Microsoft start defending Vista. They have taken various "route" to make Vista truly "successful":
- Forcing hardware vendor to adopt Vista.
- Terminating Windows XP (as of June 30).
- Allowing people to buy Vista yet downgrade to XP if necessary.
Now, claimed their site:
- They are "humbled" by the fact that millions of users are adopting and VERY HAPPY with Vista.
- They are proud that NY Times raved "Windows Vista is beautiful".
This is exactly the kind of self-narcissism and typical self-lie crazy moves that is so "Ballmerian" by nature.
In the past, Microsoft never have to justify such claim at all. Microsoft products are simply works. Backward compatibility was just simply excellent. Bloated memory and slowness is rare.
I still remember:
- When IBM claimed OS/2 as the "next GUI based OS", Microsoft humbly simply say: "Windows is the GUI for DOS", the "next step" before transition to "OS/2". No arrogance attached.
- When DOS is being upgraded from version to version, Microsoft backward compatibility is always awesomely great. No "self-proclaim" necessary.
But that was the posture of OUR beloved Microsoft in the 80s, and early 90s.
Now, under Ballmer, Microsoft is trying to "pose a picture" that no matter how louzy, slow, photo-copying MacOSX everywhere, and bloated their software was, it is still a defacto standard and a "great" winning product that people (and the industry) will (or must?) consume and "adopt". People will "swallow" it anyway; by "trick" and "force" if necessary.
Microsoft becomes a tricky dinosauric "sales company", start loosing the strategic, competitive, innovative engineering root that makes it a great, competitive, fascinating, loveable "underdog" company in the past.
Intrinsicly, Ballmer is a perhaps "narcissist salesman", Bill Gates is a "budding entrepreneur". The difference in their inner-value system and leadership-style matters:
- Ballmer loves interpreting/justifiying number the way "he like", Gates loves creating a great, winning product that win programmer's, industry's and market's heart.
- Ballmer is arrogant. Gates is working, supporting, collaborating, dominating (and competing at the same time) with everybody.
Being humble (a.k.a no arrogance) perhaps was one of the greatest "secret sauce" behind Microsoft greatness in the past. Microsoft never claim something in the past, they just passionately and systematically do. And over deliver it each time. As a consequences: People simply love (and truly passionate) working with Microsoft at that time.
These totally change during Ballmer reign and leadership.
There was a time when Microsoft was a really great loveable company. Everybody love building things on Microsoft platform. We understand Microsoft "internal" cause, competitive stand and attitude as a company towards the growth and longevity of the "young" PC industry. We were passionate about their cause so much, perhaps as much as we understand and passionate about the internal working of DOS's B800:0000, INT 21, FAT, and Windows WM_ event-driven messages at that time.
As such:
- We all simply truly passionate about the leading-yet-underdog Microsoft at that time. No need to for Microsoft to hopelessly shout "Developer, Developer, Developer ..." (like Ballmer strangely "does" these days), because developers indeed loves Microsoft at that time. We are all unified behind this great "vision" to make PC a truly great machine that contribute and dominates the computing industry.
- No need for Microsoft to do the "stupid, silly ugly, nerve wrecking, embarrassing" Ballmerian-monkey-dance act -- like what happen recently (which shocked and embarrassed everybody that supported and loved Microsoft in the past) as it resembles nothing about what Microsoft value system is all about.
Everybody in the past loves Microsoft for what it does and stands-for (a.k.a innovating the humble, simplicistic yet fascinating and fastly growing PC industry).
No need for stupid, silly, strange, embarrassing "monkey dance" act to "justify" all that. Great product justify itself. Great company speaks with less arrogance. All things are just naturally happen greatly, in a natural, fun, fascinating, "humbler" yet consistently magical way that was "truly Microsoft's".
Now -- under Ballmer -- Microsoft is just another Redmond company. A narcist to its greatest degree. Something we love to fight back.
I like that everybody in the last likes enthusiasm for what it does and stands for searching the respectful, simplicity yet amazing and quickly increasing PC industry.
Posted by: חברות השמה הייטק | March 21, 2012 at 08:44 AM