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Originally Posted by James
Microsoft never created a market? Hmmm, I think 8 gazillion windows users would disagree.
I'm sure Apple will be delighted to hear its a 3% underdog - it might start printing it on that thing that revolutionised the music industry, whats it called, an Hipod?
It's really easy and trendy to knock the successful companies involved in the computer industry. EA, MS - they're all substandard, killing innovation, destroying creativity blah blah. MS is about stability and ease of use - it's providing a service to countless millions of PC users. In the console wars, it's still a new fish, but I imagine it will learn how to adapt here as well.
Expect as little as you want from Microsoft.
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Yes, MS didn't create the PC market. It became the major player in it due to licensing of DOS and Windows to any computer manufacturer interested in the product.
Apple created the PC business because they were the first company to bring a personal computer to the market in 1976: The good old Apple I in a suitcase.
And Sony? They invented the music player market through the introduction of the Sony Walkman in the early 80s! Wouldn't you describe that as an important innovation?
About MS's ability to produce great products: Well, we all know the numerous flaws of Windows and its derivatives – from inconsistent GUI design to the catastrophic security situation, which generates insane costs for users and companies all over the world.
Microsoft is far away from being a company which provides "stable and easy to use" products. Compare XP to Mac OS X, which provides all the glorious "new" technologies MS praises its upcoming Vista for since early 2001, and you'll see where Microsoft stands technology- and innovation-wise.
Windows might be an usable product – but compared to its competitors it's truely substandard, dated and lacks original ideas.
Regarding the "underdog": Apple is the dominant player in the digital music biz, true, but their core business remains development and production of software and computers – a market in which Apple's share is somewhere between 3% and 5%.
