Depends on what you call "niche". Linux has been huge in servers and HPC for decades while Windows has been steadily losing ground. User facing applications like SteamOS is now starting to gain some growth.

How would a web interface know which games you have installed on your machine? How would a web interface know which games need an update because the developer issued patches? The web interface would only know which games are in your library not what is on your machine specifically. Personally, I do not install every single game I own on my machine.. That's just one reason why a web only front-end does not work very well in this case.

I think so. Also it is supposed to have user reviews. People have wondered why it took so long. From what I have been told, the main architectural issue is that the current storefront/launcher is a modified version of Unreal Engine. That engine is designed for games and not ideal for storefronts. Modifying further to be a better storefront would have taken a lot of work. The new storefront is basically written from scratch from what I have been told. Thus they could write a Linux version.

And what is OEM pricing? You don't know do you? If you bothered to read the article it says: "As this article points out, OEM pricing for Windows varies by company and even by the type of processor being used in the computer. . ."

Disk-free will lower the cost of making games. That cost savings is not passed on to the consumer. For example, CDs cost less to manufacture than tapes. Towards the peak of consumers buying CDs, they were never cheaper than tapes. Same with VHS vs DVD. Even before Sony announced this plan to remove discs, many "physical" copies were nothing more than the disc case with a digital code inside. The price was not lowered by the fact that there was no disc being manufactured.

The article says Windows 11 Home is $139 and Pro is $200 currently. A 10% increase would mean prices of $153 and $220..

In the article it says Windows retail is $139 for Home and $200 for Pro. Math says the increase is $14-$19 for retail. I am not sure that tracks with your $2-$3 estimate.

1) The increase in costs is double to sometimes quadruple. If by "a percent" you mean 200 to 400%, you would be right. 2) Your assumption is manufacturers are still maintaining that 30% under these circumstances. Do you have the quarterly or annual filings broken down by devices? They may not be maintaining that 30% anymore.

That might be plausible if Google had not released phones, earbuds, and a watch at the same time in an event called "Made by Google 2026"

So software and media on MS Store is DRM free then? There is never a scenario where an online store shutdown will cause that media or software to be useless without an authentication server?

And you are confusing what situations EEE is successful and what conditions MS has tried and continues to try.

Finding your stuff is the basic purpose. What stuff is up to you. People have used AirTags and TilePros to track their luggage on trips, for example. So when the airline said your luggage would arrive today and it hasn’t left your original airport, you may have to buy some clothes for today. Other people have tracked down their stolen property like cars, backpacks, etc. It has uses.

It is bigger but not dramatically bigger than it cannot be used in most applications. I don’t have an AirTag but my question is why did it take Google so long to make a competing device? The AirTag was not original either; TilePro existed before the AirTag. Apple just made theirs round, slightly smaller, and work with their ecosystem. It took Google 5 years to copy what Apple copied?

Well recently a certain product’s price doubled to quadrupled over the last year. We all know which product is to blame: labubus. That or RAM, SSD, GPU, etc have multiplied in prices because of AI. Who is to know?

The link that he posted offered no confirmation that Federal law (46 U.S.C. 2304) "only applies to distress calls" as he stated.

Please cite in the link where it said any of this. It does not. It is as detailed as linking the Constitution and saying that it does.

If they heard the call and did not help, it is implied it was a refusal to aid. So the yacht's excuse could be they never heard the call. But the call was on an emergency channel that they should be monitoring while sailing. However it would be unlikely that both ships somehow missed the call for aid.