Why Microsoft is afraid of Google?

How do innovations at Google threaten Microsoft?

Microsoft CEO Bill Gates says:
"Google Inc. is fierce competition for Microsoft Corp., but the software giant does not fear the race and plans to upgrade his search technology in the next six months."
and,
"We are not afraid of Google, but there is intense competition between us. Google is our main competitor, brilliant people work there, but Internet search engines are still in a terrible state compared to where they could be."

Gates says that he has respect for the people who work there, but search can still be made a lot better than what Google has already achieved.

Microsoft and Yahoo already have been investing heavily in search, hoping to narrow Google's lead in the field.
According to Nielsen/NetRatings survey for U.S search requests:
- 45% -- Google
- 23% -- Yahoo
- 12% -- Microsoft's MSN

Gates denied that Microsoft intends to acquire[buy] Google or other leading Internet companies.
ummmm, this means MS is thinking about it, but who told them that Google will even think about it?

But the central challenge to Microsoft goes beyond corporate reorganizations, Microsoft's success has been due in large part to its realization two decades ago that control of the operating system on personal computers would give it a great amount of leverage over PCs. Most companies in the 1980s saw the operating system as a pure commodity product, but Microsoft understood that it held the keys to the kingdom.. It's because of the dominance of the Windows operating system that Microsoft has been able to become so strong.. The dominance of Windows means that if you're a developer of a major software application, you need to deliver a product for Windows.. This means software developers must use the programming capabilities provided by Windows — its application programming interface, or API.

But many in the computer business have long believed that the core platform could be moved to a higher level, that technology gurus could establish a web-based platform that runs in the browser and is written in the language of the browser rather than the language of the operating system.. They work equally well on Windows, Mac or Linux, and that's bad news for Microsoft.

This was the dream of Marc Andreessen [co-founder of browser company Netscape Communications] and others back in the mid-1990s when Andreessen boasted that the web would reduce computer operating systems to nothing more than 'a poorly debugged set of device drivers' and this is why Microsoft responded so aggressively to the threat of Netscape after Bill Gates issued his famous memo warning of an Internet 'tidal wave' that threatened Windows. Netscape didn't succeed. Microsoft managed to thwart Netscape's attempt to establish a new platform on the web.

Key points against Microsoft:
1. When a company takes years and years to come out with a new operating system, it's obvious there is a problem.
2. While [Bill and Co.] refuse to break up the company, they should. They are too big to be creative. They need a company for the operating system, another one for the Internet, and another one for application software.
3. Since they have Cash on Hand of about 37-billion, they should do their loyal stockholders a favor: Pay a quarterly dividend.

Who's Afraid of Google? Everyone
It seems no one is safe: Google is doing Wi-Fi; Google is searching inside books; Google has a plan for ecommerce.

Google is turning the internet to an operating system, which drives Microsoft crazy and embarrassed, see the following:
Signs of panic inside MS: When one of Microsoft's key operating system engineers defected to Google last year, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer threw a chair across an office and vowed to kill Google.

The migration of applications from PCs to the Net is already happening - and it's key to Google's future. But the likelihood of a Google OS depends on what Microsoft accomplishes with its new OS, Vista.

The computer industry is a mature industry. In the developed world, virtually everyone has a computer. So Microsoft, to continue growing, needs to find new ways to expand its market, which is why they want to get into games, wireless and business-software markets. In these areas they're generating substantial losses. To the extent that Google becomes a dominant player in the Internet market, it blocks an opportunity for Microsoft to expand.

Why Microsoft and other giants are afraid of Google's ever-expanding agenda:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.12/google.html

MDC06 has been declared

After alot of digging around for info conerning the MDC06, i got the following data:

** MDC 2006:
Where: Cairo International Conference Center - Nasr City - Cairo - Egypt
When: 5-8 February 2006

as we all see, MDC location has chenged from Air Forces House!

