gong.jpg: Paste this image in your site, Myspace, Facebook, Ebay copy this code...

<a href="http://www.weeklybits.com/microsoft-windows-7-3f-we-already-hate-it-2a_article_8_7685.html"><img src="http://static.10gen.com/www.alleyinsider.com/~~/f?id=483d52c014b9b91f003a4dbc&maxX=348&maxY=370" border="0" alt="gong.jpg en Tech WeBlogs WEEKLYBITS.COM"></a>

Such as:

Why are we going to want to touch our PC screen?

We never touch our PC screen, and we hate it when other people touch our PC screens. This will not change if Windows 7 allows us to do some of the cool things we can do with the iPhone. Why not? Because the iPhone is a handheld unit that is designed to be fondled. PCs aren't. We're not particularly anal, and we polish up our Blackberry every thirty seconds or so. What are we supposed to do when Windows 7 comes out? Keep a handy rag on our desk to constantly polish up our PC screen?

And then there's the reaching. Do you really want to wave your arms in the air when you could rest them comfortable on the keyboard? What about shaky fingers--do you really need to be reminded every three seconds that you couldn't be a surgeon? What about the wrist stress required to put your hand in a position necessary to "blow up" an image (go ahead--try it. Put your thumb and forefinger in a position necessary to expand the picture of the gong above. Talk about carpal tunnel syndrome).

Our quick take on Windows 7: Big hat, no cattle.

We think Microsoft is rushing to fix the indigestion caused by the bloated Vista. In the process, we think it is again trying to do what it has done so well in the past in every arena except the Internet: see a good idea and steal it. In this case, the idea is the iPhone (and, to be fair, Microsoft's own tablet PC). We suspect that what Microsoft is really up to here is building iPhone-killer software that it hopes to sell to everyone but Apple (AAPL). But what works on a handheld device or tablet does not necessarily translate to a full-blown PC. So excuse us if we don't jump up and down in excitement at the thought that people are going to feel better about jabbing their fat, greasy fingers into our PC screens.

*UPDATE: A Microsoft source points out that the touch screen is just one feature of Windows 7 and that, if we don't like getting fingerprints all over our PC screen, we don't have to use it. Fair enough.

See Also:
Ballmer: "We're Not Rebidding For Yahoo"
Why Vista Is Failing: R&D Budget Went To Springsteen Cover Band
Why Vista Is Failing Part II: It's Slow And Expensive
Are You Waiting For Windows 7? You're Not Alone