MSFT - Microsoft

[Guest rimm_never_sleeps]

 

rimm you seem to have some sort of agenda against MSFT, care to explain what it is? "Windows 8 has been a failure", "Surface is a disaster". Most people I know who've used Win8 have liked it, and some of them have posted on this very thread, and yet you continue to promote your opinion as incontrovertible fact. If you don't have any insight into MS's product strategy and are only interested in offering vague generalizations, you can simply avoid commenting.

 

I am not the only one saying this stuff.

https://www.google.com/search?q=microsoft+surface+disaster&oq=microsoft+surface+disaster&aqs=chrome.0.57j0l2j62l3.7610&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

 

microsoft surface has disrupted the delicate balance of msft/oem relationships.  The msft ecosystem has been a bastion of strength for decades. It's now in jeopardy. The oem business model is now suspect.

 

I did not see you comment on the data that I posted that windows sales were down 20%. you seem to avoid the hard subjects, and instead comment on soft items like "Surface is cool and my friends like Windows 8". reading the reviews of Surface and windows 8 would give you a better idea of where I get my ideas from. You may have missed my post where I directed you to inside information that windows 8 sales have been a disappointment to Microsoft.  So have Surface sales.

 

You perhaps did not read that the guy who managed the Windows 8 product was fired. Do you recall some years ago when Ballmer said that Iphone would never amount to anything, and that he liked his position in mobile better than Apples? Investors are not happy with msft leadership. Their acquisition strategy is suspect. Aquantive was a bust. Skype was head scratcher. The jury is still out. Zune and Kin were zeros.

 

I don't see you comment on the negative facts about msft that are prevailing in the marketplace of ideas. there is a reason the stock has a very low multiple for years. It goes nowhere. It's best to confront those reasons and face the facts and determine why.  Investors don't have a vision of how this set of assets is worth more than a 10 multiple.

 

I have been following msft since the 1980s. I once owned a large amount of msft stock in relation to my net worth. I've written reports on Microsoft and presented them to investors managing in the billions $. I have a right to my opinions just like you do.

 

what is the catalyst for Microsoft to drive shareholder value higher? I would like to hear your ideas.

[bobp]

I was in a Microsoft store in the Prudential center mall in Boston this past weekend - twice.

 

A crowd of maybe fifty people was watching people play a dancing game on xbox. They place the game space at the entrance edge and the crowd was gathered in the mall aisle. It struck me that the entire store was generating an awful lot of excitement for boring old Microsoft.

 

I wanted most of all to see the Nokia Lumia 920 as I own NOK, and I was really impressed. The weight issue seems overblown to me. It's not that much of a difference. The phone and the Windows operating system seemed much more technologically advanced than my Iphone. I liked the windows system of sizeable colorable tiles as compared to iphone where I can't find anything.  I explained to two different salespeople that I had a phone and wouldn't be buying one, and they spent ten minutes showing it off to me. Salespeople struck me as very much like the Apple people, enthusiastic and committed to MS. 

 

I liked the surface but didn't spend much time with it. Most of the devices in the store had someone using them.

 

I asked a salesperson if people actually bought items there or if he thought the store was mainly to attract interest in Microsoft products. Of course he said they make sales. Computers free of bloatware in particular sell.

 

I remember a Baron's article where Microsoft claimed it would take over the household through xbox.  The mall seems like a great place to start.

 

So I was impressed. I can't claim to know what's cool any more but the store was pretty cool to me. If I had to be in a mall, I'd kill time in a Microsft store again.

[texual]

In the short term it looks like MSFT got hung up with some Windows 8 transitions like Windows Phone 7 going to 8. There will be issues with Windows 7 and Windows 8 mostly due to limited hardware (ie. touch screens being on every device and Surface, Surface 2).

 

Long term though Microsoft is a winner. Rave reviews for the Windows 8 Phones, people seem to be activating them in larger numbers and the carriers are pushing them. The Windows 8 story will grow along with the next Xbox and 'Windows Blue' which should answer a lot of the missing aspects of the software. I own shares of MSFT and don't own any AAPL but that doesn't mean I am biased. Apple had a great run but the next decade does indeed belong to Microsoft.

 

I suppose in other words the future mobile OS war will be an arms race between Android and WP8.

