Microsoft balances patents, standards

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But how many of those 95%...

...have bought Longhorn yet (which is where most
of the patents will apply)?

It was possible to project Windows XP would catch
on to some extent because it was basically an
upgrade of Windows 2000, which really was MS's
best OS out there.

You can't make that same projection with
Longhorn.

Longhorn is a completely new beast compared to
Windows NT or 9x series. Just like Linux.
Administrators and end users will have to be
retrained one way or another. Who's to say which
of the two beasts will win out? At least by the
time Longhorn is released Linux will have been
out on the market longer and will be more
seasoned.

And no, I make no such projections that this is
*THE YEAR* everyone moves to Linux. I don't even
care if everyone moves, I like having the extra
choices. And anyway, Desktop Linux needs a little
more work before it's ready for the average Joe.
Not the Kernel or Window Managers (KDE & GNOME),
those are fine and in many cases better than
Windows (for instance, my misspelled words in
this input window are highlighted in red), but
the majority of applications need to be vastly
improved, and some non-existant apps need to be
created. After all, people don't use a computer
just to have a file manager and a screensaver.
But two years ago, most apps I use every day in
Linux either weren't there or weren't nearly good
enough to use consistently. Now they are. So
who's to say the remaining missing pieces won't
be there in 2006, when Longhorn come out?

Posted by: Michael Kelly   Posted on: 02/03/04 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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