New
#280
Not just ads.
Bing apps. are on there - bing is struggling.
Going to the store etc - skydrive - leads to other online stuff.
They want you up there - using their stuff and paying subscrioptions.
Keep shoving it at the users - they will bite.
Bit by bit - like boiling a frog.
Lots of 3rd party start menus have popped up to cater to the demand.
Even the oem's are making them.
3 dozen last time I looked. A few free ones - several are cheap 3-5 bucks.
Some are making tens of millions of dollars, even at 5 bucks a license. I think stardock have made $30m on theirs alone. I bet thay can't believe they have been handed this goldmine.
That tells you something.
That may be a problem though. If M$ suddenly decided to reintroduce the Start menu, these guys that make millions may not be amused. M$ may have painted themselves into a corner.
Do you think M$ would even care?
Exactly. They have made a packet now - damn lucky to get the chance.
I have no idea how big stardock is. If they are just a handful of people - they are set up for life.
If MS thinks they will benefit from putting in a new start menu, they will.
Stardock are also making something else which looks like it will sell well. It is for making apps. run windowed on the desktop - instead of annoyingly covering up the whole screen.
If MS can get a decent number to buy 8/blue - then it is much bigger maket for stardock to sell their other stuff to.
If they don't care about their customers why would they care about the vendors? It appears they only thing that may influence Microsoft if the bottom line. If enough customers reject Windows 8 they may make reinstate the start menu. It appear customer rejection of Office 365 cause Microsoft to change its policy of only allowing an install one one computer without the possibility of a transfer.
The problem is this is leaving me with a very bad impression of Microsoft's business practices, since it is conveying to me a customer be damned attitude.