[Icarus]

I played around with a Surface tablet and liked design and this comes from someone who has an iPad.  The only reason I haven't purchased one yet is because I want a tablet with Windows 8 instead of RT. 

 

This isn't the most accurate gauge for Windows 8 adoption, but the hardware and software survey from Steam shows an increase of 2.4% for Windows 8 in November.  Link to survey (click on OS Version): http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey 

[texual]

And I made a sizable investment in Nokia mostly because I felt that either Microsoft should buy them at a low price, or rise alongside the fact that Windows Phone 8 will sell millions of devices no matter what happens (and it looks like that's happening). It doesn't need to be a grand slam to make a profit.

 

Also I want to mention the OEM issue another person mentioned. I have to say that whatever fears people have about MSFT going against OEM's is overblown. Its no secret that firms like HP and Dell are in difficult times. I would look at those companies performance and ask where they are heading. I don't believe those OEM's may even be around, let alone competitive in 10 years. Maybe a long time ago they commanded a lot of respect and did high margin sales. Today there is a massive push toward premium experiences and 'straight from the source' hardware - like Apple, and like Surface.

 

Long story short, OEM's are no longer that important to the equation as long as the transition is slow and downward for them OEM's and rising for firms like Apple and Microsoft. As far as I can tell Microsoft intends to continue building hardware and pushing more and more into consumer sales with their own stores. If they keep it up, the OEM issue disappears on its own momentum.

 

OEM's are not being hurt by Surface, they were already on a long journey down on their own merit.

[rjstc]

And I made a sizable investment in Nokia mostly because I felt that either Microsoft should buy them at a low price, or rise alongside the fact that Windows Phone 8 will sell millions of devices no matter what happens (and it looks like that's happening). It doesn't need to be a grand slam to make a profit.

 

Also I want to mention the OEM issue another person mentioned. I have to say that whatever fears people have about MSFT going against OEM's is overblown. Its no secret that firms like HP and Dell are in difficult times. I would look at those companies performance and ask where they are heading. I don't believe those OEM's may even be around, let alone competitive in 10 years. Maybe a long time ago they commanded a lot of respect and did high margin sales. Today there is a massive push toward premium experiences and 'straight from the source' hardware - like Apple, and like Surface.

 

Long story short, OEM's are no longer that important to the equation as long as the transition is slow and downward for them OEM's and rising for firms like Apple and Microsoft. As far as I can tell Microsoft intends to continue building hardware and pushing more and more into consumer sales with their own stores. If they keep it up, the OEM issue disappears on its own momentum.

 

OEM's are not being hurt by Surface, they were already on a long journey down on their own merit.

 

I don't see NOK mentioned in your stock list at the bottom. Curious what general price you have in mind for IV. I also own NOK by the way, in at $3.20.

[kevin4u2]

I played around with a Surface tablet and liked design and this comes from someone who has an iPad.  The only reason I haven't purchased one yet is because I want a tablet with Windows 8 instead of RT. 

 

This isn't the most accurate gauge for Windows 8 adoption, but the hardware and software survey from Steam shows an increase of 2.4% for Windows 8 in November.  Link to survey (click on OS Version): http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey

 

I am typing this comment on a Surface.  I was looking at buying a laptop back when the Surface came out.  I figure it was worth the cost and if nothing else my son could use it for school (it has MS office on it).  I also wanted to see first hand if the device was any good. 

 

I have owned and used other tablets and to be brutally honest they are useless.  I remember back when the ipad was announced and everyone thought they would be useless.  My experience has been exactly that.  Tablets are purely consumption devices.  If all you want to do is check Facebook and watch Youtube that is fine.  Tablets are useless for productive work, mainly because they lack a physical keyboard but also because they are very closed to the outside world.  Surface addresses these issues.

 

Anyway I have been using the Surface for my primary computer at home for almost the past two months.  It has been a fantastic device.  Fast and responsive, boots in seconds.  Internet explorer is awesome, Skype, and MS Office (particularly OneNote) are definitely the highlights for me.  Having a keyboard is crucial to making the device useful (not just a consumption device).  I opted for the type cover.  I should add that OneNote is awesome and has big advantages over Evernote.

