An Alternative to Windows (14 Aug 2004)

Usability Views Article Details

An Alternative to Windows (14 Aug 2004)
When I plugged in my Wal-Mart machine and hit the power button, I got a look at an alternate future that ought to be fueling Pepcid sales among Microsoft executives. The computer featured a glamorous new desktop screen and sophisticated control panels, help menus, and audio tutorials. I was instantly able to connect the machine to the Internet, where I downloaded-free of charge-open-source equivalents of the Microsoft Office programs I use every day: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Internet Explorer. The free software may not have all of Office’s bells and whistles, but the version of it I chose, Open Office, does everything I need it to do-including saving files in Word format.

Article URL: http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/04/09/roush0904.asp

Read 178 more articles from Technology Review Magazine sorted by date, popularity, or title.

Next Article: Audio watermarking

Some of the people who make up the Userati group

This site is a labour of love built by Chris McEvoy