Professor Testifies Windows Is Modular, Separable

circlejtp writes: "Princeton University professor Andrew Appel said in written testimony that modular design is an accepted standard in the industry, and Microsoft has already created a version of Windows for interactive television boxes that has removable functions. The full story can be found on the Tacoma Tribune website." At issue is Microsoft's claim that separating Windows' components would cripple the OS.

Comments

Control of the Internet

[gillbates]

"Microsoft would be free to shut down emerging Internet services and use its technology to take customers away from e-commerce companies."

I think this says it all. We shouldn't fear that Microsoft is a monopoly - we should be afraid that Microsoft is looking to extend that monopoly into areas other than just software - they want to control everything digital.

What Microsoft would like to do is make it impossible for companies who don't purchase their software to do e-commerce. By retaining control of the browser market, they can effectively do this. It is a very simple matter for a browser to detect which server software is running on a server, and Microsoft could easily put hooks in IE which prevented from loading pages from a non-IIS server. Companies that had previously been UNIX-based would then be required to buy PC servers (running IIS, of course) in order to sell to PC users. Or worse, Microsoft could start up its own web-services division, and require that all IE-enabled e-commerce come through them.

What I find most interesting is that they have been able to extend their monopoly position because their earnings enable them to effectively thwart the judicial process. They can drag the antitrust trial out for so long that any remedy taken would be ineffective.

A more effective remedy against Microsoft would be for the government to fund OS development, and place the software produced in the public domain. If there was a free alternative to Windows (which didn't require learning UNIX), Microsoft would have a very difficult time retaining its monopoly position.

Book of Homer, 3:16

[Dirtside]

Ha ha!
</NELSON>