A little early to write off Microsoft, but interesting reading

[dpny]

The article makes some valid points: Microsoft's problems are long-term and structural, and the very things which made it so successful--the ubiquity of Windows and Office--have now become problems, as the company seems unable to divorce itself from the to create something new, as Apple has done with its commitment to iOS devices. It is betting the farm on Windows Phone and the Surface, and I don't see either getting any real traction.

That said, Microsoft is still an enormously profitable company and Windows machines and Office are still the mainstay of the business world. If Microsoft does eventually die I think it will be a long, slow decline and not a sudden explosion.

[Primefalcon]

Personally the author of the article seems to have the same mindset a lot of journalists have these days... which is a fanboyism of apple...

Frankly I don't think Microsoft are going anywhere soon.... lets face it.... are you going to do the major part of your work on an IPAD? are writers going to use an Ipad mostly? are anyone who does a lot (of typing and data entry? no....

Desktop systems are nowhere near dead.... we've heard this cry before with other devices.....

And I'd never give up my desktop for a tablet primarily.... all the typing (programing work) I have to do would be a nightmare....

I also agree with the post above.. if Microsoft ever does die it'll be a gradual decline.... too many companies and infrastructure does rely on Microsoft software

[monkeybrain2012]

Frankly I don't think Microsoft are going anywhere soon.... lets face it.... are you going to do the major part of your work on an IPAD? are writers going to use an Ipad mostly? are anyone who does a lot (of typing and data entry? no....

Desktop systems are nowhere near dead.... we've heard this cry before with other devices.....

And I'd never give up my desktop for a tablet primarily.... all the typing (programing work) I have to do would be a nightmare....

Except that Mero (Modern UI) isn't a big hit with desktop systems either. I don't think businesses who has vast deployment of desktop systems are anxious to upgrade to Windows 8. I read that some IT consultants were advising businesses to upgrade to Win7 (from XP or Vista) last year just so that they could avoid windows8.

[KiwiNZ]

Except that Mero (Modern UI) isn't a big hit with desktop systems either. I don't think businesses who has vast deployment of desktop systems are anxious to upgrade to Windows 8. I read that some IT consultants were advising businesses to upgrade to Win7 (from XP or Vista) last year just so that they could avoid windows8.

Well in excess of 50 million units in just over a week is not bad.The OEMs are only just getting up to speed with their offerings, you can expect the uptake to accelerate as more new products hit the shelf.

MSFT would not have expected overnight corporate uptake, MSFT knows its market very well and will be fully aware of what the corporate transition rates will be.

I am already receiving corporate interest in Windows 8 family of products and have sold units and NZ is small market.

[Primefalcon]

Also since windows 8 was a major change edition like Vista was.... the people that do hold back (win 7 users probably) will just upgrade to win 9 so one way or another most people will give their money to MSFT anyhow.... and MSFT knows this....

And Win 9 will be a polished win 8

[dpny]

Frankly I don't think Microsoft are going anywhere soon.... lets face it.... are you going to do the major part of your work on an IPAD? are writers going to use an Ipad mostly? are anyone who does a lot (of typing and data entry? no....

Desktop systems are nowhere near dead.... we've heard this cry before with other devices.....

And I'd never give up my desktop for a tablet primarily.... all the typing (programing work) I have to do would be a nightmare....

Desktops are already dying. Look at the sales breakdowns for the big computer makers and you'll see desktop are now accounting for less than 25% or total sales and falling. Additionally, Apple aside, PC sales are steadily falling as more and more people realize they don't need anything more than an iPad for their everyday needs.

Now, I don't think desktops will disappear. But, like mainframes, minicomputers and workstations, they will become a niche segment for people who need the speed and power. Considering you can now buy an i7 laptop which will bench as fast as the last generation of Xeons, it's getting easier and easier to walk away from the desktop.

[jerome1232]

Desktops are already dying.

You'll have to pry my desktop from my cold hard fingers.

I just don't think it will go to the extreme your painting, most households have a main desktop and several laptops and other devices. But the vast majority of people I know do have a main desktop. Desktops also tend to last longer and stay useful much longer than laptops.

Sales numbers don't paint the whole picture.

[dpny]

You'll have to pry my desktop from my cold hard fingers.

I just don't think it will go to the extreme your painting, most households have a main desktop and several laptops and other devices. But the vast majority of people I know do have a main desktop. Desktops also tend to last longer and stay useful much longer than laptops.

Sales numbers don't paint the whole picture.

Sales numbers pretty do much tell the whole story: most people don't need six cores and 16 GB of RAM.

Now, I'm with you. I love my desktop. But I also am pretty sure I can see what's coming.

[Primefalcon]

the number also does not take into account that a lot of smart phone users upgrade their phones constantly every time they subscribe to a new plan (which by and far over inflates the usage share of phones and such making them more of a commodity type of item, also a lot of ipad/apple users buy every new version of something apple puts out).... desktop buyers are more usually to hold onto the systems for a few years and do ram/cpu upgrades....

[jerome1232]

Sales numbers pretty do much tell the whole story: most people don't need six cores and 16 GB of RAM.

My point was that with a laptop, I'm likely to buy a new one every few years, whereas my desktop is going to be upgraded piece by piece to keep up with times, desktops are far less susceptible to being dropped or overheating from having the vents covered up frequently etc. Laptops break more often and are bought more often than desktops. Doesn't necessarily mean they are killing off desktops based purely on sales numbers.