 

There are two misconceptions about the device posted everywhere that I constantly read (I just saw it again in consumer reports).  They say that Surface lacks Facebook and Twitter apps.  This is partially true.  Windows 8 has a dedicated "people" app which links Facebook, Twitter and Skype into one "app".  It is a different interface than you would be used to but it's quite refreshing.  That said I'm not a huge Facebook or Twitter user.  The messaging app also links the various social networks and allows all messaging to take place from the one single app, which has some benefits. 

 

The second misconception is that RT is somehow radically different than the pro version soon to be due out.  Here is my thoughts.  First, I don't typically buy third party software, like photoshop, so I don't care to add anything like that.  Second, the operating system is very similarly to any Windows PC that you have used.  By this I mean you can add printers, connect USB thumb drives, and have a file management system that you can control.  This is unlike every other tablet out there which really limits how much the device interfaces with the outside world.  Surface does everything just like a normal Windows computer does.  Every other tablet I know doesn't have a file management system.  MS Office also makes it very easy to save files to Skydrive. 

 

They almost make it sound like MS Office files on the Surface RT won't work on a PC and vice versa.  This is not true.  I can open any excel or word file on my Surface or my PC, do work some work and save it... it makes no difference.

 

The first downfall is a lean app store.  Now I don't see this a major downfall cause I don't feel I'm missing anything.  For those who really need Facebook separate from the people app, just access it as you always would through Internet Explorer.  I particularly like the comment from one RIM executive who said, "you don't need 2500 different solitaire apps (taking a shot at apple)."

 

The next downfall/other change I would like to see is that the keyboard hinge more like a laptop.  This is because I prefer to sit in a chair with my laptop on my lap.  The kickstand works but it's not as convenient.  Now for them to do this the keyboard would have to be much heavier, so when you set the device down it doesn't just tip over... so I understand the design constraints.  If the keyboard was heavier it would make the whole device too heavy.  If they split the weight between the keyboard and the tablet, you likely couldn't use the Surface as a stand alone tablet (with no keyboard).  So I understand this design issues in doing this, I would just like my cake an eat it too. 

 

Anyway I'm extremely happy with it, and my son may have to wait till I get Surface 2 or a Surface Pro.

[Kiltacular]

Thanks for the interesting review.

[DCG]

I have owned and used other tablets and to be brutally honest they are useless.  I remember back when the ipad was announced and everyone thought they would be useless.  My experience has been exactly that.  Tablets are purely consumption devices.  If all you want to do is check Facebook and watch Youtube that is fine.  Tablets are useless for productive work, mainly because they lack a physical keyboard but also because they are very closed to the outside world.  Surface addresses these issues.

 

er...First, you can get keyboards for the ipad for around $40 (much less than the $110 msft charged for the keyboard. Second, if you're looking for a work device, than I sort of get your point, but this is not what most people currently use tablets for. The iPad has replaced my laptop use about 90% of time time. It's how I browser the web, read books, read the news paper, play some games with my daughter, watch movies (sometimes). I also compose and record music. There are tons of amazing apps that turn the iPad into a full Digital Audio Workstation. I can buy an app for often under $10, that essentially lets the iPad replace something that would've cost hundreds of dollars just a few years ago. You can also use Pages, Keynote, Google Docs and other apps to use the iPad for 'productive' work. I've typed several documents using Pages on the iPad (using the bluetooth keyboard).

 

 

[hyten1]

curious on what people's experience are

 

one of thing i notice is, when i first got an iphone (few years ago), i would use it for everything, download stuff, play games, read etc.

 

but as time passes, i tend to use it less and less for many of the things above (except making calls still the primary use). for me the novalty  gradually wears off, the the compromise i was willing to make (using an iphone, small screen, relatively hard to navigate, etc.) comparing it to my laptop gradually diminishes. When i first got an iphone it was very cool, i was willing to download all kind of stuff, was willing to wait for the slow 3G connection, was willing to forget the fact it was on such a tiny screen and doing anything was just more difficult than my laptop.

 

i also have an ipad, iphone, kindle, old laptop and a new windows 8 laptop

 

i guess i am just curious i hear all the time people say they use their ipad more than their laptop, really??? At least my personal experience I use my laptop way more than my ipad.  most of the day i am on a laptop. its only at night when i turn off my laptop that i may use the ipad for the following below.

 

i guess what it comes down to is, if you have a laptop and a ipad and you need to do some stuff which would you use, i guess it depends on the environment, circumstances and location.

