MS Bob98 for Windows NT 6.0.
It will win product of the
year based purely on hype
generated in the press two
years before its release (the
hype will start in a month or
two but the release date will
be Dec. 31, 1998). MS will
tell everyone it's the best
thing since indoor plumbing
(Oh, wait, Windows 95 is
supposed to be better than
indoor plumbing AND sliced
bread).
InfoWorld will run weekly
articles for 2 years telling
everyone how exciting it's
going to be to see where MS
wants us to go next year
(TM), but it will really be
year after next. PC World
will run a 10 page article
every 2-3 months with
information about what
Bob98 might include (in 2
years) and telling why it
will be so much better than
any existing product
(products that you can
actually buy RIGHT NOW -
omigosh!) that you shouldn't
buy anything that won't fit
into MS's new Bob strategy,
because next year (actually,
in 2 years, but they haven't
figured that one out yet)
you'll just want to get Bob98
anyway.
Then, when Bob98 is released,
it won't work very well and
there'll be some fixes
available for download, but
they'll just create more
problems, and there'll be a
slightly better version
called BoB98 OSR-B (they
won't say why OSR-A wasn't
ever released), but it will
only be available to OEM's.
And then MS will make several
releases about how they
weren't able to really
fully fulfill their vision
with Bob98, but Bob2000 will
do everything you ever
wanted, so don't buy anything
new until it comes out. So
Bob2000 will win Infoworld
"Product of the Year" in 1999
and 2000.
Ad Nauseum.
Colin "If you're smart you'll
never listen to anything IW
says again" Hildinger
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