Corporate Windows World? Don't react at all!
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| phsolide Jan 28, 2008 12:15 PM EDT |
If you (very unfortunately) get thrust into a corporate all- or mostly-Windows environment, just don't react at all. Granted, it's totally stupid. Granted, it's oppressive. Granted just about every bad thing you can think or say... Advocating something non-Windows in most corporate environments will get you marked as "not a team player" or some such happy cr@p. This means "very bad person, indeed" to the average corporate sports-metaphor-spouting drone. It won't be hard to get along in Windows, as most users are very inefficient, and don't really know much more than the 5 or 6 "short cuts" they use every day. If some issue comes up, act broadly stupid, and apologetically ask for help. Someone will tell you the magic F-key to press, or menu to pull down, or registry entry to fix. |
| jacog Jan 29, 2008 4:12 AM EDT |
Quoting:the average corporate sports-metaphor-spouting drone I find they like baseball the most. You know... "Gee, Clyde, there are already two strikes against us for delivery failure, and we're on the home stretch. I feel like your team really needs to step up to the plate here and hit this thing out of the ballpark." |
| Sander_Marechal Jan 29, 2008 9:16 AM EDT |
If my boss were to push me on Windows, my productivity would plummet because I'd spend too much time cleaning up after Windows cr@ps somewhere, which of course will soon start to annoy me. Low productivity (no fulfillment) + high irritation = Why am I working here again? Lickily my boss lets us choose our OS. When I came in there were only two Linux people: The sysadmin and me. Now it's four and soon to be five. Converting is easy. Just wear 'em down. There is a limit to the amount of times people will put up with a Windows crash when they see that my Linux box never crashes (and when they see my gleeful smile when they have to reboot *again*). Just sit right in front of them with your Linux box and work. It's only a matter of time before they ask you to show them what Linux looks like and if they can have a Live CD to test it out. Then bag 'em :-) |
| herzeleid Jan 29, 2008 9:36 AM EDT |
I really don't think about windows or pay much attention to the latest microsoft antics on the job. Since I work mainly with linux, that's not too hard to do. I'm one of the minority who run linux on the desktop. One thing I've set out to establish clearly at every job interview during the past decade is that I will use linux, not windows. If I am told that I'd be compelled to use ms windows, it's a deal breaker and I'm out. So, my "reaction" to the windows world tends to be on the order of "what, another virus?" or "rebooting again, eh?" etc. |
| Steven_Rosenber Jan 29, 2008 11:01 AM EDT |
Just about every day, I use Windows, Linux and OS X -- Between my home and work, laptops and desktops, I keep my hand in with all of these platforms. I've just done a big spyware/temp files removal job on the XP box, and it really didn't make any difference in performance. The box runs way worse than it did a year ago, but the solution to all problems here is to wipe the drive and start over, and it runs well enough. The systems guy comes by maybe twice a year, unless you call with problems. However, since I'm blogging all the time on various computer-related issues, it helps to use all of these OSes. Even on Windows, I use as much FOSS as possible. For instance, while the Geany editor is worse on Windows, I think AbiWord actually runs a bit better. OpenOffice -- it's a wash, and the GIMP is pretty much the same on Windows and in Linux. |
| tracyanne Jan 29, 2008 12:06 PM EDT |
I have to work with windows every day. I program in C# using Visual Studio - I like Visual Studio, the only real problem with it is that it's locked in to windows - I hate windows, with even as few as 3 or 4 applications loaded 3.2 Gig HZ CPU/2 Gig of RAM ATI Graphics card machine runs slower than my old 2002 laptop (1 Gig CPU 768Meg of RAM with intel i810 video). There's nothing I can do to change this, short of leaving town, this is literally the only job, for me , in town. My boss is a hard core one eyed Windows user who believes that Linux is too hard to use (I guess that's a compliment to me). When my boss buys some additional software for say graphics processing, I download a FOSS application that runs on windows that does the same thing and use that, I usually find some offhand way of mentioning that I'm using an application that has no licensing fee, no activation key, and does everything his expensive piece of software does. I have my ways of getting back at him. |
| Sander_Marechal Jan 29, 2008 4:39 PM EDT |
Quoting:There's nothing I can do to change this, short of leaving town So... What's keeping you? Quoting:When my boss buys some additional software for say graphics processing, I download a FOSS application Speaking of which, I've been teaching myself to use Blender over the last couple of days. What a fantastic application that is! |
| NoDough Jan 29, 2008 6:08 PM EDT |
>>...hard core one eyed Windows user who believes that Linux is too hard to use... Just the other day I had one of the users at my work say they couldn't use Linux because it's too hard. Me: "Can you point and click?" User: "Yeah, I can point and click." Me: "Well there you go then." He took a Mint live CD with him. |
| phsolide Jan 29, 2008 7:05 PM EDT |
You folks totally misunderstand the role of Windows in US corporate desktop computing. Windows is not there to make you productive. Windows is there on every desktop to monitor you and proxy you and keep you from doing things that the corporation might get sued for you doing. Windows is there on every desktop because the CIO's "cousin" got a trip to Redmond, and an his "cousin" got an envelope full of Franklins from the MSFT large account manager. Windows is there on every desktop because a few important Directors had rounds of bikini golf in the Bahamas with some Hot 20-something sales staff. During a "conference". Windows is an instrument of repression. Roll up your sleeves, raise the Black Flag, and begin slitting managerial throats. Well, metaphoricall speaking. Don't really do this, you'd end up in jail. But a "desktop metaphor" is just as good as a real desktop, right? |
