Microsoft lacks innovation IMO
Disclaimer: I am no "die hard" developer yet know my way around. My main profession lies with Java which I've picked up over the years of Solaris administration. Now that I'm getting more involved with Window servers (2003 and 2008) I'm also looking a bit more into .NET. Obviously I'm not ready to spend money on this so I've picked up the VS Express versions for both Visual Basic (which hopefully helps me with my VBA study too) and C#.
I think that MS can't utilize innovation even when its right in front of their faces screaming out to be used.
Now; I am a Java-weenie, but seriously; one of the things which makes getting more into .NET quite hard on my part is the lack of Javadoc or - obviously - a .NET counterpart. But when I started to play with "C# Express" there were 2 things which immediately caught my attention. The .NET "Object Browser" which has IMO some awesome potential (I tend to compare that with "Javadoc" as in; a 'roadmap' to everything the framework has to offer) as well as their embedded webbrowser.
Now; the first (object browser) may leave some points open to discussion but honestly I cannot understand why they didn't bother to expand on their embedded webbrowser. I'd LOVE to see something like that in Netbeans (Java IDE). And yes I know; there is an experimental browser plugin for Netbeans, but by FAR as usable as the embedded browser in VS.
Yet MS doesn't seem to do anything significant with it. You can use it to access the .NET website or URLs from the RSS feed. But that's it. It has SO much potential, why the fsck isn't this browser (for example) being used to allow us to access some online documentation repository ?
Why can't MS come up with something similar to the documentation schemes which Java offers? Don't they realize that having developers taking an interest in you is one thing, it is CRUCIAL to provide them with proper tools (VS Express is IMO a step in the right direction) AND information and documentation ?
My take on the matter is that MS needs to listen more to the "community". Better put: to their customers. While their website and products (Win7 & Office 2010) make it look as if they take more interest to what people think and experience, the way they deal with this information makes me seriously wonder if everything isn't going straight down to /dev/null.
As said; IMO they can't handle innovating opportunities even if it bites them in the behinds...
Then again.. I'm also not too sure if I'd like seeing them getting more of an upper hand again, but that's for another article.