What is Digg?594 Comments
- TGMD, on 04/30/2008, -111/+4881. Alt-Tab- Easier and better... if you want eye candy I suppose expose is better... but from a productivity standpoint alt-tab all the way
2. Few people know this but windows NT actually has this built in, it's just MS never made it available for some goddamned reason... I think there's a powertoy to activate it... I do think it needs to be activated on default though
3. A bunch of services that do this for windows... I think LiveMesh is there to accomplish this... for free
4. Yeah... this too is available elsewhere... it's just not bundled if it was MS would be sued ten times over, but yeah it SHOULD be built in
5. Been around since windows 2003 and is better implemented on that!
6. Agreed!
7.Meh I think they're just nitpicking at this point.
8. Again, MS can't bundle this *****, they'd be sued into oblivion, they're getting threats for bundling search into vista!
9. Good point, but windows has de-facto libraries
10. okay?
11.True gangstas use quick launch bar!
12. ... this is a feature?
13. Windows has two button mice, don't need it
14.Meh, windows has something very similar since XP
15. Windows server?
16.Why?
17. ***** the MENUBAR, worse UI concept ever!
18. Mac just hides it's dependencies, no big deal - yokozuka, on 04/30/2008, -19/+259What about the dozens of features it SHOULDN'T have.
- Kwipper, on 04/30/2008, -36/+2601 feature OSX and Linux should have (but doesn't)....
Gaming. - Forky, on 04/30/2008, -28/+189Buried as inacurate since at least half of the things the author miss, is actualy already there.
The rest is easily fixed by freeware or opensource, if needed. - mrpink.137, on 04/30/2008, -34/+135Windows has a Stickies program.
It's called Notepad. - inactive, on 04/30/2008, -8/+78Seems as if the writer just wants to masturbate on how pretty macs look....-_-
- cquinnd, on 04/30/2008, -3/+72Why wait for MS when the whole idea behind the platform is to allow third party developers an opportunity to create that functionality (and more) without having to rely on the MS version (or lack thereof).
- noisymime, on 04/30/2008, -12/+78Let's be honest, linux has pretty much all of those features, whether PC World knows about it or not.
- Jordan117, on 04/30/2008, -0/+661 Feature PC World Should Have (But Doesn't):
* Articles that consist of less than three pages - kowalzki, on 04/30/2008, -19/+76One thing apple fanboys can't do? STFU!
- falafelkiosken, on 04/30/2008, -35/+90alt+tab is nothing near exposé, It's hard to understand the value of Exposé until you have actually used it, then you can't live without it
- silfiriel, on 04/30/2008, -8/+62Do you know why windows users don't write lists as "xx features Mac/Linux doesn't have"?
Because we have what we need. - Gizza, on 04/30/2008, -6/+59Problem is that adding a lot of the things they're missing such as ISO burning would probably land them nice big fat lawsuit from Nero and co. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
- mossblaser, on 04/30/2008, -16/+67Most of these are just random things that mac fanboys love, but can be a real hindrance. I mean really, docks are prettey but they are no match for a toolbar or even just a lode of desktop icons.
Also many of the "mac only" things are also available in most linux distros. Even the stupid "your menu bar goes here and you *will* be greatful" thing. Whats more, I still don't see why in the age of the package manager people should even have to worry about what files programs have. A package manager is still > manually dealing with files.
Also, automated screenshots, I have yet to see any OS other than windows who's default screenshot behavior is to use the clipboard. In all the linux distros & desktops i've tried they've had propper screenshot utilities bound to the printscreen key. Whats more - wtf is with the screen shot shortcuts on mac os?!
Multi touch trackpad gestures. I have that on linux on my laptop (just tweak the synaptics options) and I can tell you they are nothing more than a gimmick.
Cover flow? *Useless*, really it is, though if you must have it, again there are linux file managers that will do it (there's even one that puts all your files in a 3D web you can fly arround).
Podcast grabber? - One of those for linux (i think it's called stream grabber, i think), if not, mplayer does this (installed by default).
Screen sharing? Seriously, what OS doesn't have VNC? Most linux distros come with it preinstalled and with a VNC client that automatically finds VNC enabled PCs on your network.
Time machine, incremental backup with a childish visual. Again, vista has this (apparently) and linux does too.
Expose, both Compiz and KWin offer an expose like feature.
"Back to my mac" - On linux you have SSH (and the associated prettey GUIs) - its free and it can do anything, VPN, shell access (for those who love thier commandline), run normal programs as if they were local, file transfer, oh, and it's all free.
So basicly here, as far as I can see, most of these features are available to windows in some form or another, but all are on linux (no matter how bad an idea some are...) - quomen, on 04/30/2008, -20/+70You're hit and miss, mostly hitting so i give you thumbs up. I agree that the menu bar is stupid, it's basically a permanent loss of screen space.
