SEATTLE - Few have accused Microsoft of being first to the market. But plenty have learned the hard way that the company can be very good at sneaking up from behind.
That's the tack Microsoft Corp. is hoping to take with entertainment. The software maker has invested years of effort and billions of dollars in entertainment endeavors ranging from television technology to video game consoles. What's more, it has said that it's willing to spend much more money, and take much more time, to see if those investments pay off.
Its latest effort, the $249.99 Zune portable player and music service, debuts Tuesday and marks one of the most high-profile attempts to take on Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod and iTunes powerhouse....
Oh yeah. Though I'm a Firefox user myself, it isn't the only alternative to the Blue E. There's also Opera (another excellent browser IMO) and Seamonkey (based on the old pre-Firefox mozilla codebase). Seamonkey is quite good, and improving all the time. Though I must admit, of the 3, I prefer Firefox personally.
I've never tried Knoppix (one day I intend to) but the Ubuntu Live CD is great! It's what I'm using now. I'm using the Dapper Drake 6.06 version, though, so I'd recommend the Edgy Eft 6.10 version of the Live CD instead, as it offers newer software.
Another solution for people trapped inside Windows is to run Linux via VMWare and save all internet usage for the Linux virtual machine. Of course, this requires a fast machine, so it leaves me out. So I chose the Live CD option, and it's worth it.
People who can't get away from Windows should use Mozilla FireFox for a browser, Thunderbird for a mail program. They should also use OpenOffice for their Office program.
There is Linux that can run off of a CD, such as Knoppix, and you won't have to worry about spyware or viruses ever.
This Zune thing is scary, because Microsoft is paying a piracy tax to Universal for each unit sold, in other words you're paying a record company for music you either are never going to buy or have already bought, because the record company thinks all MP3 player users are stealing music. For example, I don't even listen to music MP3s on my Muvo. I thought I did not listen to any Universal artists, either, but found out that U2's back catalogue is now owned by Universal. (I bought the CDs a long time ago, probably before this happened.) It was one thing when the record companies raised money to spread their filth by selling music, but now they're trying to take money from people who are NOT buying their trash to finance their ruin-the-culture campaign! Scary...
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