Microsoft: HP promo won't be restarted
Microsoft said that it, in fact, won't be able to restart a Black Friday promotion with HP.com that many were unable to take advantage of because of glitches with the Live Search Cashback program.
In a blog posting on Friday, Microsoft said that, although it is working to give those who ordered products their promised 40 percent discount, those who were not able to place an order are, essentially, out of luck.
"There have been lots of questions on whether the 40 percent off HP promotion on Black Friday will be restarted," Microsoft said in the posting. "While we were hoping to be able to do that, we are sorry to report that it will not be restarted."
A Microsoft representative had indicated earlier this week that the promotion would be restarted, although a statement on Tuesday indicated that might not occur.
While this is bad for bargain hunters, it may end up being worse for Microsoft, which is trying to use the Live Search Cashback program as a way to build awareness and loyalty for its search product.
During her years at CNET News, Ina Fried has changed beats several times, changed genders once, and covered both of the Pirates of Silicon Valley. These days, most of her attention is focused on Microsoft. E-mail Ina. 
As for the statement that most health care providers run MS products. That may be true, but the rules above still apply. Health care providers are certainly not known for being efficient. But, I guess the MS thing is why they still have to rely on paper records and is one of the reasons this industry is totally out of control in terms of it's cost.
Well, that's your choice of words... not mine. I'd say 'naive' or 'inexperienced' or 'brainwashed'. In other words, they drank the cool-aid. I've worked in IS/IT since before M$ was in the server room or there was a Windows. They didn't get there by being good or reliable. While they have improved a LOT... they aren't even remotely the best solution. This is especially true of web technologies. And yes, the majority of IS/IT people don't install the best solution, they install the one they think is the most popular... or worse yet, the one some huge company XYZ is using. It has to be a good solution of GM is using it, right? If you need a non-M$ example... think how many companies are running Lotus Notes. I rest my case!
@rapier1: "Yeah, thats why most health care providers (large practices, hospitals, hospital systems) use MS products. Because they fail constantly."
Well, I'm not sure about constantly... again, your words, not mine. More than they should or more than other possible solutions certainly. People just spend a lot of time fixing them. I suppose that is job security, but I'd rather spend my time implementing new innovations rather than repair. I can't begin to tell you how much maintenance time we spent on our M$ servers.... patching, reloading, messing with anti-virus software and dealing with things messed up by it, researching work-arounds for performance problems etc. This is even before using any of their web technologies where things don't work for clients unless they all run a certain version of Windows with IE (can you say proprietary... on a technology which is supposed to, by nature, be universal?) Our Unix, mainframe (though I didn't work with those), and even xServe (OSX/Unix) systems didn't have nearly the problems. (I'm talking Fortune 100 server room here... not just some unhappy user with a NT server on cobbled hardware).
Nice way to run a promotion. :/
/P
But then, MSFT has now what the automakers had then: inertia. Windows is losing marketshare (albeit slowly, as the Big Three did), just that it won't be a short wait.
- by fc11 December 6, 2008 10:36 AM PST
- Exactly. I use my 2000 Dell to run Windows XP at home and my 2006 Hp to run Vista at work. So far no problems or Viruses, and I usually run 40+ windows apps at a time on my work PC. I guess the trick is that you need to rely on proven hardware and software, and don't try any cheap hard ware, or fancy software download from likes of Sun, etc.
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- by SteveW928 December 6, 2008 12:35 PM PST
- I think this blog has more to do with M$ in the server room or for web technologies, etc... but as this response shows what I often heard from educated IS/IT types as well.. I'll bite....
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- by aramato December 8, 2008 10:09 AM PST
- Hmm. fc11 says apples sell at a 50% premium, SteveW928 says 10% premium but you get a superior product. How about a 83% premium for a vastly inferior product?
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- by SteveW928 December 24, 2008 12:02 PM PST
- @aramato - I've been building systems for years. But, you're not comparing apples to apples here (or maybe better oranges to oranges). When I'm talking about the 10% premium, I'm talking about normal people who go to the store and buy normal comparable equipment (similar quality). I'd also LOVE to see your list of parts for that price and do a quality comparison. So you got a good 24" LCD ($300-$600 alone).. quad-cores at higher speeds.... etc. for $1000? I wish you luck with that! Also, be sure to add your hourly rate for research, ordering, assembly, testing, etc. Sorry, but I don't work for $2 per hour.... try $100 - $200. Your margin quickly erodes... and when your junk hardware starts to have issues, the ratio quickly goes the other direction. You might get lucky... but the average person isn't in such a position. Also, most people I know don't buy the very top model in the Apple line (which has the biggest mark-up margin). Where I do agree with you, is that if you're building a higher end, gamer type system... Apple doesn't really have anything in that category at the moment. They do really need a more entry level Mac Pro type box for people wanting to fall between 'off the shelf' systems and the 'pro' market.
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(22 Comments)The Mac people don't know how to use MS software so they have to pay 50% premium to buy Mac. The only advantage of Mac over well-designed Windows PC is their colorfull box, which I think is more appropiate for kids. I offer my deep sympathy to them, and I understand that they have to look at the Mac ads every day so they will not feel too bad for wasting so much money.
Yes, if you run Windows on the right combination of really good hardware, it can be reasonably reliable... if you can avoid the various virus attacks, etc. Comparing it to OSX, however, is kind of a joke to anyone who has actual experience with both. There are many Mac people who have a good deal of experience with M$ software and still pay the maybe 10% premium for the hardware (software aside). Your 50% would only apply if you buy non-comparable hardware, defeating your purpose.
Say what you like about the ads..... but in my circle of family and friends, ALL the Mac users are quite happy and productive with their systems, while there are only a couple of the Windows users who I HAVE NOT had to spend the better part of a day helping fix their systems (some of them, multiple times). Even then, outside of a couple high-end gamers, the Mac users are doing a lot more with their systems than the Windows users are. They are less frustrated when trying to do much beyond web surfing and e-mail (things like video or sound editing, etc.).
Plus, with just a bit of knowledge, a Mac user can run their hardware as a full out Windows machine if they ever get the urge or have some need to (like for some reason they want to run AutoCAD or one of those high-end games or something).
You are the person I feel sorry for... being too blissfully ignorant to know what you could be experiencing. It's kind of like the person with a Chevy Cavalier joking about how the BMW owner wasted so much money (if the BMW were only 10% more than the Chevy).
The computer I just built cost under $1000 (including all peripherals). Add $200 and change for Windows and the total comes to $1200. The nearest comparable iMac on Apple's site today costs $2199... but it has half as many cores, half as much memory, half the hard disk space, and an inferior video card. The iMac wins in form factor and (for some people) software, but definitely not in hardware.
You've earned the right to dispose of your money however you please, Steve, but not the right to spread misinformation about your choice.