Interesting Article on CNET
news.com
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One school of thought within the technology industry is that Microsoft has been articulating its vision for NT 5.0 and explaining its features early so that adopters may be swayed to deploy current NT 4.0 versions of the operating system and wait for the upgrade rather than deploy operating system alternatives from the likes of rivals IBM, Novell, or Sun Microsystems, among others.
Revving the Microsoft marketing machine early could disguise the complexities in delivering an NT upgrade that by internal estimates is now around 35 million lines of code. By comparison, an upcoming upgrade of Novell's NetWare operating system, due to ship later this summer, will entail about 10 million lines of code, according to company executives.
Why is NT 5.0 so big? The upgrade includes various services and infrastructure that the operating system has lacked in past releases. "Microsoft really wants to make a splash with this new functionality," said Jean Bozman, software analyst with International Data Corporation.
These services--such as centralized management capabilities through directory technology--are daunting tasks: Novell has ten years of directory experience and is only now reaping the benefits of wide adoption within its customer base.
To take advantage of that lead, Novell will deliver a version of its directory that runs on NT software later this year--one example of how delays in delivery of 5.0 could offer a window of opportunity for competitors. Novell, for one, has refined a message that incorporates the company's experience in managing networks while admitting that NT will have a role alongside Novell software. Executives are nonplused by the NT delays. "Microsoft's goals are really Microsoft's," said Richard Running, director of marketing for NetWare. |
