vComeback Contest: Microsoft Cloud Power Billboard

Microsoft recently plastered this giant attack ad on a key Silicon Valley passageway — Northbound Highway 101 in Mountain View:

Fun fact: The billboard on the opposite side is running an Apple iTunes ad.

“VIRTUALIZATION ALONE DOES NOT A CLOUD SOLUTION MAKE.”

Catchy, yet sophisticated and original.

Your witty comeback could win you a cool vSphere book!

Got a pithy response to this new Microsoft cloud marketing line?  Share it with the virtualization community by submitting a comment below for a chance to win a great prize.

The possibilities are endless.  Keep it clean.

For instance, you might reply:  “Yeah, I’d say the exact same thing if my virtualization was Hyper-V.”

A panel of distinguished judges I will subjectively select two winners to receive copies of Eric Siebert’s excellent book, Maximum vSphere.  Contest ends January 13, 11:59 p.m. PST and is open to everyone, but prizes will only be shipped to winners within the US.  Two winners will be announced no later than January 17.

Multiple responses are allowed — submit early, submit often.

UPDATE: Check out the colorful commentary by Colin Steele at TechTarget.

Comeback inspiration

For some comeback inspiration, take a look at this classic Seinfeld scene.  Just don’t go all George Costanza on us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpNPw4H6_tU

Disclaimers:  Book giveaways provided by publisher.  Contest not sponsored by, nor affiliated with, any third-parties.    No clouds were harmed in the making  of this blog post.

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84 Responses to vComeback Contest: Microsoft Cloud Power Billboard

  1. the cloud is roads to more than just an operating system

  2. Mike Preston says:

    Virtualization alone does not a cloud soluti…C:\Program Files\Cloud\HyperV\hyper.exe is not a valid win32 application. Stop ERROR 0x0000020

  3. Brent Ozar says:

    “You have to add vapor and FUD too.”

  4. H says:

    You need vendor lock-in too.

  5. Jim Bodkin says:

    “Bill Gates, who for years was the richest man in the world, is also one of the smartest. But even he couldn’t figure out how to beat the Internet — how to transition his grand old monopoly software company, Microsoft, into a business that thrives on the Net. And so he begins his retirement today from Microsoft as the PC era’s biggest winner, and the Web era’s most spectacular casualty.” Josh Quittner

  6. JD Langdon says:

    I’d like to submit:
    vSphere, taking the Hyper-V entilation out of cloud computing.

  7. Michael Noone says:

    You also need patches, lots of patches… And security holes, you need those too.

  8. PiroNet says:

    OMG Cloud me in the Neck!

  9. Paul Nelis says:

    No amount of marketing fog can dispell the actual working clouds seeded by VMware

  10. Hany Michael says:

    “Bloody hell..even on billboards they’ve got BSOD’s!”

  11. Thomas Corfmat says:

    “VIRTUALIZATION ALONE DOES NOT A CLOUD SOLUTION MAKE.”

    “… WITHOUT A GENUINE VMWARE CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT SOLUTION”

  12. Tony says:

    Yoda called…he wants his speech writer back.

  13. Wiilliam says:

    Eric,

    This made my Monday morning, great find! Perhaps Microsoft was going for a Yoda impression. May the cloud force be with those with proper grammar 🙂

  14. Adam Gross says:

    I would say you would want to hit them on their dumb cloud commercials. So something like “Get more out of your cloud than just sharing documents” or “The cloud is more than just sharing pictures”

    Another one would be “Don’t let your cloud go up in flames” or if you want to be more vaguely direct against Microsoft and more complicated, “Don’t let your cloud go up in flaMeS” with “flae” in red and “MS” in black

  15. Brent Quick says:

    Don’t believe the hype mind-share does not equal market-share, VMware is the silver lining in the cloud.

  16. JoeC says:

    Microsoft – Transforming the cloud into fog.

  17. Shekhar says:

    Open your window panes to let in the VMware clouds

    or

    No Window panes if you want clouds

    or

    Windows block Clouds

    or

    Feel the clouds without windows.

  18. Shekhar says:

    Clouds pills for window pa(i)n(e)s

  19. B. Riley says:

    How about a simple equation:

    Microsoft – (Jim Allchin – Ray Ozzie – Bob Muglia) + Steve Ballmer = FAIL

  20. michael says:

    There is no try. Do [cloud] or do not

    (With a Yoda-esque little green guy beside it, leaning a stick)

  21. michael says:

    Ask yourself “what would google do” 4 VIRTUALIZATION?

  22. Mark Richman says:

    Microsoft is in a coma.

  23. chris says:

    Creating products in every corner of technology does not make you a virtualization expert.

  24. chris says:

    Database server …. check.
    Mail server…. check.
    Server OS … check.
    Client OS … check.
    Collaboration server … check

    Hypervisor … CHOKE.

  25. Are you Azure of that?

  26. Jake says:

    Cloud you say? The vForce you must use.

  27. anon says:

    Virturlization without the Virtulization (Type-1 Hypervisor) layer does not a Cloud Solution make

    Hardware, Windows, Apps

  28. Robert S says:

    We’ve got our head in the clouds remembering the old days. That’s our solution.

  29. JD Langdon says:

    I was one years ago that read “In a world without fences and walls, who needs Windows and Gates?”

  30. Stu Fox says:

    Boy, you guys at VMware must be feeling really sensitive if that’s what classes as an attack these days, it’s just a simple statement of fact.

