Linux Is Not A Viable OS

Pageviews by OS 7 Jan 2012 - 5 Feb 2012

I just came across two comments in an idea on Dell's IdeaStorm claiming Linux is not a viable OS or some nonsense. Frankly I was gob-smacked to learn there are still some people promoting this FUD. So much so in fact I was moved to write quite a lengthy rant and then repost it here. Frankly if this stuff is still doing the rounds and people are actually believing it then we're not doing enough to get the message out that Linux currently dominates the OS market in it's many forms. It has a presence in virtually every device market pigeon hole. And it's the top contender in most. If you are a Linux user and Dell customer using Linux on Dell hardware then get your arse on IdeaStorm and tell Dell you want Linux!

That was the short version. Below is the long version I posted on IdeaStorm.

Linux is not a serious contender in the OS market? This is the sort of FUD and ignorance that keeps consumers away from Linux. Linux is very much a contender in the OS market. Which is why Microsoft lists desktop Linux as a threat to it's desktop Windows in it's tax returns. When netbooks first appeared Linux was such a massive threat to Microsoft it had to literally give Windows XP away for free and extend it's shelf life because Vista wouldn't run on a netbook.

If you have a WiFi router, DVR, DVD player, smart TV, satellite set top box, cable set top box or any number of other devices in your home then the chances are it's running either a Linux or BSD based OS.

Android/Linux smart phone deployments dwarf all others in the smart phone market. Even Apple's iPhone is dwarfed by Android when all Android distributors are counted as one. And Windows Phone 7? Hardly a blip on the radar.

It's true all manner of malware exists for Linux. However Linux has a different approach to dealing with malware. Yes the people sticking their heads in the sand are not helpful. Linux does have anti-malware software built right into the kernel. It's call Apparmor. It works a bit more like a white list of software rather than the black list Windows anti-virus vendors try to use. This is used in combination with community vigilance. One of the great advantages of Free and Open Source Software is the community gets to see the source code. It can be inspected so the community can determine what it does. So additional anti-virus software on Linux is generally speaking not needed.

With the black list approach you'll always be step behind. And that's just not good enough.

So far as the average office worker or home user is concerned GNU/Linux has all the bases covered when it comes to application software. There are more web browsers, e-mail clients and office productivity sweets than you can swing a cat at. And many of these applications are also available for Windows as well. So migration needn't be a harsh experience.

It's true more specialist bespoke software is not available off the shelf. However that's true of all OS platforms. The clue is in the "bespoke software" part. The Microsoft way is to tell people to use their OS and applications stack no matter what. And indeed Microsoft channel partners follow this mantra. Religiously sometimes. However it is very bad practice to shoehorn every business into the same mould. This is in fact the primary reason why malware is such a massive problem for Windows.

When building bespoke systems it is better to assess the clients actual needs and serve those needs first. When that approach is adopted. FOSS tends to win. Hence the reason why many of the worlds stock exchanges have switched to GNU/Linux. Hence the reason why US drones now run on Linux instead of Windows which could not be properly secured against malware. Hence the reason why many EU government agencies are switching to GNU/Linux and why GNU/Linux is so popular in South America. Hence the reason why something on the order of the top 40 of the worlds most powerful super computers are running GNU/Linux and why most of the top 500 are running GNU/Linux.

And then there is the tablet market. Which very closely resembles the smart phone market. ARM based devices running Android/Linux.

At this stage in the game anybody claiming Linux is not a viable contender is just delusional. The last market Linux has left to conquer is the desktop. Which is ironically becoming less relevant every year if the pundits are right. The only market where Windows has a strangle hold is the desktop/laptop market. Linux is slowly gaining ground. Microsoft is slowly losing.

Pageviews by Browser 7 Jan 2010 - 5 Feb 2012

Interested In Linux? Here are a few resources.

• The Linux Foundation
• The GNU Operating System
• The Gnome Foundation
• Debian
• Ubuntu
• Fedora
• Nixie Pixel

Incidentally if you're using Google or Facebook. You're a Linux user already. Something to think about people.

PC Gamers Need To Vote!

I've just been to Dells IdeaStorm web site and submitted an idea asking Dell to help the PC gaming industry establish a long term base level of hardware to help bolster the PC gaming industry and pull it out of decline. I'll post the text of the idea below. But first let me say PC gamers need to do something to push the hardware and software industry together to establish a base level of hardware that will support all games at decent settings.

