Ask Paul: June 12 (Premium)

Happy Friday! With summer finally in full swing here in the Lehigh Valley, we can look forward to a nice weekend for a change.

Excel inking follow-up

Last week, jt5 asked:

Do you have any update on the Excel ink to text feature that was demoed last year? The last I heard is that it would be coming this spring…

I asked Microsoft about this and was told only that this feature will become available in the coming months.

Fitness tracker

GeekWithKids asks:

I was wondering what fitness tracker you are using. I remember reading that you had ordered a Samsung Fitness tracker when you got the S20. Did you switch to it or are you still using a Fitbit. My Charge 2 is on its last legs and I’m thinking that Father’s day will be a good excuse to replace it.

I did test the Samsung fitness tracker for a few weeks and I preferred its color display, which made it easier to see for some reason. But I’m still using the Fitbit Charge 3 that I bought about a year and a half ago.

I mostly like it, except that I can’t customize the display that appears during a workout (like weights) to have bigger text; it’s just really hard for me to read something that small. I think about replacing it from time to time, but I’m unsure which direction to go. I will probably stick with Fitbit, and suspect that one of their smartwatches would be easier to read during workouts given the larger displays, but I don’t like having a big thing like that on my wrist. And I’ve even gone back and forth on just getting an Apple Watch. But … I don’t know.

Vaguely, I like that this is all Fitbit does. Buying a fitness tracker from a big tech company seems odd to me, like buying headphones from Microsoft. I just don’t think I’d ever do that.

iPad influences

ErichK asks:

Paul, aside from some obvious things like thinness and lightness, how do you feel the original iPad learned from tablet PC’s mistakes?’

If you haven’t done so, I recommend reading the official Steve Jobs biography, which contains a great passage about a dinner party that Jobs attended where there was a Microsoft executive bragging about the Tablet PC.

“This guy badgered me about how Microsoft was going to completely change the world with this Tablet PC software and eliminate all notebook computers, and Apple ought to license his Microsoft software,” Jobs recounts in the book. “But he was doing the device all wrong. It had a stylus. As soon as you have a stylus, you’re dead. This dinner was like the tenth time he talked to me about it, and I was so sick of it that I came home and said, ‘Fuck this, let’s show him what a tablet can really be’.”

The Tablet PC was literally the inspiration for the iPad: At work the next day, Jobs told his design team to design a multi-touch tablet with no keyboard or stylus. That work, curiously, resulted in the iPhone because by the time this project became viable as a form factor, Jobs and Apple felt that a phone was more urgent. So the claims that the original iPad was nothing more than a bit iPhone/iPod touch are absolutely correct.

This is a classic example of the difference between Microsoft and Apple and I think it really informs how Apple will succeed getting macOS on ARM where Microsoft has struggled with Windows 10 on ARM: Microsoft released this technology (Tablet PC) too soon on devices that were too big, too heavy, and had terrible battery life and fans. Apple could have done the same, but instead it waited until it could release an elegant device that was thin and light and had great battery life. (You could even make the same argument for Surface, where it wasn’t until Surface Pro 3 that this form factor made any sense at all.)

HoloLens

bschnatt asks:

Will Microsoft ever make a version of Hololens affordable by mere humans? Do you think it would be successful (i.e., is there a consumer market for this)?

With a nod to my comment about Microsoft releasing things too early above, it’s reasonable to view HoloLens in the same light. So, yes, after years of refinement and miniaturization, it’s possible that a future HoloLens device will be both affordable for mere humans and viable as a consumer product. But given the history, it’s more likely that other firms will be more successful bringing augmented reality to the public, in part because they’ve waited for these conditions to exist, and in part because they might already have successful consumer ecosystems. Apple, for example.

Looking at the situation with AR today, it’s pretty easy to see that mobile-based AR solutions—iPhone- or iPad-based, for example—are the way to go until we can get small, glasses-style AR headsets. And not coincidentally, Apple is working on exactly that.

