It stands to reason that a number of people really hate Microsoft. No really, you say. Yes really.

I know it is by no means a news flash, but somewhere around Win 3.1 and Win95, MS started to be referred to as M$. When the evil monikers start, thats when things go bad.

But in this case, M$ was lucky. Why? Well OS/Warp was saddled with about the worst advertising campaign in history, and the Mac….well, was the Mac really.

In other words, M$ got to go about their job of producing marginal software, because there was so few people really getting it right. Marc Andreeson? Anyone remember this guy anymore? My point exactly.

Times they are a-changin’ though. A few years ago Open Source started getting organised, and the Enterprise stated taking a long hard look at Linux. And more importantly, open standards became the secret weapon to beat the closed Citadel of the Windows API.

But another important shift happened. Not too long ago, the ethos of open software development was one of, ‘by geeks, for geeks’. Now though, its not surprising to see projects on Source Forge eagerly seek out good designers to not only ’skin’ their projects, but to seriously map out a proper UI (user interface). When you hear a developer talk about user centered design, then you know a major pardigm shift is underway.

I am by no means an expert on this subject. However, to come full circle, I do not hate Microsoft or Bill Gates. Don’t  think for one minute that Steve Jobs wouldn’t love to be in Gate’s position right now. Apple, has always stood for clique’ish development for the chosen few. Also, instead of praising software developers who write for their platform, they usually just try and crush them (hello Adobe).

Where am I going with this? Well, suffice it to say the old adage will always hold true: Absolute power corrupts absolute. Microsoft is not evil, they just don’t have any enemys so why innovate. However, this lack of innovation is what has caused me to totally jump ship.

So where have I gone? I’ll be writing more about my experiences over the coming weeks about where I have junked the status quo. This will include the OS, Browser, Mail Client, Instant Messanger, and SOHO server amoung others.

The revolution will not be webcast.