Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations...
Challenges to the Company's Business Model. Since its inception, the Company's business model has been based upon customers agreeing to pay a fee to license software developed and distributed by Microsoft. Under this commercial software development ("CSD") model, software developers bear the costs of converting original ideas into software products through investments in research and development, offsetting these costs with the revenues received from the distribution of their products. The Company believes that the CSD model has had substantial benefits for users of software, allowing them to rely on the expertise of the Company and other software developers that have powerful incentives to develop innovative software that is useful, reliable and compatible with other software and hardware. In recent years, there has been a growing challenge to the CSD model, often referred to as the Open Source movement... The popularization of the Open Source movement continues to pose a significant challenge to the Company's business model, including recent efforts by proponents of the Open Source model to convince governments worldwide to mandate the use of Open Source software in their purchase and deployment of software products. To the extent the Open Source model gains increasing market acceptance, sales of the Company's products may decline, the Company may have to reduce the prices it charges for its products, and revenues and operating margins may consequently decline.
Ever wonder why they have a problem with their public perception?
"On the desktop, we have a strategic win today (monopoly). We must keep the desktop." - Presentation, Microsoft Executive Staff Retreat, May 10, 1990
"We are engaged in a FUD campaign to let the press know about some of the bugs. We'll provide info a few bugs at a time to stretch it out." - Brad Silverberg, July 22, 1991
"Objectives: FUD DR DOS with every editorial contact made." - MS-DOS 6 PR Plan, November 1992
"look what znix is doing! cut those fuckers off." - Brad Silverberg, May 19, 1992
"Five minutes after any agreement is signed with Microsoft, they'll be thinking of how to violate the agreement. They're predators. They crush their competition. They crush new ideas. They stifle innovation. That's what they do." - Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, Quoted by Matthew Szulik at a U.S. Senate Hearing, Dec 12, 2001
Perception of Microsoft: "There are people who don't like capitalism, and people who don't like PCs. But there's no one who likes the PC who doesn't like Microsoft." - Bill Gates
"Microsoft looks at new ideas, they don't evaluate whether the idea will move the industry forward, they ask, 'how will it help us sell more copies of Windows?'" - Bill Gates in The Seattle Weekly, April 30, 1998
And that's the problem. I don't care if every other f*cking word is a curse. Parents can't complain when they don't know what their kids are doing. I know parents that monitor what their kids play, watch on TV, and listen to on the radio. It's not impossible. Parents who claim they can't prevent their kids from seeing these curse words are simply irresponsible.
These studies aren't needed because it doesn't matter. If the fear is kids seeing/hearing it then parents are letting these kids get exposed to it, either knowingly or ignorantly.
Wow, an example of checks and balances. I thought that was pretty much gone now.
Next steps: The White House will declare him an "activist judge" (whatever that really means) and unpatriotic. Meanwhile a religious zealot on the ABC Family channel will pray for his death.
But nothing is more patriotic than those in power keeping the government open. Because nothing could more empower the citizens.
I don't see how this could really be accomplished anytime soon without custom apps. Any large corporation has hundreds of software developers. One core job the IT department is workflow. They've been writing custom apps to handle this sort of thing for decades.
Would it be nice for a more generic app to save on software development? Of course. But I can't imagine a magical tool that easily fits in without needing massive customization.
In the financial industry I've seen mini-applications where spreadsheets were the whole data store. Many financial analysts live in Excel. Spreadsheets can be a powerful, useful tool. But most often they grow into horribly ugly monsters that the IT department has to de-tangle and cram into custom apps.
spreadsheets have traditionally been a single-user application screaming for functionality that could let multiple people edit data quickly and easily.
Hence corporations all having relational databases with custom GUI applications. Spreadsheets are most useful for tabular data, which of course works well in relational database tables. While spreadsheets are great at free-form manipulation and "playing" with the data, it's the custom apps that are required to sqeeze that data into the corporation's customs workflows. For at least 20 years what corporations have been doing is creating the custom apps and having them export to more freeform data models like spreadsheets as needed. This seems to work pretty well.
But "supercharging" spreadsheets won't really be providing power to the people that need it. The people that most need power over large amounts of data have hundreds of people working in their IT departments.
Considering the copyright notice on Windows XP is from 1985 to present finding security vulnerabilities in their old software may not be such a bad idea. At least some of the old code still resides in current versions of Windows. They've never performed a complete rewrite.
Why not have a "Basic" version of office that just includes those, maybe throw in Outlook, too?... I would think a minimalist version of Office... that was targeted cheaply (like the cost of a game) to students and home users would go over well.
$$$$$
Why put out a very cheap version when everyone's already paying for the bigger package? Supply and demand.
Slashdot Mirror
It's just pathetic to think Microsoft's business tactics have changed since 1992.
