Re: Print this Web page quick! Microsoft changing its words... and history.

["Mike Stephen" <mikestp@bc.sympatico.ca>]

On Tue, 28 Jul 1998 19:09:46 -0400 (EDT), Brett Glass wrote:

>At http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/doj/7-28formalresponse.htm, 
Microsoft
>publishes a summary of its response to charges brought by the DoJ and
>several state Attorneys General.
>
>Ironically, the document as it stands now (3:35 PM PDT on 7/28/98) 
contains
>some errors that make it clear that it was being edited as it was published
>-- and that the editing was being done to remove evidence that Microsoft
>itself considers Internet Explorer to be a separate product from Windows.
>
>For example, the first bullet point of the document says:
>
>"Microsoft argued that it had planned to integrate its Internet Explorer
>technologiesbrowser [sic] into the Windows operating system long before
>rival Netscape even existed, refuting the governments’ central 
accusation
>that the company only incorporated its browsertechnologies [sic] into
>Windows in order to disadvantage Netscape."
>
>As one can see, the Microsoft employee composing the document was in 
the
>process of changing the document, replacing the word "browser" with the
>word "technologies." Why? To obscure the fact that Microsoft itself views
>Internet Explorer as a separate browser product. At the same time, the
>company attempts to revise history by claiming that it planned to bundle
>the browser, when in fact in 1993 it was focused on MSN as its online
>strategy -- as documented in Jennifer Edstrom's book "Barbarians Led By
>Bill Gates.
>
>Members of the list: PRINT THE ABOVE MENTIONED PAGE ASAP 
before Microsoft
>has a chance to change it, and SEND IT TO JOEL KLEIN AT THE DOJ. 
It'll make
>good evidence that Microsoft isn't even saying what IT thinks.
>
>--Brett Glass
>
This is the first time I have seen reference to OS/2 from Microsoft in 
regards to catching up with the technologically superior OS/2 Warp.  

I think microsoft will now use OS/2 as the benchmark to compare to.  This 
will allow Microsoft to use this same argument for including Voice 
technology in Windows 2002. as well as any productivity suites.  

I was beginning to wonder when Microsoft would admit that OS/2 Warp 
was and for that matter still is, way ahead!  They can also use the fact 
that Warp shipped with a complete suite including spreadsheet, word 
processor and database.  Using this analogy, Microsoft can include not 
only a browser and a somewhat incomplete tcpip stack, as well as voice 
dictation, but also they can argue that to compete with OS/2 they can 
include Word Excel, and Access.  Microsoft has in the past stayed mum 
regarding acknowledging OS/2 Warp.  Now it seems that it will be in their 
favour to do so.
>From the Desk of Mike Stephen