Book #7

Mr. Mulliner Speaks
P.G. Wodehouse

Yes, P.G. Wodehouse again.  I needed something fun and light after being bludgeoned by another volume of The Wheel of Time.

This is the second volume of the Mr. Mulliner stories.  The stories are told by Mr. Mulliner, a patron of a pub called the Angler's Rest, where he is a regular imbider of a Hot Scotch and Lemon.  The stories all concern persons related to him, most carrying the last name of Mulliner.

In the preface of the omnibus edition, The World of Mr. Mulliner, he gives an anecdote from Oliver Wendell Holmes about writing so funny that it gave his butler convulsions and vowing never to write as funny as he can.  Wodehouse then follows with:

"I must warn my public that in 'The World of Mr. Mulliner' I am writing as funny as I can, and can only hope that there are no ill results."

 

For those who have read any of the Jeeves and Wooster stories, it is easy to say that the Mr. Mulliner stories are in the same vein, but a bit sillier.  Some will find that hard to believe, after reading any Jeeves and Wooster book, but it is true.

 

This second volume is notable for finishing with a series of Bobbie Wickham stories.  Bobbie Wickham is a rather pretty young lady.  Men are constantly falling for her, and then being put off because she puts them into the most embarrassing situations imaginable.  She was once the intended fiancé of Bertie Wooster, who managed to escape from her, and the stories are generally about men who decide that they are better off without her.

 

More fun with Wodehouse and a truly enjoyable read.

A Shout Out to Staples

Lately, on the Tech Blogs, you hear about sales people at Best Buy, Office Depot and Staples trying to sell the Microsoft Surface and making a right bugger of it, as the English might say. Well, I want to give a shout out to Staples for having at least one person in the store who managed to hit all the high points about Microsoft Surface. I just wish that I had thought to get his name.

He saw me looking at the Surface and came up to see if I needed help. He asked if I knew anything about Windows 8, and I said I did, so he just talked about Surface. I thought he was going to make a mistake as he started by saying that the Surface ran Windows 8, and was just like the PCs with Windows 8, but then he fielded it cleanly by adding that it was the same, except that it would not run old Windows apps, then he showed me the Microsoft Store, and said that it would install any of these apps.

He mentioned that the Surface used an ARM processor. Now, I do not know about anyone else, but I have always just called it an “arm” processor, saying the word, but he spelled it out, saying that the Surface had an A.R.M processor. Sounded odd to me.

He pointed out the USB port, and the SD card slot, though actually he did not show me where it was. He showed that it could be used like a tablet, detached from the cover and even turned on its side in portrait mode. He also showed off the cable that will turn the mini display port on the Surface into either an HDMI port, or a VGA port. That he where he finally told me something I did not know, as I had not really looked at the peripherals for Surface.

He also showed me an ASUS and an Acer portable that had touch screens, and when I mentioned that I would like something with a little more graphics horsepower for games, he showed me an AMD processor portable with a better ATi card in it.
 
Over all, he was knowledgeable and personable and it was a rather pleasant experience…well, except for my not having the money to actually buy one.

Book #6

The Shadow Rising
Robert Jordan

Having just finished book #4, The Shadow Rising, I’ve decided to give up on the Wheel of Time books for a time.  I have two reasons.  One, I do not like them as much as I had hoped, and two; they are each so long that it is taking me way too long to get through one.  I will never get anywhere near 100 books reading these massive things.

The Shadow Rising is 980 pages in paperback.  While the writing is okay, and the stories are enjoyable, there is just way too much filler to keep you plugging along and they are just too long.  I have felt this before and even mentioned it before, and in my opinion, some editor should have told him to cut at least 100 pages out of this thing.  Each of the four I have read would have been better for significant tightening.

But, not liking them is a much harder thing to describe.  I can point to what I do not like, which includes the entire plot line about the Seanchan, but I have not been able to figure out exactly why I do not like that plot line, except that is makes me nervous and anxious.  All I can clearly say is that I do not like it.

The Shadow Rising includes a change in the general formula of the first three books.  Just like the first three books, Jordan splits the group up and sends them in different directions.  Perrin returns to the Two Rivers with Faile; Elayne and Nynaeve are off to Tanchico in Tarabon looking for the Black Ajah and; Rand, Egwene are off to the Aiel Waste.  Unlike the first three books, Jordan never brings them back together.  Each of the three groups deals with the problems before them, and finally Rand takes another step forward to his destiny.

But, I won’t be back to them right away.

The Future of Windows RT

This is a follow up to my post To Windows 8 or not to Windows 8, but it is mostly inspired by a different post.

 

Is Windows 8 a bad OS for tablets? It's time to decide...

 

Though many of the commenters did not like the article, but I did.  Unlike his conclusion in the debate, the author decided that Windows RT wasn't a bad OS for tablets, though he did feel that it was not really there yet and needed work.  I think I can sum up the work needed for Windows RT.

1. Get rid of desktop mode.
2. Fix the mail app

Now, that sounds simple, but getting rid of the desktop means porting Office to WinRT (that is the programming layer for Modern Apps), and I do not think that was ready.  Yes, what I am saying is that Office held back the development of Windows RT.  I got no proof, but it is still what I believe.

