09.17.10
IE9 Release Will Harm Web Standards (CSS3), Reddit Helps It
“Mind Control: To control mental output you have to control mental input. Take control of the channels by which developers receive information, then they can only think about the things you tell them. Thus, you control mindshare!”
–Microsoft, internal document [PDF]
Summary: Internet Explorer 9 is being promoted by Reddit and it is bad news for many users of the Web, not just of Windows
REDDIT has been doing some questionable things lately and many trolls from Digg have moved there as well. As I mentioned last week, one reason for me exiting Digg some years ago was its deal with Microsoft. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back, but Digg cancelled its Microsoft deal a few years later.
Increasingly we receive reports from readers who read Reddit and spot what they call AstroTurfers (there are Novell employees there too). Yesterday we found this total sellout where Reddit started promoting Internet Explorer 9 (the tax-funded MSBBC is doing the same thing). Our reader cubevector said it’s “just Microsoft’s way of worming into people’s minds again” and this reminded us of issues we discussed earlier this month. We already have several posts about Internet Explorer 9 failures and lies Microsoft has been spreading about it [1, 2, 3]. There is another issue many people overlook however.
“Increasingly we receive reports from readers who read Reddit and spot what they call AstroTurfers (there are Novell employees there too).”“I was wondering maybe you could raise the awareness of something,” said another reader, “or maybe remind that in one of the post… as we know, MS will not release IE9 for XP… as I see it, it’s like bringing IE6 back to life… 50% of the ppl are still using XP… and it’s going to be supported for another 10 years or so… we’ll have that “there’s a lousy common browser on the web, that we all need to adjust too” just because MS felt like it… the whole “IE6 is holding back the web” is going to be recycled with IE8… no proper CSS3 for another 10 years 
”
SJVN already states clearly that “There will never be an IE 9 for XP”:
Yes, yes, we all know that most people are still running XP. Microsoft knows that too. Why do you think they’re using the IE 9 carrot to try to get people to upgrade to Windows 7?
There is no good reason to move to Vista 7, so Microsoft may be trying to make up some reasons. It’s its typical routine. █
twitter said,
September 17, 2010 at 1:10 pm
As the trolls move on the air gets fresher in the places they don’t have time to abuse. Slashdot comments, while still stuffed, are not as tightly controlled or obnoxious these days. Astroturfers can game some sites but they can’t ruin everything at the same time.
Dr. Roy Schestowitz Reply:
September 17th, 2010 at 1:30 pm
Yes, it’s a real shame that once the crowd escapes the trolls, those very same trolls come following.