this is an oldie, but a goodie.
For all of us who feel only the deepest love and
affection for the way computers have enhanced our
lives:
At a recent computer exposition (COMDEX), Bill Gates
reportedly compared the computer industry with the
auto industry and stated "If General Motors had kept
up with the technology like the computer industry has,
we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000
miles to the gallon". In response to Bill's comments,
GM issued a press release stating: "If General Motors
had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all
be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash
twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road,
you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for
no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of
the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car,
restart it, and reopen the windows before you could
continue. For some reason, you would simply accept
this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left
turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to
restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the
engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the
sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as
easy to drive -- but would run on only five percent of
the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning
lights would all be replaced by a single "General
Protection Fault" warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "are you sure?" before
deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car
would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you
simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key
and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time GM introduced a new car, car buyers
would have to learn to drive all over again because
none of the controls would operate in the same manner
as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn
the engine off.
For all of us who feel only the deepest love and
affection for the way computers have enhanced our
lives:
At a recent computer exposition (COMDEX), Bill Gates
reportedly compared the computer industry with the
auto industry and stated "If General Motors had kept
up with the technology like the computer industry has,
we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000
miles to the gallon". In response to Bill's comments,
GM issued a press release stating: "If General Motors
had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all
be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash
twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road,
you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for
no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of
the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car,
restart it, and reopen the windows before you could
continue. For some reason, you would simply accept
this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left
turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to
restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the
engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the
sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as
easy to drive -- but would run on only five percent of
the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning
lights would all be replaced by a single "General
Protection Fault" warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "are you sure?" before
deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car
would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you
simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key
and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time GM introduced a new car, car buyers
would have to learn to drive all over again because
none of the controls would operate in the same manner
as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn
the engine off.