This just in from mu lug. http://blogs.computer...

[Dylan McCall]

I think Microsoft's big mistake with Windows is not that its slow or
clunky or ugly (which is debatable), but that the operating system has
always been tethered to specific platforms. Microsoft simply doesn't
have the reflexes to react to manufacturers' needs, as seen with
netbooks.
They have Windows Mobile, but it is a completely detached platform. It
may as well be PalmOS.

The free software ecosystem, on the other hand, (particularly with
Linux) is a more modular kind of platform. It could easily be adapted
for what manufacturers wanted, almost immediately. Chances are
Microsoft learned their lesson this time, but they have a lot of
rethinking to do.

-Dylan