When developers develop for the Wii or Playstation they know it's a long term commitment. The hardware will be supported for at least the next 5 to 10 years. It takes on average 3 to 5 years to develop, test and polish a major gaming title. If not, then longer. Microsoft want to refresh Windows every 2 to 3 years. As we've seen with Vista there is no guarantee of backwards compatibility.

So a game which started development with one Windows platform in mind might suddenly become usless unless the developers alter the game to support the new platform. This is very costly and time consuming. We need a better solution for PC gaming than Windows!

The Dell IdeaStorm post: Establish A Base Level For PC Gaming Hardware.

Ever since games consoles could hold their own against the processing muscle of the PC, the PC gaming industry has been in decline. There are a number of reasons for this. Which I will detail below.

1) The PC as a gaming platform shifts far too rapidly for games developers to keep up with. There is no base level of hardware to target. This makes it very difficult and costly for games developers to develop for the PC.

When a games developer target the Playstation, they know the hardware spec will be good for at least 5 to 10 years. Typically it can take 3 to 5 years just to develop, test and polish a game for distribution. So an unchanging stable platform is absolutely essential!

2) Security is an issue!!! Increasingly modern games are becoming on-line affairs. We no longer pit our wits against AI. We join virtual battle with each other. However PC gamers are at a disadvantage. Windows.

Making Windows secure for on-line activities can be a costly business. PC gamers take a hit in the wallet and performance of their gaming rigs. As though Windows it's self wasn't enough of a resource hog. PC gamers need to shell out for anti-virus software, anti-malware software, spam filters and firewalls.

Now it's true all this software can be had for free. But the free versions are always crippled in some way. They're never as fully functional as their paid for equivalents. Even worse! Some malware has now started pretending to me anti-malware! Gamers who get duped risk losing their passwords and privet details. Including payment details. Credit card numbers, bank account numbers and the like. The potential for fraud here is massive!

The solution is quite simple and one the likes of Sony has been using for years now. Don't use Windows for gaming. The Sony Playstation doesn't use Windows as it's OS. But the games run just fine all the same. The graphics are excellent and the games have on-line connectivity. Nobody seems to be worried about viruses or malware.

Dell already supports Ubuntu. The World of Goo and the Penumbra Trilogy both run flawlessly on Linux and sold well. It might be an old game now but Doom 3 runs perfect with no loss of detail or functionality. Clearly Linux can handle complex and demanding on-line multi-player games.

A secure PC platform for gamers is essential! That security shouldn't bring with it a performance cost. Gamers should not be installing additional software just to make their gaming rigs secure. Linux is the answer.

3) Performance and Stability. Anybody who has played a game on Windows knows the frustration of BSODs at just the wrong moment. It's unacceptable. All gamers also know the reason they need PCs with fans so loud they are in danger of suffering industrial deafness is because Windows needs a reasonably beefy system just for its' self if its' to be responsive and sprightly.

Adding a demanding game with high resolution graphics and a web connection adds a load Windows often just can't handle. So Windows throws it's hands in the air and hides behind a BSOD. The problem is resource management. Windows just can't do it well enough.

Linux on the other hand does a much better job out of the box. No tweaking. No over clocking to squeeze some sort of performance out of the processors. No industrial refrigeration required. That doesn't mean Linux can run Halo on the BBC Micro. But it does mean more of the systems resources are freed to help the game run smoother with greater stability.

But even Linux software crashes sometimes. So what then? Well Linux crashes in a graceful manner. Normally the app will simply shut down and the user will return to the desktop. In very bad crashes the user will be kicked out to the log-in screen. However the system will almost never lock up completely in a BSOD like scenario no matter how badly the game is written.

A robust OS like Linux is essential for high-end demanding games. Linux is that OS.

Dell needs to serve its' gamers better. Help the PC industry establish a base level of hardware by producing a gaming rig and commiting to that hardware spec for 5 to 10 years. Preferably 10 years.

Choose hardware that is Linux compatible. The XPS 700 series is already Linux compatible. This will allow the industry and gamers to choose their OS. Gamers who want more security and performance can choose Linux. Gamers who want to be compatible with yesterday can choose Windows. Or we can dual boot and be compatible with everything.

In the time it takes your computer to boot up ...

