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Dear silicon.com... 'me hearties shun Vista… techies on the move?… bosses out of tune
Reader Comments of the Week

By silicon.com

Published: Thursday 06 December 2007

What's got silicon.com readers reaching for their keyboards this week? Reader Comments of the Week showcases how our users are responding to the latest tech news and views on the site...

Pirates shun vista?
Vista: Piracy rates half the level of XP, says Microsoft

I wonder if it's occurred to Microsoft that only popular software suffers from high piracy levels?
-- Roger Ash, Greece

Or maybe it's that the pirates have read the market better than Microsoft and realise that it is not worth pirating Vista yet, since the market does not appear to want it.
-- Guy Reynolds, Letchworth, UK

Piracy rates are lower because nobody wants it… an OS is supposed to control the machine and make the resources of the machine available to the user in a controlled yet accessible manner, it is not the job of the OS to control the user
-- Karen Challinor, UK

A better explanation for the low piracy rate is that those who would use pirated copies don't want Vista, just like everyone else. Recent articles seem to suggest that the majority of Vista sales are OEM on machines sold, not upgrades, with lots of people reformatting and putting XP on their shiny new machine. Microsoft may just be missing the point (or just spinning a story nicely!)
-- Jeremy Wickins, Sheffield

Editor's choice

silicon.com editor Steve Ranger flags up his picks on the site this week...

♦ Photos: The super 3D body scanner
♦ Q&A: Julian David: IBM's vice president public sector business
♦ Why must IT go green?
♦ Photos: 10 gadgets to wish for this Xmas
♦ Top 10 weird data disasters

Techies staying put?
Want a new job? No thanks, say techies

I keep reading how IT pay is going up but it always seems to be somewhere else. Whenever I look round I see project managers on £60k but adverts for "London (City)- Banking. IT Analyst. Must have CCIE, MCSE, PhD in Agile Programming Methods (Oxbridge pref) and have 25 yrs' experience. Sal:£20k plus excellent bens"
-- Richard Reece, Herts

I appear to be seeing the same adverts as Richard. I'd be willing to move into another IT job, even if the money is no better than I'm on now... however there's just no positions to move into!
-- Matt Horwell, Staffs, UK

I see the same ads as Richard as well!

No-one in their right minds with the skills listed for many of these jobs is going to consider them at the pay being offered

I suspect that the agencies (and hence the employers they are seeking to service) are missing out on the capable but honest people (like myself, blush) with ethics standards that bar us from applying for these jobs that we apparently are not qualified for.

So I too am wondering where all these high paid jobs are - because I am not seeing them
-- Anonymous, Cumbria

Whilst most major corporations continue to rely upon their existing IT infrastructure in their day-to-day tasks, those equipped with the skills to deal with these systems are quickly approaching retirement. Most universities have moved away from teaching essential and widely used skills like COBOL, leaving the graduates without skills to replace these retiring experts.

Unless adequate steps are taken between the industry, government and academic establishments to bridge these gaps today, a catastrophic skills shortage will be inevitable in future.
-- Arunn Ramadoss, Newbury, UK

Pro consumer…
Businesses warned over consumer tech 'bargains'

Underneath the badge there is no difference between similarly specced machines; the difference is only on the unwarranted price differential which exists between business and consumer class machines..
-- Derek Smith, Kent

Many "business type" PCs are designed for client/server networks, have small hard drives and few multi-media features.

However, good quality "consumer type" PCs can be more suitable for people who do more varied tasks - especially in small companies.

For example, when a company lacks a specialist "art department" or the funds to commission outside help; it's useful to have a PC which can process digital photos, or even digital video etc.
-- Richard, UK

Music bosses too greedy?
Music industry wants share from gig tickets resold online

I think the resale of tickets on the internet should be banned. It has lead to a situation where people buy as many tickets as possible for concerts they have no interest in seeing so they can sell them at a profit, preventing the real fans from buying tickets at the proper face value.
-- Anonymous, Nottingham

It's called 'retailing' and you'll find lots of companies doing it. Why should anyone be banned from a perfectly legal activity?
-- Anonymous, London

Ha ha ha! They are kidding right? So I can't go to a concert that I booked last year because I now find I have to work that night… but I have the chance to sell on my tickets so that I don't waste the money and so that someone else can enjoy the gig - and the music industry wants a slice of that private transaction. Shame on them.
-- Dave, London

Please note, comments may be edited for clarity - but are not corrected for grammar, spelling, punctuation or style. The views expressed are not necessarily the views of silicon.com. You can write to silicon.com by posting a Reader Comment below, or emailing editorial@silicon.com.