- Buckwyld, on 04/30/2008, -4/+51Sounds great and all, but what legal ramifications would Microsoft encounter for putting this stuff in their OS. I am sure Microsoft has thoroughly analyzed the Mac OS to see what they could or couldn't implement. Apple does what they want while MS gets sued for everything they do, but that is just my opinion.
- djbutnot, on 04/30/2008, -4/+44#12 is in Vista. PC World fails at looking. It's called the Snipping Tool and can screen grab the whole screen, a single window or a free-form rectangle. You can put it on your Quick Launch bar, and then use [WinKey]+[Number on QL bar] to invoke it.
Some of the other features are idiotic at best. Podcast Recorder? How many people actually make podcasts? If you just want to record a quick something, Windows Recorder will probably do (and in Vista it automatically saves as WMA). A cube? What functionality does that provide? - Inferny, on 04/30/2008, -6/+43those "arbitrary rules" are:
1) the list is ordered in order of last use eg, currently selected window first, the window you selected before that one next, the oldest window you selected last....
OMG SO ***** COMPLEX!!! - KaneElson, on 04/30/2008, -5/+35Could you be any more of a mac fanboy ? and Mentioning linux is just stupid considering different distros come with completely different things by default.
- Meccabilly, on 04/30/2008, -19/+46Jesus, another fanboy list. Look - as a user I don't give a flying foxtrot about any of that - i really don't. Now if Macs had PC games I would use them at home and if PCs had Final Cut Pro id use it at work.
To be honest I get fu**ed off at Windows for being a mess and I get fu**ed of at Macs for their own problems (Every time you see the color-wheel of death a kitten dies - also why the hell do programs JUST DISAPPEAR FOR NO REASON!).
But seriously - who gives a flying rats fu**tard, - locojones, on 04/30/2008, -7/+34Obviously sarchosis, you're an Apple user who has been indoctrinated into the Apple model of being force fed what you should and shouldn't be using on your computer. For those of us in the Windows world, we appreciate the freedom to choose whatever program we wish to suit our individual needs.
- PJBovoNox, on 04/30/2008, -14/+40"Screen sharing? Seriously, what OS doesn't have VNC?"
You're talking about Mac users here. Generally speaking, they're ***** morons and operating VNC is beyond them. - sarchosis, on 04/30/2008, -9/+34"13. Windows has two button mice, don't need it"
That has nothing to do with it. Two fingers are typically used to scroll, which means a portion of trackpad real-estate doesn't have to be devoted to scrolling like with many HP laptops. Otherwise the three-finger swipe is pretty damn useful. - Evildudetx, on 04/30/2008, -5/+30Another BS article written by a lazy staffer. Most of this stuff is available either directly from Microsoft as a power tool/free add-on or as a third party application.
- mattcoady, on 04/30/2008, -4/+29Or if you want to get fancy, the vista sidebar has built-in stickies gadget.
- chazza125, on 04/30/2008, -3/+26Best stickies program ever.
- morcheeba, on 04/30/2008, -4/+26Windows has all sorts of things that interrupt my workflow... Stickykeys is the worst, because when I'm holding down the shift key for a long time is usually when I'm in deepest thought. I also hate the tray popups that tell me that I've got unused icons - I don't care about them. And the automatic restarts on update are terrible - I wouldn't be happy if my power company reset my computer in the middle of the night, so why does MS do it? This shouldn't be enabled by default.
- XIUgraag, on 04/30/2008, -5/+26Another feature that Linux should have (haven't worked with OSX): decent multi-monitor support, sure you can have 20 virtual desktops but you can't even manage 2 real ones?
- locojones, on 04/30/2008, -2/+21PJBovoNox, that was the best comment I've read all week. If I could digg you up 100 times, I would.
- colonelxc, on 04/30/2008, -4/+23I don't agree with everything you say, but thank you for cutting through the ***** in this article.
- TheMidnight, on 04/30/2008, -7/+25I'm writing this from a Windows installation on a MacBook Pro, so let me throw my opinion in the ring. There's a good amount of things Windows has that Mac/Linux doesn't have, and I agree with previous posters that this sounds like a "Make Windows more like Mac" wish list. Here's some things I can thing of:
1. Large base of games
2. Start Menu (having to open up application folders every time I want something that's not on the desktop is a pain)
3. IM clients with more features (ever tried using iCam on AIM on OS X?)
4. Better codec support
5. Seamless integration into corporate environments - yetAnotherCroc, on 04/30/2008, -2/+20Actually, out of a semiotic perspective having the menu ne attached to the window makes more sense. That way if you have several identical windows open with different documents you don't risk applying changes to the wrong window.
