There is no sign of that yet. Microsoft's earnings are growing at more than 20 percent, and it is introducing new systems for office work and home computing. To be sure, the company faces competitive challenges. Microsoft products are behind in several categories. Linux, the free open system, now holds 80 percent of the market for Internet server computers.
Palm computers hold the clear lead in the market for hand-held devices.
So Microsoft doesn't win them all. The law properly watches that line because it is an essential element of the U.S. system that keeps markets open for newcomers, for fresh ideas and innovation. Microsoft, a complex and highly skilled company, with 1,200 technological patents to its credit, will bounce back from the jolt it has taken from the law. It's not a company to underestimate, as many did this week.