WebView2 vs. PWA vs. Electron

brisonharvey asks:

From a programming standpoint, is Microsoft trying to make its new WebView2, PWA app approach work better/easier than Electron? What might it take to get developers to switch over? And what benefit might Microsoft gain if they do?

Increasingly, I view Microsoft’s stance on Windows/client app development as being wide and deep, and not focused on any single thing “winning.” This is partially a reaction to the lack of success it had trying to funnel all Windows app development through UWP, and partially a pragmatic conclusion based on what developers are really doing. That is, developers want to use the frameworks, or technologies, or whatever, that they prefer. And Microsoft isn’t just “allowing” this, it is specifically supporting all of it.

So the story today is so much more varied and diverse than “just use UWP.” Microsoft supports several web technologies, native apps in C++, WinForms, and WPF, Project Reunion desktop and UWP apps, Xamarin.Forms (and soon .NET MAUI) apps, and more. And the goal isn’t to force or influence developers to switch to something else anymore, it’s to meet them where they are.

Looking at the technologies you specified, WebView2 is a solution for Windows application developers who want to embed web content in a native app. PWA is a cross-platform standard for web apps that have native platform features. And Electron is a cross-platform web framework for creating native apps based on web technologies; React Native is similar to Electron but is lighter and, to my mind, preferable to Electron. But whatever. These things will all coexist, not just out in the world at large, but within the confines of Microsoft’s developer offerings.

Big-little

jimchamplin asks:

Short and to the point: Do you think Intel developing bigLITTLE-like SOCs will make an impact on the portables market?

I told this story on Windows Weekly this week, but Terry Myerson confided to me that he only ported Windows 10 to ARM to force Intel to make more efficient chipsets for portable devices, and, his words, to get “those fucking stickers” off of PCs. At that time, AMD was “circling the drain” (also his words) and he felt that Intel needed some strong company to really compete with it and force it to do better. And Qualcomm was/still is basically the only option. (Talk about bringing Windows 10 on ARM to other ARM chipset was always just talk.)

What we’re seeing here is an early example of this work finally influencing Intel to do some work in this important part of the market. I don’t think this particular design is going to set the world on fire, and it’s worth pointing out that this isn’t even Intel’s first big-little chip architecture. But yes, I do think that Qualcomm’s success on mobile—really ARM’s success, given Apple’s role here too—has and will continue to have a huge influence on Intel and that they will continue evolving their chipsets in this direction. The question is whether they will succeed. For such a big and successful company, Intel’s struggles are kind of hard to fathom.

What do you do

eeisner asks:

My Galaxy S8 is dying on me and needs to be replaced. If you had to buy a new Android phone tomorrow, what would you buy? 3 most important things to me are camera, aesthetic (ie bezelless), and guaranteed support. 5G seems pointless right now, but who knows in a year or 2. S20? Pixel 4? Something else? I’m on VZW. Thanks!

Literally forced to buy right now and accounting for what is literally available as I write this, I would look at the Pixel 4 XL despite its bland design, the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro, and the Samsung Galaxy S20 series. The cameras are all very good, but I’d say Samsung is the best overall, followed by the Pixel 4 and then the iPhones. Given your previous experience with Samsung, that makes it a more obvious choice, and while these phones are very expensive, you used the Galaxy S8 for possibly three years, and there’s no reason to think you won’t do the same with the new purchase. The Galaxy S20 or iPhones would be the better choices for that kind of commitment.

So the question is which Galaxy S20. I’ve only used and reviewed the most expensive one, the S20 Ultra, but given that experience, I can say that the biggest advantage the S20 Ultra has over the S20 and S20+ is the camera system. (It’s also bigger and has epic battery life.) But that might not be much of an advantage, since the 100 MP sensor is just about zoom and the quality peters out pretty quickly. I would read reviews of the other two, looking specifically at the camera comparisons. You could save a lot of money if a stock S20 works for you. And even if you don’t care about/need 5G, it’s there, and Verizon is a leader in that area. Plus, Galaxy S20 prices are starting to come down, maybe there are deals to be had via the carrier or elsewhere.

