Thread: Microsoft is hacker friendly?

I may be the only one on here that thinks this is pretty awesome...

Last week Microsoft embraced the Chevron WP7 team which were the first hackers to break the Windows Phone 7. Instead of suing them they invited them out to Redmond to work with the WP7 team to improve the phone. Now famed Iphone hacker geohot posted this on his website:

perhaps a more appropriate way to deal with jailbreakers
I’m going out to buy a Windows 7 phone

Then Brandon Watson of MS tweeted him back:



I just think it's cool that MS is embracing the hacking community with Kinect and now with WP7.

It's a dangerous and slippery slope to be on. You can't embrace hacking on one system and then prosecute it on another like Windows. Just try explaining that to your enterprise clients.

MS is making a big mistake here.

Originally Posted by Disco Batman

It's a dangerous and slippery slope to be on. You can't embrace hacking on one system and then prosecute it on another like Windows. Just try explaining that to your enterprise clients.

MS is making a big mistake here.

I disagree. Two totally different scenarios. Hackers are going to Hack the WP7 phone regardless. It's better for MS to embrace it.

Originally Posted by Disco Batman

It's a dangerous and slippery slope to be on. You can't embrace hacking on one system and then prosecute it on another like Windows. Just try explaining that to your enterprise clients.

MS is making a big mistake here.

Two different things. Windows is basically an open OS. It doesn't have to be jailbroken. Phones are traditionally closed OS's. What I think MS is doing is getting ideas from these guys to improve the Phone. I think it's smart move because some of the best ideas are from guys like this who think outside the box. It's refreshing for a major company like MS to be willing to work with these guys instead of trying to prosecute them.

I know you both work in IT, but as an IT professional I see embracing hackers in any way to be dangerous. They prob need the help though. Winphone 7 is having a hard go of it.

Then that makes less sense. How is the OS having a hard go at it? It's a great OS that has been highly reviewed.

Originally Posted by davidjschenk

I think he's talking about the OS, not the phone. Or did I misread you, Disco Batman?

Yours,

David

Phones primarily, the phones offered in the US can't hold a candle to the best Android Phones, or what Apple offers. The OS is actually good.

No offense Gents, but with your unwavering support for MS and Windows Phone 7 do either of you own one yet?

Originally Posted by CC

Then that makes less sense. How is the OS having a hard go at it? It's a great OS that has been highly reviewed.

Sales my friend sales.

I like the OS, but if the hardware is shit, no one is gonna jump. Not when they can get a better Android or Apple made product.

The crap phone offerings are the only reason I don't have one.

Originally Posted by Disco Batman

Sales my friend sales.

I like the OS, but if the hardware is shit, no one is gonna jump. Not when they can get a better Android or Apple made product.

The crap phone offerings are the only reason I don't have one.

I'll agree with you there. The Samsung Focus is the only one thats really solid. Once Verizon and Sprint jump on board this spring they'll be better hardware support. Remember the Android Nexus? Good lord that was crap. It wasn't until the Droid came out when Android had a presence. At least their APP store is getting mega support from developers.

Originally Posted by CC

I'll agree with you there. The Samsung Focus is the only one thats really solid. Once Verizon and Sprint jump on board this spring they'll be better hardware support. Remember the Android Nexus? Good lord that was crap. It wasn't until the Droid came out when Android had a presence. At least their APP store is getting mega support from developers.

The nexus was highly reviewed from a hardware standpoint. It failed becuase it was non subsidized so it cost too much, and google didn't provide adequate support for it. Not to mention it was only T-Mobile. The first Droid released two months prior to the Nexus.

Had it been subsidized and offered on a better network I think it would have done just fine.

Originally Posted by Disco Batman

The nexus was highly reviewed from a hardware standpoint. It failed becuase it was non subsidized so it cost too much, and google didn't provide adequate support for it. Not to mention it was only T-Mobile. The first Droid released two months prior to the Nexus.

Had it been subsidized and offered on a better network I think it would have done just fine.

The Droid was released first? Really? My timeline is all f'ed up then. When android was first released what was their flagship phone? My buddy works for google and he showed us it about 3 years ago and it was shit.

Originally Posted by CC

The Droid was released first? Really? My timeline is all f'ed up then. When android was first released what was their flagship phone? My buddy works for google and he showed us it about 3 years ago and it was shit.

T-Mobile G1

Yes, that was it.

Originally Posted by Disco Batman

Phones primarily, the phones offered in the US can't hold a candle to the best Android Phones, or what Apple offers. The OS is actually good.

No offense Gents, but with your unwavering support for MS and Windows Phone 7 do either of you own one yet?

Unfortunately no. Our phones are through corporate. Haven't bought a device or paid a cellphone bill in over 10 years. Before the Windows phone came out I had a choice between an android phone or the iPhone. I went with the HTC Evo and I about lost my mind. It was the biggest piece of shit phone/OS. Very very buggy. I told corporate either get me a iPhone or pay for workmans comp because another day with that device and I would of gone crazy. Yeah it's that bad.

Good news is I ordered one so we could play with it. Chris's wife just got one and he says it's so much better than the iPhone.

But it's way to early to predict it's faith. Phone has only been out for about two months. But from everything I see, everything I read, I think it will be successful.

MS is putting everything they got into it. It seems like every other commercial is for WP7. They are aggressively marketing it.

I love my iPhone but apple needs to be more aggressive and come out with a brand new iOS. The current one is starting to showing its age.

I really hope that any changes made to the GUI of iOS aren't too drastic. I like the simple nature of it.

One concern I have for Win7 and Android is with these OS's constantly accessing the data network and carriers going the capped data plan route just how much data you could end up using.

Back to the original topic. I just can't get down with MS's hypocrisy here. We support hacking on winphone7, but not on windows 7. We support kinect hacking, but not xbox hacks.