"In the time it takes your computer to boot up ..." is a phrase I have heard over and over. What people should be saying is "in the time it takes Microsoft Windows to boot up you could go make a cup of tea, some toast, cook a Sunday lunch and dash out to the shops." This generalisation bothers me. It bothers me because not all computers are the same. They might contain the same hardware. But the software that makes that hardware do useful things makes all the difference.

Even with Linux, which generally boots fairly quickly the hardware and software setup makes all the difference. With an SSD drive at it's disposal Ubuntu 9.10 will boot in 5 seconds. Without the SSD drive it will be more like 10 to 15 seconds. The last time I tested Windows 7 Beta 1 on my Dell XPS 720, which has an Intel Core 2 Quad CPU runnung at 2.66 GHz and 8 GB of RAM, I was still counting Windows boot times from a cold start in minutes. Ubuntu 9.04 boots in 15 to 20 seconds on the same machine.

So bloggers and particuarly Priya Ganapati who is the latest offender to annoy me with this rediculous generalisation. Get it right! If you're talking about Windows PCs then say so. If your talking about Macs? Say so. If you're talking about Linux based PCs. Say so!

This is an important distinction to make. The PC landscape is changing rapidly. New OS players are coming into the market and they're all fighting for their slice of the pie. People tend to look to the media, blogs, forums etc to help them understand and figure out the differences between new products coming to the market. So it's important to get it right. Slow boot times are no longer an issue for everybody.

Apple seems to be able to do no wrong. Even though some of their business practices are worse than Microsofts'. Google is trying to muscle in with Android and Chrome OS. Both Linux based OSs. And of course we can't forget Linux it's self. Ubuntu is making good ground. Canonical, the parent developers of Ubuntu, are gaining support from the likes of IBM, Intel, Dell, HP and Sun Microsystems. All big names with interests in making Linux  success.

So in the time it takes your PC to boot. Try and see if you can figure out with OS you're running!

OpenOffice: Why Do OEMs Ignore it?

I was just wondering exactly how much adoption OpenOffice had achieved.
13% of the market sounds good. But what does it mean? And how just what
exactly will the threshold be before the likes of HP, Asus, Acer and Dell decide they can't ignore
OpenOffice any longer?

• http://user.services.openoffice.org/en/forum/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=138
• http://blogs.sun.com/jonathan/entry/more_momentum_behind_openoffice
  
• http://wiki.services.openoffice.org/wiki/Major_OpenOffice.org_Deployments
  
• http://knowledge.oscc.org.my/solution-areas/desktop/OpenOffice.org/openoffice-adoption
  
• http://moodle.centerville.k12.oh.us/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=32064
  
• http://ooomarketing.blogspot.com/2009/05/openofficeorg-in-education-adoption-is.html
  
• http://www.gabrielgurley.com/files/817a9ebbe54677f3e629f23b9698361e-10.html
  
• http://linuxbsdos.com/2008/11/17/norwegian-ministry-to-sponsor-adoption-of-openofficeorg/
  
• http://www.chrisbray.co.uk/danish-openoffice-adoption-case-study-reports-91-lower-tco
  

The following is a quote from the last link in the list.

"The total TCO for implementing OpenOffice.org LandsNet (the entire
public sector) ... OpenOffice.org results in a cost reduction of 91%".

The numbers speak for themselves!

Boycott Windows 7

Digg doesn't like the direct IdeaStorm link. It does go through a lot of redirections. So here it is.

Vote to Boycott Windows 7

Redmond Running Scared!

Microsoft are seriously pushing the boat out here. But still manage to put the boot into their UK customers. Why is Windows 7 cheaper in the US for students than it is in the UK? If memory serves me correctly Microsoft pulled a similar pricing stunt with Windows Vista. How much longer are people going to tolerate such shoddy treatment?

The price gap can't be explained purely by exchange rates alone. So what gives? Does Microsoft think students in UK colleges and universities are stupid? Are they just sheep to be pumped dry and ripped off? Why is it Microsoft has decided to climb aboard the "rip-off Britain" band wagon? Any company treating you like this does not deserve your money. Vote with your feet and your wallets and buy something else.

You could also head on over to Dell IdeaStorm and show one of Microsofts largest OEM partners exactly how you feel about Microsoft ripping you off. Register an account and vote to Boycott Windows 7. Better yet, if you're looking for a new netbook to take to college. Order one of Dells Ubuntu Linux based models. Which contrary to Microsofts BestBuy indoctrination FUD are fully supported by Dell.

