This is a laughable position, Sharepoint isn’t as free as Microsoft would have Customers believe either....
Brian M O’Curran October 6 2010 06:58:55 AM
I know the term LOL is overused to the point of nauseam but, I did openly laugh this morning when I read this article in Information Week. Seems Mr Ballmer is upset they are in a position to compete against free. As to the assertion there are patent infringements involved, the courts will work that out. Back in the real world, working with customers, when we hear "we're going with Sharepoint" for this or that, it's usually followed up with, "it's not a great fit but, it's free." Even when I explain all the interdependencies and licensing costs, somehow Microsoft's version of free is free enough to get started. Fast forward 6 months to a year... what a mess! It's very hard to find information, the UI is cumbersome, there's multiple copies of documents all over the organization, and the adoption usually wanes. When free was the sole criteria because "the business is asking for something...." bad things ensue. Oh, and guess what, it wasn't free either. Have you ever got a "free puppy?" Yeah, it's alot like that!From the masters of software packaging, it seems free (or the illusion of free) is bad for business. Or, maybe no one really cares about having Windows on their mobile device... or, maybe RIM, Android and Apple have something customer want to use. Hmmmm what a concept.
So, Mr Ballmer, I hope that "free" Android thing works out for you! I bet no one's listening... just a hunch based on your marketshare.
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