 

for me if i need to do something efficiently, quickly without compromise, its the laptop no doubt

but if i need to be mobile, want to be on my bed or bathroom, or just chilling around,  and need to just check somethiing quick I use the ipad (this might not even be true since it depends on how difficult it is to check the thing)

 

 

ipad is use primarily for my kids (play game, education stuff) and every so often i would use it to check weather, read some book or surf the web, sometimes watch tv/video/movie.

[kevin4u2]

curious on what people's experience are

 

one of thing i notice is, when i first got an iphone (few years ago), i would use it for everything, download stuff, play games, read etc.

 

but as time passes, i tend to use it less and less for many of the things above (except making calls still the primary use). for me the novalty  gradually wears off, the the compromise i was willing to make (using an iphone, small screen, relatively hard to navigate, etc.) comparing it to my laptop gradually diminishes. When i first got an iphone it was very cool, i was willing to download all kind of stuff, was willing to wait for the slow 3G connection, was willing to forget the fact it was on such a tiny screen and doing anything was just more difficult than my laptop.

 

i also have an ipad, iphone, kindle, old laptop and a new windows 8 laptop

 

i guess i am just curious i hear all the time people say they use their ipad more than their laptop, really??? At least my personal experience I use my laptop way more than my ipad.  most of the day i am on a laptop. its only at night when i turn off my laptop that i may use the ipad for the following below.

 

i guess what it comes down to is, if you have a laptop and a ipad and you need to do some stuff which would you use, i guess it depends on the environment, circumstances and location.

 

for me if i need to do something efficiently, quickly without compromise, its the laptop no doubt

but if i need to be mobile, want to be on my bed or bathroom, or just chilling around,  and need to just check somethiing quick I use the ipad (this might not even be true since it depends on how difficult it is to check the thing)

 

 

ipad is use primarily for my kids (play game, education stuff) and every so often i would use it to check weather, read some book or surf the web, sometimes watch tv/video/movie.

 

My sentiments are the same.  Like I said before, once the novelty wears off, most tablets are useless.  Which brings me to another key reason why I detest other tablets, pull down menus when browsing the web. 

 

On every tablet, websites are hit or miss whether or not you can actually access the pull down menus.  This is because of how the websites were developed and are not touch friendly but for use with a mouse.  Surface address this with the physical keyboard with a trackpad.  When a pull down menu does work by touch, just use the trackpad just like a mouse and voila no problem.  I should add that Internet Explorer App on the Surface is a really good browser as well. 

 

DCG, does your Bluetooth keyboard have a trackpad?

[fareastwarriors]

 

Why Microsoft May Be a 'Classic Value Trap'

By Roben Farzad on December 28, 2012

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-12-28/why-microsoft-may-be-a-classic-value-trap#r=nav-r-story

 

The early days of January are typically a time of unbridled optimism. This will be the year we lose 10 pounds and learn to speak French; Japan will turn itself around; Microsoft (MSFT) stock will pull itself out of a decade of doldrums.

 

Most analysts are betting that the Redmond computer company’s time has come. The company’s fiscal-year revenue has nearly tripled to $74 billion in the last 10 years. At $27, the shares trade right at their 10-year average and yield more than it costs the company to issue debt. Redmond has Skunk-Worked an exciting new tablet and operating system it’s eager to showcase. It’s all backed by ridiculous amounts of free cash and a fortress-like balance sheet. The 12-month price target on the stock forecasts a 25 percent gain.

 

Still, the company has attracted at least one major detractor with a big megaphone: Barry Ritholtz, an asset manager who runs a quantitative research firm and founder of the well-trafficked blog The Big Picture. He considers the company a “classic value trap,” not unlike what its customers Dell (DELL) and Hewlett Packard (HPQ) were at the start of this annus horribilis. The problem, he says, is Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer. “As long as he is running the show—he has missed every major trend in tech over the past decade—I have no confidence in the company.”

 

He has company. Activist investor David Einhorn has wanted Ballmer out for more than a year and was long the shares in hopes that such an ouster would boost Microsoft’s returns. The stock is up 3 percent this year, compared with the S&P 500’s 14 percent gain. The 13 years since Ballmer became CEO have included the Vista debacle, a thankfully thwarted bid to overpay for Yahoo! (YHOO), the ceding of search supremacy to Google (GOOG), and Apple’s (AAPL) envisioning and dominating much of the smartphone and tablet markets. Meanwhile, where’s that “Skype Phone” in every palm?