Ever wonder why they have a problem with their public perception?
"On the desktop, we have a strategic win today (monopoly). We must keep the desktop." - Presentation, Microsoft Executive Staff Retreat, May 10, 1990
"We are engaged in a FUD campaign to let the press know about some of the bugs. We'll provide info a few bugs at a time to stretch it out." - Brad Silverberg, July 22, 1991
"Objectives: FUD DR DOS with every editorial contact made." - MS-DOS 6 PR Plan, November 1992
"look what znix is doing! cut those fuckers off." - Brad Silverberg, May 19, 1992
"Five minutes after any agreement is signed with Microsoft, they'll be thinking of how to violate the agreement. They're predators. They crush their competition. They crush new ideas. They stifle innovation. That's what they do." - Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, Quoted by Matthew Szulik at a U.S. Senate Hearing, Dec 12, 2001
Could be their corporate conduct.
Perception of Microsoft: "There are people who don't like capitalism, and people who don't like PCs. But there's no one who likes the PC who doesn't like Microsoft." - Bill Gates
"Microsoft looks at new ideas, they don't evaluate whether the idea will move the industry forward, they ask, 'how will it help us sell more copies of Windows?'" - Bill Gates in The Seattle Weekly, April 30, 1998
the console will be somewhere in the neighborhood of $900 when it launches.
Somewhere in the neighborhood of $900 to build when it launches.
There are a few ways Microsoft restricts free and fair use.
Microsoft promotional ad-- "One World, One Web, One Program"
Adolf H.-- "Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fuhrer"
That's great you're considering switching. There are many non-software related reasons for switching away from Microsoft as well.
it sounds like Vista will be a pretty good release
You must be new here...
There are many more than 10 reasons to NOT BUY ANYTHING from Microsoft.
So the post doesn't get blocked by filters.
but parents don't care/understand/listen
And that's the problem. I don't care if every other f*cking word is a curse. Parents can't complain when they don't know what their kids are doing. I know parents that monitor what their kids play, watch on TV, and listen to on the radio. It's not impossible. Parents who claim they can't prevent their kids from seeing these curse words are simply irresponsible.
These studies aren't needed because it doesn't matter. If the fear is kids seeing/hearing it then parents are letting these kids get exposed to it, either knowingly or ignorantly.
I say fuck it. 'Cause, ya know... shit happens.
Wow, an example of checks and balances. I thought that was pretty much gone now.
Next steps: The White House will declare him an "activist judge" (whatever that really means) and unpatriotic. Meanwhile a religious zealot on the ABC Family channel will pray for his death.
But nothing is more patriotic than those in power keeping the government open. Because nothing could more empower the citizens.
I don't see how this could really be accomplished anytime soon without custom apps. Any large corporation has hundreds of software developers. One core job the IT department is workflow. They've been writing custom apps to handle this sort of thing for decades.
Would it be nice for a more generic app to save on software development? Of course. But I can't imagine a magical tool that easily fits in without needing massive customization.
Calcopedia?
Calco Anarchy?
In the financial industry I've seen mini-applications where spreadsheets were the whole data store. Many financial analysts live in Excel. Spreadsheets can be a powerful, useful tool. But most often they grow into horribly ugly monsters that the IT department has to de-tangle and cram into custom apps.
spreadsheets have traditionally been a single-user application screaming for functionality that could let multiple people edit data quickly and easily.
Hence corporations all having relational databases with custom GUI applications. Spreadsheets are most useful for tabular data, which of course works well in relational database tables. While spreadsheets are great at free-form manipulation and "playing" with the data, it's the custom apps that are required to sqeeze that data into the corporation's customs workflows. For at least 20 years what corporations have been doing is creating the custom apps and having them export to more freeform data models like spreadsheets as needed. This seems to work pretty well.
But "supercharging" spreadsheets won't really be providing power to the people that need it. The people that most need power over large amounts of data have hundreds of people working in their IT departments.
Ugliest... PC... ever.
And pop-under ads.
And > $2000 price tag.
Tastes like spam to me.
(Plus DigitalDame2's asp.net data storage is down.)
Considering the copyright notice on Windows XP is from 1985 to present finding security vulnerabilities in their old software may not be such a bad idea. At least some of the old code still resides in current versions of Windows. They've never performed a complete rewrite.
Why not have a "Basic" version of office that just includes those, maybe throw in Outlook, too? ... I would think a minimalist version of Office... that was targeted cheaply (like the cost of a game) to students and home users would go over well.
$$$$$
Why put out a very cheap version when everyone's already paying for the bigger package? Supply and demand.
Maryland Governor Wants Voting Paper Trail
Congratulations, so do your constituents.
so that far more people can enjoy the benefits.
No, it's so that far more people upgrade.
Other options