The Weekly Round-Up: 28.09.07

Not content with shafting Microsoft in a landmark ruling last week over the company's anti-competitive behaviour, the EC is now rubbing salt in the wounds by giving due consideration to a report by an influential think tank calling for naked PCs.

(Photos of which you won't find in silicon.com's superb Photos of the Month, though you might be surprised by what you will. And if that isn't enough, why not have a gander at this week's Halo 3-themed Caption Competition.)

Now this is nowhere near as interesting, exciting and liberated as it sounds - it just means a computer shipped without an operating system allowing users greater choice when it comes to installation. Nothing to do with bouncing breasts and tight bottoms, more's the pity.

It's all about choice, you see. Choice, you say? But Microsoft Vista offers nothing but choice. After all, you can get Vista in Home Basic, Business, Home Premium, Ultimate and Maximus Prime editions. What more choice would one need? Ah, you don't want Vista at all? Or even Windows? You strange people.

Shipping PCs with no operating systems is obviously a much bigger deal than shipping them with bundled media players, the crux of the company's lengthy case with the EC. And while Microsoft may not be too concerned with the outcome of last week's setback they may get the jitters over the call for naked PCs.

The EC is trying to encourage greater competition and see Microsoft's anti-competitive activities as a barrier. European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes recently growled: "Recent years have certainly seen innovation in high technology markets but largely in areas that Microsoft does not control." Ouch.

This is really all very salutary but who actually wants a naked PC? Certainly not the majority of consumers, the Round-Up would guess. It's bad enough having to use Windows, let alone having to go to all the hassle of installing it and then using it. After all, that's what most people will probably install anyway. A naked PC policy would open the door to Linux distributions but most likely only in the enterprise space or among power users. Installing Linux is hardly a hassle free experience for the average person in the street. (At which point the Round-Up dons a tin helmet and ducks.)

Anyway, back to the bit. The ramifications would clearly be enormous for Microsoft, but what of that other heinous bundler of operating systems - Apple.

Apple is a company which has long since touted that its computers are better than its rivals because the hardware and software are made by the same company and therefore better integrated. Surely this is going to harm the Cupertino firm?

Well there's good news and bad news on that front for the Mac.

The good news is that the report excluded the "premium" Mac from the need to ship without its crown jewels. Hooray!

The bad news is that it's excluded on the grounds that the Mac is not a serious computer for business. Boo!

The report states: "We consider the Mac to be a premium, niche product, like a Bang and Olufsen television, which is difficult to justify in the business world outside of the publishing sector. We therefore do not think that the Mac, despite claims of its superiority, provides a meaningful competitive threat to Microsoft." Double ouch.

Was that a boost to Apple's business or a kick in the teeth? Probably the former, by a nose.

And anyway, "difficult to justify in the business world outside the publishing sector"? We're not relying on too many stereotypes there then. It's almost like publishing doesn't really count as serious business. It's not as if all publishing and journalistic folk are a bunch of lazy, unprofessional wasters. Is it? Ah.

Staying with everyone's favourite monopoly, from the reports this week you'd think that Microsoft's Redmond campus was beset on all sides by an angry group of angry computer manufacturers hammering at the gates and carrying burning brands.

"Give us back XP!" yells the throng. "You can shove Vista where the sun don't shine, Ballmer!" "Give us the lesser of two evils!" Or something like that. Or at least so the Round-Up likes to imagine. The growing demand for Microsoft's last-but-one operating system is gathering momentum. It's probably not the kind of marketing buzz the company was hoping to garner following its big 'Wow Starts Now' campaign but it's certainly novel.

You may recall recent reports that individuals and businesses are holding off from making the migration to Vista and legacy driver hell. Well, those reports are growing in number, not diminishing, and OEMs are listening to their customers.

Microsoft is listening to. While it is still pushing Vista hard, the company is quietly allowing PC makers to offer a "downgrade" option to buyers that get machines with the new operating system but want to switch to Windows XP.

Fujitsu has been among the most aggressive, starting last month to include an XP disc in the box with its laptops and tablets.

