02/12/2008, 4:55pm, EST
Tuesday, February 12thSuit: MS aware "Vista Capable" logo misleading
Microsoft was aware during Windows Vista's development that its "Vista Capable" certification and logo would mislead customers into buying inadequate computers, say new documents revealed as evidence in bringing an upcoming class-action lawsuit against the software producer. Internal e-mail obtained by the plaintiffs in the complaint reveal that workers at Microsoft had doubts about the specifications needed to receive the "Vista Capable" logo, which the plaintiffs themselves say were made deceptively low to encourage purchases that would otherwise have waited until Vista's release or never taken place at all. Many of these messages were exchanged while the logo promotion was underway and affected senior staffers, a courtroom hearing has shown.
"I PERSONALLY got burnt," said Mike Nash, now a product marketing VP for the company. "Are we seeing this from a lot of customers? [...] I now have a $2,100 e-mail machine."
Since-departed Platforms and Services head Jim Allchin also took to task staff responsible for the logo's requirements, telling them that they had "botched" the program. Wal-Mart and other key retailers were also discovered to have contact Microsoft about their worries of a potential backlash stemming from the low system requirements suggested by the logo.
Microsoft responded in court by arguing that the e-mail had been taken out of context and that the disputes were part of the review process. The Windows developer's attorneys argued that the "Vista Capable" program ultimately reflected improvements made in this process and that a class action lawsuit was excessive, as some customers were more readily aware of what Vista would ultimately require than others.
The "Vista Capable" logo was developed in the latter portion of 2006 as a response to an unexpected delay in Vista's release to January 2007, which left many computer manufacturers without a new operating system they expected would drive sales during the holidays. In the program, customers who bought the systems were told not only that their systems would suffice for Vista but were also given a coupon for a free or low-cost upgrade to Vista once it was available to the public.
A ruling on whether the lawsuit can proceed as filed is expected in roughly 10 days.
Filed under: computers, industry
Other story tags: Microsoft, Vista
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SHOCKED. I am SHOCKED I say.
This is SO unlike them ...
;)
If I were to resurrect my G3 B+W from 1999, I bet I could run Tiger on that too (not sure about Leopard).
Take that and suck on it, PC fanboys.
Oh for pete's sake. Yes, some customers are computer geeks. The rest, by and large, are folks like my parents who are computer-phobic and just want the damned thing to work, and rely on Dell/the local PC geeks to tell them what they need.
With shenanigans like this, it's a wonder more people haven't switched to a Mac. For $2,100, Mike Nash coulda bought himself a refurb'd Mac Pro tower which would run both OS X and Winblows.
*crickets chirping*
Believe me, I tried talking the owner into buying a Mac, but he insisted on Vista for now. I'll defend that the install (fresh install) and subsequent patches installed without a hitch. The machine certainly has acceptable performance for day-to-day work; in fact, it even can use the Aero effects or whatever MS calls it. No problems with any of the devices, either.
I'm no MS fanboy, but I gotta be fair: I can't bash it when it exceeded my expectations for an older PC. Now, before you get all worked up, I'm not going to switch back, nor would I recommend Vista over OS X (for the reasons everyone already knows).
And don't forget Apple got caught in this same morass with OS X on the Beige G3s and 'full support for OS X' claims.
BTW, climacs, it's nice that you say you installed Leopard on your 533MHz G4, but isn't it interesting how, even though it runs 'fine', Apple has decided that its OS should not run on it? Arbitrarily making the decision for hosts of older mac owners that their hardware is outdated when, apparently, it's not (gee, had to smack down someone there!).
And isn't it nice you have a computer that you could upgrade the graphics card in. Too bad Apple doesn't make those anymore (at least to the point most normal people can afford).