Digital Nugget #7: Bill Gates losing power?
So, we were talking last class about whether or not Bill Gates is a bad guy or not. Most people in class do not think so, and I suspect it is because of his and his wife’s wonderful philanthropic contributions (at least this is why I respect him more). Yes, Bill has created a sort of virtual kingdom where he is king and most internet surfers are his subjects. But, it seems that the kingdom might be in the beginning stages of a demise, like the natural state of any ruling “kingdom” or philosophy exists in: the cycle of change in politics and rule, i.e. The Roman Empire, fiefdom-rule, and perhaps soon the end of the recent “Republican era” of Regan, Bush 1, the Newt Gingrich Congress under Clinton, and Bush 2!
According to an article on CNN.com, Microsoft Explorer will introduce the first upgraded version of its server in years because of its eroding market share. While Internet Explorer took up 93% of the market two years ago, it now only has 86%. Still seems like alot doesn’t it? Well, Firefox is emerging as a major competitor, with 11% of the market and growing. The advantages of Firefox is that it is a more secure browser, blocking pop-ups that may contain viruses and other nuisances, and it is free to download! The article states that Microsoft has made it so that the new version, which is not in the final stages yet and offers competitive features in relation to Firefox, can be downloaded for free and will be offered next month to XP users who want more security for their computers.
Could this be the beginning of the Microsoft kingdom’s demise? Or will their research and development teams come up with even better servers to continue to control the market? Well, Microsoft has made a last minute change where people looking to upgrade will have a “clearer choice” to pick a competing version from Google or Yahoo according to this article, because of an antitrust battle in Europe. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the next couple of years and even a decade from now. Maybe the Microsoft kingdom will become an empire, lasting through the technology era and into the next.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/10/19/microsoft.webbrowser.ap/index.html
