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Posts with tag flavors

Filed under: Business, Developer, Windows, Productivity, Microsoft

Visual Studio 2005: Vista flavors wannabe

Visual Studio 2005A while back I wrote a post (surprising I know, I never do that) on The Unofficial Microsoft Weblog about how many flavors Windows Vista had coming out...whenever. I believe I have found another winner. Visual Studio 2005 has almost as many flavors as Vista, which isn't too alarming because they both come from Microsoft. Not that this is particularly a bad thing, it is just funny to think about. I often suffer from consumer confusion, for example Visual Studio 2005, Express edition, Everywhere edition, Online Hosted edition, Professional edition, or even the Virtual Images edition. What's a geek to do anyway? How am I supposed to remember which tools are in which set in which product? What if I need more than one of the product, like the "consumer-and-dumbed-down" version as well as the "I'm-an-educator-so-I-have-special-software-needs-and-want-low-prices" version, not to mention the "I-want-to-easily-build-mobile-apps" version? Microsoft continues this trend of compartmentalized software products, while most people in the world are leaning toward multiplicity and integration. Is Microsoft behind the times in segregating all these products and taking away the clear definition of what they can do? Shouldn't software adapt itself to the multi-dimensional and integrated way we all work now?

Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Commercial

Four Windows Vista flavors on one DVD

Windows Anytime UpgradeAccording to ZDNet's Ed Bott, the retail version of Windows Vista will include four of the OS's six-plus flavors on a single DVD.  The versions included on the DVD will be Vista Business, Home Basic, Home Premium, and Ultimate, and which version gets installed depends on how much the purchaser spends and what product key they use to install Vista. This is a good move on Microsoft's part because it prevents retailers from having to stock four versions of the same product and promises an easy upgrade scenario called Windows Anytime Upgrade. If a user has Vista Home Basic installed and wants to upgrade to Premium, for example, they can just buy a product key for an upgrade fee and install the beefier version of Vista from the disc they already have. Perhaps not so good for Microsoft is the fact that it's going to take hackers a couple weeks, tops, to figure out how to get those upgrades for free. However, Microsoft is used to piracy and has no doubt made ample room for it in its business model, so I doubt we'll see Redmond struggling at the hands of such hackers any time soon.

Featured Time Waster

Forumwarz - a potentially offensive time waster

I pwn UAfter spending the better part of an hour on Forumwarz I still can't decide if it's just sick or if it's kind of fun. It's a bit like a car wreck on the highway. I know I shouldn't be looking but I can't quite turn away.

It's sick, it's twisted, it's the internet on it's worst level and darn it, it's kind of fun. At least for a little while.

Forumwarz is a parody role-playing game that takes place on the internet - or at least the Forumwarz version of it. Your goal is to complete missions that are given to you through a mock up of GoogleTalk called Sentrillion.

Your first "friend" is ShallowEsophagus who begins giving you missions to pwn various forums by being a troll. Depending on the character type you are assigned at start up, you have tools like drooling on the keyboard or bashing your head on the keyboard that you can use to destroy forum threads and eventually, pwn a forum.

Future missions involve buying illegal software from the Russians, pwning more difficult forums and other internet oddness.

Completing missions gives you cash, called Flezz in game, and items that you can pawn or use in other missions. The game is NOT for those easily offended. It's crass, coarse and there are frequent f-bombs in the fake chat sessions.

This is also a game for a more mature audience as it requires you to shop at the Drugs R Fun store to get various concoctions to improve your playing, engage in certain cyber activities to get more Flezz and just generally use a more adult perspective.

If you can get past that, here are the more enjoyable and time-wasting aspects.

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