Rent Your Own Computer!

[jackofallgeeks]

Microsoft seems to want us to rent
our PCs, rather than actually owning them. I have nothing useful to say at
this moment.

Comments

[jackofallgeeks.livejournal.com]

Actually, not to be contrary (:p), I don't think it is the same as what we do with cellphones either. I buy a cellphone and the carrier knocks off a bunch of the price if I sign a service agreement with them. I pay a monthly fee to connect to their network and use their voice- and data-routing services, but I'm not paying to use the *phone* as such. I can take pictures and save contacts and the like to my heart's content without them. And when my contract ends, the phone and everything in it is still mine, whether I renew my service contract or not. This would be like if Verizon was selling computers along with it's FIOS as a package deal.

What Microsoft seems to be proposing is really a lot more like paddle boats. It doesn't cost you anything unless you want to use it, and then when you do you start the timer and begin racking up charges. when they talk about "gaming packages" and "browsing packages" and "office packages," that means you can't so much as write a word document without paying them money. This isn't even like Internet access or cellphone service, where you pay a fee and get unlimited* service for the month; it's like a taxi, where you're paying for as much as you use it.