Death of the Desktop = Death of Microsoft?

[sao123]

With Microsofts documented complete failure in the mobile device market (tablets and phones) http://semiaccurate.com/2013/07/22/microsoft-drove-the-bus-off-the-cliff-now-it-tries-to-speed-up/ and Complete failure of Windows 8, I wonder why is Microsoft pushing so hard for the death of the desktop?

The corporate world and the workstation is all thats keeping Microsoft from destroying its company into bankruptsy, and all indications are Microsoft has no learned its lesson, and moves foreward with a desktopless Windows 9.

No matter how hard mircosoft dreams, tablets and moble phones will never compete with the destkop PC & traditional (no touch) laptop for the workplace. No Administrative assistant is going to type documents on a table with a touch screen, not when they can pound out 100WPM on a keyboard. Same with engineers, Graphics Designers, programmers, etc.

Microsof tis essentially trying to kill of the only market which is sustaining its business. Tho once it does, i guess enterprise will finally switch its users over the the Linux/Unix OS and open source apps... Tohugh, there would need to be a much better Linux alternative to Active Directory & Systems Management Console for remotely admininstering those type of machines.

 

[lxskllr]

MS has a long way to go before dying, but their monopoly is diminishing. I think people are starting to realize MS isn't as essential to computing as they thought. They now have to compete on merit, in a broader field.

 

[Mem]

MS has a long way to go before dying, but their monopoly is diminishing. I think people are starting to realize MS isn't as essential to computing as they thought. They now have to compete on merit, in a broader field.

I agree,Microsoft want a bigger piece of the cake and so tablet/phone market is another area where they can try and make money.

I don't think Microsoft will die ,but they are probably heading in a different direction to the old days which I can understand since technology and times due change.
As to desktop OS I just think that's changing with the times,Win9 probably be a hybrid OS as well IMHO.
It's also now more competitive then the old days.

 

[corkyg]

Was listening to a discussion by investment analysts on Bloomberg radio, and MS was the subject. Their consensus was that MS is moving away from the consumer market and will concentrate on the enterprise world. Rationale for the consensus included analysis of many recent management changes at MS. Specifically they do not intend to seriously compete in the tablet world.

MS is not pushing for the demise of the desktop PC, they are reacting to it.

 

[Matt1970]

Even though they are slowly dying out I still have a large customer base with desktops and laptops even more so. People still love a full size keyboard and large screen.

 

[ControlD]

In a very large portion of the corporate world (I would say almost all of it) MS has no competition in the desktop OS market and I have seen nothing in the past few years to indicate that is changing. I think MS is trying to react to a rapidly changing home market with Windows 8 and they are basically playing with house money. They have the business world locked up which gives them some freedom to try something new with the home market.

 

[biostud]

Tablets has no future

 

[IndyColtsFan]

You're not looking at the bigger picture. Microsoft isn't "pushing for the death of the desktop" by any stretch of the imagination -- the market is relegating desktop and laptop PCs to the back seat in favor of tablets and phones and Microsoft is trying to preserve its future. You're also ignoring the very relevant fact that tablets can have keyboards (iPads and other have keyboard cases), docking stations, etc. which effectively make them as easy to use as a PC. Desktop and laptops still have a future in business but increasingly, tablets will also make more penetration in that market and Microsoft knows this very well.

 

[escrow4]

You're not looking at the bigger picture. Microsoft isn't "pushing for the death of the desktop" by any stretch of the imagination -- the market is relegating desktop and laptop PCs to the back seat in favor of tablets and phones and Microsoft is trying to get preserve its future. You're also ignoring the very relevant fact that tablets can have keyboards (iPads and other have keyboard cases), docking stations, etc. which effectively make them as easy to use as a PC. Desktop and laptops still have a future in business but increasingly, tablets will also make more penetration in that market and Microsoft knows this very well.

Not as easy as with a 24" monitor and a grunty box purring away under the desk. I wonder if Microsoft CAN adapt, they have never had Apple's marketing appeal with tablets/phones.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Not as easy as with a 24" monitor and a grunty box purring away under the desk. I wonder if Microsoft CAN adapt, they have never had Apple's marketing appeal with tablets/phones.

That isn't technically impossible with a tablet either -- you can get video adapter cables for the iPad, for example.

I don't think Microsoft will successfully adapt with Ballmer in charge. He needs to go and should've been let go years ago.

 

[Matt1970]

That isn't technically impossible with a tablet either -- you can get video adapter cables for the iPad, for example.

I don't think Microsoft will successfully adapt with Ballmer in charge. He needs to go and should've been let go years ago.

