I work for a municipality in FL. We used to have 550+ computers in operation 99% with Windows desktops, 1% with Windows server. about 95% had MS Office. This # of computers has been growing on avg by about 5% to 8% per year for 10 years or so. From 2007 to 2009 our number of computers dropped over 10% (more than 50 PC's and laptops just gone.) Negative growth in MS OS and app lease/purchase. Not to mention we have XP and no plans to change. I know of entire governments and businesses making the switch to Linux. Personal computers that normally would be replaced in 2008 with another one, simply weren't. We're in a new environment. People will learn to appreciate GNU licenses and free software developed by the masses for the masses. Software registrations, expirations, and passwords for this and that are simply pissing the public off. Digital Rights crap etc... etc... results in information overload and honest folks get accused of being thieves by their own PC's. Finally, HP, Dell and all the others just sold off inventory in the first half of this year, right? For months they simply weren't buying. They were buying MS OS for their systems at a much slower pace making sure they weren't stuck with inventory the public and their business clients weren't buying. Anyway, unless MS starts marketing an excellent new product line they will wither for years and die.:eek:
As a Linux user since late 90's, and unix well before that, I agree this was a valid criticism up to approximately 3-4 years ago. However, Ubuntu and its variants have come a very long way in improving the install/setup process for non-technical users, and continue to develop in that area. This has also spurred usability improvements in other distributions. They are nearly idiot-proof at this point, and certainly no longer restricted to geeks. Even if it is not perfect at this point, the trouble for MSFT is that expansion and adoption are moving in only one direction. There is no reason Linux would lose a significant number of users to MSFT, but the opposite is not true.
Because they specialize in cutbacks? Outsourcing is a bit part of their bread and butter, whether it be helping people outsource to overseas or their services division, that will do your project for you.
What's going to compete with their enterprise software? Almost every firm uses outlook, windows, office and many firms align themselves with microsoft. Microsoft should buy SAP and work heavily with consulting groups to entangle their software into their operations. Take over software companies like SAP and Adobe. The consumer base of the world too lazy to figure out linux. Fuck they can't even build their own computers let alone install/use linux! Firms don't use linux because their employees don't know how to work with it, we're scared of the unfamilair! A firm will not risk revenue loss by using a software that is free, but foreign. Miscrosoft's revenue is down because we're in a fucking recession.
IBM has a wider range of products and services. They're mainly geared towards business development, maintenance and technical solutions.
If MSFT heads back to 20, i'm going all in. That's an easy 50%. Just sit on it and wait a few years until it heads towards 30. Windows 7 will be a good upgrade to kick up profits. The big thing i'm looking at is their entertainment line. Microsoft has some amazing things coming down the line, and I think they will trump in the next few years. I've worked in IT for the last 10 years. I don't think Linux will usurp Windows in the next 5 years. Afterwards, who knows. Since majority of folks now use the computer to browse the web, or run Office style apps, we may eventually see the demise of Windows. Right now, there is just too much support for it as a platform. Besides, gaming on Linux sucks, and every developer wants to develop for a largely available platform. In the Enterprise, Windows Enterprise is still widely prevalent.