The real problem
Is that the "Microsoft" joke is OLD. The show looks lame from the start anyway.
Microsoft has apologised for a performance at its Norwegian developers conference that it now says “involved inappropriate and offensive elements and vulgar language”. The performance (mildly NSFW video here, controversial bits at about 1:10) includes a line that despite Microsoft’s titter-worthy corporate name, attendees’ …
The joke is the fact that Nobody in the crowd seems to be enjoying it even before the controversial bits. Whoever thought a dance track about software development was a great idea clearly needs to lay of the meth!
I feel sorry for the dancers having to perform to that abomination while the crowd just stares
This is just embarrassing and sad - like watching an old, overweight man suffering from Alzheimer's trying to fit in at a party by act like what he thinks is hip, but was out of date years ago.
Which, as I type that, is exactly what this is: Microsoft trying to be "hip to the jive my man".
An Alzheimer's suffer has a medical excuse. What is Microsoft's?
Really - this doesn't make me angry, or offended. This just makes me feel uncomfortably embarrassed for having witnessed it.
Apparently nobody has been rude to Mr Fry this week so the twaterati had to find something else unimportant to get upset about.
God forbid they are concerned about anything important going on in the world right now. A quick check on bbc news shows more socialist victories in France, Spain have managed to stall an unavoidable bailout of their countries economy, a random shooting in the USA, riots in Chile and deaths in Burma, Libya and Nigeria. I wonder how many of those commentards with their twitter accounts are bothered about those piffling little concerns?
Apparently their paramount concern is that a software company used the word penis in a song delivered to a bunch of middle aged men.
Who said anything was wrong with socialist victories? Perhaps if you read my post as carefully as your fly fishing books you might have spotted that :)
Perhaps concerns was the wrong choice of words but socialist victories in France is a matter for thought. Not so much that it is good or bad in of itself, just that it marks a change in opinion which is likely to cause disruption.
No, they were listed alongside the other top news items of the day. I didn't single any out, they were the top items, the rest just happened to be bad.
If somebody draws unwarranted assumptions without checking, that is their issue, not mine. Did either of you visit BBC News or just make assumptions that happened to suit your viewpoint?
And they are. It marks a change in the attitudes of one of Germany's closest allies in the EU. There is a strong possibility the the previous course of rigid austerity may change now. Whilst this change may or may not be needed the uncertaintly it is causing has a disruptive and harmful effect.
They are not in of themselves but may cause problems due to the change. The structure I chose accurately represents that. I will endeavour to dumb it down in future to assist the hard of thinking.
The most amusing part of this is that I grew up using a socialised healthcare and education system. I paid NI into a socialised pension scheme (2 in fact, 1 would have been too simple?) . I firmly believe that these are great things, things a society should do. Ensuring every child has a great education and everybody is kept healthy are both things I believe are required, morally, of a society but also make sense with respect to the health of the economy. Hence, being erroneously called out as anti socialist was amusing :-)
"What's wrong with socialist victories? To hell with poverty!!"
Uh, I'm guessing you've not noticed how socialism and poverty go hand in hand. #empiricalevidence
Benjamin Franklin was the first to point this out, before socialism had a name. He was a well-respected scientist and businessman before the American Revolution. In 1770, IIRC, he visited The Royal Society in London and was an honored guest, the great scientist from the colonies, and all that.
He was talking with some of the Society members and one who had been to North America commented that, in Britain proper, they treat their poor much better. Franklin responded, "Ah, I wondered why you had so many of them."
Isn't it slightly hypocritical to take the time and trouble to post a comment saying that the subject of the article is so trivial that people shouldn't bother commenting on it? And then mention in passing several other issues which you think people ought to be commenting on instead. This random shooting in the USA ... presumably you have published a detailed opinion on this important piece of news in some other forum somewhere?
Many of the people commenting use Microsoft products every day, and some of those people might be in a position to decide to use alternatives instead - Chrome, Linux, Open Office. So a story about Microsoft losing the plot in a public and embarrassing way is of interest.
Political shifts in France, or the Euro meltdown are more in the category of things which might affect me but there isn't a lot I can do about it.
Riots - they happen in every country. Civil war - there is always one happening somewhere in the world and most countries have had one at some point. Murder in the US - happens 50 times a day. Hellish for the people involved, but if I happen to miss the news that day, it didn't happen.
By actually apologizing Microsoft have raised the level of the whole incident themselves. I think some marketing people didn't get the point that the "vulgar language" wasn't the issue here, it seems to me that very few people considered the whole performance any fun. Yeah guess what? When people don't stuff they'll complain.
This form of damage control is soo obvious its not even funny. Just like the performance itself.
