Don't Be Evil

Is Google still a good thing?

First, IBM dominated the computer market.

While “No-one got fired for buying IBM”, they were unloved by many for their marketing strategy which was perceived as selling expensive services and upgrades on the back of cheap hardware.

Two things were instrumental in ending IBM’s dominance

• The shift away from proprietary operating systems
• The IBM PC (ironically)

IBM started losing market share in the mid-range server market to unix-based server suppliers, accelerated by cheap x86-based servers.

Microsoft’s desktop software on every PC saw them become the big player in IT. They quickly adopted technologies into their software and rendered other suppliers obsolete. It is said, that in 1995 Bill Gates thought the internet a passing fad though he clearly changed his mind and Internet Explorer was launched within 18 months.

Now Google is the new big beast.

They employ the brightest people and then find them things to do.

They have 100 top priorities.

They have some cool stuff; Google Suggest, Ajax (that’s for another day), Picasa, and this blog. To ‘google’ has entered the lexicon alongside hoover and biro.

Microsoft’s avowed intention is to “get” Google because they threaten their desktop software market.

Google collect huge amounts of data about our browsing habits to help them to improve their search engine; we take that on trust.

Their informal motto is “Don’t Be Evil”.

Only time will tell...