 

‘Value trap’ is a funny term, says Bill Koefoed, Microsoft’s general manager of investor relations. Microsoft, he says, is trading in line with the big-cap technology sector, which has recently been out of favor with investors.

 

“Enterprise tech hasn’t been as sexy to the press. But our relevance to the enterprise has grown in a huge way. Our database business is growing faster than Oracle’s (ORCL) and IBM’s (IBM).”

 

Koefoed says people focus on Windows, which provides a quarter of Microsoft’s overall revenue, but not on the comparable 25 percent contribution from the company’s servers and tools division, which he emphasizes that Ballmer has grown, from a $3 billion business, to a $19 billion enterprise over the past decade. ”Over time, the stock price works itself out. We’re doing a whole bunch of things to be shareholder-friendly. Over time, that will be reflected in our share price.”

 

Meanwhile, Koefoed says, it was under Ballmer that the company initiated and consistently increased its dividend—with Microsoft shareholders overwhelmingly backing the CEO last month.

 

Ritholtz is unpersuaded “Think of the difference between what is revealed by a single snapshot of Microsoft today vs. an extended video. Yes, you can see the current situation of lots of cash, a low price-earnings multiple, name recognition, enterprise usage. But what about the trajectory and changes to the underlying market for their goods and services?”

 

He says that other than Kinnect for Xbox 360, “it’s hard to see what Microsoft gets for its billions of [research and development] dollars.”

 

“The competitive landscape has been moving against Microsoft,” wrote N. Landell-Mills of Indigo Equity Research after Microsoft’s “uninspiring” latest quarterly report, which involved the company raising its dividend 15 percent. The analyst called the organization “un-innovative and complex” and “a digital dinosaur.”

 

The full rollout of Windows 8 could, of course, change that state of affairs. Not that early signs are promising.

 

With the PC replacement cycle stretched out and assailed by competition that Microsoft failed to oppose, Ritholtz has taken to comparing its fate to that of Maytag (WHR). “It was,” he says, “once hugely successful and innovative and created lots of products and markets. Now you replace your dishwasher every 10 years; that’s the only time you ever think of Maytag.”

 

 

[Palantir]

The people who criticise Steve Ballmer and lionize Gates conveniently forget that Gates was in charge of Microsoft for a large part of the period that Microsoft "missed out" on all these "trends", and in many ways, it's Gates' own failings of being unable to grasp emerging trends, and not having any understanding of consumer products and design that have truly set Microsoft up for failure over this past decade.

 

 

Ballmer is still new into the role of CEO and the company has changed dramatically from the MSFT of yesterday.

[DCG]

DCG, does your Bluetooth keyboard have a trackpad?

 

no. Not sure why i'd need that with a touch-screen tablet.

[DCG]

On every tablet, websites are hit or miss whether or not you can actually access the pull down menus.  This is because of how the websites were developed and are not touch friendly but for use with a mouse. 

 

Which tablets have you experienced this on? I'm not sure I recall any sites on the when using iPad Safari where I was unable to access drop-down menus.

[Guest rimm_never_sleeps]

The people who criticise Steve Ballmer and lionize Gates conveniently forget that Gates was in charge of Microsoft for a large part of the period that Microsoft "missed out" on all these "trends", and in many ways, it's Gates' own failings of being unable to grasp emerging trends, and not having any understanding of consumer products and design that have truly set Microsoft up for failure over this past decade.

 

 

Ballmer is still new into the role of CEO and the company has changed dramatically from the MSFT of yesterday.

 

I don't think anybody lionizes Gates other than for being a great philanthropist. under his watch msft was prosecuted as a monopolist. and he didn't forsee the Internet's impact nor did he foresee the impact of mobile. Ballmer in a sense inherited a company that was ill prepared for the coming changes. of course ballmer has impacted msft with his own lack of vision and judgement. Ballmer is most definitely Not new to the role of CEO. He has had ample time to put his stamp on the company.

[writser]

A bit offtopic, but a nice example of the moat Microsoft has in business software: link.