 

So, where does Windows RT go from here? 

 

Personally, I expect Windows RT sales to be a little pathetic for a while.  There are problems, though most of the ones put forward are ridiculous. Only the two above need to really be addressed by Microsoft.  The other big problem is the lack of apps, and that will fix itself over time, especially with Microsoft working with developers to ensure they (the developers) are making money.

 

Everything needs to be written to work in the Modern UI, Office, File Explorer, Control Panel, etc.  Now, this goes beyond just the built in apps, as I said in a previous post, Microsoft needs to find a way to encourage big 3rd party developers, like Adobe, to move their apps to WinRT.

 

Another key for Windows RT is the success of Windows 8.  Let us look into the future.

 

Windows 8 may or may not be as huge a success as Windows XP and Windows 7, but just like Vista, it is going to end up on a lot of PCs, and Windows 8 does not have the disadvantages of Vista.  Vista's problems were under the hood, and there Windows 8 is streamlined and powerful.  A year from now, I see lots of PCs with Windows 8, and then the change begins.

 

Today, if you use a Windows PC, it is likely to be Windows 7, and if you decide you want a tablet, then you are looking at iOS on the iPad and iPad mini, Android on a selection of 7-11 inch tablets, Amazon Kindle, I will even throw in Nook for good measure, and Windows RT.  You've probably been using Windows for years, gone from Windows 95, to 98, maybe 2000, finally XP and now 7.  There have been UI changes, but it you went straight from Windows 95 to Windows 7, you would learn it very quickly. 

 

Now, look at the array of tablets.  None of them is anything like Windows 7.  One of them says it is Windows, but it don't look like any Windows you remember.  So, buying a tablet will mean learning a new OS, so they all start off even from that standpoint.  To figure out which one you want, and assuming you want to make a considered intelligent decision, then you are going to have to figure out the strength and weaknesses of each.

 

My real point here is that Windows RT does not offer any specific advantages over the others.  Yes, it has some advantages, but iOS has more apps, so does Android.  Kindle has all the incredible Amazon content.  Right now, Windows RT cannot match those.

 

Now, jump forward a year or two.  You've been using Windows 8 on your PC for a year or so.  The UI may have taken a little getting used to, but you did it.  You know how to work the UI.  If you bought a portable (trackpad) or a touchscreen then you may even have learned some of the gestures.

 

Now, you go and look at tablets, and Windows RT offers a big advantage that none of the others do...well, unless you bought another tablet OS previously.  You already know the interface.  It looks just like your PC.  I think this makes Windows RT a much bigger draw than it is today, familiarity will push you towards Windows RT, or towards whatever you already have.

 

In two years, the Windows Phone app ecosystem has grown to the point where it is only a minor deficit.  The same will happen with Windows 8, and Windows RT will actually be the big winner from that.

 

So, the future of Windows RT may be slow sales in the short term, but in one to two years, RT will have matured.  I think that a full WinRT version of Office will appear and the desktop in Windows RT will go away, providing a consistent smooth experience.  The built in apps will improve, and the number and quality of 3rd party apps will improve.

 

And, when you go to look at a tablet, Windows RT will look good, because you already know the interface, and because you will already know most of the apps you want to download (from Windows 8).  The transition from PC to tablet will be simple and smooth.

Book #5

Carry On, Jeeves
P.G. Wodehouse

I’ve been falling behind, and not just in reading enough books.  I finished this one over a week ago and I forgot to write and post about it.

Carry On, Jeeves is a collection of short stories first published in 1925.  The first story is the tale of how Jeeves and Wooster met, Jeeves Takes Charge.

I am also a big fan of the Jeeves and Wooster series done by the BBC and also shown on PBS.  I was surprised in reading this collection to find that almost every story here provides at least a partial plot for the show.

If you are interested in reading Jeeves and Wooster, but unsure about where to start, then Carry On, Jeeves would be a good place to start.

To Windows 8 or not to Windows 8....

Windows RT: Worthless or the future of Windows?

 

So, this got me thinking.

 

25 January 2013

 

At the time I am writing this, only the opening statements of this debate have been posted, and so there isn't much to go on.

 

I believe that Windows 8 is the future...well, at least for the next two to three years. I do not think that Microsoft is going to do the same thing that they did with Windows XP and Windows Vista. Windows 8 is here to stay. I do not believe that Microsoft is going to rethink its strategy and make Windows 9 closer to Windows 7.

 

Why?

 

Because I think that Microsoft has recognized the trend of the future, fewer and fewer PCs and more and more mobile devices. They have a strong entry in the smartphone market. They dominate the PC market. What they need is an entry into the growing tablet market.

 

The strategy behind Windows 8 and it's sister OS Windows RT is two OSes, one UI. There are constant rumors that Apple is moving in the direction of making MacOS more like iOS, and this is sort of the same thing, except that since Microsoft already owns the PC market, they are working down into the tablet market, while Apple, who grew on the back of iOS in the smartphone market pushed iOS up into the tablet market.