| dinotrac Jan 29, 2008 7:08 PM EDT |
>Windows is an instrument of repression. There's a point at which one gets to be a little too tightly wound. If corporations were using Linux desktops in greater number, then Linux would be an instrument of repression. An instrument is at the mercy of the one who wields it. |
| tracyanne Jan 29, 2008 7:12 PM EDT |
Quoting:So... What's keeping you? We moved here to get away from the city. My partner loves living in the bush, and so do I actually. We're saving to buy a 40 acre block of land, cos that's where we want to be. This job will pay for that. Once we have our land and and income from it secured, I'll leave. |
| jdixon Jan 29, 2008 7:18 PM EDT |
> My partner loves living in the bush, and so do I actually. I knew you had to have your good points Tracyanne. :) > We're saving to buy a 40 acre block of land, cos that's where we want to be. We have about 45 acres here. It's 4 miles outside of a small town of 2000 people, and 20+ miles from the nearest "city" of 30 thousand. The closest real city is Pittsburgh, which is about 120 miles away. If I have to put up with supporting Windows machines to get this, it's a small price to pay. |
| tracyanne Jan 30, 2008 12:09 AM EDT |
Quoting:I knew you had to have your good points Tracyanne. :) But we won't tell everyone will we. |
| jezuch Jan 30, 2008 2:53 AM EDT |
Quoting:If I have to put up with supporting Windows machines to get this, it's a small price to pay. Agreed!!! My plan is to move to Bieszczady some day :) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bieszczady_Mountains Quoting:then Linux would be an instrument of repression. And it can be far more efficient at that than Windows. Yay, Linux! :) |
| dinotrac Jan 30, 2008 5:21 AM EDT |
>And it can be far more efficient at that than Windows. Yay, Linux! :) I knew there was something I liked about you! Pollyannas are boring. Tracyanne - No, not a small price, but offset by sufficient reward. Good for you. |
| phsolide Jan 30, 2008 7:10 AM EDT |
dinotrac wrote:
> If corporations were using Linux desktops in greater number,
> then Linux would be an instrument of repression. An instrument
> is at the mercy of the one who wields it. Precisely so. Hence, my suggestion of doing nothing to disturb the all-Windows corporate order. Under Windows, you still have the excuses of "my machine rebooted", or "oops, Windows/Excel/Word/PowerPoint crashed". Under an all-Windows regime, you know that those perpetrating the repression have the handicap of not really knowing or understanding the system(s) they use, as well as being at the mercy of the baroqueness of Windows. Don't get labeled as "not a team player". Follow whatever stupid processes required of you. I'm given to understand that this is known as "screwing up by the numbers" in some circles, and "work to rule" in others. Be the Werner Heisenberg in your Corporation! |
| ColonelPanik Jan 30, 2008 8:14 AM EDT |
You would use m$winders just for MONEY? You are joking of course. |
| jdixon Jan 30, 2008 8:34 AM EDT |
> You would use m$winders just for MONEY? No. I support Windows machines for money. I use Linux. |
| herzeleid Jan 30, 2008 9:34 AM EDT |
> You would use m$winders just for MONEY? I've turned away microsoft work, because IMHO the extra bit of money I might earn working with a microsoft OS doesn't compensate for the stress and worry of being responsible for it. If the nightmare scenario ever came to pass, in which I'd have to work with microsoft windows in order to remain employed in the IT world, I'd become a chiropractor, or perhaps a tour guide. |
| Scott_Ruecker Jan 30, 2008 10:01 AM EDT |
Quoting:Just sit right in front of them with your Linux box and work. It's only a matter of time before they ask you to show them what Linux looks like and if they can have a Live CD to test it out. Then bag 'em :-) I Love It!! A friend from my work just hosed his Vista installed laptop and after coming over to my place and seeing my laptop running Linux, I have all the desktop enhancements running and running it well. He asked for a live CD to check out.. Bagged!! |
| gus3 Jan 30, 2008 10:03 AM EDT |
Quoting:I've turned away microsoft work, because IMHO the extra bit of money I might earn working with a microsoft OS doesn't compensate for the stress and worry of being responsible for it.I tell prospective IT employers that I refuse to be responsible for keeping Windows up and running. |
| Sander_Marechal Jan 30, 2008 10:50 AM EDT |
Quoting:Bagged!! Score one for Scott! Seeing is believing. You can tell someone over and over again how much better Linux really is and they will ignore you (or tell you they like the sound of it but never switch anyway). For them, seeing you actually use the machine day in and day out without any problems drives the message home. |
| tracyanne Jan 30, 2008 4:48 PM EDT |
Quoting:I have all the desktop enhancements running and running it well. I have them (or most of them) running on the Asus I bought in 2002, that I mention from time to time. |
| Scott_Ruecker Jan 30, 2008 5:29 PM EDT |
I have the OpenGL stuff that comes with PCLinuxOS running on it and I gotta tell you, its cool. I can wiggle the windows and all kinds of stuff, "scotty likey cool looking effects" |
| tracyanne Jan 30, 2008 6:51 PM EDT |
I like to demo the Compriz/Fusion desktop on the Asus because it is simply incapable of running Windows Vista - at lease the expensive Edition that has the fancy graphics, and yet it obviously runs state of the art 3D desktop with a Linux OS installed on it. That gets people's attention. |
| ColonelPanik Jan 31, 2008 6:14 AM EDT |
Yeah, grab them by the eye-balls and their hearts and minds will follow! |
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