Advice for Microsoft (Remember Ma Bell)

Maybe Microsoft should stop acting like our computer belongs to Microsoft and start asking us before they do anything on computers they do not own.

We've come to accept that Microsoft does what it pleases on our computers, updates when it wants to, checks our settings and hardware, changes our settings and who knows what else after updates. We have come to accept Microsoft as a computer god-like entity that does what it wants with our property without even letting us know. Especially when the computer lags for no apparent reason.

That paradigm leaves many very suspicious, frustrated, or angry with Microsoft.

Microsoft, like Ma Bell and other monopolies, doesn't seem to care.

Remember what happened to Ma Bell?

If you are too young to remember, Ma Bell was ATT, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile, and every other phone company around today until the government stepped in and said no more.

Microsoft should learn from history. Respect customers and their property. That's good business.

So why all the background activity on computers?

Whatever the reasons, respect the people who own the property you are playing with. Explain what you are doing. Ask permission. Then perhaps we will respect and want to use Microsoft, rather than just tolerating it because we can't afford Apple or can't figure out Linux or just don't realize we actually own the computer Microsoft is using without our knowledge or permission.

I appreciate the free tech support you provide in recent years.

I'd appreciate your respect on my computer even more.

The Dailymail Sucks

So I wandered Twitter and Facebook over the weekend and on one of those I found a video so wonderfully positive it brought happy tears to my eyes and I felt it was something to share on my Hope For Us All Facebook Page so I did. Facebook is threatening my account now because The Daily Mail filed a complaint and blocked the video and said I infringed on their copyright. Thought there was a message near the very end for a second or two that said "Did that really happen?" Dailymail, nowhere in the video was a copyright notice. A site called "viralhog" was printed in the upper corner of the video and was on the screen longer than the momentary message from dailymail. No other identification was on the video anywhere.

What a bummer, Scrooge, The Grinch, and Dailymail. At least two of them found their hearts.

Roommates

Coming "home" to this...

What is that... well, it's this..

and yes, that is an open flame propane heater in the middle of the flammable wood, clothing, and on a wooden floor in an 80 year old wooden house...

and the roommate was fast asleep each time.