Back to the main page

Mailing List Logs for ShadowRN

Message no. 1
From: Gurth <gurth@******.NL>
Subject: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 12:24:55 +0100
Right, I'm getting pretty much fed up with all this stuff about how crap
Microsoft is, and how good the alternatives are, and all that shit. It
seems that in the eyes of several people here, you can only be a real
computer user if you don't touch anything brought out by Microsoft with a
three-meter pole, but instead go worship Linux.

I use Windows 95, and before that MS DOS 6 + Windows 3.11. I'm sure it
can be improved or saps my machine's performance, or whatever, but point
in fact is that I'm happy using it, because IT DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO. And
that's ALL that matters in an OS, if you ask me. You may not agree with MS's
marketing strategy, the size their products take up on my HD, Bill Gates'
face, or whatever, but there's no need to try and convince everyone about
how and why you're right and they're wrong. I'm not trying to put down the
choices you made, so don't do the same with me.

Thank you for your cooperation.

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Originally genuine.
-> NERPS Project Leader & Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
-> The Plastic Warriors Page: http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/plastic.html <-

-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
Version 3.1:
GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+ PE
Y PGP- t(+) 5+ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------
Message no. 2
From: Georg Greve <greve@*******.HANSE.DE>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 13:19:09 GMT
Gurth (gurth@******.NL) wrote:
: I use Windows 95, and before that MS DOS 6 + Windows 3.11. I'm sure it
: can be improved or saps my machine's performance, or whatever, but point
: in fact is that I'm happy using it, because IT DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO. And
: that's ALL that matters in an OS, if you ask me. You may not agree with MS's
: marketing strategy, the size their products take up on my HD, Bill Gates'
: face, or whatever, but there's no need to try and convince everyone about
: how and why you're right and they're wrong. I'm not trying to put down the
: choices you made, so don't do the same with me.

I think you should have read my postings more carefully. I do think
that Microsoft sucks big time and I would rather chop off my right arm
than trusting it with ANY data that is important to me, BUT I said
that not everyone can be into computers and for all those "I switch it
on and it has to work without me knowing anything about computers" people
Windows is o.k..

So:
I do not tell you to leave Microsofts products - but I do not want to
be attacked by you making yourself the long arm of Microsofts
marketing division by enforcing RTF or Word for Windows. It wasn't me
who insisted on a format that cannot be read by some people on the
list only for my own laziness !

O.k. - that's all and I think we should really let the thread fade
out now. The only thing I'd like to see cleared is whether you could
settle for Adobe Acrobat because the reader under Windows is very nice
and available everywhere.

Later,
Georg

--
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| "The Clan's are marching 'gainst the law - |
| bagpipers play the tunes of war - death or glory I will find - |
| rebellion on my mind" |
| Grave Digger - "Rebellion" |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Georg Greve greve@*******.Hanse.DE |
| Tel.: +49-40-23809080 greve@*******.uni-hamburg.de |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Message no. 3
From: Edward Poe <hedley@********.COM>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 10:30:04 -0600
Gurth wrote:
>
> Right, I'm getting pretty much fed up with all this stuff about how crap
> Microsoft is, and how good the alternatives are, and all that shit. It
> seems that in the eyes of several people here, you can only be a real
> computer user if you don't touch anything brought out by Microsoft with a
> three-meter pole, but instead go worship Linux.
>
> I use Windows 95, and before that MS DOS 6 + Windows 3.11. I'm sure it
> can be improved or saps my machine's performance, or whatever, but point
> in fact is that I'm happy using it, because IT DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO. And
> that's ALL that matters in an OS, if you ask me. You may not agree with MS's
> marketing strategy, the size their products take up on my HD, Bill Gates'
> face, or whatever, but there's no need to try and convince everyone about
> how and why you're right and they're wrong. I'm not trying to put down the
> choices you made, so don't do the same with me.
>
> Thank you for your cooperation.
>
> --
> Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
> Originally genuine.
> -> NERPS Project Leader & Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
> -> The Plastic Warriors Page: http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/plastic.html <-
>
> -----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
> Version 3.1:
> GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+ PE
> Y PGP- t(+) 5+ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
> ------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------

Bravo!
Message no. 4
From: "Terry L. Amburgey" <xanth@********.UKY.EDU>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 13:28:16 -0500
At 01:19 PM 12/2/96 GMT, Georg wrote:

>I think you should have read my postings more carefully. I do think
>that Microsoft sucks big time and I would rather chop off my right arm
>than trusting it with ANY data that is important to me, BUT I said
>that not everyone can be into computers and for all those "I switch it
>on and it has to work without me knowing anything about computers" people
>Windows is o.k..

I'm full of holiday spirit so I won't take umbrage at the (apparent)
condescending tone of this first paragraph. However I will say that
I've been computing longer than many people on the list have been alive
(I started in 1972, had a dual comp. sci./mathematics undergrad & went on
from there) and I've developed exactly the same attitude as Gurth - the ONLY
thing that counts is what you need to get done and how well it works.

>I do not tell you to leave Microsofts products - but I do not want to
>be attacked by you making yourself the long arm of Microsofts
>marketing division by enforcing RTF or Word for Windows. It wasn't me
>who insisted on a format that cannot be read by some people on the
>list only for my own laziness !

If you're not lazy and you're a computer wiz the answer is simple - you do
the conversion for the 'some people' who can't use rtf.

