From: philipla@microsoft.com (Phil Lafornara)
Subject: Re: MS ready to release 32-bit Word & Excel?!?! Read on...
Date: 01 Oct 92 18:53:23 GMT
Organization: Microsoft Corporation

In article <1992Sep30.142538.25536@cu23.crl.aecl.ca> gutz@cc49.crl.aecl.ca writes:
>
>Name one person at MS who doesn't think NT will take over the world!

      Me.  I think it will do very well - I don't think it will take
over the world.


>And who said Microsoft dropped projects?

      I have no idea.  Pete pulled it out of somewhere.


>  Doesn't Microsoft, the world's
>largest software company claim that they can port thier apps to any
>platform they choose??

     I'm not aware of an official statement to this effect.


>I have seen NT and use OS/2 and I think that if your (MS's) code was
>written properly, a port to OS/2 should take only a few months.

      A few months for how many programmers?  And what could they
be working on instead of an OS/2 port?  How much more money could
that other product make?


>Besides, getting back to the original argument of this thread, what's the
>big secret if MS is working on OS/2 apps?

     MS is _not_ working on OS/2 apps.  That's the official company
line, and it matches my own experience.  Why is everyone having such
a hard time believing this?


>I think what is really driving people to OS/2 is simply that it offers some
>focus.  IBM will have OS/2 today and tommorrow too.  MS is already talking
>about Windows CAIRO - Do you expect me to upgrade my system again in a
>couple of years? :-(

      You're going to upgrade it anyway.  In two years your hardware
will be approaching obsolescence and your software will already be
there.


>I think that even most Windows advocates will be disappointed when NT arrives
>and will flock to OS/2.

      This is certainly possible.  I think it's awfully premature to
make such a statement at this time, though.


>  I currently have hardware for OS/2 - but not for
>NT, nor do I have a wallet for NT at $500???.

      Where does this come from?  The announcement on NT pricing
said "less that $500".  This could mean "$1", for all we know.  I
expect to see a competitive upgrade offer as well.


>But enough of this.  Is MS working on OS/2 apps or not?  This is a question
>that will never be truly answered.

     It can be answered.  If an OS/2 app is released, then the answer to
the question is, apparently, yes.  If an OS/2 app is never releaed,
though, I expect we'll continue to hear rumors that MS is working on
them ad infinitum.


>  You'll say no, but is this an honest
>answer or not? In your (MS's) market position I'd do the same thing you
>are doing.

      I'll say No, as I have in the past.  The company says we aren't,
no one I know here is working on them or knows of anyone working on
them, so unless the OS/2 applications development team is sealed up
in a bunker somewhere, I don't expect to see OS/2 versions of MS apps
for quite some time.

					-Phil
-- 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Phil Lafornara         				1 Microsoft Way         
philipla@microsoft.com				Redmond, WA 98052-6399 
Note:  Microsoft doesn't even _know_ that these are my opinions. So there.
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.advocacy,comp.os.ms-windows.advocacy