Amazon.com selling Vista SP1
March 17, 2008
Consumers will be able to purchase the first major update to Microsoft Windows Vista OS starting on Wednesday, March 19th if Internet retailer Amazon.com is to be believed. Amazon’s Web site shows that both the full and upgrade versions of Vista SP1 are currently available for pre-order and will ship on March 19th.It’s expected that a number of retailers in addition to Amazon will start offering Vista SP1 this week. Microsoft will also likely make it available as a public download in the coming days. The download version is free to users already running a licensed copy of Vista.
Vista SP1 contains a number of features designed to enhance the OS speed, performance, and stability. Among other things, it offers a patch that will allow users to run the BitLocker encryption tool on multiple hard drives. It also improves the speed at which the OS wakes up from “hibernate” mode.
SP1 will also remove from Vista the “Kill Switch” — a feature that deactivated key components of the OS if Microsoft detected users were not running a properly licensed copy of Vista. The feature was plagued by false alarms that flagged thousands of legitimate Vista users as software pirates.
Vista SP1 itself isn’t without problems, however. Microsoft has yet to finish ensuring that the service pack will work properly with the thousands of models of keyboards, printers, mice, and other peripheral devices commonly attached to personal computers.
The problem is that Vista SP1 won’t install some device drivers correctly. Microsoft says the issue is confined to “a small number” of drivers and that it’s working on the problem.
Microsoft is hoping that Windows Vista SP1 will quell some of the disappointment that greeted the operating system’s initial rollout early last year. Many corporate and home users complained about its resource requirements and lack of compatibility with existing applications.
Windows Vista Ultimate with SP1
Price: $299.99
Web 2.0 Age: Killer of traditional media?
January 21, 2008
I was just reading Seth Godin’s blog about the newly proposed video rental service by iTunes/Apple, and it really got me thinking. Is this the beginning of the end of traditional means of media distribution? Apple’s model is very intriguing. With the purchase of a $249 box, it gives you the ability to “rent” basically any movie for around $5.00 from the an on-screen interface from the comfort of your living room. After 30 days, the file will automatically delete itself. For someone like me, who uses an Xbox Media Center to stream videos from my computer to my TV…. it really isn’t appealing. However, for less tech savvy individuals it is a great alternative to places like Blockbuster and Zip.ca, since it is easy, and affordable. This is one example of how technology is changing business today. I do think this will “catch on” within five years, and it will be devastating for places like Blockbuster. The model is just so smart from a business prospective…. suddenly there is no overhead costs, no staffing issues, and it is simply easy. When it all comes down to it, I think this technology will be the next DVD killer. Forget Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.Of course, digital music replacing albums will always be the model example of this. However, another example of this is e-books and newspapers. I feel you can compare Amazon to Apple in many ways, especially in terms of their digital media distribution. Not only is Amazon selling digital music now, they are also heavy into e-book sales and offer a device to purchase and read digital books and newspapers from anywhere in the world. I think e-books will not be widely accepted for a while, since many people enjoy normal books since that is what they have grown up with for years. But it just shows that the technology is there. Newspapers have online for years, and with RSS it is changing the way some people read the news.Is this the beginning of the end of video rentals, albums, and books? It is naive to think that it isn’t. I feel the record labels, publishers, and studios are slowly beginning to transition themselves to online distribution, and while it may take a few years to make a full transition, I think it will eventually happen.-dc
Pepsi Giveaways
January 18, 2008
So while scrolling Chris Anderson’s The Long Tail, I found something which caught my eye. And yes, it has to do with music. Honestly, I can’t help it! I’m trying to get help…Anyway, apparently Pepsi is going to launch what the company’s deeming “the largest promotion [they’ve] ever done”. Basically the article summarizes that for the next PepsiStuff giveaway campaign (starting February 1st), purchasers will be able to gain points with each Pepsi product purchased which can be added toward getting clothes, electronics, DVDs, CDs, and MP3s from Amazon’s music catalog. This sounds pretty cool!
I couldn’t help but connect this article with another I had just skimmed from Seth Godin. I started wondering if perhaps this new giveaway campaign is a bit of a gimmick, for both the highly competitive beverage provider, Pepsi, and Amazon’s music catalog; a new addition to the popular website most likely to compete with Apple’s iTunes. Will this cause problems for iTunes? They already have other problems to worry about from Napster.
What does everyone think about this new campaign? Do you see this Pepsi campaign as another gimmick? Or will the joint venture turn profitable results for the two companies? Is everyone excited about getting “free music” while drinking their Pepsi products? I am!
Maybe Pepsi should try sticking a Pepsi can to the top of a car for advertisement.
Tasia
