I can’t remember when an upcoming release of Windows was more boring, at least not since the 3.X days. Essentially, Microsoft is downplaying this release — just as it did with Windows 7 after the Vista fiasco. While the Windows 8s haven’t been as much of a public relations nightmare as Vista (at least they work), they’ve been a big disappointment for the marketing department.
Maybe there’s another reason for downplaying this release.
Perhaps Microsoft isn’t making as much noise as usual because it’s afraid that if people look too closely, they’ll find that its latest and greatest is like an operating system put together at a Goodwill, with parts borrowed from Android, Chrome OS, GNU/Linux and iOS.
Christine Hall has been a journalist since 1971. In 2001, she began writing a weekly consumer computer column and started covering Linux and FOSS in 2002 after making the switch to GNU/Linux. Follow her on Twitter: @BrideOfLinux
Each day our news sites offer more evidence that this is happening. Collectively, we shrug and think there’s nothing to be done. This dragon is too huge to slay.
Late last week, Rachel Roumeliotis reported in a 
This would definitely describe Ubuntu. From it’s exchange of GNOME for Unity to it’s dropping Wayland for Mir, Canonical doesn’t seem to march to anyone’s orders but its own, something that’s been true since day one.