With stuff like this there are 2 things you can do... "Sorry guys, we'll try to do better next time" or start claims that you're not supporting it no longer, for example by apologizing.
That doesn't work too well with me to be honest. You organize something, it turns out bad and suddenly you no longer stand behind it anymore.
That raises the following question with me: if you think this is so important that you actually deem it necessary to apologize, then why the heck did no one check up on the performance rehearsels to make sure it met "MS standards"? Maybe that would have saved you from the need to apologize?
The answer should be obvious: because this only became a "serious" issue when people started complaining. In other words: damage control at its finest.
Developers aren't /that/ stupid you know. First you take away our colours (VS2012), then you take away our free options (VS2012 Express tied into Metro) and when people complain then well, its just the way it is. But when a marketing campaign (attempt) like this goes viral then all of a sudden the need is there to apologize because it might hurt your reputation ?
Can it get any more stupid like this? Yeah, people may have hated the performance but that won't turn them away from programming, maybe even using .NET, because we know you can be stupid at times MS.
However, when you take away our precious toys (VS2012 Express tied into Metro) or start turning it into something we don't like anymore (removing colours).... Then that IS bound to turn people away from it.
Yet THOSE issues which really matter to many programmers apparently aren't important enough. People complain on MS fora, people complain on fora such as these and nothing changes. Even people who have a reputation of being die hard Windows-based programmers.
So I can only wonder...
What HAVE those MS marketing IDIOTS been smoking as of late I wonder?
Soo as one emotional health practitioner stated, "We live in a society where it's OK to say the word KILL, but it's taboo to say the word FUCK."
So it's OK to be a war profiteer and assist in the murdering of millions of people, but it's not OK to say "soft cock" in an promotional event....
Never mind the endless releases of crapware to the market.
What happens when unlimited budget meets limited taste. But seriously I'm glad to see The Micro and Soft gang has a sense of humour. And if I were going to express outrage, it would be outrage at those who find statements inteneded to combine insults with humour offensive, like dumb blond jokes. Some of them are funny and why should I care if blonds (women) (gays) (blacks) (cripples) (ANYONE) is offended. We have a right to offend eachother and no right to be protected from offense.
were they thinking? There isn't a Microsoft Manager in their right mind that would approve that nonsense. Assuming Microsoft Managers can actually be in their right mind.
So, judging from the lyrics on the screen, the Micro Soft men developers don't have penises that resemble either term, but the women have neither either. That would mean the lady developers have Macro Hard vaginas. Brilliant, I mean just smashing brilliant.
honestly anyone who finds that offensive must get a terrible fright when they see their own junk.
re 'It was shit' - and similar comments. it was intended for Norwegian software engineers, not you.
re 'it's microsoft thats a joke' - lazy word play based humour. it's a $250bn company employing nearly 100,000 people.
They probably have 3 or 4 templates of music & choreography, then merge in a few buzzwords to tailor it to the particular event. So, you can probably get more or less the same song and dance routine promoting plumbing or fence-posts
Let's face it, 'entertainment' at any corporate event will always suck. That's so universally true that the rule probably applies on other planets. The entertainment merely serves to provide an interval of excruciating embarrassment in-between the rest of the mind-numbing tedium.
And the definition of unfunny is, 'any joke, when told by the CEO'.
Microsoft is toast.
These managers turned the Corporation into an absolute farce, throwing away all good assets they once had.
The MetroUI is what these people "geniuses" could develop.. and it's obvious that such a disgrace was their best given the nonsense dancing with some bad language trying to look so smart and cool.
How pathetic.
Microsoft has turned into the worst possible copy of Apple. They are trying so hard at copying Apple that they couldn't get a clue of what made Apple a success.
They really think that turning themselves into such a farce is going to give them billions?
Please...
Bright side for Balmer is that people wont need to bring up his "Developers, Developers, Developers" chant any more when they need a go to joke.
Also, coupled with http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/05/15/dell_christensen/ it seems that 2012 isn't the year to be holding conferences here in Scandinavia.
But I think it more likely they are high on Cocaine, LSD, 'XTC' etc. etc.
Like our governments, these people are certifiably criminally insane.
(And I'm not just talking about the dancers)
So much power.
So many resources.
So much experience.
And for what? For IT to come to this?
How long oh lord, How long?
Think of the good they could do, how they could enrich peoples lives. But instead they behave like an old rich rock star who has lost the plot, cloistered in his mansion, alone, surrounded by nothing else other than sycophants and piles of drugs, and totally out of touch with the 'reality' that is going on outside their window.
Oh well, I don't care - it's their gig. I'm not even offended. It is just sad. Very sad. And somebody told me once you should never be embarrassed for other people. But I have to admit, I made an exception for Microsoft today.