 

Want a job at Google? You might want to brush up on your Microsoft Office skills. That's because a whole bunch of jobs at Google require expertise with Office software, particularly Excel, according to Google's job listings. We took a look at the job postings after Todd Bishop at Geekwire first spotted the trend, and found that 134 mention the word "Excel.". Listings we spotchecked mentioned the need for proficiency with Microsoft's spreadsheet software and didn't use the word "excel" in other ways. (..) For instance  ...

 

- A job for an Executive Compensation Analyst listed "Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel (e.g., experience with array formulas and indirect functions)" and " proficient with Microsoft Excel" in its preferred qualifications.

 

- One job analyzing user behavior for Gmail and Calendar—two key apps in the enterprise suite—required PowerPoint proficiency.

 

- A search for Microsoft Word among Google jobs brought up seven postings including People Technology and Operations Specialist. That job asks applicants to have "intermediate to advanced Microsoft Excel and Word skills."

 

- A sales systems administrator job sounds like it might have come from an all-Microsoft shop, requiring skill not only in Excel and PowerPoint but also Microsoft Access, a database software package.

 

(..) These jobs postings are interesting because Google's top enterprise exec, Amit Singh, recently said he plans to have Google Apps lure 90 percent of Microsoft's Office customers away—because many workers don't need to use the most advanced features of Microsoft Office. But apparently, even within Google there are jobs that value those advanced features. Even Singh admits that there are "gaps between our features and theirs," and says that Google is working to improve them.

 

This is why I bought a stake in Microsoft: their business software is so ubiquitous that even their biggest competitor uses it and I don't think this will change in a couple of years. But all the news I read online about Microsoft (also in this topic) is about Windows 8 sales and the usability of the Surface tablet.

[roundball100]

The people who criticise Steve Ballmer and lionize Gates conveniently forget that Gates was in charge of Microsoft for a large part of the period that Microsoft "missed out" on all these "trends", and in many ways, it's Gates' own failings of being unable to grasp emerging trends, and not having any understanding of consumer products and design that have truly set Microsoft up for failure over this past decade.

 

 

Ballmer is still new into the role of CEO and the company has changed dramatically from the MSFT of yesterday.

 

I don't think anybody lionizes Gates other than for being a great philanthropist. under his watch msft was prosecuted as a monopolist. and he didn't forsee the Internet's impact nor did he foresee the impact of mobile. Ballmer in a sense inherited a company that was ill prepared for the coming changes. of course ballmer has impacted msft with his own lack of vision and judgement. Ballmer is most definitely Not new to the role of CEO. He has had ample time to put his stamp on the company.

 

"under his watch" seems to shortchange Gates a bit.  It's not like he was there for just a year or two.

 

[Guest rimm_never_sleeps]

"under his watch" seems to shortchange Gates a bit.  It's not like he was there for just a year or two.

 

gates created a lot of value with some arguably questionable business tactics. you could also argue he didn't really see the forks in the road. I would say his succession plan has had limitations.

[Palantir]

A bit offtopic, but a nice example of the moat Microsoft has in business software: link.

 

Want a job at Google? You might want to brush up on your Microsoft Office skills. That's because a whole bunch of jobs at Google require expertise with Office software, particularly Excel, according to Google's job listings. We took a look at the job postings after Todd Bishop at Geekwire first spotted the trend, and found that 134 mention the word "Excel.". Listings we spotchecked mentioned the need for proficiency with Microsoft's spreadsheet software and didn't use the word "excel" in other ways. (..) For instance  ...

 

- A job for an Executive Compensation Analyst listed "Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel (e.g., experience with array formulas and indirect functions)" and " proficient with Microsoft Excel" in its preferred qualifications.

 

- One job analyzing user behavior for Gmail and Calendar—two key apps in the enterprise suite—required PowerPoint proficiency.

 

- A search for Microsoft Word among Google jobs brought up seven postings including People Technology and Operations Specialist. That job asks applicants to have "intermediate to advanced Microsoft Excel and Word skills."

 

- A sales systems administrator job sounds like it might have come from an all-Microsoft shop, requiring skill not only in Excel and PowerPoint but also Microsoft Access, a database software package.

 

(..) These jobs postings are interesting because Google's top enterprise exec, Amit Singh, recently said he plans to have Google Apps lure 90 percent of Microsoft's Office customers away—because many workers don't need to use the most advanced features of Microsoft Office. But apparently, even within Google there are jobs that value those advanced features. Even Singh admits that there are "gaps between our features and theirs," and says that Google is working to improve them.

