Gerald, the operating system formerly known as Windows97 is a hypothetical. Now due 2nd quarter, which usually means June, but who knows, it used to be ready for December 97 launch but that would screw up the OEM's Christmas.
I don't know what DOJ is doing either, and I wouldn't hazard a guess as to what the judge will make of it. I just enjoy following the news. I don't know, hearts and minds wise, Microsoft doesn't seem to be doing that well. They got Reagan's antitrust chief and some companies that need and fear them speaking on their behalf, and there seems to be a lot of backtalk, even old Fred Moody.
I will point out, though, that the Microsoft line about integrating Windows with "the Net", circa 94-95, is pretty bogus. At that point, "the Net" meant MSN, proprietary, closed, Windows only. About 3 or 4 makeovers ago. Remember the big deal about the MSN icon in Windows95? Remember Nathan Myhrvold and his "prescient" New Yorker profile, where he talked about everything but the internet? Also talked about in my much-flogged James Glieck article. That was when people thought AOL was the next big thing, or maybe John Malone's "500 channels" of you-know-what. My reading at the time was that MSN was the roots of ActiveX and Blackbird and all that stuff. Microsoft didn't decide to "embrace and demolish" the internet till 12/7/95, a day that will live in infamy.
Of course, I agree with you that this particular battle isn't likely to do much damage to Microsoft, it's just one battle in the war. I just wish old Stanley Sporkin was still on the case and they called Myhrvold, it'd be fun to see how far he'd get with the "Nixon dirty tricks" line on a Watergate veteran.
Cheers, Dan. |