No, not impossible, but why get a boatload of crap to make your iPad into a desktop when you can just get a desktop?

 

[lxskllr]

No, not impossible, but why get a boatload of crap to make your iPad into a desktop when you can just get a desktop?

So you can take your whole computer with you. That's what the Ubuntu Indiegogo campaign is for. You have all your data and programs which fit in your pocket, and then you can dock the unit for a full desktop experience. That's the future of computing. It won't work for every use, but it wouldwork great for most home users.

 

[Cerb]

Microsoft needs to force Ballmer to step back down to being a businessman, rather than a leader. Everything they do is a poorly-executed reaction, these days. They need somebody who's a good market weathervane to make the overarching decisions. The way they're acting now not only hurts them, but also the computer OEMs that rely on them, and over the next several years, it's going to be spilling over into SMBs.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

So you can take your whole computer with you. That's what the Ubuntu Indiegogo campaign is for. You have all your data and programs which fit in your pocket, and then you can dock the unit for a full desktop experience. That's the future of computing. It won't work for every use, but it wouldwork great for most home users.

And even for business users too. Microsoft actually does get that and knows they have to do something to get a large foothold in that market and increase their marketshare. If they don't, Apple and Google will and at some point, those platforms will start replacing Windows everywhere.

Will desktops completely go away? No, not at all. However, they will quite likely be relegated to a niche product category at some point in the future. Tablets can (and will, IMO) largely replace laptops as well.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

No, not impossible, but why get a boatload of crap to make your iPad into a desktop when you can just get a desktop?

Do you have a job in corporate America, one where you're issued a laptop? I do, and I also have a docking station, standard keyboard, mouse, and large monitor. As a matter-of-fact, EVERY job I've ever had gave me that complete package. Why do you suppose I was given all of that rather than a desktop?

 

[Matt1970]

So you can take your whole computer with you. That's what the Ubuntu Indiegogo campaign is for. You have all your data and programs which fit in your pocket, and then you can dock the unit for a full desktop experience. That's the future of computing. It won't work for every use, but it wouldwork great for most home users.

So now you need a full size monitor, keyboard and all kinds of accessories at all the places you want your full desktop experience. I am not denying the technology at all. The future for most is having computing power that fits in your pocket, I fully embrace it. There is nothing like being able to reach in your pocket and be able to check the radar or a price of something on the net. I am just saying if you want the full desktop experience, nothing beats a desktop, and if you want the full desktop experience wherever you go then nothing beats a laptop.......

 

[Matt1970]

Do you have a job in corporate America, one where you're issued a laptop? I do, and I also have a docking station, standard keyboard, mouse, and large monitor. As a matter-of-fact, EVERY job I've ever had gave me that complete package. Why do you suppose I was given all of that rather than a desktop?

But you weren't issued an ipad or smartphone , you were issued a laptop.

 

[lxskllr]

So now you need a full size monitor, keyboard and all kinds of accessories at all the places you want your full desktop experience. I am not denying the technology at all. The future for most is having computing power that fits in your pocket, I fully embrace it. There is nothing like being able to reach in your pocket and be able to check the radar or a price of something on the net. I am just saying if you want the full desktop experience, nothing beats a desktop, and if you want the full desktop experience wherever you go then nothing beats a laptop.

Sometimes good enough is good enough. Editing a spreadsheet on your phone may not be fun, but it beats a blank when sitting in the DMV waiting for bureaucracy to run its course. No convoluted syncing routines, and making sure you synced the necessary stuff without exceeding HD capacity. You have your entire computer in your pocket.

Duplicating functionality is wasteful. The only thing that makes a desktop a desktop is the big monitor, a mouse, and a keyboard. Why have a tower, or even a big laptop case full of toxic parts, when a phone does it all?

Edit:
I guess I don't understand why you don't find this model exciting. A whole *real* computer in your pocket. Not a craptastic, cut down device like Android , or IOS. My only concern is having devices that are locked down, and can't be modified by the user. That would kill the whole deal for me, and make it substantially less cool.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

But you weren't issued an ipad or smartphone , you were issued a laptop.

That's because tablets are still an emerging market in business. A little over a decade ago, most users were given desktops and only execs and certain other users were given laptops. That changed over time and the same is true for tablets.

 

[corkyg]

A tablet with a USB port can be made useful in the business world. For that reason, iPads are largely personal entertainment devices.

Due to Forum time warps, this note was jumped back. It was in reply to message 20 and posted approximately 11:30 AM MST. Sheesh!

