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

To: nommedeguerre who wrote (19173)	5/17/1998 4:58:00 PM
From: Dwight E. Karlsen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 24154

Norm, re What exactly did they do wrong? What Netscape did wrong was they forgot a couple of things: 1) Microsoft programmers can write programs too. 2) The browser performs a utilitarian function -- and as such was destined to be a part of the operating system, and rightly so. Reasons: The browser simply sends requests for information to other computers at certain specified addresses. That info is then sent back to the requester's address, and the browser displays the info in a generally graphical, sometimes multimedia way. The graphics/multimedia aspect of viewing data was NOT developed by Netscape -- HTML was invented soley by Tim Berners-Lee. This whole browsing concept sounds like an operating system function to me. Netscape simply didn't look far enough into the future. I personally think that while Netscape founders may have been whiz kids, they simply underestimated the wide variety of pitfalls can be when operating a business in a free market. The odd thing about this is the guy who really did work hard on the WWW graphical concept, Tim Berners-Lee, has got nothing except gratification. Yet Netscape piggy-backed on Tim Berners-Lee's invention, and yet claim that Microsoft copied Netscape. Has Netscape offered Tim Berners-Lee any compensation for his 10-year effort in developing HTML? Where's their sympathy for Tim, and his "right" to profit?

To: nommedeguerre who wrote (19173)	5/17/1998 5:05:00 PM
From: Dwight E. Karlsen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 24154

re So those 60% of the users of Netscape will have this decision made for them? No. Any and everyone can still use Netscape Navigator. If they feel the need. Explain this concept of consumer choice and the free-market phenomenon? Uh., well, are you saying you don't understand the concept of installing software? Sorry I'm kinda busy, and don't want to get into the difficulties of clicking install icons. Netscape had all these but did not own the OS distribution channel. What I'm saying is maybe Netscape didn't really have a viable plan for competing in the OS arena. Browsing in an OS function. Microsoft does better OS than Netscape. Netscape doesn't have a "right" to succeed, anymore than WebCrawler or Spyglass had a "right" to be successful. They all had a right to try. They simply all failed. MSFT simply makes the best OS, hands down. (IMO). -GGG- Cheers, Norm! DK