When Microsoft is pushing everything to a redeveloped Zune player supported by a social-networking site allowing individuals to send music to each other without DRM and without expiring to their new approach towards Office Live which suggests that users can use Office online without paying for the original copy you get a feel that things are going to be a bit different from here forward. What happened to the company that was doing everything to kill open-source standards, from background antics with SCO and working closely with Novell to their infamous “Get the Facts” campaign? These days Microsoft is taking a softer approach to Linux as a new “Compare” site for administrators suggests that Windows Server is a more robust program that is taking security into the future employing “Next Generation Technologies”, politely asserting their own sophistication over that of legacy Unix systems that may offer a more secure environment in the beginning, but end up with much higher total costs of ownership.

This is all very mind boggling, why Microsoft has to state their case against the Unix and Linux platform in the first place, why they’re working closely on Linux through encouraging usability and interoperability with Novell’s Linux platform and why proprietary software such as Office has become portable all of the sudden. Rather than be left behind as a casualty of the open-source movement Microsoft seems to have either found some creative ways to employ the middle ground for indecisive consumers who at any moment can go either way as to which OS to implement for their needs. Yet how open are their solutions at the end of the day; none of their newer technologies are truly compatible with Linux, for example users of Office Life Workspace have to use the software within a browser on a Windows machine, for example.

What may surprise users is that the software can be used within Firefox, so haters of Internet Explorer can collaborate on projects remotely with IE users so as they’re on the same platform. Whoever thought that Office would ever be free to begin with, particularly when Microsoft hinted at the ability to use Office online ever since .Net hit the scene years ago. Can Redmond find a way to coexist in the open-source age, does this mean that some of the source code to Microsoft’s cash cow will ever be made available to the public, and is Microsoft offering a true answer by making it easier for potential Linux customers to continue to stick with a brand they love or are they compromising what they’ve built over the years?

Everywhere you see are articles pitting Linux against Windows; Microsoft tried with Vista to create an OS that is even easier to use and helps protect consumers against viruses and attacks but ultimately served to lock out the very consumers it was intended to protect. As usual vulnerabilities in products like Internet Explorer can cause strange issues with other areas of the OS that shouldn’t have anything to do with browsing on the Internet, and Microsoft is back to its usual drawing board of having to patch up and fix the operating system. The company is at a critical point, a crossroads where some of their own hardware such as Zune and Xbox 360 can either offer a compelling answer to competing technologies, or remain as niche products that is technically superior, yet lacks any true implementation that is practical for most users. One thing is certain, Microsoft still has a lot of cash that it can use to develop new products and to purchase new companies to assist with their projects, more so than most other companies have. Whether or not the company can truly exist outside of their comfort zone and remain an industry leader, or if they will find themselves where companies like IBM are today, totally redefined because of the changes in market forces, in the future remains something that is yet to be seen …