December 3rd, 2008

A plea to the Windows team: Don't make Windows 7 too Mac-like

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 8:46 am

Categories: Apple, Windows 7, Windows client

Tags: Team, Apple Macintosh, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Blogger Paul Thurrott has written a couple of interesting posts about the difference between “simple” and “easy” in the context of Windows 7.

Sure, Windows 7 is still in the pre-beta phase, meaning the user-interface elements still will be tweaked considerably before the product is released to manufacturing. But Thurrott raises a number of points that left me nodding my head in agreement.

I am a Windows user by choice, not simply because I blog about Microsoft. When I saw the recent demos of Windows 7 — with its JumpLists, AeroPeek, AeroSnaps and lots of other eye candy — I was torn. I want some of what’s coming in Windows 7, such as fewer UAC prompts, simpler backup and restore, better peripheral handling. But I really do not care if I get more fancy bells and whistles that just clutter my desktop.

Thurrott blogged:

“Windows 7 basically takes Windows one step closer to the design aesthetic of the Mac, where form is valued over function. I’m not sure this is the right strategy. Simplicity, taken in isolation, may seem like a good idea. But I’m afraid that in Windows 7, Microsoft is sacrificing too much in its bid to be more like Apple. And it’s the users of Windows who will pay the price.”

If you are a PC user like me, you definitely will pay the price. I value ease of use far more than fancy graphics. The two don’t have to be mutually exclusive — and given the direction Microsoft ends up taking once it provides testers with the Superbar — maybe they won’t.

(Given Beta 1 of Windows 7, which many are now expecting around January 13, is supposed to be feature-complete, I’m expecting we’ll get to see what the Superbar will look like real soon now. Me? I still think we might see Win 7 Beta 1 on or around December 17, but in either case, it’s not too long until we see the latest Windows 7 look and feel.)

If I wanted a Mac-like environment, I’d buy a Mac. I want an computing environment that helps me get my work done and doesn’t require a how-to manual to figure out which icon does what. Maybe Microsoft could introduce “Windows 7 Luddite Edition” for those of us who value function over form?

What’s your take? Do you think Microsoft is too focused on making Windows 7 in Mac OS X’s image?

On a related note, for more Windows 7 analysis — in podcast form with yours truly and The Register’s Software Editor Gavin Clarke — check out the latest edition of “MicroBite.”