Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer calls it quits, to retire within a year

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  • Reply 161 of 330


    In other news, MSFT is up 2 bucks after this announcement...


     


    LOL


     


    Mr. Elop of Nokia is probably next to go.

  • Reply 162 of 330


    No… NO! Say it aint so, Ballmer was the highest paid moron in the tech industry, His inept handling of Microsoft was a never ending source of entertainment. Now that he's leaving Microsoft has a chance to come back and that's bad or Apple and all of us who enjoy computing without crashes and headaches.


     


    How the richest man in the world trusted this cow of technological stupidity to control MS is beyond me. Oh well at least we have a year of comedy left.


     


                 


     


     


     

  • Reply 163 of 330
    tcattcat Posts: 3member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by ascii View Post


    Pages and Numbers are just awful. Keynote alone is decent.



     


    Pages does a lot better job when dealing with documents involving pictures and have the features most home users ever need. The issue for enterprises is all the legacy templates and add-ins that even makes a Microsoft Office upgrade troublesome (We spent 1.5 year and a lot of money on our Office 2003 to Office 2010 project because of these). Also if it weren't for these I could replace Word with Wordpad for most of our users and half of them wouldn't even notice. Last, if anyone is delivering a .docx file as final format they are doing it wrong. The .docx and .pages format should only be used for drafts in most cases.


     


    I mostly agree on Numbers. Excel is just better but also have the issue with a lot of self developed add-ins and macros not being compatible with newer versions. But again for the home user Numbers does what most needs.


     


    Keynote beats PowerPoint any day.

  • Reply 164 of 330
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    icoco3 wrote: »
    Fired executives are hired all the time.  Especially if the come from a bigger company.

    Yeah, that's the magic of wealthy people in CEO positions. You get fired by being given a pay off you could live the rest of your life on and some other company hires you as if you didn't do anything wrong at all where you were fired. Eternal employment opportunities in corporate America, until you decide you have enough money to die filthy rich, and you "retire" to a life of continuing to use the world and society as your plaything, trying to buy a ticket into heaven by donating to charity and naming libraries after yourself, expecting that it will compensate for all the damage you did to society when you earned your filthy wealth, except it's not really fixing anything you've done (it's just building an ego gratifying "legacy").

    Compare to regular people, who get fired for ridiculous manufactured reasons, or pushed out of a career by upper management's cost cutting or other sociopathic behaviors. You can't get even an interview at any new place because you were out of work at all, had lost a job at all, and aren't young enough or cheap enough to be newly hired by any company. You are an unknown anonymous. If you're lucky, you find a wage slave job that isn't barely living wage.

    Executives are too expensive, wealthy, and old to worry about not getting the next job (opposite of regular people that can't actually just quit while they're ahead, because they're not).

    Screwed up society we have here.
  • Reply 165 of 330
    povilaspovilas Posts: 473member


    Praise jebus.

  • Reply 166 of 330
    gazoobee wrote: »
    • 2011 iWork for iPhone/iPad ...

    And still not even feature complete to this day!

    What features are missing to satisfy most users' needs? I don't mean the pro Desktop Publisher or SpreadSheet Jockey?

    ... • 2012 iWork for HDTV/AppleTV via AirPlay ...

    Totally not fair to include this as a "version" of iWork.

    Why? That's the way it's being used in classrooms, family rooms, meeting rooms board rooms...


    ...  • 2013 iWork for iCloud ...

    A beta that is not feature complete with even the "not feature complete" iOS version so far.

    It brings the features most users' need to the cloud that is compatible with their desktop, and mobile device apps.

    AFAICT, Only a few features are absent from the iCloud Beta and the iDevice apps... Things like Bezier Curves, Categories/Pivot Tables... I don't believe most people use these...


    Apple still has a HUGE amount of work to do to make iWork a respectable product.

    What worries me the most is that they don't seem to see it that way at all. They actually seem to think they are doing okay with this stuff. 1hmm.gif

    I agree that Apple has work to do on iWork -- but I don't agree that it is a "HUGE" amount!


    I suspect that Steve Jobs lost interest in iWork -- or didn't want to go too far lest he jeopardize the availability of Office on Macs.


    But all that changed with the iPad (and a little with the iPhone). Now, users can grab an iPad and go anywhere and be productive -- on the couch, at the beach, at the park, poolside, in the car, in the lunchroom at school or the office, in the OR, on set... And you have office suite apps that are easy to use and good enough for most people.

    I think Apple is rethinking iWork... and will rewrite and add features/feature parity as necessary... The WWDC announcement and release of the iCloud beta is a serious indication of that, IMO.

    They are taking small, incremental steps -- they don't need another brouhaha the way they handled the FCPX and Maps releases.


    I used to think that if MS brought [the 80% most used parts of] Office to the iPad -- they would make a lot of money and give the stamp of approval to the post-pc era. The Surface fiasco proved me wrong.


