Microsoft will claim that security is their “competitive advantage” at annual conference.

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Considering all the talk about Microsoft products and security around here as of late I found the following rather amusing. Seems Microsoft is about to hold its second annual Worldwide Partner Conference and they plan to claim that they have a competitive advantage thanks to the security of their products.

InfoWorld: Microsoft to pitch security as ‘competitive advantage’

Attendees at last year’s event, in New Orleans, cheered when Microsoft Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Steve Ballmer addressed head-on some of the security challenges the software maker faces and outlined steps it said it would take to address them.

However, Microsoft has yet to deliver on most of the promises Ballmer made. For example, customers are still waiting for a single patching experience and an update to the Software Update Services (SUS) patch management tool, both of which Ballmer said would be out in the first half of 2004, and both of which have been delayed.

Additionally, Ballmer promoted the security enhancements in Service Pack 2 for Windows XP. That update was scheduled to be released in the first half of the year but has also been delayed and is now expected some time in the third quarter.

As a result, many of Microsoft’s partners will come to Toronto with the same concerns about security that they had last year, said Paul DeGroot, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft Inc. The concerns may have even grown because of the recent attacks on Microsoft’s Internet Explorer Web browser, he said.

Sounds like Microsoft is taking a page from the play book of Evangelical Christians in terms of “if I repeat it enough times then it’ll be true” approach to describing reality.

4 thoughts on “Microsoft will claim that security is their “competitive advantage” at annual conference.”

  3. Coolness. Thanks for the kind words, FryGuy. That’s a neat little summary. I’ve never thought of myself as a renaissance blogger so much as a guy with a big mouth and a willingness to use it.

    grin

  4. This thread just reminded me of MS Church.

    (Redmond, WA) Long accused of being a cult by its detractors, Microsoft has entered the field of religion. The new religion, called “MS Church,” will base its belief systems on what Microsoft calls “commonly held values amongst the existing users of computer software.”

    “People often say that the individual choice of operating system is really matter of religion,” MS Church spokesman J.P. Titheman explained. “We take that argument very seriously at MS Church. Still, there are multitudes of issues in life that are almost as important as whether you use Windows or a Macintosh. The spiritual needs of software users, programmers, and corporations are not being serviced by traditional religious sects. Just as Microsoft provides great support for our products, we now provide great support for your soul.”

    Being a religion, MS Church has some basic tenents for its followers, to help them lead a pious existence. “Life’s Operating System,” as they call it, consists of 7 basic principles:

    The fruit of the apple is forbidden.
    No follower should ever wear a red hat.
    Tardiness is a virtue.
    Errors are divine.
    Never invent something you can acquire.
    A true believer need not check his work.
    The greatest sin is getting caught.
    MS Church expresses a deep belief in the concept of redemption, however their implementation of redemption differs greatly from Western religion. Followers of MS Church are not required to pray and meditate on their transgressions. Instead, they buy a Sin Seat License.

    “Sinning is universally acknowledged as inevitable,” Titheman stated. “As such, MS Church takes a progressive approach to dealing with sin. When you install Windows NT on your network, you buy a Seat License. This entitles a specific number of users to be attached to your network. Applying the same principles that have satisfied software users for years, MS Church has rolled out a Sin Seat License. You figure out how many sins you think you’re going to be committing, and you buy a license for that number of sins. As all sins are not equal, we will be releasing a Sin Seat License manual, prepared by Microsoft’s talented documentation staff. It’s only 765 pages and should be very easy to read. We expect third party guidebooks to be available shortly, as well. We like to think of it as Indulgences done right.”

    While there does appear to be a great deal of conversion to MS Church, particularly among Microsoft employees, all is not completely rosy with in the new religion. Just as there are a variety of denominations in Christianity, MS Church finds itself having to deal with conflicting sects at an early stage of it’s existence. The problem largely stems from software upgrades and differences in Operating Systems. While NT users tend to form congregations separate from Windows Users, almost in a caste system, there is great dissension between Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows 2000 users. Drawing parallels from the transition between Judaism and Christianity, some users fail to believe in the validity of newer software and decline to upgrade. In a religion based on choice of software, this is causing a great deal of tension and internal dissent. MS Church representatives declined to comment on this matter.

    MS Church representatives declined to comment as to what degree the separation of church and state, religious freedom laws and tax status influenced Microsoft’s decision to launch a new religion. – Todd Allen [/Quote]

    captcha = ‘far’ as in not to ‘far’ fetched.

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