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Technology Stocks : MSFT Internet Explorer vs. NSCP Navigator -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Daniel Schuh who wrote (17555)	2/18/1998 11:31:00 PM
From: Daniel Schuh	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 24154

Competition:Good For You techweb.com Sub: If you really, really like Microsoft's products and services, you have the company's fiercest competitors to thank Sometimes ilkish Stephen Manes here. In a new pamphlet and insomnia cure called "Competition in the Software Industry," Microsoft admits that "From time to time, Microsoft's competitors seek to portray the company as a 'monopoly.'" The Redmond gang then tries to refute that contention by saying that it's just a teensy little part of the overall computer industry. It's the goofiest antitrust defense since IBM's Tom Watson tried to ward off the Feds by claiming his punch-card monopoly was just a wee cog in an overall accounting industry, one that included adding machines, ledger books and pencils. The government didn't buy that one, either. The theory behind antitrust law, remember, is to maintain competition-not just to keep prices low, but also to stimulate innovation. The greatest confirmation of that theory is Microsoft's own behavior. Look at Windows 98. If Beta 3 is any indication, this is a lackluster release of bug fixes and minor tweaks. There's not even an uninstall program to help get rid of unwanted DLL files and the like. You might think that cleaning up after itself should be an integral part of the operating system, but Microsoft continues to leave that job to third parties. But, that's all part and parcel of the integrity and uniformity of the Windows experience. Wouldn't want to mess with that. Hey! Didn't YuanQing say something about some new uninstall thing? Though after the add/remove yin/yang duality of man thing, ditching the whole concept might seem appealing. Cheap as disks are getting, it might work for a while, too. Cheers, Dan.