The VAR Guy

The cartoon above pretty much summarizes how badly Microsoft’s marketing team botched the positioning of Windows Vista. As The VAR Guy has stated, there are 10 Reasons Why Windows Vista hasn’t been a hit. Reason Number 1: Too many versions of Vista.

Sometimes, small deals are big indicators about where companies are heading next. Cisco’s $215 million acquisition of PostPath, for instance, speaks volumes about where John Chambers is taking the networking giant. Some folks say it’s a direct attack against Microsoft Exchange. The VAR Guy claims otherwise.

Every networking company would love to build an online community of loyal customers and partners. But F5 Networks has actually done it. And that could lead to a competitve advantage in the market.

Too little too late? Or right on time? Microsoft has launched the Windows Vista Small Business Assurance program — which aims to help partners (and their customers) “Move to Windows Vista with Confidence.” Shockingly, The VAR Guy actually likes the idea. Here’s why.

Is the party over at VMware and the virtualization market? Yes and no. In a surprise move, former Microsoft executive Paul Maritz has been named president and CEO of VMware, replacing ousted co-founder Diane Greene.

At Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference in Houston, most folks are focused on Microsoft’s Software as a Service (SaaS) strategy. But here’s a quick fact from the event that caught The VAR Guy’s ear: More than 2,500 Microsoft partners have achieved the “Unified Communications Solutions” competency. Should Cisco Systems be worried?

On the eve of Microsoft’s major partner summit in Houston, TechTarget is speculating that Microsoft may one day want to acquire Nortel Networks. Hogwash. The VAR Guy knows at least four reasons why such a deal will never happen.

Matt Asay, author of The Open  Road blog, is telling the world how Macs are replacing PCs at corporate meetings. But that’s not all, Asay notes. Check out this photo from the Missouri School of Journalism. Look at all those Macs. The Kids Are All Right! So, what does all this mean for Microsoft?

Officially, Microsoft isn’t saying much about Windows 7.0, the forthcoming successor to Windows Vista. But Mary Jo Foley’s All About Microsoft blog has compiled an interesting list of potential Windows 7.0 features, functions and design goals. Take a look.

We’re heading into a holiday weekend. Wonderful. It’s always nice to unplug a bit. But be careful: Technology companies are notorious for announcing bad news late on Friday or even on Saturday during a holiday weekend. Also, three-day weekends are a great time for companies to hammer out big partnerships or acquisitions in quiet solitude. If Yahoo and Microsoft are going to break bread, The VAR Guy believes it will happen this weekend.