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Since they are throwing desktop operating systems in the same cluster as tablets and phones, why did they omit all the different OSs for cars, manufacturing and
by bobsoap 14y ago
Since they are throwing desktop operating systems in the same cluster as tablets and phones, why did they omit all the different OSs for cars, manufacturing and power plants, heavy machinery, TV sets, satellite boxes, and so on? At least that would be a true "OS market overview". They are cherry-picking a slice of the OS market by the common denominator "consumer products" and lumping a select few totally distinct segments into a single worthless graph.
Not that I would have expected anything more sophisticated from Goldman Sachs, though.
- belorn 14y agoAs someone above said, they limited the scope to all consumer computing devices. A car is not a computing device per say, even if it has computer parts. Same goes for power plants, heavy machinery, TV sets and satellite boxes. One could argue that electronic calculator should be included, but I am not sure it would actually change anything.
- seunosewa 14y agoCan you define what a computing device is, per say?
- ucee054 14y agoper SE
- belorn 14y agoA general general purpose device that can be programmed by the user to perform tasks beyond what was initially designed into the device. This is my view, and not the only definition that exists. But if we want to avoid having to include every item ever produced in the last 10 years or so, the definition of a computer device needs to be slightly limited. Some Teddy bears nowadays has FPGAs in them. If everything from a stuffed toy bear to a 600 ton airplane can be called "a computer", "a computer" loses its meaning.
- mooism2 14y agoIf that definition includes iphone, it also includes xbox and the ds lite. (You could perhaps limit it to devices on which you could run a web browser. I remember there was a version of Opera that ran on the ds, though I didn't get it myself.)
- TallGuyShort 14y agoI think your definition is spot on. The reason you can define a computing device that way and exclude 600 ton airplanes and stuffed toy bears from this discussion is that the devices are embedded in the actual item. An airplane can't (shouldn't) be programmed by the user to perform tasks beyond what was initially designed into the device, but the FPGA's in the teddy bear can be. It's not reasonable to look at how many of today's planes are made by Microsoft, but it is reasonable to look at the embedded systems market as a whole and see how influential Microsoft is.
- lukeschlather 14y agoAt a minimum, then, that would include graphing calculators. Also, while most routers aren't exactly intended to be programmed, it's pretty easy. Easier than reflashing an iPhone, which is considered a general-purpose device, even though it's not really user reprogrammable. Heck, the Canon Hack Development Kit makes a lot of 'dumb' cameras as easily reprogrammable as an iPhone. And as others have noted, this study apparently excludes gaming consoles, which seems to me an unreasonable omission by any definition. ( I think the most reasonable definition that captures what you're trying to say is "something designed to run third-party applications." )
- belorn 14y agoAgree.
- recoiledsnake 14y ago>A general general purpose device that can be programmed by the user to perform tasks beyond what was initial designed into the device. Does that mean the iPad and iPhone are not computing devices? Also doesn't your definition encompass routers that you can install DD-WRT/Tomato on which will enable you to run things like Bittorrent on them?
- PaulHoule 14y agoIf that was the case than the world's #1 OS is probably something you never heard of like VxWorks