Sony PlayStation 5

madthinus asks:

So how much did every retailer CEO S@#$ themselves last night when Sony put them on notice with a all digital edition of the console?

This was inevitable. I sort of turn this one on its head and believe that Sony only released a version with a disk to appease retailers. I bet most gamers going forward are all digital on consoles regardless.

Thoughts about the PS5?

It’s going to be great. I wasn’t blown away by anything I saw at the Xbox or PS5 game reveals other than just the sheer quality. This generation is all about 4K/60FPS+ and both consoles will deliver that.

To me the most interesting thing is the two consoles. It is clear the the digital edition will be cheaper. Question is how much more so. Or will the be priced the same with the all digital having more storage?

My guess is the version with the disk will be $50 to $100 more expensive.

Anyway, if cost is the only difference, that is a far easier marketing message than having two consoles in the market with vastly different specs like Microsoft is rumored to have.

I agree.

Related to this discussion, MartinusV2 asks:

After seeing the presentation of the PS/5. Do you think Sony will get the edge again since they will sell a nice headset and great other accessories?

I am hoping that this generation is a bit closer, unit sales-wise, but Sony’s biggest advantage remains: It is aggressively focused on exclusives, and its audience seems to really prefer that platform. That said, Microsoft’s biggest advantage, its gamer-centric backward and cross-platform compatibility, only grow stronger with each generation. I guess we’ll see, but I like Xbox’s chances. (Of course, I did so when the Xbox One launched too.)

Like Brad say, why Microsoft doesn’t make Surface Headphone compatible with xBox?

This is inexcusable. I have no idea.

And frankly, I prefer the look of PS/5 compared to xBox series X.

This kind of thing will be divisive, and we can already see people lining up on one side or the other. Ultimately, I don’t think the physical design will cause defections in either direction. People just seem to prefer Xbox or Sony.

Deadwood quote

Chris_Kez asks:

Hi Paul, I have a completely random non-tech question: you once paraphrased a scene from Deadwood where Al Swearengen is annoyed and perplexed by the idea that someone would reply immediately via telegram rather than take the time to compose one’s thoughts properly. I remember the scene too but I cannot find it to get the exact quote! I’ve searched Google and even transcripts looking for key words; I’ve posted in the Deadwood Reddit thread. Everything wants to point me to S2E1 where Al complains about “messages from invisible sources” and Dan offers to turn the telegraph poles into kindling, but this is not the scene! If you can recall which season/episode, or any other detail it would be appreciated.

I’ve not found it either, and I have this very clear memory of him asking rhetorically why anyone would want to respond immediately to a question sent by letter, that these things required thought and time. I believe the two scenes could be from different episodes, or perhaps different parts of the same episode. There’s the scene where he sees the poles going up and asks about them. And then later, an enemy (I forget his name) has been sending messages back and forth via telegram and the rhetorical question comes up when his second in command asks him if he wants to reply. (I think they were intercepting the messages or something.)

Anyway. Not sure. Sorry, and we had literally rewatched the series when the Deadwood movie came out. Last year, I think.

Send As fix

wright_is asks:

Microsoft botched the “send as…” functionality in Outlook 365 with on-prem Exchange in the April patch. The June patch came out this week and the problem still hasn’t been solved. Any news on when this is likely to be fixed and my users will stop pestering me?

On-premise Exchange? 🙂 No, sorry.

Microsoft Launcher

MartinusV2 asks:

Do you know what is happening with the Microsoft Launcher on Android? Seems a long time since they updated it.

Funny, I was just thinking about this. You may recall that Microsoft previewed a next-generation version of the Launcher back in January. This exists in the store alongside the stable version and is widely expected to be the basis for the Surface Duo launcher, which makes it doubly interesting. Looking at the Preview version, I see it was literally updated yesterday, which surprised me. The stable version was last updated in May.

But updates could just be bug fixes or whatever. Guessing, I’d say that the slowness here might be tied to the Duo and that things will change as that release gets closer.