Microsoft as a Company
For years Microsoft has put a bad taste in my mouth, and when they came out with Vista I couldn’t help but wonder how their days aren’t numbered.
Today I ran into this (via Slashdot) and it reminded me of how much I dislike their business tactics, but also how Microsoft’s, or at least Window’s, future may actually be limited.
The basic gist of the article is that the glorious Steve Ballmer thinks that Vista has been selling great. On the one hand, he is absolutely correct. It’s been selling fabulously. On the other hand, the vast majority of purchasers either had no choice in the matter, or could care less as pretty much all of the Vista sold has been attatched to the sale of new computer hardware.
Now what really bothered me about this is that Ballmer is so psyched. He could care less that his company has released an unfortuante product most IT people I know don’t want to touch with a 10 foot pole. No, because they’re still selling millions of copies.
Microsoft seems to be a company whose only goal is to make money, and it really bothers me that for many companies out there today, this is their only impetus. I have no problem with a company that makes boatloads of cash. I’m fine with it. But when that is a company’s only driving force, it really bugs the crap out of me.