Of course it's only fair we ask the question. Why are Microsoft being so agressive with their pricing of Windows 7? It can't be because of Linux. Linux is free to download, install and use. You can even get your hands on the raw source code if that's what floats your boat. Linux in short is a fully functional and fully customisable all purpose OS. Ubuntu, which is pre-installed on some Dell netbooks is a fully featured OS with no artificial limts imposed on it. In contrast netbooks with Windows 7 will be running the "Starter Edition".

What is the "Starter Edition"? Basically it's cripple ware. Microsoft in one way or another artificially limit the capabilities of Windows to force you the consumer who has already "paid money" for a legal copy of pre-installed Windows to cough up more cash. Hardly seems fair. But Microsoft have been getting away with it for years.

Note: Windows 7 Starter Edition no longer has the infamouse "3 applications" artificial limitation. Microsoft buckled under preasure of scathing critisim by almost the entire technology press and on-line publications, blogs, twitters and whatever else. If it was talking about Windows 7 Starter Edition (other than the Microsoft Windows 7 blog), the artificial 3 applications limitation was torn apart.

Dell Ubuntu ... What's Going On?

Dells stance on Ubuntu is supremely confusing. Ubuntu is clearly doing relatively well in the desktop market. There are several smaller vendors building and selling PCs pre-loaded with Ubuntu and doing it well. None of them seem to be going to the wall so they must be doing something right. Something Dell aren’t doing perhaps?

So Ubuntu it’s self simply can’t be the root of the problem.

Which means we need to look at other factors. It was only with the introduction of the Mini 9 Dell started offering Ubuntu as an option side-by-side with Windows. But even then they didn’t really tell people what it was they were offering.

If all you had ever known was chocolate ice cream. Would you try strawberry ice cream if you didn’t know what it was?

Are people overly critical of Dell for hiding their Ubuntu options? I don’t think so. If you were selling ice cream, would you only target people who had already tried it? The fact you’re already selling chocolate ice cream shouldn’t stop you from selling strawberry ice cream.

Almost any other company in the world selling any other product in the world would sell similar products from different vendors side-by-side. They wouldn’t shunt one into the basement.

Now finding Ubuntu based Dells is easy enough if you know where to look and if you know Ubuntu actually exists. But what if you don’t? If all the strawberry ice cream is in the basement and you’ve never even heard of it. How do you try it out? How do you get that first taste?

Lets say you’re out shopping. There’s a nice brightly lit store selling chocolate ice cream galore with all sorts of deals going on. Next to the store are some steps going to a dark dingy basement level with a tiny sign half obscured. It reads “Strawberry Ice Cream here”.

Are you tempted to try the strawberry ice cream?

Carnage In The Drive Bay!!!

Recently while installing Windows XP to a virtual machine my Windows disc exploded in the drive bay. This wasn't like previous DVD drive failures I've had in the past where discs were destroyed. There were none of the usual grinding or squealing warning signs that tell you somethings not right.

It just exploded! BANG! And I was sitting there thinking WTF!?!

The DVD drive continued trying to read the disc until I instructed Ubuntu to eject it. As it was Ubuntu the system didn't fall on it's arse for a simple DVD failure. It just soldiered on! When the drive tray slid out the crunching started and the tray got stuck. So there was nothing for it. Open DVD drive surgery had to be conducted as soon as possible.

This is where I have to congratulate Dell on their choice of DVD drives. Normally when opening a CD or DVD drive I run the risk of losing a finger or two because they normally aren't designed to be opened up at all. This Dell drive was different. The top and bottom covers were held together by four simple little screws. There was none of the usual mental finger lacerating origami that hold other drives together. Just four simple little screws.

My Windows disc was totally destroyed. It had fragmented into tiny wee pieces. Some of which I managed to jigsaw back together. Just for fun. Some of these bits are warped out of shape. So they no longer fit together exactly as they once did. And even with most of the bits in place there are still sizable chunks missing that can't be filled by the bits I have left. They aren't in the drive either. So I guess they've been vaporised!

