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Differing hardware isn't even the core issue here. It's differing software. Windows was always consistent across Dell, HP et cetera. Android is not.

by apl 16y ago

CountHackulus 16y ago
> Windows was always consistent across Dell, HP et cetera. This is so very far from the truth. Different OEMs ship with different patches, and some have custom drivers written, or "management" software that replaces key windows applications. If you've ever tried to write a game for Windows you'll know that once you get to testing, you'll find a ton of just plain strange setups that make no sense. You are however quite correct in saying that differing software is the key issue here.
- apl 16y ago
  I guess you're right, yes. From a technical point of view, Windows is quite fragmented. However, it always offered surface-level consistency, with the exception of proprietary management software for certain tasks. Put a customer in front of a Windows machine, and he'll feel at home. Give a customer a smartphone from HTC, Samsung and Motorola, and I'd be surprised if he could tell that it's the same OS on all three. This software fragmentation is both a blessing and a curse. Without it, Android would never have taken off the way it did, because networks/hardware developers like the malleability. However, from a customer's perspective, this is sub-optimal.
- silvestrov 16y ago
  Windows is different at the OS install level, but at the application level it doesn't matter if your Wintel is from Dell or HP or Gateway or... Photoshop doesn't come in a version for "HP Windows" and one for "Dell Windows", and ... It is the application level that matters for consumers buying apps. Very few users reinstall the OS on their mobile phone.
  - Keyframe 16y ago
    Well, actually, for a while there were some applications available in Windows x86 and Windows Alpha (DEC) versions. Now we have x86 and x64 versions, which is not all that different when you think about it.
ZeroGravitas 16y ago
I've yet to be convinced that anyone making these analogies knows anything about either Windows or Android. The last Dell laptop I saw had a Mac OS X style Dock, as just one example. Before XP service pack 2 everyone added their own software for doing wireless. I had another Dell laptop that included 2 different display settings in the Control Panel, one of which was simply ignored which was frustrating when trying to get it working with a projector, you needed to use the one provided by the maker of the video chip (Intel I think, but could have been ATI). Let's not even start on crapware, trialware and "Control Centres" that try to upsell you various services. Jobs had to describe Windows as "open" to make his rhetoric work, which is a major warning sign. If you have to rewrite the history of Windows so that it's a pristine and consistent experience across vendors then that's a bad sign for your argument too.

Differing hardware isn't even the core issue here. It's differing software. Windows was always consistent across Dell, HP et cetera. Android is not.

by apl 16y ago

Differing hardware isn't even the core issue here. It's differing software. Windows was always consistent across Dell, HP et cetera. Android is not.

CountHackulus 16y ago

> Windows was always consistent across Dell, HP et cetera. This is so very far from the truth. Different OEMs ship with different patches, and some have custom drivers written, or "management" software that replaces key windows applications. If you've ever tried to write a game for Windows you'll know that once you get to testing, you'll find a ton of just plain strange setups that make no sense. You are however quite correct in saying that differing software is the key issue here.

apl 16y ago
I guess you're right, yes. From a technical point of view, Windows is quite fragmented. However, it always offered surface-level consistency, with the exception of proprietary management software for certain tasks. Put a customer in front of a Windows machine, and he'll feel at home. Give a customer a smartphone from HTC, Samsung and Motorola, and I'd be surprised if he could tell that it's the same OS on all three. This software fragmentation is both a blessing and a curse. Without it, Android would never have taken off the way it did, because networks/hardware developers like the malleability. However, from a customer's perspective, this is sub-optimal.
silvestrov 16y ago
Windows is different at the OS install level, but at the application level it doesn't matter if your Wintel is from Dell or HP or Gateway or... Photoshop doesn't come in a version for "HP Windows" and one for "Dell Windows", and ... It is the application level that matters for consumers buying apps. Very few users reinstall the OS on their mobile phone.
- Keyframe 16y ago
  Well, actually, for a while there were some applications available in Windows x86 and Windows Alpha (DEC) versions. Now we have x86 and x64 versions, which is not all that different when you think about it.

ZeroGravitas 16y ago

I've yet to be convinced that anyone making these analogies knows anything about either Windows or Android. The last Dell laptop I saw had a Mac OS X style Dock, as just one example. Before XP service pack 2 everyone added their own software for doing wireless. I had another Dell laptop that included 2 different display settings in the Control Panel, one of which was simply ignored which was frustrating when trying to get it working with a projector, you needed to use the one provided by the maker of the video chip (Intel I think, but could have been ATI). Let's not even start on crapware, trialware and "Control Centres" that try to upsell you various services. Jobs had to describe Windows as "open" to make his rhetoric work, which is a major warning sign. If you have to rewrite the history of Windows so that it's a pristine and consistent experience across vendors then that's a bad sign for your argument too.