2) So… You compare the $80 mil marketing budget with $1 mil of donation instead of comparing it to what Gates has been donating for years? Sure, Gates doesn’t equal MSFT, but all his money did come from it.

As big a fan I am of Microsoft, though, I have to agree– IE 8 sucks.

Looking for an answer, we called Feeding America, the national food-bank network that will receive the donation. In fact, Microsoft’s math is correct, and its promised donation of up to $1 million is a “godsend,” said Ross Fraser, a spokesman for the organization.

But Feeding America’s Fraser says it’s “upsetting when someone snipes about someone who is very generously trying to help us.”

I won’t bash the author since it adds absolutely no value to the conversation, which most people have done here. Just do more research next time, the website spells out how much it costs for their “meals.”

It’s people like you that can’t let a good thing be good.

One thing you have to understand is that some meals are very cheap to produce, depending on the mean. That’s called PROFIT. A single buyer does not get any discounts. Microsoft is paying for these meals by the millions and of course will not be paying all of the premiums that a normal person has to.

Who wrote the flamebait article just to attract pages of comments and increase TC ad impressions? I count 16 ads on the side of the page. The more people you attract to your crap article, even if only to point out your stupidity, the more ad impressions you get. And yes, I just added to your impressions – hurray!

Folks saying the math doesn’t add up: Microsoft is donating to a charity. If the charity says it can get 8 meals for $1.15, and they’ve shown ability to deliver, guess what: Microsoft is correct in saying 8 meals. Why 8 meals and the odd dollar amount? Because MS wants to work the number 8 in. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.

Soup kitchen and food bank bulk level purchases, combined with donated food can certainly make that number work out. As many pointed out, we’re not talking retail, and we’re not even talking wholesale packaged per-family. We’re talking bulk purchase, bulk preparation and delivery. As one commenter pointed out, you’ll be amazed at how far you can stretch a dollar when there’s only one meal on the menu that day, and you’re making it by the ton.

MG: Complaining because it’s *only* 1 million dollars? and they misled you into a download? It’s a million GD dollars going to a charity! A million! Grow the hell up and admit you’re wrong. MS could easily have dropped 1M on another ad campaign, but instead they combined press with charitable donations. You’re an ass for trying to call them out on this. Oh, and you failed miserably. Your “update” just shows how low you’ve sunken.

Never once did you address any of the comments in a substantive way. Instead you continued to whine “wah wah wah, they’re still not my friend wah”. I’ve seen better behavior on the playground. Man up and admit you were wrong. Hey, I bet you’ll get more ad impressions when you do that.

This post has made me redefine the word “douchebag”. I just can’t believe you’re still working here. Oh way, yes I can, you’re increasing ad impressions for your employer. Douchebag.

“For every $1 you donate, Feeding America helps provide 10 pounds of food and grocery products to men, women and children facing hunger in our country.”

10 pounds for 8 people is pretty good.

I work in the non-profit sector and a dollar can go a long way, especially in America where there is so much wasted food. Besides, the price Feeding America pays for a pound of food is going to be far and away less than even the best whole sale, bulk, or direct-from-the-farm rate any average person or company is going to get because they are a non-profit working for a good cause. There is bargaining room when the choice is between throwing the food out or giving it to people that are hungry.

Yes, in the face of an $80 million dollar AD campaign $1 million dollars looks like chump change, and for Microsoft it is, but at least they are doing something.

The tide of online giving is changing. People want to find ways of giving and making real change and if Microsoft helps move that trend forward, connecting everyday online activity to charitable donation without charging anything to the consumer, then more power to them. It is about time that more large companies start using the same means for promotion.

Yes, it is a small sum, but guess what, even in *bling-bling* America a little goes a long way.

I used Macs and PCs both on a regular basis, and I can tell you from experience that while Apple usually has better software offerings than Microsoft, their much vaunted hardware quality control is about as insulting to consumers’ intelligence as the IE8 campaign.

In fifteen years of owning PCs, I’ve had exactly one hardware failure across several machines. In three years of owning a Mac, I’ve had four hardware failures in the same Mac. Apple hardware is overpriced garbage.

The clearest evidence of Apple’s hardware incompetence? How about Intel makes their processors now?

Don’t get me wrong: given a choice, I’ll probably take a Mac over a PC most of the time.

But market share does clearly prove that PCs did something right that Apple didn’t. And really, your assertion that Apple never intended to have total market saturation? Ummm, three words: iPod, iTunes, iPhone. If Apple could achieve that kind of dominance with it’s computer products, don’t you think they would have by now? Don’t you think market dominance is the goal of 99.999% of corporations?

Quality Control. Pfft. What a ridiculous argument. Of course, that’s about what I’d expect from a fanboy.

For about $1.18 per serving (even shopping in a supermarket) I could make any of the following:

-spicy chickpea curry with rice
- mac and cheese (with ham for protein, if you swing that way)
- veggie lasagna
- quiche
- BLTs with baked “fries”
- a huge variety of hearty salads and soups
- red beans and rice (classic Southern meal)
- ham and eggs, with toast
- pancakes and eggs
- Moroccan chicken and vegetables with couscous

Part of it is in knowing how to shop and making the most of seasonal (and thus cheaper) ingredients. My only warning is that once you know how to cook great meals for this kind of money, you’ll really resent those $20 hamburgers (with fries for another $4).

Wow. So Microsoft have more PC based systems in teh World. What a staggering achievment THAT is considering how every Tom, Dick, Harriet and Bill can produce PC hardware and slap Windows on it.

Apple maintain control of their hardware & software. Just the one Company (yes, I’m aware they have contractors producing the hardware for them) and never intended to have total market saturation the way PC / Windows has.

Market share. Pfft. What a ridiculous argument. Of curse, I’m sure I’m just being a fanboy.

“For every $1 you donate, Feeding America helps provide 10 pounds of food and grocery products to men, women and children facing hunger in our country.”

That’s a bit more than a gum ball.