Connected Software Development

I've been known to switch browsers quite compulsively since my first days on the Internet. I started with Netscape, switched to Internet Explorer, back to Netscape, then jumped on the Firefox bandwagon as soon as it came out. And of course I tried Safari.

I've always loved Firefox, but when a separate project started at the Mozilla group for an open source browser that was specifically made for the Mac, I was all ears.

The browser is called Camino. It has much of the Firefox guts in it, but it has a distinctly Mac look and feel. I like it. It's easy to use, eminently stable and seems to handle most Web pages with aplomb.

If you're a Mac user, you should really try Camino. It is free (aren't they all?) and it's easy to install. You can even import your Firefox, Safari or IE bookmarks.

The only big thing I miss from Firefox is the type-ahead feature in the Google box. That is so convenient. I'm sure Camino will be jumping on that soon too, probably when Camino 2.0 hits the streets. It's a good thing for them to build in, because it actually makes them a ton of money. Google pays Firefox everytime someone uses that little box and then later clicks on a Google ad.

I've been avoiding using Windows as much as possible, especially since the advent of "Windows Genuine Advantage" which is an onerous anti-piracy program that comes with each copy of Windows.

Unfortunately, I have to use Windows for my clients, and today I finally relented and clicked OK to it installing a new security update or whatever.

And what happened?

Windows Genuine Advantage went through the entire installation process, then proceeded to abort (see above). I had to kill the program with Task Manager. Now I'm paranoid that it is going to give me a bunch of crap about my copy of Windows not being "genuine." Mmm, about that "genuine advantage" that I was supposed to be getting, it appears the only advantage belongs to Microsoft (and even then...).


Microsoft, you need to keep your customers in mind above your own needs. If you're going to put crap like Genuine Advantage on your operating system, make sure it works cleanly and seamlessly. I don't want error messages like this, and I'm sure other Windows users don't either.

Labels: anti-piracy, error messages, Microsoft, Windows, Windows Genuine Advantage