Now my Windows disc is dead, my PC repair services are severely limited. I only ever used it for repairing other Windows systems. Which happened a lot. Maybe Microsoft are using specially weakened discs? Maybe that's just being too paranoid. Maybe Ubuntu had some weired auto-immune defensive reaction to the Windows disc infecting it's DVD drive. Either way the proprietary nature of Windows has left me with a problem. I have noway now to recover a F.U.B.A.R-ed Windows installation. And since Microsoft insist on using DRM features on their discs I don't have a back up. I can't help but wonder how many other people have found themselves in similar positions?

My PC is out of warranty. So I might not get a replacement disc from Dell. Although someone at Dell is kindly looking into the matter for me.

The DVD drive it's self seems to have survived it's ordeal. It's now working fine again. I tried it out with a crap DVD I didn't mind being destroyed. Steven Segals "Marked For Death". Which it seems my PC likes since it didn't destroy it.

What's In A Name

How did Microsoft come up with the name "Windows 7" for Windows 7?

Microsoft I think claimed that's what it is. The 7th version of Windows. But I'm finding that a bit hard to believe. It's not a 7th generation product unless it is of course nothing more than a re-branding of Windows Vista as I have said all along.

Apart from the look and feel of Windows 7 and the behaviour of the UAC crap. There is some good evidence that Windows 7 is just a re-branding exercise. Which if true means Microsoft and it's partners shipped an "alpha" level product and charged full price for it. The evidence is all in the name and the existence of the Mojave "punking" experiment conducted by Microsoft.

So what was Mojave? Well basically it was Windows Vista with UAC turned down or off running on a PC specially configured to be Windows Vista friendly. Microsoft invited "random" members of the public to try it out to see what they thought telling them it was the next generation Windows product. After which Microsoft interrogated it's lab rats until they ponied up the Vista marketing slogan "WoW".

So how do we get to Windows 7 and how does Mojave point to Microsoft and it's partners being lying thieving scumbags? Well all we need to do is examine the Windows family tree from Windows NT4.x on wards since this is the granddaddy of all modern desktop and server Windows operating systems.

So the order goes:

• Windows NT4.x (Windows 4),
• Windows 2000 and Windows XP (Windows 5),
• Windows Server 2003 (Windows 6),
• Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 (Windows 7?),
• Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (Windows ... err ... 7?).

Either somebody over at Redmond can't count or Microsoft are coning the public. Remember the "Mojave" experiment?

IF Windows 7 really is Windows 7, Microsoft have some explaining to do. Especially since they've released "Windows 7 Beta 1". The implication being Windows Vista wasn't even "beta" software. It was still in "alpha"!

Which in turn means we still haven't seen a release candidate for "Windows Vista ... err ... Windows 7" and Dell along with all of the other Windows PC builders have some refunds to pony up since they shipped a product that was clearly not ready for market and resulted in at least a large and vocal minority being forced to endure all manner of issues.

Windows Vista 7 really could be a time bomb waiting to explode in the face of the Microsoft kickback crowed. Especially since Microsoft will of course be expecting us all to pay full price for Windows Vista 7.

Windows 7 is just the same smoke and mirrors game as Windows Mojave. Personally I think all Windows users should teach Microsoft a really hard hitting lesson. Send the message ripping off your user base, your customers is totally out of order. Boycott Windows 7. Hit Microsoft where it hurts.

NOTE: I have left out Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Millennium Edition along with their various incarnations like OSR2 because they were supposedly a parallel code path to NT4.x that basically ended when Windows 2000 and Windows XP were developed from NT4.x.

Quick edit: Just found this link when submitting to Digg.

Dell Studio Hybrid!

I like the styling of the Hybrid. It's almost like my stackable multimedia rack idea over on IdeaStorm. Okay I might be stretching that a bit. But it's almost like it.

I like the interchangeable sleeves. The fashion conscious will love that feature. The slot loading DVD drive is another nice touch. In fact there are quite a few storage options packed into the hybrid. Including USB ports for flash drives and an SD card reader.

The inclusion of a HDMI port is also a nice touch. It will allow consumers to integrate the Hybrid seamlessly right into the home entertainment experience. I didn't notice it on the UK page, but apparently there's a TV decoder option as well. So people can use one machine for watching TV, listening to music, surfing the web, dealing with e-mail, recording/pausing live TV, playing DVDs (don't know about Blue-ray) and playing casual games. Tetris, Solitaire that sort of thing.

