Client Hypervisors: What Will Microsoft Do?
Brian Madden has an interesting
post on what he sees as the real value of client hypervisors. It's a good read.
His basic theory is that while running multiple OSes on a desktop or laptop will be nice, the most important functionality will be the ability to run your Windows OS on multiple devices, including your smartphone or cellphone. He's right, I think.
If that's the case, it will be interesting to see how Microsoft develops Windows. Since I believe Windows 7 will be a huge success, and continue to secure Redmond's dominance in client OSes, it will be incumbent on the company to develop smartphone/cellphone versions of Windows 7, unless it's going to cede that space completely to Windows Mobile (and Mobile 6.5 looks like a ginormous step in the right direction) and keep Windows 7 for large form-factor devices.
On the other hand, users might prefer the Windows desktop OS paradigm on their handheld devices -- having used Mobile 5 and 6 extensively, I can say I hated them with a passion, but many users may opt for the devil they know instead. Although Windows Mobile 6.5 and onward is optimized for the smaller screens, the desire for a familiar UI may trump those benefits.
Since I don't cover all things Microsoft the way I used to, I may be totally off-base here. If anyone can shed light on Microsoft's development plans for Mobile vs. Windows 7, I'd appreciate hearing from you and getting your take.
Posted by Keith Ward on 03/09/2009 at 12:48 PM