Thoughts and Opinions On Today's Important Issues

Monday, January 15, 2007

Are Ford And Microsoft "In Sync"


I am sure that you read the story about Microsoft and Ford forging an alliance:

"Partnering with Microsoft, Ford announced that starting this fall, it is making available on many of its models a factory-installed "Sync" system, a voice-activated in-car communications and entertainment system for cellphones, digital music players such as the iPod, and other media-storage devices."

You just know that the comedians of the world are going to have dozens of jokes using the word "sync."
  • Here's a variation with the recent DCX story where "Chrysler says its strategy to stay on top is to copy every feature offered by the competition, then raise the ante with options the other automakers don't have."----Is it true that Chrysler is throwing everything into its new minivan except the kitchen Sync?
  • Is it Sync or swim time for Ford now

Ok, so I am no Jay Leno!

However, just to brighten your day, I thought I'd remind you of the GM/Microsoft jokes that went around a few years ago when there was supposedly a feud between the 2 companies. It was an urban legend of course but the jokes were funny:

Microsoft versus GM

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 twenty-five dollar cars that got 1000 mi/gal."

Recently General Motors addressed this comment by releasing the statement, "Yes, but would you want your car to crash twice a day?"

And...

1. Every time they repainted the lines on the road you would have to buy a new car.

2. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason, and you would just accept this, restart and drive on.

3. Occasionally, executing a maneuver would cause your car to stop and fail and you would have to re-install the engine. For some strange reason, you would accept this too.

4. You could only have one person in the car at a time, unless you bought "Car95" or "CarNT". But, then you would have to buy more seats.

5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast, twice as easy to drive, but would only run on five percent of the roads.

6. The Macintosh car owners would get expensive Microsoft upgrades to their cars, which would make their cars run much slower.

7. The oil, gas and alternator warning lights would be replaced by a single "general car default" warning light.

8. New seats would force everyone to have the same size butt.

9. The airbag system would say, "Are you sure?" before going off.

10.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.

11.GM would require all car buyers to also purchase a deluxe set of Rand McNally road maps (now a GM subsidiary), even though they neither need them nor want them. And attempting to delete this option would immediately cause the car's performance to diminish by 50% or more.

12.Every time GM introduced a new model 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.

13.You'd press the "Start" button to shut off the engine.

14.Cars will have emergency "driver protection error" signs.

15.If the driver for the vehicle is not performing properly, he/she will have to be updated or re-installed

16.All cars will run in "Safe mode."

Oh in case you were wondering, the picture is that of the Boy Band, "NSync"