Windows Media Photo: Microsoft's JPEG Killer?

Royalty Fees? Forget WMP, we need open source standards.

My Apple-branded product reads WMV/WMA just fine, but QuickTimes H.264+AAC has better quality anyway.

Hey you know MS... always trying to get a bigger piece of the pie....

By the way, one more time has came to my attention that Mac Supporters are rubbing how good their equipment are.... compared to our poor pc systems.. so if Apple world is so good???? why are you always hanging on by PC World???? shouldn't you be on Mac World or something like that?? Just a thought....

More crap to make money, same as VISTA, Blue-Ray, HD

Money money money

You're right Eddy, it's all about the money...we need to keep the focus on open source...as long as there's adequate offerings from open source in this area there's no way that MS will be able to make money from this...plus, any web designer who uses WMP on their website is in for a rude awakening...and what does Apple's Audio/Video formats have to do with image formats?...is it THAT lonely over there at Apple?...i took a look at a Mac forum the other day and it wasn't the rosy picture that mac users keep trying to paint...

So, *this* is what they've been wasting their time on instead of properly supporting PNG standards. Hey, MS, how about getting your old **** working right before you clutter everything up with new **** that doesn't work right.

Myself and many many others will be using WMP in our software and websites. If you dont want to use IE or Windows then dont use our software and dont come to our websites. Just like the past 20 years we are really only interested in selling to the vast majority. I can afford to lose the money (or lack there of in the case of open source) from Linux and Apple people 10x over.

Hmm. Apple is the "people's" company with a real human touch and Microsoft is a corporate monster. So how much humanitarian aid has Apple's founders provided the word's poor lately?

spelling error: The 7th paragraph uses the acronym WPM, but that should be WMP.

i don't think open source is any good in defining standard. Imagine if u have a million of different variation of "WMP" and each not 100% compatible to each other.

i quess its too early to judge how good WMP will be. has anyone see it in action anyway?

guess what, Gibson, IE market share is steadily shrinking...and for the first time ever, i currently don't know anyone who still uses IE as their primary browser...it's sort of a trend to use firefox now...the vast majority you speak of is actually a shrinking majority...in any case, the WMP format's application on the internet is a few years too late...it would have been useful in the days of dial-up but with broadband being so common now there's no need for it...the only way that it will catch on is if the whole porn industry embraces it...

What is Adobe's take on all this? I can't a MS solution when there's free alternatives. But JPG, MPEG and MP3 are about due to retire now. There's better technology out there.

What is Adobe's take on all this? I can't see a MS solution when there's free alternatives. But JPG, MPEG and MP3 are about due to retire now. There's better technology out there.

At least Microsoft might finally be grasping the concept here that maybe it would help if they tried to replace the status-quo with something *gasp* actually technically superior for a change. Maybe entering the game console market has started to teach them about competing when the deck isn't stacked in their favor.

The product will actually have to be out before anyone knows how much better it really is though... and I'm sure a comparable open source alternative will surface eventually.

I'm still glad I recently made the switch to Linux. Microsoft has had the better part of twenty years to get Windows right... and it never seems to happen. They just make people pay for a slightly less crappy version every few years.

Gerald Gibson suffers from some kind of dillusion.

His self important post, using 'our' belies the fact that even if he has some 'software' none of us know what it is or give a Flying Fcuk about.

Gerald, you are pompous, short sighted and you sound like an idiot. I am not telling you to stop though, keep spouting your crap, it makes it easier to discredit the likes of you.

This pissing contest between dorks really is pretty funny. Go outside and lighten up.

This has already been tried before.

Doesnt anyone remember Windows Metafile?

.wmf's?

Of course not, mirosoft doesnt want you to remember while they engage in their age-old practice of "lets try that failed idea one more time"

You stupid peolple, why do you give money to these f***in companies??? Just use pirated softwares.

Here we go again, uncle Bill poking his finger into the pie and thinking of another way to corner the market and make a few bucks, there are millions out there just waiting to sign up - -

All you really need is software thats good for everyone.

I don't think it's about a new technology vs. status quo or closed source vs. open source.

It is not about a new media format. Its is about using their monopolistic practices to push a format that will strengten the monopoly.

History has long shown that monopolies are not good for consumers.

As consumers we should be concerned, not just for ideological reasons.

When MS uses it's dominance of the OS space to push a media format and boycot other media formats (PNG), nobody wins but Microsoft.

That's the core issue here.

Actually, my feelings for M$ aside, I think this is a good idea. JPG is old and tired and it needs a huge overhaul (see: we need a new widespread standard, and if it doesn't come from M$ it won't have much chance of success).

I like PNG :)