Posted on 08/24/2007 3:41:50 PM PDT by Salo
MS admits Vista challenges BY SAMANTHA PERRY , ITWEB FEATURES EDITOR
[ Johannesburg, 24 August 2007 ] - Microsoft SA has conceded there have been difficulties for resellers and end-users around the launch of its Vista operating system. It states there have been problems with its communications to its channel.
Microsoft Windows business group lead Colin Erasmus says these communications were not properly planned. It has three campaigns in the pipeline for this year to rectify the situation, he notes.
Local distributors, OEMs and resellers have been battling with bulk image blasting, the time and expense of downgrading unhappy customers back to Windows XP, and second-line support.
Says Tarsus CEO Pierre Spies: “Vista doesn't support bulk image blasting; it's just not here yet. We believe the product was launched too soon. [Microsoft has] a lot of catching up to do. Corporates are buying new machines with Vista on and downgrading to XP, in anticipation of Vista being ready in the next two to three years. They are buying the licence, but do not plan to use it until the product is ready.”
Spies says the situation is interfering with the company's business model. “We're taking serious flak. We've got people arriving in droves to downgrade.”
He says the company is downgrading roughly 25% of the Vista machines it sells. ”Consumers are not taking a long-term view like the corporates are, they just want it gone.”
Support overload
This, he says, impacts support because the company has to handle calls from customers, as well as the clients that arrive at its offices wanting downgrades. Further, he says, this impacts corporate roll-outs, which are far more time- and resource-consuming without bulk image blasting capabilities.
The cost to downgrade, for which Tarsus charges customers R100, is around R400, says Spies. “In the last two months we have downgraded 4 000 units, and that excludes the big roll-outs.”
Microsoft's Erasmus says OEMs can click here for information on ImageX, a command-line tool that enables OEMs and corporations to capture, modify and apply file-based disk images for rapid deployment. Systems builders using the OTK kit can click here.
As far as downgrades are concerned, Erasmus says: “Downgrade rights exist for OEM Vista Business & Ultimate editions to Windows XP Professional. The customer/system builder can contact the downgrade call centre on 0800 995 637, choose option four, and tell the operator they want to exercise their downgrade rights to obtain their product key for XP Professional.”
Acer SA country manager David Drummond says his company's main concern is that there was some delay in the market, while customers waited for Vista's launch. “We haven't seen compensation for that slowdown in terms of demand.”
Discontinuation of XP
Acer SA took an average of 30 Vista-related calls a day through March and April, regarding patches, drivers, and information on how to downgrade. This has now fallen to around five a day, Drummond says.
Vista machines have been in store since end-January, he notes, but Microsoft's channel launch only took place on 8 May, “and we are still in some discussions as to how to transfer customer calls that need to be escalated. Currently, we call Microsoft and then call the customer back.”
Drummond adds Acer is still getting calls from customers who purchased XP machines with Microsoft's Technology Guarantee, which entitles the customer to a free upgrade to Vista. “The complaints are around the fulfilment centre not responding, or unilaterally cancelling some customer orders. We've had multiple complaints about the centre,” he says, noting that most customer calls, however, were for downgrades not upgrades. “The legalities around that took months.”
“Microsoft is aware of the delay in some CD shipments and is currently diligently working on resolving these delays. We can confirm that if customers did submit the correct documentation timeously, that their CDs will be shipped to them,” says Erasmus.
Also of concern, says Spies, is the scheduled discontinuation of XP.
“At this stage,” says Erasmus, “availability of XP to OEMs will be discontinued at the end of January 2008 and for system builders at the end of January 2009. The decision to extend availability will be a global decision and will be based on feedback from the channel.”
Erasmus says partners or customers needing assistance can contact Microsoft on 0860 22 55 67.
Or locked up in a mental institution from working with those clowns, or just quit and get a real job.
Same here. I've used OS X before, but you don't realize how much better it is until you start using it regularly. BTW, an iMac also makes for a superior Windows box -- a Windows install with Boot Camp is by far the easiest I've ever done, and I've done hundreds.
Actually, it gets pretty warm. :)
My biggest problem will be a sign program that was built for Windows 3x.
VMWare's Fusion will run Windows 3.x.
