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New News Flash: Compaq hasn't been notified my MSFT re: icons
Compaq, which forced Microsoft to renege on their pledge, (and possibly cause a new investigation by the DoJ) hasn't been notified yet by Microsoft. As long time partners, this is fairly unusual. (and a good sign that PC makers are less terrified of the beast from Redmond.)

[link|http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/12420.html|
Microsoft to PC Makers: No Icon Monopolies]

By Steven Dale Greenlee
NewsFactor Network
August 1, 2001

The battle over Windows XP screen real estate continues, with AOL's agreement with PC makers causing Microsoft to rescind its offer to loosen desktop icon restrictions.

Compaq, which may have instigated this latest chapter in the Microsoft saga, is treating the latest announcement as "speculation," a spokesperson said.

Microsoft has yet to contact Compaq about changing the restrictions, spokesman Roger Frizzell told NewsFactor.

"Typically, Microsoft has come to us as a long-time partner in a number of areas, before they make large pronouncements like that."

"Until they call us and have that conversation with us it's only speculation, and that's how we're treating it at this point," Frizzell added.


New They don't really realise it yet...

... but they've lost control. They're just too dumb to realise it yet.

Hmmm... I wonder if Compaq announced that deal to get MSFT to react... and further fuel the fires of antitrust.

Overall, the article made it sound like they're flailing around a bit; they know they can't just overtly forbid anymore, but they still want to use their monopoly to protect and promote their other properties, and aren't quite sure of just how to go about it.

A sort of corporate schizophrenia, you might say...


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* Jack Troughton jake at jakesplace.dhs.org *
* [link|http://jakesplace.dhs.org|[link|http://jakesplace.dhs.org|http://jakesplace.dhs.org]] [link|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org|[link|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org]] *
* Montr\ufffdal PQ Canada [link|news://jakesplace.dhs.org|news://jakesplace.dhs.org] *
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New Microsoft has a business method that works . .
. . extortion. It has always worked and worked well. They've tried other business methods and have failed with all of them because they simply aren't good enough at them. They never had to be good at them because they always had extortion to fall back on.

For Microsoft, giving up extortion is the corporate equivalent of a heavy smoker told to give up smoking because of a heart condition. They'd just about as soon die.
[link|http://www.aaxnet.com|AAx]
New There are few things...

... as an aging blackmailer who doesn't realise their victims have the upper hand. They keep trying and trying to get more out of their victims, all the while unaware of the knife sliding around to the approximate area of their kidneys. When the knife falls, they always die with a look of surprise on their face.

I wonder if Compaq sees themselves as repeating history as the giant killer: MSFT control of the desktop vis-a-vis IBM and the first PC clones by Compaq.

-- 
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* Jack Troughton jake at jakesplace.dhs.org *
* [link|http://jakesplace.dhs.org|[link|http://jakesplace.dhs.org|http://jakesplace.dhs.org]] [link|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org|[link|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org|ftp://jakesplace.dhs.org]] *
* Montr\ufffdal PQ Canada [link|news://jakesplace.dhs.org|news://jakesplace.dhs.org] *
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New Microsoft got lucky
Since DRI passed up the chance to make an OS for IBM, Microsoft got the chance and took it. Neither IBM nor Microsoft knew that the IBM PC would take off so big, or how big the Microcomputer market would get.

Boom! The market grew, as did Microsoft. Compaq and others made clones of the IBM PC, and Intel sold lots of chips to IBM-wannabes. Microsoft made an OEM out of anyone that wanted to be like IBM, but they had to follow Microsoft's rules.

Eventually Microsoft learned that it had to market and distribute its software. Then things changed. Maybe around this time they learned how to strong-arm OEMs and bundle software? They dropped Xenix for MS-DOS, and later bundled MS-DOS and Windows. Then they learned that by bundling MS-Works and MS-Office with OEM versions of Windows, that they could take out competitors like Wordperfect and Lotus. They got lucky and it worked, it worked all too well. Now the DOJ came down hard on them, so are the US States and other governments as well as class-action lawsuits. At this point, Microsoft wasn't so lucky anymore, but still had an iron grip on the market.

But as for the future of Microsoft? Who knows? If they can no longer bundle software, get split apart, or get limited in what they can do, they may not be the powerhouse that they once were. The market can change, remember that the market once changed away from standards like CP/M, Apple //, MS-DOS and others.

"I can see if I want anything done right around here, I'll have to do it myself!"  Moe Howard

New Microsoft Plight reminds me of IBM in early 90s

At that time MS had wrested the computer initiative from IBM & IBM was suffering from having too many senior decision makers who really could not see where the industry was heading. Bill Gates could.

IBM only dealt with their inadequacies once there was a global downturn & the bean counters had warned that costs would exceed income for a long period into the future.

IBM's board took the unprecedented decision to hire an outsider who knew how to contain costs & would have the moral authority to execute the plan. One action Gerstner took was to remove most of the existing senior managers - it was agrgued that as good as they were, they were till the managers who led IBM into the mess it got itself in & that they were not the ones who would get IBM out of that mess.

Microsoft is at a similar point in its evolution. The managers that have got Microsoft into the mess it is in (and make no mistake about that) are not the ones who will get Microsoft out of this mess. This includes Gates and Ballmer - promoting Ballmer was a half-baked sop offered by MS when it was clear their lawyers couldn't bail them out of being convicted of serious offences - Microsoft also clearly know that Gates's personality & behaviour were/are contributing to their image problem but who is going to tell Gates to buggar off ?. At least IBM had the benefit of seeing the Watson's all retired. So - therein lies a big big problem for MS.

I have *no* doubt that MS will continue to make a mess while the current senior leadership prevails. Firing underlings won't help.

Cheers

Doug Marker
(Personally I hope Gates & Ballmer hang in there & do even more harm to their company)
New I've suggested a rev-Astro-turf campaign:
In another post.

Send letters to Billy n'Bally, extolling their brave stand against Washington bed-lice, their innovation - and encouraging them not to be deterred by namby-pamby advice from chicken attorneys, ie Stand Tall.

They are so Ego-blind - wanna bet they won't buy it?

100% rag paper, fountain-pen sig. - let 'em know We're With Ya!.. I say. Nothing satisfies so well as watching execrable bastards twist in the wind of their own blab.



A.
New Re: No need to waste good energy - there are

enough syncophants and bludgers snivelling around Gates to negate any effort on our part to convince him how he should stand up.

He has senators & congressmen & sports people and a wallet crammed full of journalists all apart from his MSsoftie employees - he don't need none o us.

Cheers

Doug Marker
New Maybe so.. Besides, heart not in it - much more satisfying
to just go ahead, nuke from orbit.


A.
     News Flash: Compaq hasn't been notified my MSFT re: icons - (brettj) - (8)
         They don't really realise it yet... - (jake123) - (7)
             Microsoft has a business method that works . . - (Andrew Grygus) - (6)
                 There are few things... - (jake123) - (5)
                     Microsoft got lucky - (orion) - (4)
                         Microsoft Plight reminds me of IBM in early 90s - (dmarker2) - (3)
                             I've suggested a rev-Astro-turf campaign: - (Ashton) - (2)
                                 Re: No need to waste good energy - there are - (dmarker2) - (1)
                                     Maybe so.. Besides, heart not in it - much more satisfying - (Ashton)

No, not really.
98 ms