Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:22:11 GMT

Oh, and running the PANTONE/gretagmacbeth Huey 1.05 monitor color calibration system.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:20:14 GMT

cgdams

Wierd. I just tried it again to be sure (and even set it run real size to make sure nothing was clipped) and it's fine.

I'm running 1680x1050 on an nVidia 8800GTS with driver version 177.92

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

cgdams — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:02:29 GMT

Mike,

nope, widescreen vs 4:3 is not be the reason, methinks.

I have a 1920x1200 wide display on my Notebook here, and there''s noise in the upper and lower left corner and in the upper right corner. i.e, in the darkest parts of the image.

The reason might be sensor induced noise that adds up to some form of a dynamic Moirée pattern in the video.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

DRWAM — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:08:29 GMT

Thanks Mike. I will check it out.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:49:41 GMT

DRWAM

It's essentially a logic puzzle game. The tutorial levels are good at teaching how to play but this type of game appeals to some people (like me) and others find them mind-numbingly boring (like my wife) and that's without even getting into age ranges.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:46:12 GMT

mdsharpe

They really are running fine here. I wonder if it's a widescreen vs 4:3 ratio thing. I'm running a wide display. Maybe I have noise but it's being clipped to fit the screen.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:38:08 GMT

shark

Yeah. My initial response to the "last year I met with a PC CEO" story was, "gee, I wonder if the CEO of that PC company got his dev team to fix their broken hibernation driver or just figured he'd blame Microsoft and save some dev money?"

Lyons has another silly one up talking about how Android's introduction to the smartphone market is equivalent to what would have happened if Linux had come out during the OS wars of the early 1990s rather than after Windows had become so universal. Of course, he totally missed that Linux actually DID come out then.

Footnote for the historically challenged: Linux first shipped in 1991 when the dominent desktop OS was MS-DOS, Apple's brand new System 7 was the dominent GUI and the dominent player in the industry was pushing OS/2 as the future.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

DRWAM — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:26:28 GMT

I really don't think that a lawsuit would have much or any merit, but now you guys got me curious to see if my kids will like the game. Do you think that an 8 yr old can do it? Heck, my kids enjoy the clip art fron Office 2004 and 2007. They will sit for an hour adding many types of pics to a word document. Thankfully, we are given 3 licenses from MS [or MSFT as above...am I cool now?]. That's pretty generous and a very nice feature as I would imagine that many households have more than one computer.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

shark47 — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:03:57 GMT

Mike, I agree with you. His article even starts off with, "Last year I was meeting with the CEO of a PC company..." We're almost in the 10th month of this year. Last year is a long time ago. Lot of things have changed since then. Even SP1 wasn't out, I think. Anyway, my point is, such articles are a bigger concern for MS. The average Joe doesn't care about the Ultimate Extras, but he does read these articles. Ultimate Extras understandably have a low priority in MS.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

gorath — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:45:03 GMT

OT, just out of curiosity, why do so many people now refer to Microsoft as MSFT? When, and why did that become 'cool'?

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

mikegalos@msn.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:42:46 GMT

shark

That article's pretty silly. Virtually every line of it's been said here by some of the silliest posters. Even down to using the NPD numbers.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

pthurrott — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:30:34 GMT

So...

Not sure about a class action lawsuit, but let's be honest. The Ultimate Extras are few and far between and they're all over the map. An enterprise tool for Bitlocker Drive Encryption and a silly little game bundled as part of the same package? Spare me.

It's no understatement to say that Extras is an embarrassment. My only real concern, though, is why Microsoft disappears for months at a time ... and then silently releases this silliness.

BTW... Tinker is actually a cute game. It's no reason to buy Ultimate. But then either is the entire Extras package.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

RaaJ — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:20:13 GMT

rjohn05:

@ September 23, 2008 3:56 PM you said:

"There should be a class action suit against them for this crap."

Now you say you bought Ultimate for the additional tools it provided. Why the false outrage against MSFT for something that was never advertised as the [or one of the] main reason(s) for buying the UItimate version? I ask you again.

Class action lawsuit?

Do you have a demonstrable case where a significant chunk of Ultimate users were harmed because MSFT did not meet expectations about one feature they never promised would be updated regularly in the first place?

What is your point exactly?

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

rjohn05 — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:00:22 GMT

@RAAJ

I did not buy Ultimate for the extras. I bought it because I needed the additional tools it provided.

I think you need to be a little more considerate.

re: Microsoft actually updates Ultimate Extras (Updated)

shark47 — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:34:15 GMT

tayme, the less Joe Biden and Michelle Obama speak, the better it is for them.