Microsoft to Google: Hands off enterprise search

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Wrong, we all loose

What you most likely missed with netcraft.com are the overwhelming majority of computers either not directly connected to the Internet or deeply hidden behind firewalls. Some of these are the computers that are running and monitoring the factory floors where the rubber of the global economy meets the road.

Here is a greatly abbreviated list:

SCADA systems
Wonderware owns about 70% of the global SCADA market. Wonderware runs on Windows PC's and nothing else.

PLC's
PLC's are everywhere in industry controlling everything from garage doors to automotive assembly plants. In North America, Allen Bradley PLC's dominate the market. The most common environment for programming AB controllers is RSLogix500 which runs exclusively on MS Windows. Modicon, Siemens, and Mitsubishi all have substantial numbers of PLC's deployed in other areas of the world. For Modicon the most common programming environment is a product called Concept, which runs under MS Windows and nothing else. Siemens uses a product called Sematic-S7, also a Windows only product. . Mitsubishi uses what they call "GPP for Windows" and I'll bet you can guess what OS this runs on.

Smart instruments.
The list of manufactures is simply too long. Virtually all 'smart' instruments from flow meters to vision systems have PC-based tools for calibrating and maintaining them. In all cases of which I am aware those tools run on an MS Windows PC.

The list of these types of applications is endless. Sure there are a few niche industrial products that run on QNX, UNIX, LINIX etc. ad nauseaum but they are not main-stream.

The point that I make is that there is a great deal more than the perceived security and perceived quality of an OS that determines whether the vast majority of us use it. The global market made that decision more than twenty-five years ago and no amount of bleating about that fact is going to change it any time soon.

With the benefit of hindsight many would argue that the wrong decision was made but to what purpose other than cluttering up these threads would one present the argument in the first place. The endless debate (I'm being generous with that term) over MS vs. 'INX, Apple vs. PC etc. serves only two purposes here. One: It simply dilutes intelligent discussion regarding the computing realities of the world such as they are today complete with all its warts. And two: Provides those with too much time on their hands a forum in which to stump.

In either case real discussion about real IT issues flees for calmer waters where we don't have to sift through the noise and pollution.

Posted by: gordl@...   Posted on: 07/18/06 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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