Bill Gates & GM Motors

[Timo]

For all of us who feel only the deepest love and

affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives,

read on. At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gatesreportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology

like the computer industry has, we would all be driving

$25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon".

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a

press release stating: If GM had developed technology

like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the

following characteristics:

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice

a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you

would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no

reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the

road, close all of the windows, shut off the car,

restart it, and reopen the windows before you could

continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.

4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left

turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to

restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the

sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy

to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning

lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has

Performed An Illegal Operation" warning ligh

7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before

deploying.

8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car

would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you

simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key

and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would

have to learn how to drive all over again because none

of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car

10.You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the

engine off.

Please share this with your friends who love - but

sometimes hate - their computer!

[steppenwolf]

Teee heeee ...  

[Fat Albert]

Of course there is the alternative view of the US Auto Industry as evidenced by the public domain Ford memo where their lawyers advised them not to re-engineer the Pintos with the exploding fuel tanks before they'd sold any as the cost of the delay/re-engineering was likely to exceed the cost of the claims from the dead drivers relatives.    

Can't remember Microsoft choosing to let people die rather than make less profit.    

Also can't remember the open-toed sandal brigade making/using/selling more illegal copies of Chevys, Caddys, GTOs etc. than licensed ones.    

[David_East]

So Bill G doesn't always use his own material or have original thoughts

Back in the late 80's, I can't remember the exact year, the then chairman of Compaq made similar observations.

To the effect that if Rolls Royce had made the same advances in technology as the computer industry then the car would go 100,000 miles between services and would cost so little that at the end of that time it could be thrown away

I've been scouring the local tip ever since  

No luck!! The local car boot brigade have always beaten me to it