So I go with the owner of the new project I'm working on so I can get a new laptop to Best Buy. Short Story, we want to buy it on the Best Buy card for the company.
I find this, which I have always liked Toshiba's. had one for 5 years. Best laptop I ever owned.
Intel Core Duo Processor / 2GB DDR2 SDRAM / 160GB HDD / DVD SuperMulti Drive / 15.4 Inch LCD Display / 5-in-1 Media Bridge Adapter
# The Toshiba Satellite A105-S4334 Notebook PC is proof that the cutting edge of computing technology isn't just deskbound. It delivers outstanding multimedia features in a compact size - giving you technology that makes desktops look like they're standing still. Sleek and lean, it boasts all the must-haves that everyone is talking about -- from a gorgeous TruBrite Monitor to an 11-in-1 DVD SuperMulti Double Layer drive. It's a value-priced notebook that gives you more media flexibility. Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T5200; 1.6 GHz, 2MB L2 cache, 533MHz FSB
# Mobile Intel 945GM Express chipset
# Integrated WiFi compliant wireless LAN
# 2GB PC4200 DDR2 SDRAM (expandable to 4GB)
# 160GB 5400 RPM Serial ATA (S-ATA) Hard Drive
# DVD SuperMulti (+/-R double layer) drive supporting 11 formats
# 15.4" widescreen TruBrite TFT Active-Matrix LCD display; 1280 x 800 native Resolution
# Intel Graphics Accelerator 950 with 8MB-128MB dynamically-allocated shared graphics memory
# Built-in Stereo speakers with SRS TruSurround XT and SRS WOW
# Toshiba V.92 Software Modem
# PCMCIA card slot (Type II/Type I) supporting ExpressCard/34 & ExpressCard/54
# 5-in-1 Media Bridge Adapter: SD, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, MMC, xD Picture Card
# Ports: RGB (monitor) out, S-Video out, Headphone out, Microphone in, iLINK, USB 2.0 (4 ports), RJ-45 (LAN), RJ-11 (modem)
# Operating Systems: Windows XP Media Center 2005;
# Included Software: Microsoft OneNote 2003, Office Student Teacher Edition (trial version), Works 8.5, Java 2 Runtime Environment, Adobe Acrobat Reader, InterVideo WinDVD 5, WinDVD Creator 2 Platinum, Sonic Solutions' RecordNow! Basic, Windows Media Player 10, Yahoo! Music Engine, McAfee VirusScan & Internet Security Suite (30-day trial), AOL (6-month trial)
# Unit Dimensions(WxDxH): 14.2" x 10.5" x 1.45" (360 x 267 x 37 mm)
# Weight: 6.0 lbs. (2.72 Kg)
Kiss my muthafuckin ass!. ROFL ROFL
WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER OPERATING SYSTEM?
you must be out of your mind. a machine this powerful with that crap on it?
so, i proceed to talk geek to the sales girl who didn't know anything, unsuprisingly, even though she did know how to upsell me on buying microsoft xp pro? are you really joking? i just bought a laptop that is more powerful than some desktops and you want me to buy the operating system that supports most of the applications that I use? (dreamweaver, photoshop cs, blah blah blah).
anyhow, i proceed to ask the sales chick why they do this crap and she goes into how best buy can set me up with business connections to do more business. i thought, cool they are into referring adult webmasters and porn models now.
the manager hears an obviously educated shopper from the corner of his ear shot conversation with another employee and chimes in that microsoft does not install the xp operating system anymore, nor does any of the manufacturers provide restore and recovery discs.
first thing i do when i buy a laptop is blow it out and start over fresh without all the upsell crap on there. looks like microsoft and the manufacturers are starting to put the heat on people to buy shit after the fact.
anyhow, end rant, i hate commerce at the "fuck you" level. thats the level where you can't really do shit about it but buy it and get around their bullshit your own way. they got ya by the balls unless you got your own crack version or want to buy your own copy of xp pro after you bought the laptop with their shitty media center version on there.
</rant>
*blows out oem software and shitty media center to install linux*
pray for me.
haha