ABC News: Moving Target: Experts Say Breakup of Microsoft May Become Moot

[ Thanks to Doug
Bostrom for this link. ]

“In five years, Windows may well be dead, obsolete in an era
where mobile phones, Web pads and Internet appliances proliferate.
But the applications half of Microsoft has the assets to dominate a
future Internet-ready operating system arena, experts said.”

“…unless Microsoft builds more Internet standards into its
operating system, it may find Windows’ premier status slowly eroded
by other contenders, according to Tony Perkins, founder of Red
Herring magazine. It’s an antiquated technology. If you look at
Steve Jobs’ new OS, the Mac OS X, that is based on a modern,
object-oriented, UNIX-based code,” he said. Linux is also
based on UNIX, the operating system family which provided the
foundation for the Internet.”

“Yates said the Microsoft breakup may create a boom in operating
systems like Linux and Palm. … The applications group could very
easily port Office to Linux if they chose to and [could] access a
whole new market that is beginning to emerge,” Yates said,
foreseeing a growth in Linux-based desktop machines.”

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