3 ms·

They're probably getting way too much money to risk killing windows. The last thing they want is a viable alternative.

by Herring 16y ago

protomyth 16y ago
eat your own lunch before someone else eats it Look at Apple, they are not afraid of killing the iPod market with the iPhone. edit: s/no/not/
- Herring 16y ago
  Ipods & iphones share the same apps. Windows' greatest strength is its software. If you prove that it's easy to leave, nobody knows where the customers will jump next.
  - protomyth 16y ago
    Well, they share one app (iTunes). I was more thinking iPod classic (I group iPod touch in with the iPhones), but I get your meaning. Yes, the risk is that they don't jump where you want them to go, but that is the same risk as you doing nothing. The users are going to jump. Microsoft should have been fine, but it looks like they are so locked on what they are doing now and allowing middle managers to play politics instead of technology (see the Clear Type stories for instance) that they are heading to the iceberg. The Titanic was "unsinkable" until it hit the iceberg. Microsoft's software is not really geared for mobile and replacements with reputations are appearing on other platforms. I believe Microsoft's strengths now are inertia, document formats, and servers (specifically Exchange and SQL). If I was in charge of Microsoft, I would probably do a modified version of the OS X -> iOS strategy. Use a beefed up version of Silverlight refocused on touch and make sure the new apps run under Windows 7 also. Make sure you ship an "App Store" to enterprise customers that automatically installs the right apps on machines and does backups.
brown9-2 16y ago
The last thing they want is a viable alternative. A viable alternative made and sold by ... Microsoft? This wouldn't be taking away from Windows, it would be designing and selling the right tool for the job.
- rbanffy 16y ago
  OTOH, they are too scared to do it and create incentives for people to migrate away from Windows. Even if most of them move to another Microsoft offering, they don't seem to want risking it.

They're probably getting way too much money to risk killing windows. The last thing they want is a viable alternative.

by Herring 16y ago

They're probably getting way too much money to risk killing windows. The last thing they want is a viable alternative.

eat your own lunch before someone else eats it Look at Apple, they are not afraid of killing the iPod market with the iPhone. edit: s/no/not/

Herring 16y ago
Ipods & iphones share the same apps. Windows' greatest strength is its software. If you prove that it's easy to leave, nobody knows where the customers will jump next.
- protomyth 16y ago
  Well, they share one app (iTunes). I was more thinking iPod classic (I group iPod touch in with the iPhones), but I get your meaning. Yes, the risk is that they don't jump where you want them to go, but that is the same risk as you doing nothing. The users are going to jump. Microsoft should have been fine, but it looks like they are so locked on what they are doing now and allowing middle managers to play politics instead of technology (see the Clear Type stories for instance) that they are heading to the iceberg. The Titanic was "unsinkable" until it hit the iceberg. Microsoft's software is not really geared for mobile and replacements with reputations are appearing on other platforms. I believe Microsoft's strengths now are inertia, document formats, and servers (specifically Exchange and SQL). If I was in charge of Microsoft, I would probably do a modified version of the OS X -> iOS strategy. Use a beefed up version of Silverlight refocused on touch and make sure the new apps run under Windows 7 also. Make sure you ship an "App Store" to enterprise customers that automatically installs the right apps on machines and does backups.

brown9-2 16y ago

The last thing they want is a viable alternative. A viable alternative made and sold by ... Microsoft? This wouldn't be taking away from Windows, it would be designing and selling the right tool for the job.

rbanffy 16y ago
OTOH, they are too scared to do it and create incentives for people to migrate away from Windows. Even if most of them move to another Microsoft offering, they don't seem to want risking it.