Re:No one likes the big guy (Score 1)

You make a lot of good points, and I concede the fact that Microsoft's business interests can jeopardize consumer choice and/or the adoption of a technology/product that is better in certain ways. However, computer technology is unlike other consumer products in how much interaction and inter-reliance there is between various independently purchased components. I would argue that the reason Microsoft's virtual monopoly stands is not necessarily that they have the absolute best browser or best OS, etc. but that having a standard platform/product allows for a much higher level of integration and more reliable performance from the other pieces of software/hardware that need to interact with it. Like you said, if you write a web page, you have to test it on the various browsers your clients might potentially use, and work around any inconsistencies. If you know that all (or at least the vast majority) of your clients will be using browser X, then you can build a more reliable web page and maybe even a better one if you can use particular features only supported by that one browser. It's my position that the adoption of a standard platform (almost to the point of being a monopoly) has real benefits that aren't outweighed by the imposition of a particular set of flaws that necessarily accompanies any product. At least with a larger user base, those flaws get discovered, and hopefully fixed, more quickly.