 

Now, think about Microsoft's strategy, one UI to rule them all. This is the Modern (nee Metro) UI, which by the way is similar in appearance to the Windows Phone UI, which had the same name (Metro). You move from your PC to your tablet, and you do not change UI, nothing new to learn, and if you use Windows Live as your log in, all your settings are shared across both devices.

 

That is the future.

 

The problem is when I read the opening statements, I agree with most of what Matt Baxter-Reynolds says. He is right, there are several problems with Windows RT. The reliance on the Desktop Mode for Office is a mistake, and the same is true for the Control Panel, Windows Explorer, etc. These feel a little less like a problem in Windows 8, because there is feels like you are opening the hood and really getting into the engine compartment. That feels really clunky in Windows RT.

 

I wrote before that the success of Windows 8 depends on getting software vendors to write their PC Applications for the Modern UI. I still believe that. Keeping users away from the Desktop makes the experience of the OS much better, and having to go over and over again to the Desktop gives users the impression that the Modern UI is just a thin layer over the real OS. That is not good.

 

Matt Baxter-Reynolds also claims that Windows RT devices are too expensive. Now, this may or not be true, it depends on how you look at it. He points out that "Surface RT is prices around the average selling price of a normal Windows 8 laptop." Okay, I am sure he meant priced, and he is right, it is priced at exactly the same point as the iPad. Now, don't contradict me, the price of a Surface, without the TouchCover is $499, exactly the same as a 32GB iPad.

 

Then again, MB-R does not compare Surface to an iPad on price, which was a good, if deceptive idea on his part. It is priced higher than most Android tablets, but I feel that I can say with little chance of truly being proven wrong that the Surface is better than most Android tablets.

 

Most of the other Windows RT tablets I have seen are clinging to the same price range as the Surface, and that may need to change before Windows RT will really take off. People look at is and ask themselves....

 

Windows 8 portable, or Windows RT tablet?

 

Since the price is about the same, they may choose the more versatile PC. But the question is, do they ever ask themselves either of the following questions...

 

Windows 8 portable or iPad?

 

They are about the same price.

 

Windows RT tablet or iPad?

 

Now, here is the point where I think Microsoft can make some hay. As long as the question is Windows versus Windows, or portable PC versus iPad, I think that Windows RT loses. But, when people look just tablets, then I think Microsoft can make inroads. The real question is....

 

Windows RT tablet, iPad or Android tablet?

 

This is where Microsoft can win. Surface can hold its own against the iPad or any Android tablet, except for the two things usually mentioned, reliance on desktop mode, and lack of apps. I keep hearing price, but that shouldn't be an issue. Yes, as generally priced (with TouchCover) Surface is more, but you get more. You don't want the TouchCover, don't buy it.

Book #4

The Dragon Reborn

Robert Jordan

These books are slowing me down.  There are two things that kept me from really getting into the series before, and they are both rearing their ugly heads again now.  First, some years ago...well, some decades ago, I decided that I did not want to start a series until all the books in the series were out.  Since then, I have only broken that rule twice.  Once was for the Harry Potter books, and once for The Wheel of Time.  I had put off starting the series and then decided to start and read the first two, but then waited at least a decade to start again now.  Of course, now Robert Jordan is dead, before having finished the series, but it is being finished by another author.

 

The second is that they are so damned long, that is each book.

So, this is the first of the books that I have never read before, so I had no idea where anything was going, though I should admit that I only had general memories of the other books, so while I had a general idea where they ended up, I did not remember much of what came in between.

These books have suffered from the beginning from something that I do not like, which is having all the characters go off in multiple directions and having the story switch point of view to follow.  I find that this often fails and makes the book more confusing than it needs to be.  Jordan follows one important rule for doing this successfully, because when you move to a new character, you tend to still with them for a while, so whether you are following Rand, or Mat and Thom, or Egwene, Elayne and Nynaeve, or Perrin, Moraine and Lan, you tend to stay with them for at least a long chapter, and often several.  This allows you to try to keep the bits of the story separate, while seeing how they weave together.

Spoilers follow.

One surprising thing is that we do not follow Rand much in this.  Perrin, Moraine and Lan, along with a new addition to the story, Zarine, are following Rand and we see the effect that Rand has as he passes.  Mat starts off one direction, trying to get away from Aes Sedai control, but then ends up chasing Egwene, Elayne and Nynaeve.

Now, as much as I dislike it generally, at the end of the story, the various stories are woven together nearly perfectly at the end.  Mat, Rand, Perrin, the three girls, and Moraine all travel separate routes to the final denoument, but Jordan does an excellent job of keeping them separate and yet showing how each sees the effect of the other as they near the final scene.

I won’t give anymore away, but while some of the middle of The Dragon Reborn is as boring as the long middle haul of the first two, the ending is completely satisfying.  The first three books are each probably a full 25% too long and would be better for significant tightening.  That tightening and the intensifying that it would bring are what hold these books back from joining the ranks of The Lord of the Rings at the very summit of the genre.  As they are, they are good, but not great.