Cars vs. Computers

@nana1944 (1365)
United States
January 9, 2007 7:25am CST
This an excerpt from an email I got from a friend. I thought it was quite funny. Please share this with your friends who love - but sometimes hate - their computer. I think we can all relate to this one. For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on. At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part):1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day. 2. Every time they repainted the lines in 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 to the side of the road, close all of 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 a maneuver 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 twice as easy to drive -- but would run on only five percent 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 airbag 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.
1 response
• Canada
15 Jan 07
Well said!!! I've often said that computers are like cars. I would like to add one to the list of reasons. People have just as much troubles with cars as they do with computers...something's always going wrong with them. Just a month ago I bought a chill-mat for my new laptop, because the friggen fan went!! My mother tried to tell me I would never understand car trouble...I told her I would because it's just as annoying and inconvenient as computer trouble. Mom said I'd never understand because I don't rely on my computer to take me places, so I reminded her that she need not rely on her car for ideas. That is to say, I may not be able to drive to Montreal with my computer, but thanks to my computer I have the world at my fingertips, for a very reasonable price. Some day I'll travel the world, but for now my computer is a fantastic substitute.