>O.k. - that's all and I think we should really let the thread fade
>out now. The only thing I'd like to see cleared is whether you could
>settle for Adobe Acrobat because the reader under Windows is very nice
>and available everywhere.

Perhaps, but I think 'the greatest good for the greatest number' format
is likely to be Microsoft. Members of the eunuchs and macintosh cults
can do conversions for the rest.

My 2 cents worth. Terry


Terry L. Amburgey Email: xanth@***.uky.edu
Associate Professor Phone: (606) 257-7726
College of Business and Economics Fax: (606) 257-3577
University of Kentucky
Lexington, KY 40506-0034
Message no. 5
From: Brian W Allison <ballison@*******.WAM.UMD.EDU>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 18:17:35 -0500
On Mon, 2 Dec 1996, Terry L. Amburgey wrote:

> I'm full of holiday spirit so I won't take umbrage at the (apparent)
> condescending tone of this first paragraph. However I will say that


[yet...]
> is likely to be Microsoft. Members of the eunuchs and macintosh cults
> can do conversions for the rest.



Hm.. Perhaps that 'holiday spirit' is the Ghost of Christmas Past?






Brian W. Allison

Computer Scientist Vocalist Would-be Poet Bicycler Scuba Diver
Hacker(0xca) Nerd(79) GenX(21) #include <witticism.h>
http://www.wam.umd.edu/~ballison

--- Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail is not welcome at this account ---
--- and will result in a US$500 fee per US Code Title 47 Sec 227. ---
Message no. 6
From: Spike <u5a77@*****.CS.KEELE.AC.UK>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1996 00:27:25 +0000
<Gurths entire post + .sig snipped>

|
|Bravo!
|

Will you please delete text that is irrelevant.
Posting one word after 50 lines of text is incredibly irritating.

And for gods sake, delete the .sig.
That is totally irrelevant for quoting....
--
______________________________________________________________________________
|u5a77@*****.cs.keele.ac.uk| |
|Andrew Halliwell | "ARSE! GERLS!! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!!!" |
|Principal subjects in:- | "THAT WOULD BE AN ECUMENICAL MATTER!...FECK!!!! |
|Comp Sci & Electronics | - Father Jack in "Father Ted"
|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|GCv3.1 GCS/EL>$ d---(dpu) s+/- a- C++ U N++ K- w-- M+/++ PS+++ PE- Y t+ 5++ |
|X+/++ R+ tv+ b+ D G e>PhD h/h+ !r! !y-|I can't say F**K either now! >*SULK*<|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Message no. 7
From: IEngelmann@***.COM
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 19:52:32 -0500
Gurth wrote:

>I use Windows 95, and before that MS DOS 6 + Windows 3.11. I'm sure it
>can be improved or saps my machine's performance, or whatever, but point
>in fact is that I'm happy using it, because IT DOES WHAT I WANT IT TO. And
>that's ALL that matters in an OS, if you ask me. You may not agree with MS's
>marketing strategy, the size their products take up on my HD, Bill Gates'
>face, or whatever, but there's no need to try and convince everyone about
>how and why you're right and they're wrong. I'm not trying to put down the
>choices you made, so don't do the same with me.
>
>Thank you for your cooperation.
>
>
Oh master, you're SO right. I'm using Win95 and Dos/4Dos50 and even Linux on
my other HD, but as a matter of fact most of us windows or something like
that.
And one other thing: It's already decided.

And you know, we from The Holy Church of Gates do NOT like minorities such as
MAC-, OS/2- or Linux-users. :-)

Ilja
Message no. 8
From: Robert Watkins <robertdw@*******.NET.AU>
Subject: Re: A rant on MS bashing
Date: Fri, 6 Dec 1996 11:34:11 +1100
>>O.k. - that's all and I think we should really let the thread fade
>>out now. The only thing I'd like to see cleared is whether you could
>>settle for Adobe Acrobat because the reader under Windows is very nice
>>and available everywhere.
>
>Perhaps, but I think 'the greatest good for the greatest number' format
>is likely to be Microsoft. Members of the eunuchs and macintosh cults
>can do conversions for the rest.

*yawn* People, people... the RTF standard has readers available for it
EVERYWHERE... even on Unix. Word is available for Macintosh, and the
latest versions of WordPerfect (also available for Unix, and even VMS...
though who would use it I don't know :) ) can handle Word 6/7 formats, no
problems. Oh, and Acrobat Reader is available on all platforms too.

The one catch here is that the author probably doesn't OWN Acrobat
Exchange, the program you need to write Acrobat files. If you want him to
supply the files in a format he's not equipped to handle, go and buy the
software for him. Or buy the software for yourself and provide the files
in the formats you want.

(I must have been away too long... people are slagging Macs around me
again...)


--
* *
/_\ "A friend is someone who likes the same TV programs you do" /_\
{~._.~} "Eternal nothingness is fine if you happen {~._.~}
( Y ) to be dressed for it." -- Woody Allen ( Y )
()~*~() Robert Watkins robertdw@*******.com.au ()~*~()
(_)-(_) (_)-(_)

Further Reading

If you enjoyed reading about A rant on MS bashing, you may also be interested in:

Disclaimer

These messages were posted a long time ago on a mailing list far, far away. The copyright to their contents probably lies with the original authors of the individual messages, but since they were published in an electronic forum that anyone could subscribe to, and the logs were available to subscribers and most likely non-subscribers as well, it's felt that re-publishing them here is a kind of public service.