 

[BrightCandle]

I think Microsoft has it right, businesses and general home users want more mobile devices. Moving their OS in the direction of where the market is clearly heading to put a real computer in the pocket of everyone makes a lot of sense. But there will always be people needing higher performance than a tablet/phone or even a laptop.

 

[dagamer34]

I look at Microsoft's revenues as a company and realize that most of it doesn't come from consumer copies of Windows, but corporate software license agreements, server software, and Office, all areas where Microsoft is growing.

Fact of the matter is that even if millions of tablets are being sold, web traffic doesn't seem to show it. One has to wonder if these Android tablets are even being connected to the Internet for general use in the first place.

 

[OneOfTheseDays]

Of all the big companies out there, MSFT is best positioned to survive the future of computing as we know it. Their vision is ultimately what will win out when all is said and done. Unifying the phone/tablet/PC operating systems is the right way to go and you will see Apple and others follow suit soon enough.

MSFT stumbled by forcing the tablet interface down desktop user's throats. They would be much better served having separate interfaces for desktop/tablet users, whilst keeping the core OS functionality common.

 

[Mushkins]

Sometimes good enough is good enough. Editing a spreadsheet on your phone may not be fun, but it beats a blank when sitting in the DMV waiting for bureaucracy to run its course. No convoluted syncing routines, and making sure you synced the necessary stuff without exceeding HD capacity. You have your entire computer in your pocket.

Duplicating functionality is wasteful. The only thing that makes a desktop a desktop is the big monitor, a mouse, and a keyboard. Why have a tower, or even a big laptop case full of toxic parts, when a phone does it all?

Edit:
I guess I don't understand why you don't find this model exciting. A whole *real* computer in your pocket. Not a craptastic, cut down device like Android , or IOS. My only concern is having devices that are locked down, and can't be modified by the user. That would kill the whole deal for me, and make it substantially less cool.

Not another "the desktop is dead" doom and gloom thread .

The mobile pocket dockable PC is a cool idea, but it's a loooooong way off from reaching parity with desktop computing, much less overtaking it. Tablets and smartphones definitely meet certain needs in the market, but so do desktops.

Raw Power: Come talk to me when they start making affordable mobile chipsets with integrated GPUs that can compare to an i7 4770 or... any modern dedicated GPU really. And we're not just talking games here: video/audio editing, CAD work, any GPGPU workloads, there's all sorts of things where the technology to put fast enough hardware in a palm sized form factor just isn't gonna happen anytime soon. We're still struggling to fit that kind of hardware in an actually portable laptop with any sort of reliability.

Security: It's a lot easier to keep a desktop at a desk than it is a smartphone or a tablet. MDM is still a nightmare for IT departments, especially since the users are all pushing for bring your own device so they don't have to carry around two. Not to mention the odds of Manager Bob losing his $2000 portable PC with *all* his sensitive work documents on it on the train, *again*. Or Sally's kids dropped hers and broke it, *again*. Even for home users, all I have to worry about with my desktop is if someone breaks into my house and wants to lug the thing out. Im already paranoid enough about losing my smartphone, and that's just full of pictures of my cat, I can't imagine if I had whats on my desktop in my pocket all day. More mobility doesn't always = more better, there are considerable risks.

Cost & cost vs performance: There's still a reason desktops are a lot cheaper than laptops and tablets and the rest. The parts are way cheaper to manufacture and they're still more reliable due to not trying to cram as much as they can onto boards restricted to the size of a candy bar. Something goes wrong with your smartphone, odds are you're talking a complete device replacement. You have a hardware issue on a desktop, most of the time you swap out a single relatively inexpensive part and move on.

So long story short, the answer to your question is "because a phone doesnt do it all yet, and it won't for a reasonably long time." Sometimes good enough is absolutely good enough, I answer more work emails on my phone than I do at my desktop simply because it works just fine and i'm usually all over the offices or traveling. But for most people there's a lot more to the desktop workspace than just a bigger monitor, and most people do more in a day than just make a few quick edits to spreadsheets. The mobile devices are a great supplement to the regular workhorse equipment to keep productivity up during what would otherwise be dead time, but they're far from a replacement.

 

[lxskllr]

Not another "the desktop is dead" doom and gloom thread ...

Not sure who you're arguing with. Without picking everything apart in detail, computers have been overpowered for the average user for years now. A large portion of the population doesn't need more power than a phone provides.

As far as everything else goes, they're only details that need to be weighed against other details. You didn't make a single argument that says phones shouldn't be used as a full computer. Only that sometimes they may not make a good full computer. Same as every other piece of hardware out there. A computer hasn't been made yet that does everything perfectly.