LE 50:
but there's bad news in this MDC!, u will pay LE 50 for ur ID!
u'll register by mail and then @ 5 February u'll pay the LE 50.

i don't know why Microsoft is imposing a fee, do they really need money! maybe they r homeless now, or will take this money and try to Kill Google!!!! hahaha

they say on the site:
"A great value: For 50 EGP you’ll get your MDC 2006 ID that gets you into a lot of break-out sessions, interactive labs, MDC Gifts, and much, much more."

well, it seems that they r going to take a price for the GIFTS ;)

Meet u there folks, IF i decided to go!...

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Google Search Techniques

Google search is NOT just typing the keyword and hit search.. it's far beyond this..
u can make very strong queries using Google search techniques..

such as:
Cached Links, Currency Conversion, Definitions, File Types, I'm Feeling Lucky, News Headlines, PhoneBook, Q&A, Results Prefetching, Search By Number, Similar Pages, Site Search, Spell Checker, Stock Quotes, Weather, Web Page Translation, Who Links To You..and alot more..

the real magic here is that u can do all of these very cool techniques from google's homepage!
YES, without navigating to extra pages inside..

see the complete list of awsome features @
http://www.google.com/help/features.html

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Blog events - Jan 13, 2006

Comming very soon in the blog:

1. RSS Feeds, so u can read new blog posts thru a RSS Reader, without even opening ur browser.

2. RSS, what's it, how to use it, how to create it on ur blogs and sites.

3. Web 2.0 siteList, a list dedicated to Web 2.0 services contains 50 sites with whole new ideas implementing Web 2.0 features.
[30 entries are in the list now and counting]

Be patient..

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Web 2.0 - Dawn of the new internet

Web 2.0 : It's like your brain on LSD!

This article is an attempt to clarify just what we mean by Web 2.0

The term was coined by Dale Dougherty of O'Reilly Media during a conference brainstorming session with MediaLive International.

In the initial brainstorming, they formulated the sense of Web 2.0 by example:

Web 2.0 can also be defined as : Websites with rich user interfaces that behave more like desktop applications than a collection of interlinked pages to be read.

In the strictest sense, the term refers to several separate technologies that make Web sites faster and easier to use. If you've used Google's Gmail service, Yahoo's Flickr photo sharing site or Microsoft's Windows Live, you've seen Web 2.0 in action.

Wikipedia defines it as “a second phase of development of the World Wide Web”. However, there isn’t a consensus on its exact meaning. Web 2.0 loosely includes weblogs, wikis, linklogs, podcasts, RSS feeds and other forms of many-to-many publishing; social software, web APIs, web standards, web services and Ajax.

In Web 1.0, a small number of writers created Web pages for a large number of readers. As a result, people could get information by going directly to the source: Adobe.com for graphic design issues, Microsoft.com for Windows issues, and CNN.com for news. Over time, however, more and more people started writing content in addition to reading it. This had an interesting effect—suddenly there was too much information to keep up with! We did not have enough time for everyone who wanted our attention and visiting all sites with relevant content simply wasn’t possible. As personal publishing caught on and went mainstream, it became apparent that the Web 1.0 paradigm had to change.

Enter Web 2.0, a vision of the Web in which information is broken up into “microcontent” units that can be distributed over dozens of domains. The Web of documents has morphed into a Web of data. We are no longer just looking to the same old sources for information. Now we’re looking to a new set of tools to aggregate and remix microcontent in new and useful ways.

A big part of Web 2.0 is turning passive visitors and readers into active participants in producing the value that is offered by a website. If you’ve ever been addicted to a Web-based forum, then you know how powerful this can be. Web 2.0 is about taking that “power of community” and applying it to the Web as a whole.

The technology infrastructure of Web 2.0 is complex and evolving, but includes server software, content syndication, messaging protocols, standards-based browsers, and various client applications.

So if this is Web 2.0, what was its earlier avatar – Web 1.0?
The earlier avatar, that is Web 1.0, would be clearly demarcated content which was fairly static. You could not interact with it, add your comments or leave your mark. You used the software or the content as is and could not collaborate with other users of the same content.

