Microsoft Is At It Again
Margaret Kane over at CNetnews talks about Microsoft teaming up with Associated Newspapers, Forbes Inc. and Hearst to offer special ‘reader’ software for downloading and viewing newspapers.
Is this to make people more interested in Windows Vista? Perhaps. It is part of the new graphics technology introduces with Windows Vista.
Here is part of what Microsoft has to say:
Using technology developed by Microsoft, the applications enable an enhanced on-screen reading experience by combining the “look and feel” of traditional print media with the advantages of interactivity previously reserved for the Web. These new applications support a range of features, such as allowing users to navigate story lists, toggle between articles, move from one section to another, and view picture galleries. In addition, the reader can view the downloaded content while offline, then go back online for continuous updates as stories change.
And here’s part of what Margaret has to say about it:
The project is part of the software potentate’s push to show off certain features in the Vista operating system. Microsoft had previously released a version of the software designed for The New York Times.
In a nutshell, the bloggers who had comments on this approach were not impressed. Scobelizer seemed to sum it up:
“Google Reader is eating the lunch of this approach. Why? Cause we’ll put up with a little less readability in order to share items with other people, in order to see the information on multiple computers and platforms, and the ability to mash up the content with content from other services ala BlogLines, NewsGator, or Google Reader or other RSS aggregators.”
I’ve been subscribed to a techy newsletter for years. I’m not going to mention the name of it because things might have changed by now but when I subscribed to this newsletter, a different app was required for reading it. That app only displayed that newsletter. My reaction was the same - why would I want that? I’m subscribed via e-mail and am very happy with it that way. In fact, I’m not even going to see if they offer a regular feed. I am used to reading it in my e-mail. It’s the newsletter I’ve been subscribed to the longest (probably 4 or more years), it’s the only newsletter I get by e-mail, and I like it that way.
Let me know what you think about Microsoft’s latest attempt to push Vista and how you feel about a different app for a different ‘feed’
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