They promised us flying cars: Windows XP wireless adapter edition
I use three major computing platforms on daily basis: Windows XP, Mac OS X, and Fedoracore/Redhat Linux. While each sucks in its own special way, Microsoft consistently shocks me in its lack of features and usability. Take my wireless connection, for example. Please. I move between multiple wireless access points with my XP laptop. At work, I have a DHCP-enabled network with non-DHCP-supplied DNS settings. At home, my wireless router has DHCP and supplies the DNS settings. You might think it would be easy and straightforward to configure the laptop to move between locations. But you'd be wrong.
Windows XP knows only one configuration per network adapter, plus an 'alternate' configuration. The alternate configuration, however, seems to offer a subset of the main configuration: you can have dhcp-only, fully-manual, but no choices.
My laptop is supplied by my employer, so it comes set up for the office. You might think that making the alternate connection DHCP-only would allow the primary DNS settings to be overridden when I connect at home, but they don't change. My DNS server stays stuck on the hardcoded work addresses.
Now imagine I were to visit several wireless access points -- friends, cafes, airports, some of which are non-DCHP. What are my options? Third-party sofware. For a fee.
The last time I used a third-party network settings manager, it constantly fought with the windows configuration, and most of the time ended up needing manual help to find the right settings.
Let's compare this situation to that of another leading brand, Mac OS X. Apple provides multiple locations, each with its own detailed configuration, and all for the same low price. No hidden fees, no third-party software. Seemless automatic switching without the headache.
Giving up windows isn't an option right now, sadly, but if I could I would. Seeing one manufacturer do such a great job while Microsoft flails is just painful and sad. It's 2006. Bring on the flying cars already.
posted by $!# at 4/01/2006 02:48:00 PM
2 Comments:
halla-fucking-luyah pal! I had the same experience with a consulting job. How retarded that I had to manually change the configuration to move back and forth between network connections. can't they just make an "update" like when the next 12 year old hacker finds a way to drill their way in through the OS and they fart out the (1,032nd) new patch? throw us a bone!
The whole OS field seems like a morass for MSFT now. They're doing a better job than ever at developer tools/languages. Server software is crufty, but solid. Office software is the same bloated crap. But the OS: it doesn't seem like it's keeping pace with the rest of the world. Vista is delayed, heads are rolling, and when it finally arrives, will it be the same hodgepodge of crap? The whole window paradigm is due for a shift and they're bound to get stuck with their pants down when it happens.
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