That's infuriating to me. We got in 50 or so laptops for upper management at work last year and none of them had OS disks. I suppose if you lose a hard drive you have to send it back to them for a replacement rather than popping in another one and reinstalling the OS just to get it up and running ASAP. What are people supposed to do if they have a disk failure after their warranty expires and they have no install disk? Not providing OS disks is one of the worst ideas manufacturers has come up with!
This is what happens when you disguise a bloated, resource hogging data mining software package as an buggy operating system.
I’ve worked with a few sign companies that used old win3x software. If it were me, I’d buy the iMac and get some old but still usable machine just to run win3x. It beats dealing with emulators, etc. and probably would be just as cheap, or far cheaper if you hit thrift stores, flea markets or the occasional garage sale.
That's infuriating to me. ...
I agree. A few years ago, when the computer sellers first started this practice, I helped a friend order a new desktop from Dell, and when it arrived and we were unpacking it, I discovered there was no OS disk. We called up Dell and I raised hell, so they sent her a disc.
I think it was soon after that, probably after a number of phone calls like mine, they devised their new plan, which is today's scummy practice of course, of offering to sell you a OS disc if you think you need one. To me this would be akin to new car manufacturers selling new cars without spare tires, unless of course, you want to pay extra for one.
Unfortunately, the computer manufacturers are getting away with this, and as you said, the practice stinks!
I think it's really worse than that, because included in the purchase price of the new computer is the cost of the OEM license for the OS. For the manufacturer not to provide the media for the OS that you have already paid for is unethical, and should be illegal. In my opinion.
Thanks. I’m thinking I will probably get the imac for home and take this powerhouse to the office and use it for signs.
Either way, I get a new imac. :-)
I guess I hadn't really sat down and thought of it that way, but I believe that you are correct. I wonder if one might get anywhere calling up support and raising hell about having to pay extra for a disc and demanding one for free, otherwise, threatening to turn them in to the Better Business Bureau, and the Attorney General of the state that I purchased the computer in? It wasn't that long ago that I bought this new notebook from Best Buy -- I may just give that tack a try and see if I get anywhere with it. And if it doesn't work, maybe I will just follow-up do as I threatened.
You never know -- it's possible that something like this might hit an AG as a possibly ground-breaking, headline-getting, politically-advancing project for himself. It might already be technically illegal in some way, but only need a test case to blow the doors off the scummy practice. I very distinctly recall the first time this happened to me, and I just could not believe they had started to do this, and how I was successful in brow-beating them into sending me one free. Maybe they already know it is illegal, but have just gotten customers accustomed to it now. The only problem for me is -- the current AG in my state is a DemonKat, and I am wont to help further his career. However, I think I am actually going to try this anyway ...
Smart man. :)
I've been thinking about it as well. I'll think and research on it some, and may do something similar. Post back and let us know how it turns out for you.
Allright, will do. You please do the same also. Your particular case might possibly have more attraction for an AG than mine, in the sense that you purchased numbers (50+ units), whereas I purchased only one unit.
Can’t you just use Magic Jelly Beans or something to get the key from the machine when received, then just have a single copy of the OS to use for reinstalls, using the key that came with the machine? Who needs 50 copies on CD anyway? Seems like two or three would be more convenient.
I disagree. Presumably you would be getting the car cheaper by the cost of the spare, and you can easily supply your own spare purchased from somewhere else. This would be more akin to charging you for registration on the car, then wanting to charge you again if you had the audacity to want a paper copy for the glove box.
Included in the purchase price of a new computer is the cost of the OEM license for the OS. For the manufacturer not to provide the media for the OS that you have already paid for is unethical, and it may even be possible that it is illegal on some technical legal grounds that have not yet been tested in court.
Sure you can. There is a certain executable that you can run that displays every Microsoft key that is applied to your system.
(lemme find it)
Here it is: http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/product_cd_key_viewer.html
Still, regarding OEM keys, you MUST have an OEM's installation media in order for the key to work during installation. If you have an OEM key for XP Pro, that key won't be accepted during an install of XP Pro retail using a disk that you would get off of the shelf at BestBuy.
Well, sure, I know, but I think all the OEM CD’s are identical, so you just need a representative one.
That’s a funny definition of stable.
I like Vista. I’d like it even better if it were running in a VM under Linux, FreeBSD, MacOSX, WinXP Pro, or Solaris though.
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