MacBlogz - One Stop Apple News - Bridging the Apple Community and Keeping Tabs on the Rumor Mill.

Five Places Microsoft Gets It So Wrong

1. Windows

For years Windows has been buggy, slow, clunky, unrefined, and rather disappointing when compared to smooth, refined operating systems with stable foundations like Linux and Mac OS X. Bottom line, Windows needs to be rewritten. It may seem impossible, but unless it’s done the OS will never be a contender in user experience. The problem with Windows is that it grew too rapidly, and now Microsoft is stuck in a pile of quicksand as they need to adapt to every PC vendor and their subsequent hardware.

The Solution: Microsoft needs to setup a support system for every version of Windows that has been released thus far. This way no backlash will be felt throughout the industry as Microsoft transitions away from the boggy, clunky registry that Windows currently relies on. Next, allocate resources and form an elite braintrust to spearhead the development of the new Windows. And start naming the versions after variations of different Windows styles or something, like Skylight, Bay, Oriel, Stash and Awning. This would at least establish a cohesive branding and release cycle your customers could rely on. Get rid of the registry, incorporate a more linux like foundation and integrate cloud computing directly into the OS. Microsoft is just delaying the inevitable as the focus on bringing multi-touch to Windows 7. They need to swallow their pride, and move on. This way, in ten years Microsoft may actually have a true competitor on its hands. Whether it be in our lifetime or not, if Microsoft doesn’t rewrite Windows, the market share will eventually fizzle out.

2. Internet Explorer

Instead of adopting an open source engine like Webkit or Gecko, Microsoft has been stubborn in sticking with their own solutions for Internet Explorer. Aside from creating downright enemies in the web development world, “DAMN YOU IE !!!” has become a catch phrase our culture has become accustomed to shouting.

The Solution: Adopt an open source web engine, make Internet Explorer adhere to web development standards and show the industry that you’re not just in it for market share. If rumors hold true and Google pays PC vendors to install Chrome as the the default web browser, IE could become extinct unless it is completely overhauled, from the ground up.

3. Search

Microsoft’s current offering in the search space is Live.com. It’s supposed to compete against industry leaders Google, Baidu, and Yahoo! The service has been previously named Windows Live Search and MSN Search, and at this point, users have given up trying to find the search engine. The search results are not as consistent as Yahoo!’s and not even comparable to Google’s. The crawling technology is years behind what Google offers and from a web development standpoint, writing code for Live.com crawlers is a nuisance. Most of the development firms I have known over the years, including firms that deploy enterprise level applications and solutions, time and time again have chosen to ignore Live.com. This within itself, represents a huge problem for Microsoft.

The Solution: This one might be toughest. Microsoft needs to bite the bullet and head hunt some search gurus. They need to put together a team of people that can at once index a mountain of data, and at the same time, formulate a plan to attract users. Microsoft will need to seek out and partner with people, and companies that otherwise may have not been considered. Acquisitions of small private firms with high talent pools should be considered. Once again, a major push into cloud computing could bring Microsoft’s search offerings into better light.

4. Windows Mobile

Windows Mobile has become a nuisance to develop for. The mobile operating system has become clunky, slow, boggy and provides a generally frustrating user experience. Any way you look at it, Windows Mobile has become aggravating. As RIM has sliced out an enormous piece of the pie with the Blackberry, WinMo is becoming increasingly useless. Over the years Microsoft has designed it to become similar to the desktop version both feature-wise and aesthetically.

The Solution: Microsoft may have the easiest time with this one. They’ve been making major strides lately towards showing off a snappy, responsive interface for future versions of Windows Mobile. This wouldn’t have to wait until the new Windows was done, it could be developed within a few years and unveiled long before a rewritten Windows. Google’s Android is an open source alternative to WinMo and Apple’s iPhone is a completely closed platform, so there is plenty of space for Microsoft. The mobile market is just beginning to explode.

5. Silverlight

With Silverlight, Microsoft primarily set out to compete against Flash video streaming. Silverlight is Microsoft’s solution to web content streaming. Just like most of their other products, Silverlight ignores the use of common web standards. Microsoft claims that the use of XAML in Silverlight is positioned to replace the cross-platform HTML standard, which is a frustrating argument for most content providers. If enough users adopt Silverlight, Microsoft could leverage accessing the content forcing users into purchasing Microsoft products.

The Solution: Instead of offering another product that directly competes with open standards, tailor Silverlight to compliment existing codecs that the industry has adopted. Adobe has made a huge push with Flash, and even though Apple forbids it for web content, streaming video has embraced Flash. It has largely become the go-to codec for streaming video sites, YouTube loves Flash, and even though its not going mobile, it’s here to stay. Silverlight could be a welcome addition to the streaming video world and it could enhance cross platform compatibility between content providers. At this last year’s olympics, NBC chose to stream the events live through Silverlight. It turned out to be a disaster, and a slew of users couldn’t access certain content because of their specific setups. It was a prime example of consumers suffering from Microsoft’s anti-compliant stubbornness.

6. Steve Ballmer (Bonus)

Steve Ballmer has been Microsoft’s CEO since January 2000. Under his leadership, many products have floundered aimlessly trying to gain traction. He is a salesmen by nature, and although passionate about the industry, does not understand tech culture as Microsoft’s CEO should. Ballmer spearheaded a hostile takeover bid for Yahoo which led to disastrous results. Yahoo did not want to become part of the Microsoft machine, and Ballmer’s business initiative has had a lot to do with Microsoft’s inability to innovate. Since he has become CEO, Microsoft has fallen behind the rest of the industry in almost every way.

The Solution: Fire him. Replace with Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie, a Bill gates protoge and self made software entrepeneur. Ozzie has both deep technical software know-how (top 5 in the world, says Bill Gates) and proven ability to develop products people want. Microsoft needs to get back on the innovation bandwagon and listen to consumers. Ballmer is too much of a salesman and computers are not used cars.

ADVERTISEMENT

Relevant Posts

• Leaked Image Shows Apple Destroying Macs In Warehouse
• Japan and iPhone: Afraid to Commit
• Former Apple Employee Blogs About Apple Internals (Again)
• Apple Acknowledges 3G Reception Issues; Last Update Improves 3G Communication
• Chinese Authorities Block Access to iTunes