Microsoft laying off 5000 employees

Really2

Nail_Lad wrote: »

MS are starting layoffs...

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=109851

mmmm wonder if they will punish europe for opening the competion case again.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7834792.stm

mewbie_2

akks wrote: »

This recession really is going beyond scary now.

Yeah, 5,000 geeks loose on the streets. It's the end of the line for t-shirt, spectacle and athlete's foot powder outlets.

Really2

mewbie wrote: »

Yeah, 5,000 geeks loose on the streets. It's the end of the line for t-shirt, spectacle and athlete's foot powder outlets.

I wonder if they are getting rid of the ones that writte the code which makes IE freeze 20 times a day. I find this as a feature rather uselss and think they could actualy drop it.

Snooze

mewbie_(in_response_to_Mr._Broderick) wrote: »

Are you out of your mind man? OK, you may be very happy right now, but surely 100 billion would a certain little extra to your life? For example - you could employ a team of people to write crap on here, and do something else instead.

PMSL . Love the "careful" wording of that last sentence! :T

Rob

Snooze

Nail_Lad wrote: »

MS are starting layoffs...

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=109851

If Vista wasn't so !!!!!! then maybe they wouldn't need to!

Rob

Snooze

Really2 wrote: »

I wonder if they are getting rid of the ones that writte the code which makes IE freeze 20 times a day. I find this as a feature rather uselss and think they could actualy drop it.

Uh-oh, who left the can opener laying around?!!! :eek:

I'll give it 1 hour before this thread is 18 pages long of arguments about why Firefox is better than IE and vice-versa. :rolleyes:

Rob

epz_2

Microsofts problems are a bit more structural than just a credit crunch issue.

basicly office and xp got good enough that nobody needed to change while a lot of new services got migrated to web apps (1) so osx got its foot in the door with interesting hardware design and linux got so easy to use that its not even funny.

I know our company isnt planning on wasting development time supporting windows servers as they are an admin hassle and our customers are mostly big iron shops who are pretty happy to play on a linux but i bet there are plenty of other places realsing its cheaper to employ a high end *nix admin over a team of desktop support bods.

last i heard they did a lot of creative accounting to deal with the way they get huge but sporadic income, i also know most of the talent hate working there and do it purely for the cash (read stock options) which could mean they are a bit like they a shark and it they stop swimming they die fast.




(1) you can play quake in a web browser !!!!!!

BenL

If most of the development for Windows 7 has been done it makes sense for them to reduce headcount if this is what they normally do when coming to the end of a project.

A lot of the 5000 maybe contractors anyway who would have expected to be out of work towards this time.

mr.broderick

BenL wrote: »

If most of the development for Windows 7 has been done it makes sense for them to reduce headcount if this is what they normally do when coming to the end of a project.

A lot of the 5000 maybe contractors anyway who would have expected to be out of work towards this time.

But of course, anyone with an ounce of sense knows this but hey the media love it don't they, love to whip up a frenzy and all that.

chopperharris

FAO bill gates.Looks liek you need some money mate , heres some ideas for you.

Make a downloadable version of windows xp for 20 bucks for linux based systems like the netbook , tweak/cut down to run on it as fast as linny.Embed the serial inside the download as a pre registered unique key.You missed the boat there your greedy boy.

use the windows piracy detector program to allow legitimacy "upgrade"for 20 bucks for xp....or kill core windows files.Use same unique id key mentioned above.

Sponsor websites to run checks for registered windows before allowing acess as part of malware protection to run ANY core windows files.Make oems use checks as part of their download updates pages in the licence.Start windows lotto gving away jackpots/software/xboxs every day in participating sites that sign up ....perhaps a global progressive jackpot?

Tie up windows live/hotmail to at least one windows serial , legit check the serial to acess.

Make the next xbox purely a standalone based on direct x again , then theres no need to make any console hardware.... also port it to linux.Make it stand alone of the os , ie boot to games in bios.Two variants , easy play for light games , and xtreme for hardcore gamers.Yearly based payment system the price a game is itself , hardcore of course subject to hardware test.

Make windows 7 in three flavours , LIVE , work , or PLAY.Every work pc serial needs to be registered over the phone and can never be used to acess the internet , except through a registered ip .Live being the same as work but does everything except gaming.Play does gaming independant of the os itself , yearly subs as mentioned above , but also includes LIVE version for everything else.

Tie up oem pc manufacturers to specific firmware in dvd drives used as a regularly checked HARDWARE serial , not unlike the way now used in 360 drives.This will reduce the oem piracy loop to almost none.

Dont lay off employees , relocate them to india.