The Studio Hybrid only gets Intel X3100 graphics and a 5400RPM hard drive. The Intel graphics rule out high caliber resource hungry PC games. The slow hard drive might impact on recording Live TV. I guess it'll depend on what sort of quality you're willing to accept. But if you're plugging your Hybrid into a large LCD I'd say forget recording from the TV.



Overall I think Dell have made a good attempt here. It's a better option than previous attempts to build a desktop from laptop components. The XPS One and the XPS M2010 are more capable in the graphics department. But they're also tethered to their displays making them less adaptable and less able to integrate into the home environment. They were essentially still desktop PCs.

The hybrid is a device. A set-top box almost.

The final drawback is Windows Vista. Dell insists on selling the Hybrid with Vista because as we all know Dell "Recommends Vista". Which is of course nothing to do with how good Windows Vista is.

Well selling it with Vista means you need to take the most powerful configuration you can afford to get the best performance out of it. If it were being sold with Ubuntu we could get away with maybe 1GB of RAM instead of a minimum of 2GB. For Vista I'd recommend taking the full 4GB which of course will only give you 3.5GB because the "Wintel" feature that's meant to get you the rest doesn't work. But in fairness Dell do point out only 3.5GB will be available.

All things considered the Dell Studio Hybrid is a capable machine that will more than meet the needs of it's target audience at a reasonable price point. It's just a shame about the graphics and hard drive.

Dell: Microsofts Poodle?

Using the new "Top Ideas" feature on Dell IdeaStorm I tracked all the top rated ideas from the highest voted to 0 points. From page 1 to page 400. On every single page there were a healthy number of ideas relating to Linux, Ubuntu, OpenOffice.org, Firefox and free open source software in general.

The highest voted Linux/FOSS idea had 151870 points and the lowest had 9 points. I'm sure there are other with negative votes in the remaining 79 pages. But most of those ideas were about Microsoft products. Windows XP, Vista, Microsoft Works and Office. The remainder were hardware related, things Dell just can't do or non-idea threads.

Surely this must tell Dell something about the demand for free open source software on Dell PCs? The highest voted idea of all time here on IdeaStorm is Pre-Installed Linux | Ubuntu | Fedora | OpenSUSE | Multi-Boot with 151870 points. In fact the entire first page is all about Linux, FOSS and no trial ware. That theme continues all the way through IdeaStorm to page 400.

So why then is it that Dell still insists there isn't enough consumer demand to warrant treating Ubuntu as an equal to Microsoft Windows? Remember Dell told it's consumers "if they voted for it on IdeaStorm, they would get it". Why are Dell taking so long?

Firefox, Thunderbird and OpenOffice.org are all free open source applications. Firefox 3 even supports branding! Dell doesn't need permission to distribute these applications. It simply chooses not to. Even though we voted for them.

Dell Points The Finger

http://direct2dell.com/one2one/archive/2008/07/18/32-pages-of-paper-in-17-boxes.aspx?CommentPosted=true#commentmessage

The above link contains a post from Direct2Dell. Dells main blogging site. Dell would like to point the finger at HP for shipping 32 pages of A4 paper in 17 boxes. Well no wonder they continued to sell the defective W2600 and W3000 LCD TVs for so long. No wonder it's taking an age to get a product recall put into force.

Dell clearly has other priorities other than providing proper customer service. "We can all learn a lot by listening to customers and uncovering ways we can improve ...". Before we inprove the planet, could just try and get customer service right?

Recall All Dell w2600 LCD TVs and Displays With the No Power Problem

http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/10090584/Recall_ALL_Dell_W2600_LCD_TVs_and_Displays_With_the_No_Power_Problem

This was an idea submitted to Dells IdeaStorm web site by me. The idea is to get hese faulty displays recalled as they should have been all along. Dell has now marked this idea as reviewed in record time. Well record time for IdeaStorm anyway. Which probably means it's not going to happen. We'll have to wait and see.

From the IdeaStorm moderators blog.

REVIEWED: This idea has been tagged "Under Review," sent to the business for evaluation, and reviewed. This status tag will require a response from the business that includes a summary of the review process and any outcomes of the idea discussion.

UNDER REVIEW: Dell is reviewing the idea and evaluating it against criteria that include, but aren’t limited to: market impact, regional demand, feasibility, timing, and vendor/supplier availability, etc. In some cases, the idea review process may take only a few weeks, and in others it make take several months to determine its feasibility and market impact.

Dell Customer Service - Part 2 - Dell Hell.

