Wal-Mart's Web Site Sells Computers Without Windows Software

Associated Press ^

[SamAdams76]

That article hit home for me too. Describes my mom to a tee and I rue the day I decided to buy her a computer. Most people over 60 just can't grasp the whole computer thing no matter how much time you spend with them. She would have been better off just watching reruns of Matlock and Murder She Wrote.

[GulliverSwift]

That's not WalMart's problem. They just move the boxes. Whoever builds the computers will have to deal with any headaches. And given the typical Wal-Mart customer, they will have headaches.

From what I've read, the Linux machines have a lower customer return rate. That's probably because most Windows machines don't come with enough software for people to use them effectively. So the customer has to go out and buy third-party stuff and messes up the computer.

Keep in mind that these computers are only on Wal-mart's web site not in the stores.

[alnick]

The $299 model doesn't even come with a floppy drive.

[Incorrigible]

Ha! Ha!

When did the Onion start doing serious articles?!

[Johnny Crab]

Where's the Amiga OS? I wanna play Talking Coloring Book at GHz speed instead of 7 MHz...

[loudzoo]

Microsoft has fought against retailers doing this as part of thier anti-piracy tactics.

For example, people with bootleg operating sytems want clean machines so they don't want to pay for operating systems.

On the other hand, people who have bought many machines over the years, like me, have more OEM windows install disks
than machines to load them on.

I think it is a great idea, but I wonder if people will like Lindows. I have not tried it yet but probably will. I think people will be disapointed when they can't get windows games to work with lindows.

=8-)

[Robert_Paulson2]

I dunno jude...

Red hat with office applications is pretty much plug and play for most systems... and once one learns the configuration details... its pretty much near damned unbreakable...

Give it another 18 mos... and linux will be crashing the front gate... and of course it don't hurt to note, it is free...

Those majority of those who ever had windows 3.11 and miss the ability to work in the shell, customise apps, and tweak performance a tad... will probably jump ship by Christmas...

60 percent of the internet websites can't be wrong, open source solutions are taking over the field, and remember they are by definition free.

I am seeing MAJOR shifts to open source for almost everything... half the systems on the nets I see, are sporting samba instead of network neighborhood...

and the folks I know REAALLY LIKE the lack of blue screen lockouts, and spam filtering, and immunity to vbs virii... and... and.....

[ImphClinton]

Some coustomewrs may buy the computer then load their own copy of windows 98 SE on it.