Print - Microsoft CEO: Google Chrome OS? LOL!

Taking the stage Tuesday at the annual Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC), Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer served up a furious, determined, and sometimes hilarious helping of Microsoft promotion, highlighting the company's intention to continue its aggressive stance despite the economic downturn. Ballmer hit on all of Microsoft's big upcoming products—Windows 7, Office 2010, Windows Azure, and so on—but his most interesting comments regarded Google's still-vaporware Chrome OS, which was announced last week.

"Who knows what this thing is?" he asked. "To me, the Chrome OS thing is highly interesting ... It won't happen for a year and a half, and they already announced an operating system [Android]. I don't know if they can't make up their mind or what the problem is over there, but the last time I checked, you don't need two client operating systems. It's good to have one."

Forgetting for a moment that Microsoft also sells two comparable client operating systems, Windows and Windows Mobile, and that each comes in a variety of flavors, what Ballmer is really arguing here is that Google is new to the OS game. As a result, the company will make a number of missteps before it finds its way and becomes a serious contender.

And Google might never get there. It's worth noting that its Android OS hasn't exactly set the world on fire, for example. But Microsoft would be wise to take the Google threat seriously, as I'm sure it is. There's a lot of dissatisfaction surrounding the PC, and while Windows 7 will certainly offset some of that, it's only a single step in the right direction.

It must be quite brilliant to be as good as that Bozo Ballmer - for a salesman he really espouses the virtues of nonsense! Oh yes this was a man who was the driving force behind Vista - Ballmer's judgement is somewhat suspect!

Of course, Steve "Monkey boy" Ballmer just has a great track record for predicting how his competitors products will do in the market, as with the iPhone: "$500 for a Phone!?!" "I like our strategy. I like it a lot." And of course, Microsoft has multiple versions of Windows 7. How many versions? Who knows? It varies week to week: Multiple versions Limited time upgrade offers that "sell out"?!? Cross-grade versions from Vista Homo Sapiens Edition to Win7 Vulcan Ultimate, etc. Microsoft has "one client OS" the way GM has one car. No one can figure out the product line, why all the versions exist, how products "sell out" before they are even available, or what Microsoft thinks they're doing with this morass. But, yah, no one understands the world's needs for operating system software like SB.

Wonder if Steve Ballmer is making fun of Google's upcoming O/S because he's scared to death of it? :)

I'm sure he must be and others think so too: http://www.macnightowl.com/2009/07/the-beleaguered-microsoft-the-evidence-mounts/

poor StevieB, he can't even cut a break when he is asked to comment... you would trow a chair at an O/S designed by an Advertising Company - guaranteed!

Steve Ballmer's main tragedy is that he does not have ability and capacity to lead the sector. In fact, he cannot follow the trends. The world is changing and the management team is not aware of these changes. Ray Ozzie asks "what is this netbook anyway?" when many people started to use light and powerful netbooks. Steve Ballmer is not aware of the fact that many organizations switch to free gmail system. Many people ask themselves that "why do i need a local resources if I can store and manipulate my information in google facilities?", and again SB and Ozzie are not aware of these questions. They keep producing yet another boring and complex and expensive product. let's hope Google will be succesful and Microsoft sees the right way to go.

@infiniteloop Interesting read...I've got this feeling that Microsoft is turning into IBM, based on what i read & hear from MS execs and others.

muraty wrote: "Steve Ballmer is not aware of the fact that many organizations switch to free gmail system. Many people ask themselves that "why do i need a local resources if I can store and manipulate my information in google facilities?", and again SB and Ozzie are not aware of these questions. They keep producing yet another boring and complex and expensive product. let's hope Google will be succesful and Microsoft sees the right way to go." Wow. This is such a narrow view, I don't know where to start. Are you telling me that the best place for, let's say a doctor's office, to store their information ON YOU is online with Google? Seriously?! For real? You also mention that Microsoft's software is both complex and boring. Not sure what to sa to that other than read the manual and spreadsheets ARE boring, but necessary evils. Sure, their tools are free, and they work. we've sued it to help run our football league here, in fact. But if you think that an enterprise is going to go down that route, I think you're sadly mistaken.

Too many typos. "used" not "sued". "say" not "sa". "their tools" should be "Google's tools". Sorry.