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Déjà Vu All Over Again (7/14/98)
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Pop quiz! CNN reports that Windows 98 "deliberately disables" competitors' software by screwing with dynamically linked libraries on the system disk. Hands up, who's surprised?
Hmmm, not many hands out there in TV-land, we're betting. (Anyone else flashing back to the widespread reports that installing Internet Explorer screwed up existing working installations of Netscape Navigator on the same computer?) It's really not as blatant and overt as it first sounds, though. Basically, during Windows 98's setup routine, if it encounters any DLL's that are newer than the version it wants to install, it moves the newer versions out and replaces them with the older versions instead, which breaks any software that depends on the newer versions. Think of it this way: you know how Apple's Mac OS installer will present you with a dialog box that says something like, "the version of Quicktime on this system is newer than the one you're about to install," and lets you choose whether you want to keep the newer version or overwrite it with the older one? Well, Windows 98 doesn't ask. And it doesn't tell you what it did when it's done, so unless you're the type of person who reads technical troubleshooting columns (we thought Windows 98 was a consumer operating system?), you'll have no idea why, say, your scanner suddenly doesn't work anymore.
Apparently, the "Version Control Manager" in Windows 98 will let you move the newer versions back into place, if you know which DLLs and which versions your different applications need to run. (Good luck.) And you also have to find the Version Control Monitor, which is buried six levels deep in the Windows 98 Start menu. An elegant solution, to be sure. Apple should hand out reprints of this column as an ad for the iMac.
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 7/14/98 episode: July 14, 1998: A certain well-known implement continues to propagate rumors of a six-slot Mac in the works at Apple; could it be true? Meanwhile, the iMac's scheduled mid-August premiere remains on track, and Windows 98 reportedly intentionally disables files required by competitors' software, amid shocked gasps and general consternation...
Other scenes from that episode: 853: Love That Knife (7/14/98) See, what we really like about Mac the Knife is his admirable persistence in the face of unwavering Apple denials. You'll recall the recent rumor that Apple planned to unveil new six-slot G3 Power Macs at last week's Expo, yes?... 854: Punctuality Restored (7/14/98) While the rest of the computer manufacturing industry digs in its heels for a slow sales summer, Apple is gearing up for its biggest product launch ever. With exactly one month remaining until the announced launch date of the iMac, it sounds as if the magic August 15th date is still a go...
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