    I think Apple will go balls-out with a 60%-80% [most-used features] iWork solution across the Mac, iDevice and iCloud platforms. I could even see Apple releasing a Windows version.

    Edit: Here's an interesting review of the iCloud iWork bets:

    http://www.macworld.com/article/2047239/hands-on-iwork-for-icloud-beta-almost-as-good-as-mac-ios-versions.html#tk.rss_all
  • Reply 167 of 330

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Marc Rogoff View Post



    Scott Forestall - Microsoft CEO?


     


     


    LOL.  No.  The man is a project manager.  Not a CEO.


     


    Too many problems hiring someone like him.


     


    1) People factor. He doesn't work well with others.  He needs to be seen as the only person that "really matters." that is going to conflict with a lot of folks at MS, who will likely not be thrilled with the guy. Especially someone who wants all the credit for success and won't accept blame for the failures.


     


    2) Loyalty factor.  Forstall looked out for himself.  not necessarily Apple.  Steve Jobs reigned him in, had his respect, and focused him.  Scott needs someone to do that for him. If he doesn't have someone in authority over him who he respects, he will just do what he wants.  He also doesn't seem to know how to move forward.  His ideas coelesced at the perfect time years ago.  but he didn't have any new ones when it mattered.  And that's exactly what is wrong with Microsoft.  The company needs fresh, selfless vision.  Not some guy who's all hurt over his past mistakes.


     


    3) Revenge factor.  never a good motive. leads to catastrophic mistakes. He will be overeager to 'kill apple" and lead to zune 2.0 and surface 2.0. nope...


     


    4) Nerd factor.  Mr. Forstall is a nerd.  not the nerd in a good way.  But he looks nerdy, he presents nerdy.  MSFT is getting rid of the old nerd factor with Ballmer.  They don't need to replace it with a younger nerd.  Scott isn't as totally out there as Steve.  but the dude is a total nerd. MS needs a rockstar.  A statesman. A visionary with ideas that matter today with potential for tomorrow.


     


    5) The "what's left?" factor.  What contributions can mr. Forstall make to Microsoft? I cannot think of one.  the assett he was to Steve jobs, he was to Steve alone.  Scott was fiercely loyal to one man.  He basically was Steve's enforcer. what Steve wanted done got done.  And Scott was the guy so ensconced in being a kiss-up to Jobs that he didn't care what anyone else thought or felt.  And that actually was an asset - while Jobs was presiding over the company.  Now, he is just a guy with no true vision of his own, stuck in the past, that no one can work with. 


     


    That's not to say the man can't eat some humble pie and benefit from it.  Jobs did.  It changed his life and the world.  but as it now stands, Forstall would be a liability as a CEO.  Not a benefit.  And he may just not be wired to be a CEO as it is.  I am sure Microsoft isn't looking to replace Ballmer with Ballmer 2.0. MS needs an upstart mentality infusion.  Someone who brings fresh new inspiration, while being mature enough to avoid "rookie mistakes."

  • Reply 168 of 330
    dysamoria wrote: »
    Probably the best thing to happen to Microsoft. Perhaps they can get some clarity back in their organization.

    What was their original clarity? Copying and buying competitors and throwing money at it until their 300lb gorilla was built and could threaten and coerce the rest of the industry? What a vision.

    Every empire has its time. Apple had two. Maybe Microsoft will survive long enough to become a regular company, instead of the domineering bastard it's always been. But I don't think they (or most any other company in the computer industry) has yet comprehended the fact that this stuff has to not just be advertised at the average person, it also has to be functional, reliable, and sensible for the average non-geek person. Apple has done well with this in iOS and all the geeks run around screaming "dumbing down, dumbing down, the sky is falling!!" They so do not get it.

    Very well put!

    Apple isn't "dumbing-down"... rather they are "raising-up" the accessibility (capability and productivity) of computers to the non-geek!

    I started out as a maimframe computer room geek (16 years with IBM) -- I quit to get into the microcomputer (Apple ][) business.
  • Reply 169 of 330


    So life goes on.


     


    It is usually a good thing to get off of a sinking ship before it goes under.


     


    The thing is that Microsoft really can't go much lower. It can lose market share, stock value, and such but its products are at rock bottom. All that can be done is to go up from there.


     


    Before Vista came out Microsoft was developing and demonstrating some in home theater products and integrated home controls that worked via special entertainment boxes and ones home computer. As much as I hated Microsoft back then I was impressed with what they were developing. They somehow pulled the plug on that system. Maybe they couldn't get it to work or maybe Ballmer killed it. For me to be impressed with something from them really took a lot. At the time it was better than Apple's Air Play and Airport Express combination. Even now Apple's products don't have such integration with home controls for lighting, air conditioning, and home entertainment. Somebody at Microsoft made a huge mistake killing that system.

