“Microsoft Corp. needs to avoid ‘big company ills’ if it wants to beat competitors and boost its long-stagnant stock price, chief executive Steve Ballmer told employees in an annual memo Tuesday,” The Associated Press reports. “In a Tuesday interview with The Associated Press, Ballmer said the world’s largest software company cannot be run like the startup it once was. But he added, ‘We have to avoid becoming a certain kind of big, process-bound bureaucracy.'”
“Such flexibility is especially important as Microsoft goes up against companies like Apple Computer Inc., whose iPod music player has become a hit while Microsoft has lagged in online music distribution,” AP reports. “In his memo, Ballmer said the company ‘must also work to change a number of customer perceptions,’ including that the security of its systems is not up to par. Microsoft has been plagued by attacks that exploit vulnerabilities in its software.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Memo to Ballmer: Too late.
go for it apple
1st post
I have seen Longhaul and it is sad. It doesn’t even hold a candle to the original X Beta Release what, 4 years ago? And their ‘new’ file management solution – you just have to see it to see that it is a ticking time bomb for M$ and family.
Oh well, guess they still have a future developing software for the Mac.
odd rock i love hearing how longhorn sucks.
can you explain how their new file management system sucks?
thanks
the dark ages will end when microsoft ends
how is this mac news ?????
How is this Mac news?
As long as it feeds the righteous hate towards a company that:
1: Stole the Apple interface and didn’t even make a decent copy.
2: Produces the world’s most horrorific software.
3: Ignores standards and fair buisness practices.
4: Excerts a monopolipic stranglehold on everything it touches.
5: Stiffles innovation and makes people suffer.
6: Because it’s not Apple.
7: Because John Scully sold out to Bill Gates
8: Because of viruses, trojans, pop-up keystroke loggers
9: Because most of our money is in banks run by security vunerable M$ software.
10: Because Billy Gates is a worthless piece of *$%)* and never equal Steve Jobs in talent, vision or expertise.
11: Because Billy Gates is slimeball.
12: Because M$ represents the oppressive corporation, who turn humans into robots.
Is that enough?
Now go away!
I got something for you Mac heads.
You know why the next version of Windows is codenamed “Longhorn”
Because we are Microsoft and our customers are nothing but cattle.
Only a dumb cow would use our products.
Mooo
Point 4 … I think you mean “Monopolistic” …. I have never seen a mono-polip but i i guess that it would be quite a sight.
cheers
And, lest everyone forget, no one holds a candle to my ability to stink up a bathroom. Hell, just take a good look at me.
Like all monopolies they are more interested in maintaining their market-share than in any real innovation. Bill Gates was in Sydney recently & an article in the SMH appeared that I thought was funny. A reporter asked him if Microsoft had an image problem. Read it here:
http://smh.com.au/articles/2004/07/02/1088488144755.html
The sad thing is that most PC users will be excited about Longnose and buy it no matter how bad M$ public image is, because they’ve never seen or cared to see anything else. When they sample OS X they’ll say “oh, it’s similar to Windows”. How many of them have had a realworld Mac experience? That’s where Apple fails. Where’re the advertisments, the presence in the media? All we hear is iPod. (It’s cool, though.) Maybe it’s a long run strategy to lure consumers to the Mac via iPod. How many have switched because of it? Why, if iTunes works fine on the PC?
Yes macheads its me. Let me tell you this, CEO Ballmer is going to stink up macland & then ram his Longhorn into everyone of you macheads. This is your future & I cant wait.
Microsoft has graciously allowed a browser preview of Longhorn
http://www.deanliou.com/WinRG/
Have fun.
ooo! oooo! ooo! aaaaa! aaa! aaa! OOO! AAA! ooo! aaa ooo a o…
(Balmer knows what I’m talkin’ about!)
Thanks for the entertainment Windowsman — loved it!
Ballmer said the company ‘must also work to change a number of customer perceptions,’ including that the security of its systems is not up to par.
That’s right… change their perceptions rather than fix the security holes.
Also this [dunno where the link came from]: Ballmer: Microsoft needs better sales pitch:
Ballmer also pointed to the company’s “Get the Facts” campaign, which uses third-party studies to show Windows cost-competitiveness, as a model for the rest of the company.
