Despite the fact that I make my living providing Microsoft solutions using .NET, many know that I have never been a big fan of Microsoft. I stated that because I want to be upfront about my past feelings and that I am going to try not to let those feelings influence this topic. I am going to discuss this based on my interpretation of the evidence I see in the industry today. I think that Microsoft is no longer a leader but frantically playing catch-up instead.

Windows OS – It took Microsoft 7 versions to finally get Windows right (with Windows 7) and now they are going to screw it all up with Windows 8. While I have heard that the latest beta build of Windows 8 is much more stable, people are still struggling with its interface. It’s not very intuitive on a desktop which is what I had been saying since the beginning. It’s the Microsoft curse that every “even” version of Windows is garbage. Unfortunately for Microsoft the OS is the only thing they have left in the PC market that may be generating revenue, though unfortunately for us Windows is the only OS we can buy for a PC. Although, more and more people are switching to Apple.


Windows “Tablet” – The theory is that Windows 8 will ultimately be the OS for their elusive tablet (slated to release in 2013). I don’t know why Microsoft feels like they have to be involved in every technology market. The failure that was the Zune should have been the warning sign that they can’t just conjure up some similar gadget  and expect to be competitive against products that have existed years before they became involved. The market is already saturated with tablets and its still going to be another year before they even release their own tablet. It’s so ludicrous that it leaves me speechless.

Windows Phone – The fact that Microsoft is still pursuing the mobile market is laughable. I mean, talk about coming to the party late (when they shouldn’t even have come at all). In a market dominated by Apple and Google (two of Microsoft’s biggest competitors) how could they have even thought they had enough to compete. Granted Microsoft has plenty of money to throw at new campaigns but they can’t write a check to make people buy their phones.

Internet Explorer – I’ve disliked IE since the first time I have used it. I only use IE for one purpose, to download a better browser. The fact that it has been dethroned as the most used browser comes as no surprise to me and is cause for a jubilee. Recently I heard that Microsoft will be implementing IE into the next XBox 360, which is a cheap trick to bring their usage statistics back up. It also means I definitely will not buy the next XBox.

XBox 360 – The XBox is probably the only thing that is still making money for Microsoft (most likely because it is the only thing Microsoft does well). I don’t think, however, the XBox produces enough revenue to keep all the other divisions alive.

Microsoft Office – I think, for quite a while, the Office suite was pretty strong, and there is very little out there to compete with it (that people know about). I often do my part to influence people to use OpenOffice instead (primarily because its free). However, since Office 2010, I have started to dislike Office more and more and its because of that ridiculous “ribbon” feature they added to replace the traditional menus. It was suppose to make it easier to use but to me its just obnoxious and has made Office more cumbersome. I suppose Office could be another thing that is still producing revenue for Microsoft in the PC market, but it can’t be as substantial as the revenue that is/was generated from OS sales.

I give Microsoft five years and we will start seeing a divestiture. They will have to start selling off parts of the company to keep other parts alive. We will probably see various spin-off companies form: one for Windows (and other software), one for the XBox, possibly one for Internet technologies, etc. In a way I hope they don’t die off completely because what will the world use for an operating system. Linux is great, but doesn’t have the clout to become a mainstream OS, which leaves Mac. Granted I love my iPhone and my iPad but I don’t know if I could use Mac OS all the time.

Who knows, maybe the elusive Chrome OS will be the Windows successor; after all it was the Chrome browser that toppled Internet Explorer.

Cheers!