MS wants an information monopoly. They want to control the vertical and the horizontal and they want to make it so you can't use the computer for anything productive if you adjust your set.
There are three ways to possibly beat MS: money, law, and war.
First we have money as an issue. The consumer (and the companies adversely affected) could boycott MS. However, the average user doesn't really care, so I doubt a boycott would be anymore affective than the open source movement in bringing about change in Redmond.
Second, legislation could be passed demanding that MS not implement, or water down their plans. This would require strong lobbying by consumer advocates and those previously mentioned adversely affected companies. This has a much greater likelyhood of succeeding when compared to a boycott, as special interest groups rule Washington.
Lastly, the power users, pirates, privacy advocates and adversely affected companies can wage an underground war against MS. Constant DOS attacks, physical damage to distributors, and corporate sabotage would rule the day. This is the most unlikly option, but could be extremely affective. Of course, the World Web would end up looking like a war-torn city in Somalia, driving away the consumers, which would make Government unhappy and thus bring down the roof on the small guerrilla crackers. Oh, I feel a novel coming on, excuse me. |
