The Mojave Experiment – Have You Been Tested?
August 22, 2008 by Jason Bean
Filed under Computers
Have you heard about the Mojave Experiment?
Welcome to the "Mojave Experiment." What do people think of Windows Vista when they don’t know it’s Windows Vista? We disguised Windows Vista as codename "Mojave," the "next Microsoft OS," so regular people who’ve never used Windows Vista could see what it can do – and decide for themselves.
I LOVE IT! How much perception of what people think about Windows Vista is because of what they’ve read or heard from the media about the product. Much of the critique has come from bloggers and other individuals in the tech community that haven’t enjoyed their experience and then they’ve written about it.
My question has been though, what’s the average computer user really going to think? Most of us that are actively involved in the tech community have a little bit of a higher standard for software and systems.
This group interviewed 140 people in their test (yes, it would have been better to multiply that by about 10) and got their feedback on what they thought about the software. There were some that still didn’t like it, but overall it, it was widely accepted and enjoyed by the participants.
- 94% of respondents rated “Mojave” higher than they rated “Vista”
- 0% rated “Mojave” lower than “Vista”
Now you’re asking, “But who were these people?”
- 84% Windows XP users
- 22% Apple OS users
- 14% Pre-Windows XP users
- 1% Linux users
- some users used multiple platforms
Interesting. I’m wondering if this whole “experiment” is part of Microsoft’s new campaign that’s trying to battle/compensate/educate people from the Apple ads we all love and enjoy.
Get more video responses and feedback directly from The Mojave Experiment website.
Hat tip to Brian Layman for alerting me to this little science experiment.
I am fortunate (or unfortunate depending on your perspective) to have extensive experience of MS products not limited to Vista, and a very pleasurable long experience of running Linux at home.
I would be very interested to learn about the conditions of the “test” (and Ill certainly check the link).
The issue as I see it is as follows, the Windows platform has long been accepted as the norm by the majority of both home and business users. We are now at a situation where the average user is more computer literate than they were 10 years ago, and instead of making allowances for any problems they may encounter whilst using the Windows platform, is now saying “Why am I paying for this when it doesnt work as I expect?” “Why does my system need upgrading merely to run the OS?” and “Why do I repeatedly need to consider new security issues?”
Linux in particular is no longer the remit of the computer expert, and there are plenty of distros who aim their releases at the first time Linux user.
It does not matter if the opinions on the net are simply formed from people reading other posts, the fact is Vista does have issues, Vista is not sitting well with people who want to remain with XP and above all else, MS seem to be investing their money in silly ads and talking about Windows 7.
On the reverse side though, I do not believe Linux will magically take over the majority overnight. Linux has issues with hardware compatibility and the fact that certain tasks do require people to “get their hands dirty” with the CLI.
For me (who is a devout supporter of software freedom) even I do not want Linux to become as “mainstream” as Windows. I believe the majority of Windows users with their “one click fix,100%pnp compatibility & gfx over functionailty” attitude are largely responsible for the digital monster that is todays Windows. That is something I would not like Linux to become and feel that should the demands of these users come over to Linux, we too would end up with a binary slug of an OS.
So what is the future for Windows? In my opinion customers will continue to move over to alternatives in much the same way they always have, I dont think the current credit crisis will have helped in the uptake of Vista, and if the rumours that Windows 7 will not be natively backward compatible are true, then I believe Windows 7 will be “crunch time” for the platform.
Why cant MS understand that the majority of users want a compact and functional operating system without all the silly bells and whistles? If they had, then we wouldnt be having this discussion now. Id certainly be running Windows at home if this was the case.
Software freedom for me is about choice, if a user decides that Windows is best for them and that decision is reached through an informed decision, then great.
Interesting article by the way!
Goblin[RFD]
Goblin, thank you so much for your insight and opinion into your thoughts behind what Microsoft’s future lies before it and your own personal preference of Linux. I’ve been toying with the idea of trying to install Linux on one of my older machines for the kids. On one hand I’ve heard that Linux runs great in these instances on older hardware (keeping them useful) but others have told me I’ll probably experience the same, slow performance I currently do with W2K that’s installed on the machine now. What are your thoughts?