“We are effectively using independent studies by Forrester Research, the Yankee Group, IDC, Giga, Bearing Point and many others to change perceptions of the advantages of Windows over Linux when it comes to Total Cost of Ownership, functionality and productivity advantages, support and security.”
So let’s see, M$ pays consultants for “independent studies” to make customers perceive that Windows is better than Linux. Works like this: “Find out how we can say Windows is better than Linux” [if you want to get paid] — in short: FUD. Watch that word “independent” — the nuance could mislead you.
Note that he didn’t mention the purpose was to find out how to compete more effectively against Linux.
Ballmer = Big company ills.
The only thing that works at Microsoft are its “monopoly” products, everything else bombs badly.
that should be the only thing that is profitable for Microsoft are its “monopoly” products….
@ Chilli: no arguments + foul language = idiot
It’s like they all know they make bad products, but no-one’s allowed to say it. You’re only allowed to say that people have bad perceptions of your products, with the implication that everyone in the world outside of Microsoft is wrong.
The article linked by Less is More shows they are screwing their own employees too – “That money belongs to shareholders”, what twaddle. On that reasoning you should pay your employees nothing, which is hardly the way to get skilled and well motivated staff.
“Blinngg~~ … You have new mail [sultry female voice].”
[Delete] [Ignore] [Read]
(scratching sounds)
* click *
Subject: Important Announcement
Content:
Feeling Microsoft? Pining for a longboner? Do you suffer from shrinking Ballmers? Introducing the incredibly effective, all-new … blah blah blah blah….
(unintelligible curse sound)
* click *
(Is it any wonder why over 50% of spam is for Viagra or organ enlargement?)
Chilli, funny how you Windoze morons are always talking about the future. I guess you’re too busy coping with the crap you use on a daily basis to notice that Apple has it all now.
When the DoJ threatened to split MS in two I’m surprised MS didn’t go for it. It would have got the anti-trust suit off it’s back and Wall Street would have been happy to take the profits from the trades. MS would have benefitted commercially from the flexibility that Ballmer now seems to want.
Microsoft however seems to be run by lawyers, Bill Gates father was a big lawyer and Microsoft employed their own full time lawyers early on – they already had three when the payroll reached 1000.
MS spends more on marketing than coding, and more on lawyering than marketing so attacking customer’s perception is where their skills lie, no surprise then that they carry on along the same path.
Two years ago (July 2002) MS announced to the press 5,000 new staff in R&D, Computerwire reported “The company will increase its employee base by 5,000 during the coming year. This includes a 15% increase in account management, to reduce the number of accounts staff manage, and a 47% increase in sales people. Also planned is a $200m worldwide TV advertising campaign.” That’s MS R&D for you – more salesmen.
Some sport: google for Microsoft and look at the sponsored adverts:
Fix Microsoft Errors, free and fast
Download to Fix Windows Registry Problems & Speed Up Your PC Now
Distributor of Free Download Tools. Auto-Fix Any Microsoft Error Fast!
Microsoft Internet Explorer Problem. Free Download Microsoft Fixed.
So this Ballmer guy is a bit humble and admits that MS has to avoid being a locomotive like monolith to succeed. Pretty refreshing compared to Apple which ignores customer input and continues to slog along with the same two year old models or new, innovative, expensive stuff that takes months to get.
The reason the Mac cult here is so vociferously grinding MS recently is because there is NO new mac hardware to talk about. Rumors, yes, and dozens of Xservers baling wired together for institutional customers, yes, but a competitive desktop the average “Joe” wants, no. Belittling a competition that somehow manages to outsell Apple 20 to 1, or more, seems silly to anyone who has not bought Job’s pony show hook, line and sinker. Whew, mixed metaphor I had better stop.
Joe, Apple sells way more computers than Microsoft does. Microsoft isn’t even in Apples league when it comes to computers.
M$ is only interested in “beating down” its competitors. Even though they’re the monopoly of the moment, it’s clear they’ve finally figured out that they’re seriously, woefully behind Apple, and you can be sure this won’t be the last gasp (they have a lot of hot air to gasp before we’ll hear the last of this)…