Why Windows Vista Sucks and Why Cutting Prices Won’t Help

By Jim on March 14th, 2008

Microsoft’s recent announcement of a price cut for Windows Vista illustrates the desperate position the company is in. By all reasonable accounts Vista has failed and Microsoft is desperately trying to prop it up and put some lipstick on a very nasty and very flawed pig. Unfortunately, it won’t work.

How did Microsoft arrive at this awful position?

First it promised far more than it could deliver with Vista. Feature after feature was taken out as the horrific realization sank in that the Microsoft was never going to be able to make good on its promises. Removal of features such as WINFS and PC-to-PC synchronization lowered the value proposition for Windows Vista and helped cement Microsoft’s reputation as a company that makes a lot of promises but fails miserably at delivering them.

Another problem with Vista is that visually it comes across as a very crude clone of Mac OS X’s interface. It even poaches directly by adding things called “gadgets” which is a clear rip off of Apple’s “widgets.” Vista’s “aero” desktop ends up paling in comparison to what was offered in Mac OS X Tiger and positively stinks compared to the cool stuff in Mac OS Leopard. There seems to be a terrible problem at Microsoft when it comes to design decisions.

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