Bill Gates Vs General Motors
Posted: Sun Jun 27, 2004 11:37 am
At a computer expo, Bill Gates compared the computer industry with the motor industry, rashly claiming that, "If General Motors had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that did 1,000 miles to the gallon."
General Motors issued this serious response.
"If we had developed technology akin to Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:-
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road to close all the windows, shut off the car, restart it and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing manoeuvres such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and was twice as easy to drive but would run on only 5% of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "THIS CAR HAS PERFORMED AN ILLEGAL OPERATION" warning light.
7. The air bag system would ask, "ARE YOU SURE?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the START button to turn the engine off."
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General Motors issued this serious response.
"If we had developed technology akin to Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:-
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road to close all the windows, shut off the car, restart it and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing manoeuvres such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and was twice as easy to drive but would run on only 5% of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "THIS CAR HAS PERFORMED AN ILLEGAL OPERATION" warning light.
7. The air bag system would ask, "ARE YOU SURE?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the START button to turn the engine off."