Channel Q&A: IT shops worried about Microsoft deals, upgrades, data centers
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| Working in the field with IT shops, systems engineer and architect
| Matthew Parker is seeing some interesting and disturbing trends.
| For one thing, he says, many data centers are a physical mess, and
| IT security practices are dangerously shortsighted. Also, confidence
| in Microsoft's products is at an all-time low, and that confidence
| shortage is increasing, not decreasing, by Redmond's Linux-friendly
| moves. Thankfully, open source software helps IT shops gain control
| of their heterogeneous environments.
|
| [...]
|
| SearchOpenSource.com: What are your customers' reactions to
| Microsoft's friendly deals with Novell and commercial open
| source software vendors like SugarCRM?
|
| Matthew Parker: That Microsoft is starting to realize that open
| source is a threat to their business model. Microsoft is trying
| to change people's perceptions without really doing anything
| meaningful. I really have a hard time thinking that Microsoft
| wants to change its business model. [In any partnerships] I see
| Linux having to adapt to Microsoft, rather than the reverse.
|
| What are your reactions to the Novell/Microsoft alliance?
|
| Parker: I see these moves as a smart way for Microsoft to try to
| engulf Linux. I think Microsoft's execs realize they are way behind
| the technology ball, and they better catch up quickly or their
| operating system and office suite may get cut out of the platform
| equation. Apparently, in the past, Microsoft has been in the habit
| of nudging small developer companies to develop a product for them
| and then, when the product is near completion, Microsoft buys the
| company. My understanding is that Microsoft tried yet again to use
| this technique with Citrix, but the government stepped in and told
| Microsoft this practice is unacceptable and didn't 'OK' the sale.S
| o, now Microsoft is way behind the ball in virtualization.
|
| From your discussions with IT managers, have you found great interest
| in adopting Vista when it is released?
|
| Parker: Some analysts say that Microsoft Vista is going to have an
| 80% adoption rate, but I find that really hard to believe,
| considering what my customers are saying. Customers are looking at
| having to upgrade everything on the systems, because so much power
| and memory will be needed to run the operating system. Customers aren
| ot very happy about that.
|
| The Windows operating system has only been around since 1991 -- not
| that long ago. Its proprietary licensing model is not going to hold
| on. Microsoft recently changed its stance on the one license transfer
| from machine-to-machine to unlimited. To me, this signifies how they
| cannot even control their software distribution. So, they try taking
| the reactionary stance. One has to question how secure the operating
| system itself is if they can't even protect their licensing better!
|
| Are there other issues that cause concerns over the coming Microsoftp
| roduct introductions?
|
| Parker: There's no confidence that these products will work. Like,
| their calendar updates didn't port properly from Outlook 2000 to 2003
| (and vice versa). Customers who bought Windows Small Business Edition
| (OS, firewall and virus protection bundled inside) found that their
| system, for no apparent reason, reboots every few days. They call
| Microsoft with the problem and then a month or two later, with no
| meaningful fix [delivered], Microsoft told customers that the error
| 'fix' is to buy Microsoft Vista.
|
| The funniest part about this is Vista will be like XP, an end user
| edition, not server edition! Microsoft can't even properly identify
| their products.
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http://searchopensource.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid39_gci1230037,00.html
http://tinyurl.com/ykcuav
Long quote because it's worth it, I think. The remainder does not focus on
platforms in quite the same way.
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