Over the years a certain phrase has been introduced in to the English language. The phrase is “Dell Hell”. It refers to the monstrous task of getting Dell to take responsibility for it's mistakes and problems encountered with it's products and services. In fact the phrase is so widely used many people suspect it's the reason “hell” is banned from Dell Forums and Idea Storm.

In my first post to Dell Your Blog I touched on issues like the XPS 700 upgrades and the missing XPS M1330/M1330n remote controls. Both issues that affected me and my experience with Dell. But happily both issues that were solved relatively quickly. Relative that is compared to the Dell W2600 LCD TV NO POWER problem.

For those that are unaware of this particular issue basically it refers to a situation where Dells W2600 LCD TV fails to power up. Sometimes the TV can be coaxed into life. But sooner or later the TV just dies.

Now most people would expect a TV to last a good few years. Most would accept 5 years of loyal dutiful service. The W2600 was supposed to last around 10 years. But in reality many customers have been lucky to get past 2 and a half years, while some Dell customers have gotten as little as a year.

One single solitary year of proper use from an LCD TV. Oh and Dells customers like me who bought the W2600 paid £800+ GBP. That's $1520 USD on the current exchange rate.

Dells response to this issue thus far has been to repair or replace these faulty TVs with refurbished models. Which might sound like a good deal. But there's a catch. This offer is only valid for up to 3 years from the start of the original warranty. If you miss it, too bad. You're on your own. And Dell hasn't exactly gone out of it's way to publicize this offer or contact customers. In fact this problem has been dragging on since 2002. I bought my W2600 in 2005 and it's now 2008. Count the years slipping by.

So if Dell had known about this problem for 3 years before I bought my W2600. Why didn't they issued a product recall? Why didn't they pull the whole product line sooner? Yes that would have been expensive. But Dells reputation would have been intact. They would have been a company that cared. They would have been a company that put it's consumers first. Instead of a company that seems to be washing it's hands of a problem only they can really fix.

Now if you think a product recall is a bit drastic. Consider that the W2600 is a product with a premium price tag. It's also just one of several Dell LCD TVs to suffer from this problem. Also affected was the W3000 and several other models.

Thanks for reading this blog. Please visit IdeaStorm and vote up or down for a product recall.

Dell Customer Service - Part 1 - Simplify IT.

Customer service is an emotive issue for many Dell consumers. My experience on IdeaStorm and Dell Forums has shown me that many consumers have encountered problems with Dells customer service. Inconsistent short term special deals, poorly designed marketing and poor telephone support have left many customers feeling disgruntled and ripped off. The following is my opinion of what Dell needs to do to correct these issues.

Dell has made much noise about it's campaign to "simplify IT". What a shame it is then that this campaign was never extended to the consumer market. This is in fact the first step Dell needs to take. Not because Dells customers are stupid. But because communication is so much easier when it is kept simple.

Rather than telling the consumer the potential for the product. Tell them what it is actually for. Tell them what they can actually do with it. Rather than show off all the potential things we could have with the product. Show us what we are actually getting.

Too many times in the past has Dell made promises about products it never intended to keep. The XPS 700 upgrades, the M1330 remote controls and recently LightFX to name a few. Dell needs to focus it's message to the consumer. Dells consumers shouldn't have to campaign to make Dell keep these promises.

After Sales Support

People hate call centers. They make us feel like we're children getting into trouble for doing something naughty. And when they are over seas call centers the language barrier takes the frustration to intolerable levels.

Dell needs to ditch the over seas call centers in favor of more local call centers. Web based support should be utilized whenever and where ever possible. Develop a proper on-line knowledge base. I believe customers actually prefer to solve problems on their own. Ditch the Microsoft Internet Explorer centric support tools. Go with open source technologies for support. Adopt open standards on your web sites. ActiveX does not work for Linux customers! PHP does!

Use e-mail support more often. E-mails give everybody time to calm down and think. Customers can communicate more clearly what they want to say. Tech support can take a little more time to investigate the problem. They can even request log files for examination. Implement an instant on OS like Splashtop. If the main OS goes belly up, then at least the consumer can still get help. There are so many more tools Dell could use but don't use.

Borrow a few ideas from Linux. Package repositories for drivers and pre-installed applications! How much easier life could be if Dell was more imaginative with it's tech support.

The call center in the 21^st century should be the last resort.