Re: Just wondering...

[Steve Cohen <stevecoh@mcs.com>]

Simon Cooke wrote:

> I know this list is called the "Appraising Microsoft" list, but from some
> of the participants - Mitch, who runs the boycott Microsoft site, Jamie,
> who spent a spell on the MSNBC Technology BBS trying to convince everyone
> that MS was up to no good, etc etc, I get the feeling that a more accurate
> name would be "Anti Microsoft".
>
> So, to see if I'm wasting my time here (preaching to people who have
> already religiously made up their mind and know innately through some kind
> of divine intervention that Microsoft is Evil, Injust, Cruel to animals
> and generally downright rotten), if anyone here takes a pro-Microsoft or
> even a not-all-that-against Microsoft - or preferably a "Show me the
> facts" stance, can they let me know?
>
> I'm intrigued, because day in, day out, I read people on this list venting
> spleen about the evils of Microsoft, over analyzing everything down to the
> slightest minutae, and taking *anything* and *everything* as evidence of
> Microsoft's evildoing. Eg. the current posts about Office and Netscape,
> and previous posts about Microsoft running sweat shops with Russian
> Immigrant programmers.
>
>

OK, Simon.  Just last week, I believe it was, I indicated some willingness to
believe Microsoft's story with regard to the Blue Mountain case.  By that I
mean that Microsoft might have released IE with this half-baked spam filter
without any intent to screw up anybody else, especially as Microsoft's own
greeting card site was similarly blocked.

So yes, I will defend Microsoft when I believe they've been unfairly charged
and, I will further state that I wasn't flamed for it either.  (Of course, I
don't work for the antichrist <g>, and your mileage may vary. ).

That doesn't make me pro-Microsoft and I still think they deserve criticism
for releasing half-baked functionality like this spam blocker on the public.
Of course Microsoft is not the only company guilty of relasing shoddy
products but they're increasingly building a rep for it.

But I think you would have to admit the following points

1.  Microsoft has a strong public relations arm that has all the resources it
needs to get its story out.  In fact

2.  Until fairly recently, this PR arm was quite successful at getting almost
all criticism of it depicted in the media as the work of Microsoft "haters"
and "fanatics".  As a Microsoft critic I resent being called a "hater"
(especially as those who take the opposite position have not been branded as
"Microsoft lovers" or "Microsoft stooges" anywhere near as often.)  That has
begun to change now, and I attribute your presence here at least partly to
this
new climate.  But that's all right - I have no problem in discussing with
you.

3.  Microsoft's continued pattern of folding functionality into the operating
system increases overall system complexity and makes it harder for Microsoft
to maintain OS quality, regardless of the reason they're doing it
(to attempt to evade antitrust regulations as I would say, or to "enhance the
user experience" or whatever it is
that Microsoft says today).  This increases the chances that Microsoft users
with no axe to grind may come to have a less than stellar view of Microsoft's
product line quite apart from anything we say here.

In regard to the topic of lobbying, whence all this came, I would agree with
you that Microsoft's use of campaign contributions is not qualitatively worse
than that of many other companies.  In most such cases it's impossible to
prove that a quid pro quo was demanded in return for the contribution,
whether one was given or not, so Microsoft is probably in the clear,
legally.  The one who probably needs to worry about it most is the South
Carolina AG, who by his actions has given to his next challenger an issue: he
might now have to explain to the voters why he shouldn't be criticized for
changing the state's position in a lawsuit after he recieved a campaign
contribution from one of the parties.  Doesn't quite pass the smell test,
although iwe must also ask what, these days, does? But he's a big boy and I
guess he feels he can handle it.