#4 and 1, Amen!
When one builds and supports premium hardware as a service, differentiation is an essential component. Servicing user technical, productivity and media usage needs is one way, but it is not enough - builders like us require Vista Ultimate and a steady and rich stream of Ultimate Extras.
"Microsoft, you need to stop classifying Ultimate Extras with national security secrecy and start giving out a road-map for what users should expect." - Published February 27th, 2007 by Long Zheng - in an article he wrote titled, "Is Windows Vista Ultimate Extras a sham?" [ Mr. Zeng nails that one, but doesn't touch on why as much as we all need to ]. REF: the "I started something" website - http://www.istartedsomething.com
Mr. Zeng offered that Digital Publications, essentially e-books, filled with Windows Vista secrets and tips, would be the next offering. http://www.flickr.com/photos/longzheng/349728965/
Ok, but as Mr. Zeng offered, many sites and programs like tweakvista have already covered this pretty well - as have sites like Paul Thurrott's, which present tips as submitted by dozens of users - all missing the main point here, "how are any of these tips 'extras'?"
Some speculate that access to games like, Geometry Wars will be offered - assuming of course that one game has some kind of universal appeal - it doesn't - it doesn't come close.
Ok, so what to do? What should Ultimate Extras offer? I reason that it should offer so much value that Windows Vista Ultimate would be without question, the must have version of Windows. Here's my list and the conditions that must attend the items on it:
First the rules: "Yes, I know... some items may be done with third party tools, but that is the point - such items need to be baked into Ultimate and as seamless and reliable as one would expect."
All Extras must be EXCLUSIVE and very hard to emulate by any other means and not available from Microsoft by any other means under any circumstances. - quite simply, make the words, "ultimate" and "extras" mean something.
All Ultimate Extras must be FREE of any additional fees.
Bundling apps like games, or anti-virus suites, or digital imaging apps is lame, lame, and even more LAME - while nice, it’s just a cost offset - again, Ultimate must have a larger meaning in the same way exclusive clubs do - people pay a great deal for exclusivity. So readily available software and features is a huge none starter [this is what I suspect is the problem with Ultimate and why we have not seen more of them!!!].
My List:
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