[vox] Microsoft interested in our feelings

[Michael Wenk]

On Friday 19 December 2003 08:01 am, Larry Dieterich wrote:
> At 7:32 AM -0800 12/19/03, Bill Kendrick wrote:
> >I received an email last night from one Michael Surkan from Microsoft
> >(based on the mail headers, it looks legit; not some prankster ;^) )
> >
> >He wanted to know if it would be appropriate to post a note to our 'vox'
> >list asking if folks here would be willing to talk about where they'd
> >like to see MS go down the road... kind of a 5-year-plan, to paraphrase.
>
> <snip>
>
> >I'm quite curious as to what they're up to, and how much MS would actually
> >listen to us techie geeks. :^)
>
> Sounds like an electronic equivalent of what PR & Marketing people
> call a "focus group", where they get a bunch of people together and
> get them to discuss a product and listen to their language and
> analyze the values at work.
>
> I imagine the real objective of Mr Surkan's involvement is to find
> terminology and concepts to feed to MS' PR machinery.
>
> They are apparently are "paying attention to" the Linux community and
> most likely seeking ways to undermine it (since the SCO gambit seems
> to be failing).
>
> IMO, it means they are scared.

I don't consider it likely.   I think it may be that they actually are 
sincere, at least on one level.  Think about it, if they really wanted to try 
to undermine Linux, the user groups would be the LAST place to start.  The 
majority of people in the LUGs are hobbyists, and given that, what possible 
effect could they have?  

Mike

-- 
wenk@praxis.homedns.org
Mike Wenk