Internet Explorer 8.0

Back in the nineties, I worked for a limited time at Microsoft-France. One of the quotes that stuck in my mind was from the then-CEO at a launch gathering for Internet Explorer 4.0. He jokingly said that no matter how fast new processors are becoming, Microsoft will always find a way to slow them down. Everybody at the time thought Compuserve and AOL would eat Microsoft’s lunch because IE was very clumsy. Today, Microsoft launched Internet Explorer 8.0 and it seems to significantly best its competitors (e.g., Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Google Chrome, Opera).

Regardless whether you believe Microsoft is an evil empire or a great company, one thing we can all agree on, they have been the leader in PC software for a long time. Apple, Linux and other competitors might have better technology, but Microsoft still has the lion share. The reasons behind this success are numerous and include the fact that Microsoft is great at marketing simple-to-use and affordable products. If there is a cheaper, better and faster solution, people would naturally migrate towards that. The argument that MS is using illegal techniques is short-sighted because that strategy is a short-term one. The argument is that Linux is a better and more robust platform, but the question is how come nobody figured out a way to build an empire around it just like Microsoft did? If a product is easy for an engineer to use, that does not mean it appeals to the masses. I would apply the same logic to alternative energy sources. We need an economically viable solution to make the switch a no-brainer (we also need to level the playfield of subsidies).

Today, businesses struggle to find the right solutions and that is because IT services are still run by engineers who believe they can tell the client what they need. The Y2K era is long gone and business should be driving IT, not the other way around.