  • Reply 171 of 330
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    icoco3 wrote: »
    Fired executives are hired all the time.  Especially if the come from a bigger company.
    Still if Steve Jobs didn't pick Forstall to run Apple why would Microsoft make him their CEO? What exactly makes him CEO material?
  • Reply 172 of 330
    pokepoke Posts: 506member


    I think Scott Forstall would actually be perfect for the job. image


     


    He'd fit into Microsoft's culture perfectly and is probably the only man in the world who has a genuine motive for taking it on and getting it right (revenge).

  • Reply 173 of 330
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post


    Still if Steve Jobs didn't pick Forstall to run Apple why would Microsoft make him their CEO?


     


    Apple ? Microsoft.






    What exactly makes him CEO material?



     


    WHAT'RE YOU DOING MAN YOU'RE GONNA BLOW THE WHOLE THING DON'T MAKE THEM THINK ABOUT NOT DOING IT.

  • Reply 174 of 330
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    9secondko wrote: »

    LOL.  No.  The man is a project manager.  Not a CEO.

    Too many problems hiring someone like him.

    1) People factor. He doesn't work well with others.  He needs to be seen as the only person that "really matters." that is going to conflict with a lot of folks at MS, who will likely not be thrilled with the guy. Especially someone who wants all the credit for success and won't accept blame for the failures.

    2) Loyalty factor.  Forstall looked out for himself.  not necessarily Apple.  Steve Jobs reigned him in, had his respect, and focused him.  Scott needs someone to do that for him. If he doesn't have someone in authority over him who he respects, he will just do what he wants.  He also doesn't seem to know how to move forward.  His ideas coelesced at the perfect time years ago.  but he didn't have any new ones when it mattered.  And that's exactly what is wrong with Microsoft.  The company needs fresh, selfless vision.  Not some guy who's all hurt over his past mistakes.

    3) Revenge factor.  never a good motive. leads to catastrophic mistakes. He will be overeager to 'kill apple" and lead to zune 2.0 and surface 2.0. nope...

    4) Nerd factor.  Mr. Forstall is a nerd.  not the nerd in a good way.  But he looks nerdy, he presents nerdy.  MSFT is getting rid of the old nerd factor with Ballmer.  They don't need to replace it with a younger nerd.  Scott isn't as totally out there as Steve.  but the dude is a total nerd. MS needs a rockstar.  A statesman. A visionary with ideas that matter today with potential for tomorrow.

    5) The "what's left?" factor.  What contributions can mr. Forstall make to Microsoft? I cannot think of one.  the assett he was to Steve jobs, he was to Steve alone.  Scott was fiercely loyal to one man.  He basically was Steve's enforcer. what Steve wanted done got done.  And Scott was the guy so ensconced in being a kiss-up to Jobs that he didn't care what anyone else thought or felt.  And that actually was an asset - while Jobs was presiding over the company.  Now, he is just a guy with no true vision of his own, stuck in the past, that no one can work with. 

    That's not to say the man can't eat some humble pie and benefit from it.  Jobs did.  It changed his life and the world.  but as it now stands, Forstall would be a liability as a CEO.  Not a benefit.  And he may just not be wired to be a CEO as it is.  I am sure Microsoft isn't looking to replace Ballmer with Ballmer 2.0. MS needs an upstart mentality infusion.  Someone who brings fresh new inspiration, while being mature enough to avoid "rookie mistakes."
    I agree with all this. Also, if Forstall was CEO material then how come the board didn't make him CEO of Apple? I don't doubt Forstall is a brilliant software engineer but I'm not sure that makes him CEO material, especially a company as large as Microsoft.
  • Reply 175 of 330
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    Apple ? Microsoft.

    WHAT'RE YOU DOING MAN YOU'RE GONNA BLOW THE WHOLE THING DON'T MAKE THEM THINK ABOUT NOT DOING IT.
    Dude we need a healthy Microsoft to stop complete Google domination.
  • Reply 176 of 330
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post


    Dude we need a healthy Microsoft to stop complete Google domination.


     


    Of what? Every OS they've made is worse than Windows. They can have their "free" services all they want. I'd much prefer a Google that spent more time making cheap fiber and killing off other ISPs (or forcing them to upgrade their own services) than anything else.

  • Reply 177 of 330
    bigmac2bigmac2 Posts: 639member


    Ballmer should have been a used car salesman. 


     


    image

  • Reply 178 of 330
    LOL! This just goes to show you that you must take everything your hear with a grain of salt. I remember this and how the MS zealots just high fived that a-holes' every word. Now look at him.
  • Reply 179 of 330
    m0c0s0 wrote: »
    Scott Forstall anyone?

    Suddenly No.
  • Reply 180 of 330
    rogifan wrote: »
    Dude we need a healthy Microsoft to stop complete Google domination.

    Bing and Windows Phone ain't cutting it.
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