Microsoft loses market share; computer users gain better choices

John Carlson

Guest columnist

People sometimes think I’m a crackpot. Unlike most people, I avoid using Microsoft software on my computers. Windows? The only windows I have are the ones on the walls of the house.

At one time, I did use Microsoft software. But, about 1996, I started drifting away. Competing products were a better match for my needs.

In recent years, I’ve grown more and more conscious of another reason I avoid Microsoft: I want to encourage Microsoft’s competitors.

Indeed, I want to encourage their competitors as much as possible.

I’ve grown more and more uncomfortable with the size of Microsoft’s market share in recent years. Microsoft Windows has more than a 90 percent share of the operating system market.

Other Microsoft products dominate their fields, too.

Frankly, I have never liked the idea of any one company virtually controlling an industry. Particularly when the market share is on something critical. Like computer operating systems.

It’s healthiest, I think, when there is plenty of competition. That gives room for more than one vision of how a product should be made. That gives room for innovation and improvement.

I always like to give an example involving cars. Let’s imagine for a moment that one car company gained 100 percent control of the market back in the 1950s.

Once this car company has the market sewn up, what incentive is there to improve the cars?

Certainly, a long line of familiar (and some historically important) cars would not exist. For example, there would be no Ford Mustang, no BMW 3 series, and no Honda Accord.

Today, we’d have cars just like the ones made 40 years ago. Nice cars — I wouldn’t mind having one as a collectible — but not a good match for today’s world.

Indeed, they’d be a terrible match. Not many would want a pink car today. Not many would like the terrible gas economy with gas prices hovering at about $4.50 a gallon.

But this could be the only choice, if only one car company had existed since the ’50s.

Microsoft does have competitors. But it seems like they’ve been overshadowed for a long time.

Frequently, competing developers haven’t had the resources to allow them to make products that would help advance the state of the art.

Often, it seems, competitors feel they have to make products that would be “like Microsoft, but cheaper” just to survive.

A good example is word processing software. Microsoft Word dominates the market. And its competitors appear to be modeled after Microsoft Word more often than not.

Sometimes, the only thing that really seems to change is the name. Leaving me to wonder — where’s the innovation?

Thankfully, things are now starting to change.

A number of competing products have gotten very, very good in recent years. The Mozilla Firefox Web browser is a good example.

Then, many people are getting fed up with Microsoft. The new Microsoft Windows Vista operating system hasn’t exactly thrilled many users. Many conclude that the “wow!” promised is really: “Wow! It’s time to switch to something else!”

This past week, I read an article on TG Daily that discussed a Net Applications study showing that Microsoft Windows is losing popularity. (See www.tgdaily.com/content/view/38232/113). Microsoft’s share of the operating system market may soon fall below 90 percent.

As Microsoft’s competitors gain popularity, they gain strength. They’ll have the strength to help advance the state of the art. They’ll ensure that computer users will have more — and better — choices. Everyone will benefit. Even those who choose to run a 100 percent Microsoft system.

How much will the market shift? Only time will tell. I do know this: I’m seeing more signs of people changing. I’m seeing more Apple MacBooks around Gig Harbor. I’ve seen cars with Ubuntu Linux bumper stickers. I think I’ve seen at least one Asus EEE PC, running Xandros Linux.

A few years ago, Tacoma was billed the “Wired City.” Maybe Gig Harbor can become “the most diverse” when it comes to computer operating systems.

That, I think, would be a distinction to be proud of.

The Peninsula Gateway Guest Columnist John Carlson can be reached at jcarlson2400@yahoo.com.