THREAD POLICE: OFF TOPIC ALERT--THIS POST WILL NOT MAKE YOU ANY MONEY--SUGGEST USING 'NEXT' CLICK OPTION.
I hate it when I don't have any serious disagreements with a guy so herewith a few nits and picks.
Admittedly, the old Karl Marx reference was a teaser, but not, I would humbly suggest, a "homily". All societies do have just a tiny little problem dealing with the disadvantaged and Karl thought it would be pretty cool to take a few excess chips off the table and lend a helping hand. Now I doubt you would be prepared to toss these folks overboard or let them lie rotting in the gutter. The US solution is essentially embodied in a progressive tax rate structure which no matter how you want to obfuscate the issue boils down to taking from the richer folks to give to the poorer folks. We sure as hell don't want to call it Marxian in historical/philosophical origin, but if you would kindly suggest a more pleasant, or God forbid accurate, euphemism I'd be avidly interested.
Second (note paragraph employment), I don't know diddly-squat about how Bill got to be the the top banana, but I will accept YOUR assertion that he got there without any dirty tricks, i.e., that he just plain and simple whupped everybody's else in the market and you will also note that I felt : to the victor goes the spoils. Your post however contains a contradiction which is on the one hand you argue that I could use Unix, OS2 (why didn't you throw in Apple?) but then on the other admit that that is not a really viable alternative if I want software choices. Although it is well known that Surfer Mike has trouble with the technology of household appliances, let me now reveal that I used to use Unix on my PC until I marched down to Egghead to get a contact manager program and discovered that ACT, Goldmine, et.al., didn't and don't do Unix. The example could of course be multiplied over many other applications but the point is that no matter how HE got there, I NOW have no choice. And neither does Compaq, which is marginally more significant to the information universe. Therefore I argue that even if Billy was an Eagle Scout in the good old days, he now reminds me, in the infamous words of Charles Colson: "If you've got them by the b*lls, their hearts and minds will follow".
Third, I am simply less sanguine than you that a viable competitor will emerge although I admit there's a good shot based on the historical record. You are correct of course that all businesses seek monopolies which then inspire counter-attacks. Sun and Oracle want Java and NET PC's to do the Redmond demon in and maybe they will prevail. Personally, I'd like to see Apple with a 40% market share and MSFT with 60% cause I don't think there's any better way to keep those boys honest and give me a real vote at the ballot box of my Visa card.
I'm not real excited about funding the DoD's attack on Gates, Ballmer and friends cause I think those guys are really, really smart and my $ are going down a rathole. But Netscape has been dusted simply because MSFT could give a browser away--hey, 9 BILLION CASH in the bank can do that for you. So even if Mark Andressen has got an IQ of two gazillion, how does he compete? No way, no how. And we are all 'poorer' as a result.
End of rant, Doug, Happy New Year. Mike Doyle |
