People love to hate on tech companies when they get big enough. Now, to be fair, I like it too, but there are some companies who deserve some more credit. Here’s a bunch that I thought of off the top of my head.
Yes, I know they’re now a convicted monopoly. But let’s be honest: isn’t it just better that way? Not to dog on Bing, (because it’s a fine search engine) but Google just feels less… weird. Maybe I’ll make an article on why Bing feels off, but I digress.
Their non-search products are also great. I still use Chromium-based browsers over Firefox because the experience and customizability and developer-friendliness is very good, and I also use Android for basically the same reason. Speaking of which, it’s also good to note that Chromium and Android are open-source which is always appreciated.
Microsoft
I’m not a huge fan of Windows 11. But think about it from an objective standpoint: Windows is a great operating system.
And yes, I know Linux is “better,” but do you really expect the average person to know how to use the terminal? And don’t try to tell me you don’t need to; you do.
The main portion of my praise goes to the part that does all the open-source stuff. (Windows Terminal, Visual Studio Code, PowerToys, TypeScript, etc.) Good job, guys.
GitHub
Microsoft owns GitHub, yet GitHub hasn’t become corporate-feeling or annoying. Obviously there are paid tiers, but a company has to make money, and the paid tiers never feel forced on you. After all this time as #1, GitHub hasn’t let it get to their heads. Awesome.
Valve
Okay, so maybe they do get enough credit, but I love Valve. Steam, their games, Source, everything. Worst they’ve done? Counter-Strike loot boxes, probably. But in the grand scheme of things, it’s not that bad; especially when you weigh it against all the good they’ve done.
Epic Games
‘Epic Games made Fortnite which obviously means they’re evil.’
Not so. You see, Epic is actually one of the best, up there with Valve. (Funny that their launcher is also the main competitor to Steam.) They have very good morals, competitive business practices, (as opposed to anti-competitive) and good products. The main one being Unreal Engine, then also the Epic Games Store taking a very low cut. (12%)
Nice tidbit about Unreal Engine, it’s actually available for modification at all, unlike most other engines. I always like that, but what I don’t like is C++, so it doesn’t actually affect me personally.
I love their plan of trying to make a mobile app store to compete with the Apple App Store and Google Play, though there is almost no way I would actually use their store.
And about Fortnite, though I don’t play it I think it’s objectively a pretty good game, and their monetization methods don’t involve gambling or anything pay-to-win.
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