 

This is why I bought a stake in Microsoft: their business software is so ubiquitous that even their biggest competitor uses it and I don't think this will change in a couple of years. But all the news I read online about Microsoft (also in this topic) is about Windows 8 sales and the usability of the Surface tablet.

 

Indeed, their Office division is bigger than Windows, and even their Server and Tools business has outgrown Windows in revenue. IT's a lower margin business for sure, but quite stable.

 

Although this is truly amusing, that they don't use Google Apps.

[Parsad]

The people who criticise Steve Ballmer and lionize Gates conveniently forget that Gates was in charge of Microsoft for a large part of the period that Microsoft "missed out" on all these "trends", and in many ways, it's Gates' own failings of being unable to grasp emerging trends, and not having any understanding of consumer products and design that have truly set Microsoft up for failure over this past decade.

 

 

Ballmer is still new into the role of CEO and the company has changed dramatically from the MSFT of yesterday.

 

I don't think anybody lionizes Gates other than for being a great philanthropist. under his watch msft was prosecuted as a monopolist. and he didn't forsee the Internet's impact nor did he foresee the impact of mobile. Ballmer in a sense inherited a company that was ill prepared for the coming changes. of course ballmer has impacted msft with his own lack of vision and judgement. Ballmer is most definitely Not new to the role of CEO. He has had ample time to put his stamp on the company.

 

They missed on smartphones and tablets, but Gates was not at the helm any longer.  He was dead on regarding the internet...in fact he was there years earlier than anyone else.  Read his two books...he saw the changes the internet was bringing.  The precursor to all of the internet/television fusion that we see today was started by Microsoft nearly 12 years ago with WebTV.  It was just too early and didn't take.  I had one and used it quite a bit, but no one else thought the two mediums belonged together...that is until the last few years.  Cheers!

[DCG]

A bit offtopic, but a nice example of the moat Microsoft has in business software: link.

 

Want a job at Google? You might want to brush up on your Microsoft Office skills. That's because a whole bunch of jobs at Google require expertise with Office software, particularly Excel, according to Google's job listings. We took a look at the job postings after Todd Bishop at Geekwire first spotted the trend, and found that 134 mention the word "Excel.". Listings we spotchecked mentioned the need for proficiency with Microsoft's spreadsheet software and didn't use the word "excel" in other ways. (..) For instance  ...

 

- A job for an Executive Compensation Analyst listed "Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel (e.g., experience with array formulas and indirect functions)" and " proficient with Microsoft Excel" in its preferred qualifications.

 

- One job analyzing user behavior for Gmail and Calendar—two key apps in the enterprise suite—required PowerPoint proficiency.

 

- A search for Microsoft Word among Google jobs brought up seven postings including People Technology and Operations Specialist. That job asks applicants to have "intermediate to advanced Microsoft Excel and Word skills."

 

- A sales systems administrator job sounds like it might have come from an all-Microsoft shop, requiring skill not only in Excel and PowerPoint but also Microsoft Access, a database software package.

 

(..) These jobs postings are interesting because Google's top enterprise exec, Amit Singh, recently said he plans to have Google Apps lure 90 percent of Microsoft's Office customers away—because many workers don't need to use the most advanced features of Microsoft Office. But apparently, even within Google there are jobs that value those advanced features. Even Singh admits that there are "gaps between our features and theirs," and says that Google is working to improve them.

 

This is why I bought a stake in Microsoft: their business software is so ubiquitous that even their biggest competitor uses it and I don't think this will change in a couple of years. But all the news I read online about Microsoft (also in this topic) is about Windows 8 sales and the usability of the Surface tablet.

 

In all fairness, most jobs require proficiency in Office programs. Even if they're using Google Docs internally, they probably wouldn't hire someone w/out experience in programs like Excel.

[A_Hamilton]

A bit offtopic, but a nice example of the moat Microsoft has in business software: link.

 

Want a job at Google? You might want to brush up on your Microsoft Office skills. That's because a whole bunch of jobs at Google require expertise with Office software, particularly Excel, according to Google's job listings. We took a look at the job postings after Todd Bishop at Geekwire first spotted the trend, and found that 134 mention the word "Excel.". Listings we spotchecked mentioned the need for proficiency with Microsoft's spreadsheet software and didn't use the word "excel" in other ways. (..) For instance  ...

