Found Footage: CNN asks Bill Gates about copying Mac OS X
Who's copying who in terms of OS design is quite the topic for a long session of coffee talk, but CNN recently put Mr. Gates on the hot seat by tossing him an on-air zinger. Currently, Bill is on a media blitz to help promote this month's release of Windows Vista. He was on the Daily Show Monday night (check out the re-dux Bill Gates Crash they did for a laugh too), and in this embedded clip, CNN seems to surprise Bill with a question about Vista's resemblance of Mac OS X. While Mr. G did offer some good points in his rebuttal, this seems like it might have been an unexpected curve ball during what I'm sure Microsoft was hoping to be a routine promo interview.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
m said 11:22AM on 1-31-2007
his rebuttal is with more ways vista has copied os x!
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Rory said 11:36AM on 1-31-2007
Uh his 'good points' totally side-stepped the question.
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the1bigboy said 11:39AM on 1-31-2007
He never directly said yes or no, infact, he never answered the question.
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lM ll lL lL S said 11:43AM on 1-31-2007
i love how he doesn't even answer the question, rather, starts the sales pitch on all the stuff it does....which...mac os x already does! (and quite well and stylish i must add)
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Josh Becker said 11:44AM on 1-31-2007
Hmm... "how simple it is to make DVDs, edit high-definition video." That doesn't sound anything like iDVD or iMovie HD!
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Wheels said 11:46AM on 1-31-2007
My comment echos the others: where's Gates' "good points"?
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jaime said 11:49AM on 1-31-2007
wait... did he actually just say they innovated the way media works, and how easy it is to edit movies and author dvds? did... did he really say that? did he also say parentals controls are original to his vista?
am i alone in thinking that is not a little galling? he must be of the camp that believes that goebbels idea "if you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it."
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Daniel D said 11:51AM on 1-31-2007
I wouldnt mind having snapshots of the window you want to alt+tab to like they do in vista : /
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marc cardwell said 11:54AM on 1-31-2007
he's barely making sense here, "...we'd love to have you compare how we've done the, make it easy to make dvd's, edit high-definition movies..."
clearly, he's surprised by the question. maybe he was having a bad hair day.
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cs0875 said 12:05PM on 1-31-2007
Does it really matter who copied who? Unless Microsoft, or anyone for that matter illegally spied on someone, or inrfinged on a patent or copyright. They have every right to copy. Is it wrong for everyone to make flip phones even though someone did it first(Motorola I think)? No, someone had a good idea and other companies took advantage. Is GM a theif because they use an assembly line to make their cars? If Bill Gates sees something in a version of OS X that is a great idea why can't he use it? Microsoft isn't what it is because they have a better operating system. Microsoft is what it is because they market better than anyone else. Some people call it strong-arm tactics, but Apple, IBM, and Tandy all had operating systems back in the day, only Microsoft make just the OS and not the hardware, selling the license. It was a genius business move, like MS or not. There is a huge profit margin on software licenses. Apple, IBM and Tandy all had those options and none chose to take advantage.
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Word Diggity said 12:08PM on 1-31-2007
That sounds great, Bill, but you know and I know that tablets and media center PCs aren't selling. If your product is failing, it's not an "innovation" and it certainly doesn't give you an advantage over your competitor's product.
And like everyone else says, everything that he claims Windows innovated has been done by Macs for years. I don't know what he's smoking, but I want some.
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Levi said 12:12PM on 1-31-2007
His answer started off good with "it's not a copy because we do things that OS X doesn't" but when he started saying "we also do stuff OS X has had for years".... well... need I say more?
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Levi said 12:15PM on 1-31-2007
Is it wrong to copy? Well, no; that's how technology evolves. It is fun to poke fun at Gates though when he tries to claim it's not a copy :p
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Jonathan Allen said 12:15PM on 1-31-2007
innovation = media center and tablet.....
hmmm..... itunes....inkwell...
Good work, billy boy
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Stephen Lang said 12:26PM on 1-31-2007
#10- the point is that it's funny, is all.
Question to everyone- were there any precursors to Aqua, or even possible significant influences?
Picasso once said "Good artists copy, great artists steal." I think Apple stole the GUI from PARC, but Microsoft is mostly just copying Aqua with Aero.
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Gustav said 12:27PM on 1-31-2007
I believe the saying goes something like "Great artists steal". Oh, wait... great artists... Microsoft... uh... never mind...
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ryanlegg said 12:29PM on 1-31-2007
#7, you forget that Microsoft does live in its own wikiality via wikilobbying:
http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/index.jhtml?ml_video=81454
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Nick said 12:32PM on 1-31-2007
"Some people call it strong-arm tactics"
Well, yes, Microsoft does use "strong-arm tactics" ... and what's the significance of your "but" here?
Eric Raymond:
"Microsoft will literally put an OEM out of business before it lets them help a competitor. This is why big OEMs like Dell keep introducing Linux support and then pulling it again when Microsoft flexes its muscles."
http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/world-domination/world-domination-201.html#msoft
Are you asking us to _admire_ this behavior?
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Chris said 12:35PM on 1-31-2007
Personally, I have no problem with the fact that M$ has all but copied the Mac OS. For the longest time, M$ was the industry leader, they were the the powerhouse. Now, the public is finally recognizing that Apple not only has a "good" product, but a BETTER one. I think it's great that Apple is emerging as the industry leader now. M$ is now in a place where they have to resort to copying them, rather than thinking up new and innovative ideas on their own.
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Mike Cosentino said 12:35PM on 1-31-2007
There is an interview with Meredith Viera (spell?) in which Gates claims that Vista is the first operating system that does Parental Controls.
Nice blatant lie.
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