>What is CSS? One step search from the address
>bar is cute, but really a frill, I've never done a web search where calling up the
>search engine page is a significant part of the effort. I'd actually give IE a try if
>micron ever choses to ship me the system I have on order. Oh, CSS, Cascading
>style sheets, yes, you (and Tom Reardon, when he was around) sure beat that one
>into the ground. Sorry, Reg, some of us consider featuritis a problem, not a solution.
This brings up the fundamental problem with Microsoft's "IE is forever free" strategy.
I've said this before; I'll say it again:
When customers have to pay real money for a product, they won't spend a lot of extra money on features they don't want or need, and a software development team that has to generate enough revenues to support its own development efforts learns real fast what features to spend money developing and what features to pass on.
But Microsoft has boatloads of cash (even after the $1 billion they admitted they will be spending over the next three years on MSN and MSNBC -- your "billion dollar black hole" comments were "right on the money," so to speak) and can afford to give its product away for free. Hence, customers will accept a lot of features they would not otherwise be willing to pay for; hence the development team loses the valuable market feedback that only genuine sales can generate.
Netscape can't afford to do this. They have to "follow the money" by creating a product people will buy to meet real needs in the corporate intranet market. I consider that a strength, not a weakness. |