Fujitsu marketing manager Brandon Farris took time out from throwing Molotov cocktails at the Microsoft buildings to state that SMEs in particular would benefit from its XP programme. "We're lobbying hard for this," he added.

"Take that, you CPU-hogging swines!" BOOM!

Meanwhile, HP started a similar scheme back in August for a number of its business machines, Lenovo has details for its downgrade programme on its IBM ThinkPad website and a Dell spokeswoman said they have also been offering businesses the option.

Hardly a ringing endorsement is it? Still there's always the exciting prospect of Vista Service Pack 1 coming up to try and drum up business. How about that for an enticement to upgrade? What? No? Stick it where? Oh…

IBM's Italian operation was bracing itself for industrial action this week with workers planning a one-day strike over a recent pay dispute.

However, in typical laid-back, Mediterranean style, they can't even be bothered to man the picket lines in person and are planning to loudly voice their dissatisfaction with the IBM management in Second Life.

The Italian IBMers and their union, the UNI, are up in virtual arms over a pay deal that saw a pay increase declined despite a rise in company profits.

Now the highly disgruntled and wildly gesticulating union is encouraging the proles to make their voices heard by encouraging them to march their randomly coloured, winged, furry and antlered avatars on the IBM properties.

Supportive co-workers around the world have been warned that joining their comrades in the virtual world should be done in their own time and on non-IBM computers, which shouldn't be too difficult seeing as ThinkPads are made by Lenovo these days.

The action might have some results. IBM has steadily been increasing its presence in the virtual world, like many other big brands, only more so.

The industrial action was proceeding as the Round-Up went to press, digitally speaking, so there'll be a recap of what the result of the action was next week. If there was any result. Which there probably won't be. So we'll move on, then...

Finally this week, "stupid, male geeks" will be the bane of our industry.

So says Father Geek Sir Tim Berners-Lee in a savage blast at the industry sub-culture that disregards the work of capable female engineers and puts others off entering the profession.

Berners-Lee said a culture that avoided alienating women would attract more female programmers - and it would take a brave man with a team of hardened sherpas behind him to defy that sort of logic.

"There are bits of male geek culture and engineer culture that are stupid. They should realise that they could be alienating people who are smarter and better engineers," he said.

The Round-Up suspects that this is precisely the reason they are being alienated.

Berners-Lee said engineering research facilities that interview candidates based only on how many papers they have had published also risk adding to the problem, because of an apparent in-built bias against women.

He claimed that one academic went through a sex change, submitted the same papers under both identities, and found that papers were accepted from a man but were rejected when they came from a woman.

Bravo! You've got to admire to academic rigour of someone who would change their sex just to produce a thesis. What commitment! Unless they had been planning the sex change for years, which the Round-Up supposes is possible as well.

Sir Tim says that without more female engineers there can be no "interoperability". A fine sentiment but asking a little too much of the "stupid, male geek" - itself a worn-out cliché that persists in being the catch-all phrase for techies. Is it still the case any more? Are we just talking about the lower echelons of the fictional tech gene pool?

Some people out there might say that Sir Tim himself must carry some if not most of the blame for perpetuating this race of anti-social, obnoxious demi-humans.

After all, the guy is responsible for inventing the World Wide Web, which in turn has meant that those lacking social decorum have been afforded a perfect refuge from reality. If they had been deprived access to such a pervasive and empowering online world where they can communicate anonymously and rant obnoxiously, and instead were made to get outside, get some exercise and take up a hobby, they may have learned some valuable lessons about getting along with their fellow men. And, more importantly, women.

But they haven't and now female tech workers are bearing the brunt thanks to this knight of the realm. So it's all Tim Berners-Lee's fault. Or quite possibly not. Actually, arise again Sir Tim, we love you really.

Anyway, 'less obnoxious geeks and more lovely ladies'. An anthem for our industry - sing it from the rooftops and sing it proud.

Until next week, extend your downtime just a little bit longer by kicking back and relaxing with the Weekly Round-Up podcast, available here and from iTunes.