Ballmer: No on WebKit, yes on app store
During a trip Down Under, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has had a lot to say. This week in Sydney, Australia, he stated that he isn't interested in wooing Yahoo anymore, he doesn't understand how Google plans to profit from Android, and he has confidence in President-elect Barack Obama's leadership.
And while the expressive executive on Friday also said Microsoft "may look into" using WebKit, the open-source browser-rendering technology used by Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari browsers, he mostly rejected that idea, according to a Computerworld report. Instead, he said the two prominent Microsoft rivals--as well as social network Facebook, in which Microsoft has heavily invested--have something more worthy of mimicking: an application platform.
Despite acknowledging that WebKit's open-source nature is "interesting," Microsoft's chief executive elaborated on why he says the software giant is sticking--at least for now--with its Trident rendering engine for Internet Explorer.
"I think there will continue to be a lot of proprietary innovation by us, and other people, inside the browser itself," he said. "A company like ours needs to have (its own) rendering service. It is important that we have a browser that embraces (Internet) standards but also allows us to have innovative extensions, even before the standards bodies go there."
On serving as a liaison between developers and consumers, Ballmer seems to have a more collaborative view.
"I actually will agree that there's some good work, particularly at Facebook and also with the iPhone, where both of those companies have made it easier for developers to distribute their applications," Ballmer said, referring to Apple's iPhone SDK and App Store for the iPhone and iPod Touch, as well as the Facebook Platform, which provide independent developers with a way to more easily program, market, and distribute platform-specific software. (For its Ballmer-criticized mobile operating system, Google has introduced the Android Market.)
A key motive of each of these platform initiatives is attracting developer attention, and Microsoft is indeed taking note that the strategy is working. The iPhone software development kit, for example, was immediately picked up by 10,000 developers, and it gained more momentum when Apple dropped a nondisclosure policy for App Store releases.
"They've made it easier to kind of get exposure for your applications," Ballmer told a crowd of developers. "There's not much money being made, but the general concept of giving developers a way not only to get their code distributed, but to really get visibility for the code, is a good idea."
Will Microsoft develop a similar concept for Windows developers? Time will tell.
Zoë Slocum is copy chief of CNET News and manager of the CNET Blog Network. She joined CNET in 2003, after two years at a travel start-up. Although she started in San Francisco, she now is based in the Boston bureau. E-mail Zoë.
- Global Scalability for Services
This does NOT require .NET to be the platform of choice for local devices to take full advantage of whatever sets of devices there are. I resist the idea, that some homogenous approach is best for individual devices. I completely embrace the idea of a homogeneous approach for internet services.
Those, who have seen my comments in the past, no I am not a fan of Microsoft. But in my opinion, even if they bungle this, they have done enough right to deliver something that will help lead for once. They did/are doing good with this. Competition is always good, so even though Google wants to dismiss this, I hope for their sakes, AND ours, that they don't.
- Easy development, easy management, easy scalability, at prices developers can afford. This empowers the developers beyond anything they have had before. This is great for everyone.
So when I see Azure my first thought is, "YES!" this is exactly what I want. And I would love to see more and more of this. Adobe is doing it. Microsoft is doing it. And I hope to now see software from developers rather than big corporations. And Azure allows exactly that to happen. I expect we will see a lot more software as a service because of Azure the same way we see lots of software from all over for Windows in general.
People can say what they want about Microsoft. But I think they just created the next big thing.
Alex Alexzander
This is what MSoft does best, innovate something - stop maintaining it - end up making it into a piece of crap - competitors come in - they got surprised - they finally realize their "innovation" needs fixing.
Oh yea, and Silverlight is a failed product, I don't see any reason for people to start using it since you can only develop it on Windows while most people develop websites on the OS X, its not any faster then Flash, its animation is nothing special also. So why Silverlight again? And I'm quite sure those website that requires Silverlight plugin is cause MSoft paid them to use Silverlight in order to promote a very unpopular Flash rip off.