- teebird, on 04/30/2008, -8/+25What irritates me about articles like this one is that they fail to differentiate between the operating system and the applications that are bundled with it. All the applications listed here are just add-ons that ship with Mac OSX. Most or all of the functionality described here is available for Windows, but you'd have to install it yourself. That has nothing to do with either operating system itself.
- joshtj, on 04/30/2008, -5/+22We don't need to write those lists because we don't need to use macs.
- Grimdotdotdot, on 04/30/2008, -0/+17"I always have to make an extra pass through because I miss the window I wanted"
Alt+Shift+Tab is your friend. - alwaysmc2, on 04/30/2008, -10/+27WTF?! Vista has most of these features! Remote Desktop, Meeting Space, Show Previous Versions, Snipping Tool, the notepad gadget! They didn't een mention Switcher for the Expose feature, and I can NOT believe they mentioned the "Multi-touch gesters", when all it is is resizing, which you can do on Windows by holding control and then scrolling. And of course they didn't mention that while Vista doesn't have Multi-Touch gestures, it has a friggin TABLET PC INTERFACE.
AAAAUUUUUGGGGHHH! - Murrabbit, on 04/30/2008, -10/+26Ugh the Dock? really? A giant fat ugly gimmicky brother of the quick-launch bar which takes up entirely too much of the screen (even if you shrink it down as far as it'll go) and refuses to let windows overlap it, making you lose tons of screen real estate (unless you hide it and then have it pop up again and again because of it's huge hit area)? That's a feature? More like an annoyance.
- Loonacy, on 04/30/2008, -2/+18I really hate when I'm working on a window at the bottom right of the screen and I have to move the mouse ALL THE WAY up to the upper left to click a menu, then go back all the way down to the app. It makes me miss Windows/Linux having the menu bar right on the window. And if I have several windows up, I have to move focus to the window I want before I can use the menu items, where apps with embedded menus I can just click right into the menu.
The reverse hasn't been true for me, where I miss having the standard menubar in place of having them embedded in the app. There just hasn't been a time where I thought it would be significantly better. - Hangly, on 04/30/2008, -3/+19All of those features, plus a fully-functional command line to boot.
- BLiNk0, on 04/30/2008, -1/+16Or just buy some post its and put them on the screen, best add-on to date
- SonnyBono, on 04/30/2008, -0/+15"In anything at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away."
- Theli, on 04/30/2008, -6/+211. This is a nice feature. They forgot to mention that Linux has it also, through the "Scale" plugin in Compiz Fusion. I think it's better implemented in Linux as you can tie the effect to any keystroke/mousebutton/screenedge you want.
2. This is one I do miss under Windows. After having used 6 workspaces I tend to feel a bit trapped going to Windows.
3. Would be a nice feature. Perhaps they could implement it through Live.
4. Isn't this also supported in Ubuntu 8.04?
5. Not everyone likes Time Machine. It's kind of a stupid design, I think.
6. A very good feature. You shouldn't have to use a third party application for this. Add ISO mounting to the list.
7. Don't really use them, no comment.
8. Kind of a specialized feature, isn't it? I mean, of all the Windows users in the world, how big of a percentage are podcasters? I think this should remain a third party application.
9. Very nice feature. Makes it easy to keep all your software up-to-date. Not sure it would be even possible to implement on the Windows platform, though.
10. Never really liked the cube. It's a nice feature to show off Compiz Fusion, but it's not very user friendly. The Expo plugin is much better as it gives you an overview of all workspaces at once and provides an easy way to move your windows around. I also think it looks better.
11. This is a nice feature, and it's available on Linux through the Avant Window Navigator. I hope it will used by default some day.
12. Ubuntu has this also. Click "Print Screen" and a window pops up with a preview of the screen shot and some options for saving it. It's a nice feature.
13. Would be nice, I suppose.
14. Linux can use cover flow to browse through windows, by using Compiz Fusion. It's a step up from the alt-tab feature in Windows Vista as it makes the windows appear more tangible (if that makes sense).
15. Never used it, no comments.
16. Never used it, no comments.
17. Not too impressed. I think that splitting the applications controls up and putting some of them (the buttons) in the application window and some of them at the top of the screen is kind of a bad design in my opinion.
18. A very nice feature. The windows method of scattering the application in millions of pieces and spreading it all over your file system is kind of strange. - magus_melchior, on 04/30/2008, -5/+20Never send a Mac/Linux-only user to write an article about Windows...
1. Expose: Great for newbies, a time-waster for power users. Alt-tab or Command-tab works just fine, and I'm pretty sure if you have a huge task list you can either click the task or just use the dock/taskbar.
2. Spaces: Although I start out thinking, "Hey, four desks, like the four syrups at IHOP. I gotta use 'em all, otherwise why bother?", I find myself just using one because it's too much trouble even to move a window over to another space.
