Was Fake Steve pimping for Microsoft?

Circumstantial evidence (tip o' the antlers to Jim Thompson).

It's pretty thin, but there's a little something there to chew on.

Of course, it's probably the part about Lyons having railed against anonymous blogging that rankles the horned one!

[GaryPatterson]

I Don't See This

It's a very, very long bow to draw calling FSJ a MS shill. Many's the time he got
stuck into MS, and a single mention of "people-ready" in context of advertising
isn't enough. Maybe Dan Lyons had connections, but FSJ is a seperate
personality, written without the need to kowtow to anyone. Judging it on its own
merits, I can't see any pimping here.

[quelgar]

I don't get it

I must be missing something. Juha Saarinen is saying that the FSJ was being
used as a "discreet test-bed by Microsoft marketing" based on one reference
in January 2007, basically because that's the first time he saw the phrase
"people ready" anywhere. Except that campaign was launched in March 2006,
see http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?doc_cd=138886. Not exactly
"blogliminal". It's obvious from the context of FSJ's post that he was assuming
the reader already knew that "people ready" was a Microsoft slogan.

If this standard is applied, any blogger even mentioning "people ready" at any
time is being paid by Microsoft.

He also conveniently fails to notice the very many occasions where FSJ
severely criticises Windows and the Zune.

[Macalope]

Good point

Although they probably loved the Linux bashing. And Gates was certainly a fan or he wouldn't have mentioned him at All Things Digital.

Maybe it's just that everyone loves it as long as they don't think they're the only ones getting razzed.

[illegal.alias]

Now that his readers can see the irony

Half the value of FSJ was not knowing who it was or what (if any) agenda he
might have. Now that the "real" FSJ biases are known, he's toast... or, at a
minimum, he's got a fork in him.

[ripragged]

Pimpin' for the beastmaster?

Maybe. But if so, badly.
Most of us Mac folks are smart enough to spot satire, even if some of us don't get it. Within the context of satire, FSJ succeeded in making me laugh until I cried more than once.

He never made me think any warm fuzzy thoughts about Vista or Zune, though.