
Microsoft Windows 10 Event - kenrick95
http://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-event-2016/
======
danso
After seeing the Surface Studio, it's hard to imagine what Apple can produce
that will compete on the "wow" factor tomorrow, even if the Studio ends up not
quite delivering for its price. It definitely set a bar for what we might
expect with an innovative brand. I say this as a long time Apple customer who
would actually just be fine if they released a new external monitor. I haven't
been able to find a decent non-Apple monitor that doesn't exhibit wonky
behavior when connected to my MBP (this includes the small things, such as
responding to the Brightness function key)

~~~
lloeki
> (this includes the small things, such as responding to the Brightness
> function key)

The sad part — that seems to play _yet again_ — is that there's a standard
just for that: DDC/CI. But none of the GPU vendors nor display vendors care
enough to make it work reliably, if at all (apparently it's mostly used for
automated display calibration, so if you fall out of that use case, tough
luck).

I effectively hacked quite a lot of things around it, and ended up frying a
couple gfx cards, because you can easily shoot yourself in the foot, write to
the wrong part, and end up with a PCI card as useful as a waffle, only
inedible. In the end I managed to pass some commands in very specific
scenarios, but behaviours ended up highly dependent on the GPU, display, and
combinations thereof I had available (from nothing, to glitchy screen, to
aforementioned waffle, but it _did_ work in one specific case \o/).

~~~
milankragujevic
Is it really that hard? My shit Phillips VGA monitors brightness can be
controlled with software via an AMD E350 APU that I used to have...

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singularity2001
OT: This guy is a poster child of horrible ergonomics
[https://ncmedia.azureedge.net/ncmedia/2016/10/Surface-
Book-w...](https://ncmedia.azureedge.net/ncmedia/2016/10/Surface-Book-with-
Performance-Base-Lifestyle-web.jpg)

~~~
neves
But their new ergonomic keyboard looks really nice. Hope it works with other
computers.

~~~
gcr
I have the "Microsoft Sculpt" keyboard, the older version. (Lovingly dubbed
the "Batman" keyboard due to its resemblance to Batman's helmet)

It looks like Microsoft addressed all the pain points:

\- An actual bluetooth device, so no need for the little wireless dongle.

\- Function keys are actual keys and not plastic buttons.

Too bad they filled in the space in the middle. Oh well. Guess it's no longer
a true Batman keyboard. But it's still the best I've used.

~~~
tszyn
They also fixed the 6-key block (the one with Home, End, etc.). The older
version had a nonstandard layout.

On the minus side, it has a non-detachable numpad, so you'll have to reach
further to use your mouse.

~~~
lathiat
Relatively recent convert to the old sculpt ergonomic keyboard, which I love.

The real escape key, and fn key to toggle the top row are likely to make me
upgrade along with the standard home/page/arrow keys l, but it's a shame they
dropped the tilt bar, integrated the numpad (particularly as I use a touchpad)
and that colour makes me keep thinking the photos are bare 3D or clay renders.
After reading about the rest of the presentation I realised that may have been
intentional.

I'm also going to miss the split.

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josho
I find it interesting that Msft is choosing to battle Apple head on in the
consumer space, I recall Sun Tzu "attack where your enemy is weak". Yet, msft
is attacking Apple at their most loyal user base—designers.

Not only that but the machines, at a glance, resemble Apple's, so there is
little physical differentiation. Is aluminum gray the only color for computers
these days?

This strategy strikes me as incredibly odd, I wonder if anyone here sees the
angle that I'm missing.

~~~
egypturnash
Hi, I'm a pro artist.

I've been an Apple zombie for a long time. Since like 2000 when I finally
retired my beloved Amiga. Windows does everything the "wrong" way from the
perspective of my habits. Yet I would be using a Surface 4 for most of my art
nowadays if not for the fact that Adobe Illustrator, my main tool, doesn't
talk to the Surface's NTrig stylus properly. So I'm still hauling around a
four-year-old Air and a Wacom tablet. I have been ready to give Apple money
for a new machine to do my work on for about a year now and they haven't put
out anything that's worth bothering with for me.

And when's the last time Apple updated their super-high-end desktop machines
for the Serious Major Power Users?

They've been focusing on phones and tablets, and that leaves the segment of
the market whose work is "using Serious Art Power Tools" unserved.

Unless Apple's announcement tomorrow has something in it like "oh hey we
finally decided to build a tablet that can run desktop apps" I'm probably
gonna be pretty meh about it. And the rumors all point to "new Pro lappy with
a touch panel instead of the f-keys", which is about as exciting to me as a
lukewarm glass of milk.

I do not pretend to speak for all artists. Just for myself.

~~~
avtar
I don't think I'll be getting a Surface anytime soon but I'm curious, what
sort of Illustrator/Surface NTrig stylus issues would one encounter?

~~~
egypturnash
It drops about the first half-second of every stroke when you're using the
pencil or brush tools, and completely loses some very short, quick lines.
Which is a problem for someone like me who's been trained to draw with a lot
of quick, confident strokes.

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heinrich5991
Clicking any of the links at the top gives me

    
    
        Your connection is not secure
    
        The owner of mnc.ms has configured their website improperly. To protect your information from being stolen, Firefox has not connected to this website.
    
        mnc.ms uses an invalid security certificate. The certificate is only valid for the following names: *.po.st, po.st Error code: SSL_ERROR_BAD_CERT_DOMAIN

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erjjones
Guarantee they release a 3D printer in the next 12 months. I wonder who they
are going to acquire to fill that void?

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outworlder
Microsoft has always made nice hardware. Until recently, that has been limited
to simple devices (like keyboards and mice). That has definitely changed.

I was pretty excited about the Surface Book when it came out (I'm an Apple
fan). But I was unsure if that line would continue. That fact that it has been
refreshed is good news.

The only thing that's missing is being able to plug an external video card
(like the Alienware and Razer laptops can do). Once they are able to do that,
switching to the Book is a no-brainer. I like MacOS, but it's only worth so
much (specially with the unix subsystem on Windows now).

The one thing Microsoft needs to learn from Apple is how to design websites.
The event URL is cluttered, the "fact sheets" are horrible.

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pbz
What I find disappointing is that they emphasized how the base is quiet and
yet they're using a HDD (hybrid)?!... in a $3K machine... You can get 1TB SSD
for $300. Where is all that $3K going?

~~~
cfjgvjh
A significant portion is going to the panel and the stand, probably.

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filereaper
Microsoft seems to be going through a second renaissance right now, exciting
times!

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dmfdmf
Still trying to mimic Apple.

~~~
guelo
Products Apple doesn't have: a big touch-screen desktop, a touch-screen laptop
with detachable keyboard, that weird puck thing

~~~
drusepth
>that weird puck thing

Belkin makes them. They are continuous and have a pushbutton. They're like
$130 or something ridiculous. I've only ever used them for tuning around in a
software defined radio, but a lot of music/video editors use them as jog
dials.

