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"Bad Billy, you've been a naughty boy" a very loose interpretation of Judge
Jackson's findings in the Microsoft antitrust suit. Didn't Bill's mother teach
him to play nice or play by the rules? The big issue in this case is how does it
hurt you? Microsoft used your computer as a playground for its war games and
prevented innovation in many areas of technology from reaching your life.
Throughout the case, Microsoft denied that they are a monopoly by citing other
operating systems like Linux or BSD which are variations of Unix and even cited
Apple's Mac OS as a competing system. Hog Wash! Computers sold with Unix are
mostly servers and workstations. Unix operating systems can be installed onto a
personal computer but requires the insight and devotion of a true techie. Some
of those techies, by the way, staged a big event to get Microsoft to refund the
money for Windows since they weren't going to use it. Unix-based operating
systems don't ship on personal computers with the exception of the iToaster and
the upcoming Mac OS X. Apple's Mac OS only runs on Apple computers and won't run
on an Intel bases computer. Microsoft even poured some money into AT&T to ensure
their cable TV boxes run Windows CE, an OS geared toward crashing palm-top
computers. If you thought TVs were idiot boxes before, look out! Microsoft
even wants to get into the video game console market. If that happens, blowing
the dust out of a cartridge will no longer be the universal fix.
As you know, there are two high volume operating systems shipping today. One of
them is wonderful and the other is Windows sold by Microsoft (or Bill Gates, I use
them interchangeably). Windows is running 90% of the personal computers in use,
there is nothing wrong with that if you sell blood pressure medication. So
Microsoft has a monopoly over personal computer operating systems, big deal
right? Right... but keep in mind, most people who want to better your life
through technology must go through Microsoft. That is where Microsoft broke the
law. They used that gatekeeper power to push their own technology onto consumers
and made sure competitors didn't have a chance. Not only did they hurt
competitors that could have made some really innovative things happen, they
usually targeted innovations that Microsoft never thought of.
It is interesting to explore who they bullied and why. In its coverage of the
findings ran a piece called "What Gates Did: Seven Deadly Sins." Which outlines the
bullying company by company. Nowhere in the
case was there mention of WordPerfect or even AppleWorks which are office
software suites that compete with Microsoft Office, Bill let them slide and
targeted companies that could soon make Windows obsolete. You could almost see
the beads of sweat forming on Bill's head when he heard about some the
technologies that he would later try to kill.
Netscape Communications released it's Navigator web browser in 1994. Along with
Netscape's server software, Navigator would bring the internet mainstream and
broaden the usefulness of the internet into areas other than research, education,
and defense. Netscape saw the power of the internet before Bill. The solution...
crush them. Microsoft threw together their own browser (Internet Explorer) and
bundled it with Windows. Microsoft later made Internet Explorer part of Windows,
choking the performance of your machine. With Internet Explorer soon in
everbody's face, it gained market share, surpassing Netscape Navigator.
Netscape's technology was not lost, after being ravaged by Microsoft's browser
war, they were taken in (acquired) by America Online to heal and innovate.
Microsoft's vendetta against Navigator extended to three more of Time's Deadly
Sins. Bill forced Apple to make Explorer the default browser on the Macintosh,
using Microsoft Office for mac as a bargaining chip. Microsoft bribed Intuit to
offer Explorer instead of Navigator with its Quicken software. Microsoft also
gave AOL a little icon on your desktop in exchange for using Internet Explorer
instead of Netscape.
Another target was Intel. I bet you thought Bill and Intel were close... Intel
is the other half of wintel, this is confusing. Would Bill turn on his own
friend Andy Grove (CEO of Intel)? He would if Intel was trying to write software
instructions that would make multimedia run faster on your computer. Bill
doesn't care if it is faster, it wasn't Microsoft. Our computer could have
worked a little better but, the more the chip can do, the less is Windows has to
do. If Windows is needed to do less... Bill feels small.
I feel the final target of Microsoft is the one that could do the most. Sun
Microsystems invented a programming language called Java which has the capability
to run anywhere, on any operating system. With the upcoming MAJC chips that have
Java embedded on them, you don't even need an operating system. Oh no Bill,
don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. Bill didn't like this one
bit, he must have thought... "who needs the convergence of all computers when you
could force people to narrow their scope to only Microsoft." Microsoft licensed
the Java technology and produced their own "polluted" version of Java that only
worked with Windows. In a separate case, a judge ordered Microsoft to make their
code compliant with Java.
I hope it's clear to everyone now why Microsoft did what they did, it wasn't to
be mean, it was because they hate innovation they decided consumers shouldn't
have innovation unless is was slapped together by Microsoft. Hopefully the suit
will come out okay and Microsoft will be closely watched. If they are forced to
open some their code they are so screwed. Programmers will be so scared of
Microsoft suing them for stealing their technology, they will never so much as
look at the code and Microsoft will fade into the distance. But until the final
sentencing comes the Gates Gauge is still in use. The Gates Gauge is something I
dreamed up. The ideas that are innovative enough to possibly change the world
are the ones that Bill Gates tries the hardest to crush.
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