3, 4. Back to my Mac / Screen Sharing: Fatality and others beat me to it, this is indeed Remote Desktop. Oh, sure, the author can nitpick his way out by saying "Well, XP Home doesn't have it!", but I still call it BS.
5. Time Machine: Author admits there's backup software built-into recent versions of Windows but cops out, effectively saying, "A chimp can't use them, so they don't count."
6. ISO Burning: Name one Joe Sixpack reason for burning ISO images. i.e., Don't use "burning Ubuntu to a disc" as a reason, because most Windows users will get along just fine with Windows' built-in burner.
7. Stickies: Some people use Post-it or equivalents, some don't want to clutter their desktop and/or use a different organizing solution. If you find them invaluable, great, but don't invalidate my experience and others'.
8. Podcast Capture: Seriously, why is this listed? 17 not a cool enough number for you? Everyone doesn't need a podcast, and that's not the end of the world.
9. Software Repositories: For the first time in the list, the author has a valid point: There isn't a centralized place for third-party Windows apps and official add-ons (and making one built-into Windows is begging for another anti-trust charge).
10. Desktop Cube: This is more for showing off your box's graphical capabilities than anything more functional than the aforementioned virtual desktops. BTW, padding term papers like this can get you Fs in college if the reader is awake.
11. Dock: Here, the author's "The only Linux I know is Ubuntu" is glaringly obvious. Ever heard of Openstep? Windowmaker? Heck, ever tried Alt-dragging a program to the Quick Launch menu in Windows?
12. "Automatic" Screen Shots: What the author means is, "I don't want to open Paint or Excel because that's too many keystrokes!" He also missed Ctrl-Print Screen for a shot of a window.
13. Multitouch Trackpad: I hope the author realizes this isn't merely a Windows problem. Most PC trackpads don't recognize multiple fingers, so they do the same tasks in other ways. Yeah, they're clunky and a bit more painful to use, but sometimes multitouch doesn't work quite the way you want to. Oh, I suppose Microsoft can make their own trackpad standard and force all laptop OEMs to use it, but like I said, I don't think they want to tangle with the EU anti-trust guys now that they know they have an actual spine unlike the US DoJ under Bush.
14. Cover Flow in Finder: A graphical Finder enhancement based on the same feature in iTunes. My only experience with it is that it was a big resource hog. Not surprising, since it was a Windows box with 8-year-old technology.
15. Web Server: Oh, that's just a cracker-jack idea! Let's put a big "HACK ME" sign on Windows' butt! Free botnets for everyone!! Fearmongering aside, not everyone needs or uses a Web server, and Windows will let those who really, really need one include IIS during installation.
16. POSIX: The NT series sort of does POSIX-- just enough for MS salesmen to say, "Yeah, we do POSIX." You're still fishing, because few regular users care that their OS is POSIX compliant.
17. Standard menu: Well, if you're anal about consistency across every application on your platform-- i.e., if you're Steve Jobs, this is a great idea.
18. "Single-file" apps: I've got news for you, bub: Those "single files" are actually special folders. If you think they're single files, don't monkey with them in Terminal. Additionally, if a Mac application comes with drivers, they can leave stuff behind even if you drag the app to the Trash.
Memo to the author: Please, write articles, not borderline fanboy lists that are designed to gather hits. - crazysamz, on 04/30/2008, -2/+16What the hell is this guy talking about, a lot of these ALREADY are in windows... Stickies?? There's a built-in sticky-pad gadget in the sidebar. Automated screenshots?? Vista includes a cool screenshot manager that this guy said you have to buy similar software for $15, unaware of the software. Buried.
- Deepmist, on 04/30/2008, -0/+14Agreed. Although you probably don't have to wait, i'm sure the solutions are already out there.
- veriix, on 04/30/2008, -1/+15There's a feature in ms' intellipoint where you can just click the scroll wheel and all of the windows show on the screen just like the screen shot. I've been using it for a while and haven't been smug about it...because nobody told me to be smug about it. No, I didn't lose middle click capabilities that got moved to a better button.
- smiddyman, on 04/30/2008, -2/+15I didn't find a single thing in that list the I can't already do, care about or actually need.
- lolinyerface, on 04/30/2008, -2/+15#2 Virtual Desktops can be enabled in XP.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/power ... - mrblue182, on 04/30/2008, -1/+14so by 18 features, you mean turn it into a mac?
- BevansDesign, on 04/30/2008, -1/+14Yea, if Microsoft tried to add a lot of these features, not only would they run the risk of legal action from competitors, but they'd probably bring the Department of Justice (and similar groups) down on them. Look what happened because they made a web browser and a media player part of the shipping OS.
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