"Gadgets" in Windows Vista

eric2006

eric2006

iMovie Professional
I read the most pathetic thing about Windows Vista
The latest Windows Vista CTP has been branded an "enterprise" release by Microsoft, with the company promising a "broader, end-user preview" during the next quarter. However, and here's where Microsoft's marketing kicks in, the enterprise CTP contains all the features that will target consumers.
That means features like Gadgets, which are web applications similar to Widgets devised by Apple Computer for use in OS X that run outside of the browser over the desktop. Only Microsoft believes developers can write Gadgets that fulfill a business purpose, like monitoring server performance.
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Wow.. pathetic. Low for even Microsoft. Steal Widgets, rename it "Gadgets", and sell it. Can't you monitor your system with Widgets anyways? Apple should sue..

Source:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/22/windows_vista_busienss_users/
 
Ooooooooold news. ;) ... I guess MS and Apple have been talking about this before even Tiger was announced. Apple changed the name of their "gadgets" to "widgets" shortly before Tiger was announced. The first build of Tiger released at WWDC back then still called them gadgets in some places. (File ending, for example.)
 
I don't have a problem with Microsoft copying this, but what annoys me is that most Windows users will think that these are a completely original invention by Microsoft. Microsoft won't correct them, naturally.
 
eric2006 said:
Sorry.. didn't realize that this was old news.
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I make no apologies for having said this before. Widgets/gadgets are simply bling, something I expected from Microsoft-in the-Head, but not Apple.

Sorry to rant, but have just spent half a day trying to get IT to fix some bizarre Windoze glitch at work (yet again).
 
Well, okay, they're bling. Something to lure people to the Mac platform. (In Dashboard's case.) Nothing wrong with that in my opinion. For those who _are_ already Mac users: There's no need to actually _use_ the widgets. Just don't. ;) ... As long as Apple doesn't overdo it and concentrates more on the bling than the actual _functions_, it's okay with me.
What I really have a problem with is the obvious "need" to do content searching. They emphasise it _so_ much they hid file-name based search so good that it's very hard to find... (My main gripe with Tiger... You don't have to answer it, I know you can open a "search window" in Finder and not fill out the spotlight bar in that window but rather add a "filename contains" bar and enter the file name there. It's just, well: It _is_ far too many steps.)
 
fryke, have you tried recently? i mean i can search for something like

specular highlights test 1.psd

and it'll be the first result. from the main spotlight search box... does this still not work for you?
 
AFAIK, Microsoft is bringing absolutely nothing new to the table here. But then again, neither did Apple. Konfabulator did more than Dashboard years earlier.

I think anyone using widgets/gadgets for "business purposes" must be on a whoooole lotta crack! ;) I've seen lots of things that try to mimic some part of Activity Monitor, and all I can think is....it would be so much better to just use Activity Monitor!

Then again, I guess using a regular application on Windows is more of a burden than on the Mac, since it takes up task bar space. Hmm.

The only thing I use Dashboard for is translation. And that's not because it does it well, mind you. It's just that it's easier than going a translation site in Safari. Whenever there's an alternative application, like Calculator or Dictionary, I use that instead. I tried to like Dashboard. I really did. But it's just more trouble than it's worth for me.
 
be interesting, my PC friend had only shruded his shoulder at Widgets, bet its a different story when he goes out and gets Vista to discover this (thinking he may forget my mac had it first) and think WOW!

Like i showed him the apple/D (oops can't remember key combo right now)key over words and the dictionary will drop down, he claimed he can do that on windows? anyone seen that on windogs before except maybe Microslop Word showing spelling mistakes is all I can think of...hmmm?
 
Mikuro said:
AFAIK, Microsoft is bringing absolutely nothing new to the table here. But then again, neither did Apple. Konfabulator did more than Dashboard years earlier.

I think anyone using widgets/gadgets for "business purposes" must be on a whoooole lotta crack! ;) I've seen lots of things that try to mimic some part of Activity Monitor, and all I can think is....it would be so much better to just use Activity Monitor!

Then again, I guess using a regular application on Windows is more of a burden than on the Mac, since it takes up task bar space. Hmm.

The only thing I use Dashboard for is translation. And that's not because it does it well, mind you. It's just that it's easier than going a translation site in Safari. Whenever there's an alternative application, like Calculator or Dictionary, I use that instead. I tried to like Dashboard. I really did. But it's just more trouble than it's worth for me.
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that's exactly it isn't it? why use some clunky, slow Java applet to do what a fully functioning Cocoa app does better.... cocoa launches faster than the dashboard does to load evrything up anyway...
 
fryke said:
Ooooooooold news. ;) ... I guess MS and Apple have been talking about this before even Tiger was announced. Apple changed the name of their "gadgets" to "widgets" shortly before Tiger was announced. The first build of Tiger released at WWDC back then still called them gadgets in some places. (File ending, for example.)
Click to expand...

The WWDC build also called them gadgets in the box that had all the names of the widgets you currently had. :) We all know where MS got the name! :p
 
Lt.: Searching for "images.p" does not find my "flashimages.psd" in Spotlight's main search field. It works, of course, if I go the strange way of opening a search in Finder and then put "images.p" into the "name_contains" field that I have to add myself everytime (unless I hack the default template, which I've done, but I shouldn't HAVE TO...). I simply want Spotlight's prefs to allow me to have "name contains" as the default.
 
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