PC Pro, 01-12-2011, The alternatives to Microsoft

Submitted to PC Pro Magazine.

Dear sir,
Recently I received an email from an association I am on the
mailing list of which amounted to little more than an advert for Microsoft
software. This annoyed me enough to write a reply, but the reply I
received back made me realise how many people think that windows is an
integral part of a desktop or laptop, 
and that without it, the computer will not function.
Likewise the assumption all office based software must come from Microsoft.

Put bluntly, this is not true, there are several non-Microsoft Operating
System choices available, the best known is Apple's Mac OSX operating
system which runs on Apple's own hardware. Linux is also a good
alternative, but it is hard to find it pre-installed for various reasons
related to Microsoft's monopoly enforcing policy.

Likewise, alternatives to Microsoft Office exist, but the way we have
been conditioned to refer to a "Microsoft Word document" or an "Excel
Spreadsheet" when we just mean a text document or spreadsheet is both
insidious and illuminating.

Insidious because we no longer think what we
are saying, Powerpoint has almost become a regular noun when we just mean
a presentation and illuminating because it shows how Microsoft's marketing
and publicity machine tries to condition what we say. Whilst we also might
say a "Transit" sized van, the alternatives to Ford are all around us to
see.

For both Operating Systems and Application Software, plenty of
non-Microsoft alternatives exist, and I would urge potential buyers of
laptops and computers to ask what alternatives to Microsoft the vendor can
offer and an explanation if they don't have any.


Yours Sincerely,
Andrew