Here’s a special “Two for Friday”, mostly inspried by linked articles and a discussion with my Uncle via Twitter.
REF: http://daringfireball.net/2009/07/microsofts_long_slow_decline
This article is clearly written by a Mac fanboy. I don’t agree with this article 100%, but it makes a couple good points. Before I go further, this is an opportune time to state that I am neither a Mac nor Windows fanboy. I’m actually more inclined to Ubuntu Linux. I run Vista on both of my machines and XP on my wife’s laptop. Why? Because I’m cheap and lazy.
Which brings me to my first point: Microsoft’s share in the low-end market. It’s virtually a no-competition market as Apple wants nothing to do with it. This market is perfect for parents who just want to get their kid a laptop before heading to college without taking a second mortgage to pay for supplies AND college itself. This is a $650 range notebook with plastic casing. It might feel cheap, but it takes some good abuse to destroy. It’s a 50/50 chance with a college kid. What about choice for the people who just want something they can travel with? Cheap and lazy = Windows.
My second point: Microsoft in the workplace. Microsoft has tuned Windows Server/XP Pro/Vista Business to be a platform that an administrator can control from a single place: Active Directory. Features can be restricted, programs installed, resources shared, etc without having to touch every machine. Does Apple have this feature with OS X server? I honestly don’t know. I know they have some directory features, but I don’t know to what extent. The main thing is, though, that Apple does not have the experience in this field. Microsoft has been tuning this for many years. Macs are being deployed in some enterprise environments for the creative department as well as companies that have Web productivity software, but still hasn’t gained full traction in the enterprise.
My third point: Peer Pressure. Anything that costs more and is out of line with the mainstream becomes a symbol of status. What starts as a personal preference turns into a reason for discrimination. What the rich and the “cool” want and have, so the rest of the people want and swear by. After all, if this is what the rich buy, it must be the best, right? If the XYZ U QB runs Mac, it’s the cool thing, right?
My fourth point: Innovation. After XP, Windows has failed to capture their target audience with something they can take to the bank. Vista’s release started in disaster, taking Microsoft bout 6 months to work the majority of the kinks out. Vista SP2 has come out and has been very stable, but the damage has been done. Also, the features for most people has not been captivating. A Google Desktop-type sidebar, reorganized file structure, a new graphical interface, but nothing to captivate an audience. Enter Mac. It is a new operating system to a user, has some new bells and whistles, works differently, and looks pretty. But what most people forget is that Mac has not had a radical revolution since 2001, when OS X came out. Each new version is a baby step, adding a thing or two here and there, tuning another, but no real innovation (save the transfer to Intel, but no software innovation) in the system itself. Mac is just new and exciting to a set of users. Both platforms run, both platforms crash just as easy. Microsoft has tried radical innovation and failed with Vista, hopefully some real innovation will follow Windows 7. I would go so far as to say that the first one of the two who truly blows away the audience will have a leg up for a few years while the other chases tails.
My fifth point: Focus. One major point that Apple has going is focus. Their focus is only divided among a smaller amount of lines, notably computing, iPod/iPhone, and iTunes. Microsoft continues to pursue complete domination of all things computing and gets their shorts in a knot when they’re not dominating an area. Microsoft hates Google with a passion and is irritated with the Mozilla foundation. Microsoft is pursuing litigation and a patent war with Linux and those who implement as a platform for their products. It appears to me that Microsoft is less interested in their end-user products (Windows, WinMobile most notably) and more interested in why they aren’t queen of all computing.
The in-between-the-lines: Apple is going to continue to grow in popularity as Windows users cross the great divide. There will always be niches that PCs and Macs will always stay dominant in. The people who are cheap and lazy will get Windows. The people with money to burn, want to be “cool”, or who are really want change are going to get Macs. This is going to be the case until the next big innovation punch is delivered, which I have a hunch is going to be the Multi-Touch interface.
To conclude my thoughts, one of my favorite vids: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-_51OsaaSY