More "Why I don't buy Dell".

I've said for years that Dell is nothing but one of those companies that sheep seem to buy and buy despite there being no real reason. Those brands that cost more, provide less, and perform less than that competition and yet still manage to draw consumers in like moths to a flame. In Dell's case of course this analogy is pretty realistic. At least the flames part.

There are plenty of companies who have one or more product lines that draw in consumers like crazy despite being blatantly inferior to the competition. I can't tell you why this happens, but it clearly does.

Some other brands or products that fall in this category (short list, off the top of my head)

- Microsoft (of course)
- HP Printers
- Gnome (UNIX/LINUX GUI system)
- Ford
-more to come


Dell Denies It Knew of Overheating Battery Problem for Years
"Exploding" Dell Laptop Destroys Truck, Imperils Outsdoorsmen
Feds Wind Up Ford Engine Fire Probe with Massive Recall - Ford Stalled for Years While Trucks Burned
Windows Is So Slow, but Why?

Gateway, thumbs up.

Whatever your opinion of Gateway's products, my recent experiences with their tech support department was impressive.
First off, they speak actual english. Not that outsourced, learned-in-english-as-a-second-language-class english either, but honest to goodness english.
Secondly, they actually sound like they could turn on a computer without help. You know how it usually is. Some foreign tech support robot reading from a support database question list and if you try to make them deviate, or answer in a way the system doesn't cover, their heads explode. However, Gateway's people actually have a clue. Bravo.
Third, they are polite, and helpful.

Oh yeah, the system I was working on was well designed, feature packed, and stylish looking. Imagine that.

To anyone out there shopping hardware and not considering Gateway, give them a try. And buy the extended service.

Web reliability...

So a recent Netcraft report of the most reliable web hosting companies .
Of the top 7, all tied for first place, 6 run a UNIX variant, including FreeBSD and Linux. The 7th is listed as "OS Unknown", but I can guess what it runs. The first Windows system on the list is half as reliable.

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