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29 Oct 2001
Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer brushed aside Windows 2000 as yesterday's bread at the launch of its latest flagship operating system (OS), Windows XP, last week.
Ballmer said that he had hoped the single code-based Windows 2000 should have been its first end-to-end solution for businesses and consumers. However, he conceded that it "wasn't ready" to do so, and although "reliable, is not very compatible".
He said: "Any firms starting their Windows 2000 deployment should stay with it, but for those that haven't started the rollout yet, then Windows XP is the way to go.
"If companies are in the middle of Windows 2000 rollout, they are stuck with it."
At XP's launch Ballmer quipped that XP had passed his sons' "Ballmer brothers" compatibility test, and was confident that it would offer businesses and consumers "super-high reliability".
Graham Long, channel marketing manager at Hewlett-Packard, said Windows XP will be a good opportunity for the channel, despite initial hype focusing on consumer take-up.
"The initial demand is going to come from the retail sector, and the software will provide us with great potential in terms of selling digital cameras, printers and other peripherals.
"But the real reseller benefit will come through training, education and making sure that business users fully understand the software," he said.
Ross Miller, managing director of VAR TrustMarque Solutions, differed. "We can see the demand from consumers taking off as they will see real benefits from XP, but in the corporate environment will they really use all the bells and whistles, or even want to?" he asked.
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