A look ahead: 2012 is Microsoft's turning point

[JMH]

2011 was in many ways a quiet (albeit thoroughly profitable) year for Microsoft. The company made big, important announcements—the Nokia partnership, the Windows 8 reveal—but neither had much impact in 2011. Nokia has released only a couple of handset models in a few countries this year, and Windows 8 is not yet in beta.

2011 for Microsoft was all about telling us what to look forward to.

2012 will be when that talk becomes real. 2012 will be when lots of Microsoft's talk becomes real.

Microsoft has talked of its "three screens and a cloud" strategy—the plan to have Microsoft software on the PC (which, in Redmond's view, includes the tablet), the TV, and the phone, with the Microsoft-powered cloud tying everything together. In 2012, this strategy is going to become visible in a way it hasn't been before.

A look ahead: 2012 is Microsoft's turning point

 

[whs]

And Metro is going to be everywhere

God save the PC, please.

 

[M1GU31]

i felt 2011 was apples year imo hopefully they surpass apple and Microsoft brings out some good products

 

[piattj]

2012

As people have said, 2011 (albeit the year when Steve Jobs died) was Apple's year in many ways. They consolidated their hold on the collective consumer consciousness with some accessible products, nicely designed.
2012 should be the year when Microsoft push home their advantages in the corporate space at the same time driving a wedge into the mobile market with Windows Phone updates.

 

[Britton30]

And Metro is going to be everywhere

God save the PC, please.

+1 to that!

 

[Qdos]

And Metro is going to be everywhere

God save the PC, please.

+1 to that!

Could finally be Linux' big break...

 

[echrada]

If it hasn't happened for Linux by now, it never will!:devil:

 

[GARoss]

God save the PC, please.

+1 to that!

Could finally be Linux' big break...

If it hasn't happened for Linux by now, it never will!:devil:

Agree! It's decent but not ready for prime time.

Tried Ubuntu a few years back & liked it. It's fine for web surfing & maybe online music but has major support issues, namely a serious lack of commercial software like, well... all of them. Printer driver support is decent now but not so much 5 years ago. Video editing is basic at best. Not for the faint of heart for difficult software installs.

 

[M1GU31]

+1 to that!

Could finally be Linux' big break...

If it hasn't happened for Linux by now, it never will!:devil:

Agree! It's decent but not ready for prime time.

Tried Ubuntu a few years back & liked it. It's fine for web surfing & maybe online music but has major support issues, namely a serious lack of commercial software like, well... all of them. Printer driver support is decent now but not so much 5 years ago. Video editing is basic at best. Not for the faint of heart for difficult software installs.

i like windows better then linux ,less headaches tryed linux ubuntu and mint before mint was alright but had some compabitly issues with stuff so i just went away from that and sticked to my love windows <3

 

[bobtran]

promises, promises, promises......I would have more faith if Microsoft would get rid of Ballmer and put someone in charge who actually gets it. As for Metro "God save the PC" +1.

 

[lehnerus2000]

The trouble is ...

God save the PC, please.

+1 to that!

Could finally be Linux' big break...

The trouble is that Linux distros are going the same direction as Windows 8.

Lots of long time Linux users "hate":

• Ubuntu Unity.
• Gnome 3 (including Linus Torvalds).

I'm not a long time user (2 or 3 years) but I hate those GUIs too.

Until they fix the GUI tools, so that users don't have to keep using the Terminal, Linux distros aren't going to "gain much traction".

 

[whs]

Looks like we are surrounded by the kids interfaces.

 

[indianacarnie]

I agree

 

[lehnerus2000]

I suspect that these new GUIs are designed to "soften the blow" of having to move to a "Cloud" OS.

 

[whs]

I suspect that these new GUIs are designed to "soften the blow" of having to move to a "Cloud" OS.

That is an interesting thought. They want to steer people towards their new gold mine.

 

[legacy7955]

God save the PC!

+ 1,000,000

I do think that Linux could see a surprising increase in usage IF Windows 8 forces users onto Metro.

Lots of people love Linux Mint and Puppy. They are very easy to use and set up is easy.

I like Windows OS but I also like Linux and the principles behind it.

Microsoft NEEDS another Bill Gates. The creative genius that was found in spades during the early years has gone missing for a long time. I think they should have Bill come back to chose another CEO.

 

[Emcee]

Considering how much Windows is used in the business world, I can't imagine win8 won't let you turn off metro.

That said, if I could have a large, normal monitor with my desktop alongside a smaller touchscreen monitor showing metro, I'd be down.

 

[GARoss]

God save the PC!

+ 1,000,000

I do think that Linux could see a surprising increase in usage IF Windows 8 forces users onto Metro.

Lots of people love Linux Mint and Puppy. They are very easy to use and set up is easy.

I like Windows OS but I also like Linux and the principles behind it.

Microsoft NEEDS another Bill Gates. The creative genius that was found in spades during the early years has gone missing for a long time. I think they should have Bill come back to chose another CEO.

My only experience with Linux was Ubuntu & I have said before my overall experience was a good one. It was the lack of software support from major companies like Adobe & many others that convinced me to move back to PC (I also use Mac). I guess in Linux there are too many distros to support (???).

 

[sonshi]

Why is linux even in the question? With only 1% of the OS marketshare, it's not something Microsoft should be worried about.

 

[C32C3]

I love desktops. All of my friends and most of my family members have purchased laptops and view desktops only as a must-use-sometimes piece of equipment. I laugh, and continue enjoying my desktop.

My confidence in the continuous use and development of desktops is based mainly on the community of gamers and their demands for faster processors, more capable motherboards and graphic cards, speedier but smaller data storing devices.

The gamers community is a dedicated group of pc enthusiasts that is pushing pc component manufacturers to keep developing and improving on all fronts. These guys are willing to spend money and the people at Intel,AMD, Nvidia, ATI, and others know it. They say love and money makes the world go 'round. Well, in the pc world its the gamer.

When I see articles stating "The PC is Dead", I smile. The pc, dead? My friend if you want to know the answer to that then you should ask the gamer community. When they say it, I'll believe it.