When you talk about more people develope sites on mac I simply disagree. you dont watch a film and make statement you make statements from facts. More people develope on pc than mac. if you watch behind the scene on movies mostly animated you will see windows at work they hardly use mac. mac has 3% market share you cant say worldwide more developers use mac.
the iphone sdk is a mac only software and more programmes programme on windows so what can you say about this.
silverlight is not a fail product its not even a year old but its in more than 30% of the worlds computer exxept for mac. i see it reach the flash position and they can be used together so you can realy outdo one. they will work together.
Stop being biased.
You mean like AJAX? You do know that was something MS developed right?
AJAX Developed by Microsoft? Get an education and stop posting.
I understand many of you just like to post comments, but if you are that ... that ignorant, do you really want the whole world to know about it?
The above link takes you back a light year ago in the realm of Web tech to an article on October 21, 1996 2:30 PM PDT, good reference!
With its new lower price and a wealth of low cost community games that will inevitably focus more of "fun" that "high production value", XBox might have faired better against Wii. Whether or not this will rejuvenate its fortunes at this stage of the game is a completely different story.
Microsoft have always understood that a legion of developers is essential to a successful platform. Other than distribution, they have a good story to tell on the development side. Kudos to Apple for imlementing this so successfully on iPhone, and stealing the show here.
As an independant software developer, this is starting to look like an interesting place to work. As few well implemented apps deployed to these "app stores" could potentially generate a very nice revenue stream.
Sucks to be him - and Microsoft if they're having to deal with the results of his faulty 'vision'...
/P
At then again, at some crucial point during the discussions they try to pin needles into open source by dropping innocuous remarks about 'proprietary innovations and extensions'. Kind of like to show these open source boys, like a real company deals with a thing like this...
A good example is Silverlight, something where they could have really created something where independent developers could have ground their teeth on. And then you read their EULA and you know two-way co-operation is the last thing they want. That's why I think Silverlight is a still-born baby. Sorry to the die-hard believers...
Apple is a complete wank as well - why pay a premium for something with an apple logo on it when u can buy something generic with linux and be ahead in terms of both cost and performance.
Face it guys, MS and Apple are basket cases on thier way out, it's onl a matter of time.
Listen to the youth, they will be mainstream in 7 years.
Everyone, every year, always will, know it all at 13.
2) Safari, Opera, and Firefox do
3) App stores from Microsoft? This will fail as they cannot make a coherant application for developers to use, which has allowed mom and pop developers to enter the iPhone app market. $100 / year + you keep 70% of the profits. Apple does not make money on iTunes. It makes its money on the hardware. If you can provide content for your hardware then people will buy/develop for it. Look at the Zune for historical context. You have not been able to purchase movies for it, and it uses the strange "point" purchase system where one song = $.99 = 79 points. This is where Microsoft again tries to confuse consumers to make a profit.
Also, the XBox has yet to make a profit. All of the money that Microsoft has poured into the division has helped it to establish a market share, but if you sell all of your units at a loss, where do make money? Selling more only gets you a larger loss...
Ballmer continues to speak out of the side of his mouth. As with any technology company, once the head technologist is no longer making the shots and has been replaced by a salesman, innovation slows, bureaucracy increases, and the business plateaus. This happened to Apple in the 90's and Jobs resurrected the stagnant company. Microsoft will go through the same business cycle until Ballmer retires or is forced to leave by the Microsoft board.
Other than Office, Windows XP, and the Mac Business Unit, no other Microsoft division has made a sizable impact on the net profit of Microsoft. Face it, the business is stagnant with no real money maker -- even in development. The perception of Vista by the general and business consumer is that it is garbage. Apple continues to blatantly trash the OS on TV, and Microsoft has yet to produce a meaningful campaign against Apple.
Unless there is a radical change in the leadership at Microsoft, the company will continue to loose market share on all of its platforms/product lines. Even if this occured tomorrow, it would take years to get to an upward inflection point. It took 10 years for Apple to become where it is today. How long will it take for Microsoft which has far more employees and business lines?
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by lokanadam
November 9, 2008 10:34 PM PST
- why isn't google search logic open source ???
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by Thomas, David
November 10, 2008 4:34 AM PST
- Are you daft?
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(31 Comments)