  31. Kevin says:

    64 million lines of code should be enough for anybody

  32. KenJ says:

    Microsoft (TM) Windows (TM) Cloud Server 2011 R2 Data Center Edition – Where do you want to rain today? (C)

  33. anon says:

    Have mission critical apps? Never rely on Virtualization technology that requires old Windows Registry code.

  34. Tuber says:

    The Microsoft Cloud – Where your head goes after pulling it out of your rump.

    OR

    Marketing alone does not a legitimate business make.

  35. Tuber says:

    OR

    Don’t Believe the Hyper-V

  36. anon says:

    Was listening to Queen’s “I want to break free” when I came across this blog.. so… picture Freddie Mercury tied up and singing…

    “I want to break free.. free from hyper-Veee”

  37. Chris says:

    I think the Rolling Stones coined it… “Hey you get off my cloud”

    or what do call a sheep with no legs? Azure

  38. Dag Kvello says:

    a Clouded vision does not equal a vision of the cloud.

  39. @vRobM says:

    Microsoft alone does not a Cloud Solution make.

    Virtualization without VMware does not a Cloud Solution make.

    Get vCritical on a Microsoft Cloud Solution.

  40. Ben says:

    “Did you hear the one about competition? Microsoft bought Heinz, and still couldn’t Ketchup.”

  41. Craig Householder says:

    Some clouds may be formed of vapor but ours started with virtualization!

  42. eric says:

    Hyper-V is just hype I see

  43. “Marketing alone does not a solution make”

  44. Dane says:

    The only thing you’ll get with a Micro$oft cloud is soaked.

  45. Nick says:

    “Hyper-V is dumb”

  46. Nick says:

    “Hyper-V – It will give you herpes”

  47. B says:

    VMware: No windows need to be opened to experience our clouds.
    or
    Mydoom, MSBlaster, Zotob, CodeRed, Conficker…Same target, same result. Virtualization is for proven technologies, not flawed ones of the past.
    or
    Our vehicle does not need Windows to get to the cloud.

  48. chris says:

    “VMWARE ALONE DOES NOT A HYPERV SOLUTION MAKE.”

  49. Charles Killmer says:

    ESX, all virtual, no monkeys.

  50. Jon Owings says:

    I know I am late but wanted to comment:

    “Virtualization the foundation of cloud computing. Do you want to build on the rock of vSphere or the sand of Hyper-V?”

  51. “Virtualization alone does not a cloud solution make” ?

    An OS that has both a browser and a (weak) hypervisor “bloated-in” does not a cloud solution make either.

  52. Toby says:

    Dominance does not excellence make.

  53. Matt Keller says:

    Microsoft Alone (where they like to be) does not make a cloud solution !!
    Contact your VMware rep for more details

    Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) is NOT a “To the Cloud” solution
    VMware – we have solutions

    How many times should you have to re-boot your cloud ?
    NONE – see http://www.vmware.com for details

    We are not alone in virtualization, Come join us !! VMware

    The ultimate Cloud solution is a multi-vendor solution that enables YOUR business
    VMware

  54. Vuong says:

    Hyper-V: Redefining cloud computing with pure Obfuscation and FUD

  55. Vuong says:

    Hyper-V: Redefining cloud computing with pure FUD and lots of Obfuscation

  56. graalar says:

    (On a billboard before Microsoft’s)

    Limited visibility: Microsoft Cloud Power ahead.

  57. Bill R says:

    Windows alone does make a cloud solution break!!

  58. John says:

    The VMware response is to provide superior cloud solutions.

  59. graalar says:

    Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride with Microsoft Cloud Power.
    Smooth your transition to the cloud with VMware.

  60. Alyssa says:

    It’s hard to get to the cloud when your servers are stuck on the ground.

  61. David Forsch says:

    Cloud alone does not an IT solution make.

  62. pstarke says:

    vMama

  63. Paul Chambre says:

    vCloud: no smoke (and no mirrors).

  64. graalar says:

    “Azure!”
    “Gesundheit.”
    VMware. The cure for the common cloud.

  65. Ernest says:

    Microsoft has to add this to their add:

    Coming soon!!!

  66. Vitaly Tsipris says:

    “Marketing alone does not a cloud solution make”!

  67. Simon says:

    “Our clouds, the earth they do not cost. Can others say the same?”

    “Unlike others, we don’t have our head in the clouds, we build the clouds”

    “Our virtualization makes the weather cloudy over Redmond”

  68. jbrison says:

    “Do Clouds require an Active-X to start?”

  69. Paul Kelly says:

    Hyper-V: Press any key to restart
    or
    VMware: Hand-crafted by people that care
    or
    Microsoft Cloud – Don’t let it rain on your parade
    or
    Microsoft Cloud – It will rain on your parade

  70. Pingback: Winners announced for the "Microsoft Cloud Power" vComeback Contest | VCritical

  71. Eric Gray says:

    Thanks everyone for participating. Winners have been selected, please see https://vcritical.com/2011/01/vcomeback-contest-winners-microsoft-cloud-power/

  72. Jason Boche says:

    My submission links to this MS article (For $50,000, I could pay someone to move my virtual machines for me) where MS bolsters the opinion that hot migration (& really it’s about whatever competitor technology MS does not yet have) isn’t needed by its customers:
    http://blogs.technet.com/b/virtualization/archive/2008/10/06/for-_2400_50_2c00_000_2c00_-i-could-pay-someone-to-move-my-virtual-machines-for-me.aspx

    So I guess the moral here is that the cloud also requires (and should be trusted to) an intern who works 24x7x365.

  73. Zack says:

    Bring on the cloud, not the hype(r-V)

Comments are closed.