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Story: Microsoft on warding off the Linux threat

Posted by: Harris L. Gilliam (Wednesday 4 October 2006, 8:18 PM)

Microsoft will not produce a version of Office for Linux for one reason and one reason only. They know that people's dependance on Office is the biggest thing tying them to Windows !! If there was a version of Office for Linux that would provide a very, very easy migration path for businesses, and individuals, to switch to Linux for their OS. All the other issues that are barriers (driver availability, interoperability) are quickly disappearing and would disappear even faster if there was Office for Linux.

OpenOffice is a viable alternative to MSOffice today, in terms of fucntionality, but what keeps people from switching is that they are conditioned to MSOffice. Someone like me, who never "grew up" using MSOffice had absolutely no problem acclaimating to OpenOffice. Its is simply a matter of what people are used to.

Also MS has always dragged their feet on releasing the required docs so that others can interoperate with their Office formats. Again... for the same reason... they know that Office is a big anchor around the feet of Windows users today. MS is not going to do anything that will make it easier for people to choose between them and OSS alternatives.

Finally, I'm sure that MS's Linux lab is primarily there so that they can better exploit (they call it "understand") the interoperability issues. If Ms understand what things hold people to Windows or similarly keep people from Linux they can adjust their strategy to perpetuate and emphasize those problems.