I have to admit, HoloLens does look like it has potential. And it's refreshing to see Microsoft doing something other than playing catch-up. But didn't Google just fail at pretty-much the same thing? I know, HoloLens is more sophisticated than Google Glass, but it does seem to have the same downsides: a (presumably) high price, a dorky, intrusive design, and vague usage scenarios.

But the other aspect that I can’t believe no one noticed: Microsoft had previously said they’d be offering info on Windows 10 that day, and used the opportunity to show a flashy new technology that no one knew about. Doesn’t that seem suspicious? Essentially, they stole their own thunder, distracting the world’s media from reporting on their big product. I’m assuming that they meant to do that, wanting to avoid people parsing every aspect of the new Windows. That would have lead to people realizing that it won’t give them much reason to abandon Windows 7. Or XP, for that matter.