 

- A job for an Executive Compensation Analyst listed "Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel (e.g., experience with array formulas and indirect functions)" and " proficient with Microsoft Excel" in its preferred qualifications.

 

- One job analyzing user behavior for Gmail and Calendar—two key apps in the enterprise suite—required PowerPoint proficiency.

 

- A search for Microsoft Word among Google jobs brought up seven postings including People Technology and Operations Specialist. That job asks applicants to have "intermediate to advanced Microsoft Excel and Word skills."

 

- A sales systems administrator job sounds like it might have come from an all-Microsoft shop, requiring skill not only in Excel and PowerPoint but also Microsoft Access, a database software package.

 

(..) These jobs postings are interesting because Google's top enterprise exec, Amit Singh, recently said he plans to have Google Apps lure 90 percent of Microsoft's Office customers away—because many workers don't need to use the most advanced features of Microsoft Office. But apparently, even within Google there are jobs that value those advanced features. Even Singh admits that there are "gaps between our features and theirs," and says that Google is working to improve them.

 

This is why I bought a stake in Microsoft: their business software is so ubiquitous that even their biggest competitor uses it and I don't think this will change in a couple of years. But all the news I read online about Microsoft (also in this topic) is about Windows 8 sales and the usability of the Surface tablet.

 

Indeed, their Office division is bigger than Windows, and even their Server and Tools business has outgrown Windows in revenue. IT's a lower margin business for sure, but quite stable.

 

Although this is truly amusing, that they don't use Google Apps.

 

I am not even sure that Servers and Tools is a lower margin business as much as it requires more scale than Windows or Office. Incremental margins in servers and tools have been as good as Windows and Office for the last several years now...and they continue to get better...implying larger returns on a high fixed cost base.

[Palantir]

Steve Ballmer has only really been in charge of MSFT since 08, after Gates left for good. We have seen some major changes happen since then. I'm neither sold on Ballmer nor a detractor, and I think the jury is out on him, but he has made some dramatic changes to MSFT that he should get credit for. This firing of Sinofsky is another step in the right direction to enable seamless collaboration across divisions.

[Guest rimm_never_sleeps]

They missed on smartphones and tablets, but Gates was not at the helm any longer.  He was dead on regarding the internet...in fact he was there years earlier than anyone else.  Read his two books...he saw the changes the internet was bringing.  The precursor to all of the internet/television fusion that we see today was started by Microsoft nearly 12 years ago with WebTV.  It was just too early and didn't take.  I had one and used it quite a bit, but no one else thought the two mediums belonged together...that is until the last few years.  Cheers!

disagree.

 

from wikipedia

 

The Road Ahead is a book written by Bill Gates, co-founder and then-CEO of the Microsoft software company, together with Microsoft executive Nathan Myhrvold and journalist Peter Rinearson. Published in November 1995, The Road Ahead summarized the implications of the personal computing revolution and described a future profoundly changed by the arrival of a global information superhighway.

 

Content differences between hardback and trade editions

 

The hardback edition saw the Internet as one of the "important precursors of the information highway...suggestive of [its] future" (p. 89);[3] he noted that the "popularity of the Internet is the most important single development in the world of computing since the IBM PC was introduced in 1981"[3] (p. 91) but "today's Internet is not the information highway I imagine, although you can think of it as the beginning of the highway", the information highway he envisioned would be as different from the Internet as the Oregon Trail was to Interstate 84.[3] (p. 95)

 

After the book was written, but before it hit bookstores, Gates recognized that the Internet was gaining critical mass, and on December 7, 1995 — just weeks after the release of the book — he redirected Microsoft to become an Internet-focused company.[citation needed] Then he and coauthor Rinearson spent several months revising the book, making it 20,000 words longer and focused on the Internet.[citation needed] The revised edition was published in October 1996 as a trade paperback.[5]

 

Both editions came with a CD-ROM that contained the text of the book and supplemental information. The hardback was published by Viking, and the paperback by Penguin, an affiliate of Viking. Numerous publishers around the world produced translated versions of the book, which was particularly popular among university students in China.[citation needed]