By way of contrast. Back when it was happening, it was just ‘the web’ or the ‘dotcom era’.

Ashok Hingorani, CEO, Computact, (and an avid developer) takes it in his stride:
“Every product goes through the notorious Version 1 – the Net, Windows, etc. And they are always incomplete, buggy, with gaps. Above all, they designed with today’s technology in mind, and evolved rather than reengineered every few years. The Net is more than 15 years old. Its architecture does not take care of many things learned from hindsight, nor does it hande security/ privacy at all. You have to buy special software to do that.”

A website could be said to be built using Web 2.0 technologies if it featured a number of the following techniques:
- CSS, semantically valid XHTML markup, and Microformats
- Unobtrusive Rich Application techniques (such as Ajax)
- XUL (XML User interface Language)
- SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics)
- Syndication of data in RSS/Atom
- Aggregation of RSS/Atom data
- Clean and meaningful URLs
- Support posting to a weblog
- REST or XML Webservice APIs
- Some social networking aspects
- Javascript-based WinLIKE
- Java Web Start
- Flex/Laszlo/Flash

Let's summarize what we believe to be the core competencies of Web 2.0 companies:
- Services, not packaged software, with cost-effective scalability
- Control over unique, hard-to-recreate data sources that get richer as more people use them
- Trusting users as co-developers
- Harnessing collective intelligence
- Leveraging the long tail through customer self-service
- Software above the level of a single device
- Lightweight user interfaces, development models, AND business models

Web 2.0 is designed to be:
- Some Rights Reserved
- Cooperate, Don't Control
- Software delivered as a service thru the Web

Web 2.0 is after all not a product or object, not something we climb into or touch, but a concept that describes certain aspirations or internet tendencies.

Services such as Gmail, Google Maps, Flickr, del.icio.us, and the like may be expected to bear a "Beta" logo for years at a time.

Web 2.0 is white hot at the moment, and not just because of the hype, but because of the insane amount of stuff that's being built for it right now.

-----------------------------------
If u stuck with any term on this post, search for it using Google
More in-depth posts far beyond Web 2.0 are being prepared right now...

Useful Links:
- Oreilly - What's Web 2.0?
- Wikipedia.org Web_2.0 Definition
- Web 2.0 Workgroup
- Web 2.0 Conference

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Happy Eid el-Adha for everyone

Today is Eid el-Adha el-Mobarak (Holiest Adha Feast)..

i wish all happiness & forgiveness to all Muslims in the entire Muslim community..

Happy Eid to everyone..

i went to the mosque for Eid prayers, then i spent a few good hours with my friends..

today i took the chance of celebrations and set aside (fixed) some of my problems with people as it's Eid and all of us should set aside their problems..

i wish happy Eid to all Muslims worldwide..

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Important Events

Finally and after alot of mess and surfing around, i've got the real times for the following events:

** Cairo International Book Festival:
Where: Cairo International Fairs Area - Nasr City - Cairo - Egypt
When: 19-29 January 2006

** Acitex:
Where: Cairo International Conference Center - Nasr City - Cairo - Egypt
When: 25-28 January 2006

** Cairo ICT:
Where: Cairo International Conference Center - Nasr City - Cairo - Egypt
When: 5-8 February 2006

** MDC 2006:
Where: Air Forces House - Salah Salem Rd. - Nasr City - Cairo - Egypt
When: Not yet set, But around 5 or 8 February 2006

I hope that MDC is determined soon because it's a BIG event u should NEVER miss!

Meet u there folks...

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Happy New <.Christmas />

WISHING YOU ALL A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR.

I WISH FOR YOU

Where there is pain, I wish you peace and mercy.
Where there is self-doubting,
I wish you a renewed confidence in your ability to work through it.
Where there is tiredness, or exhaustion,
I wish you understanding, patience, and renewed strength.
Where there is fear, I wish you love, and courage.



NEW YEAR THOUGHTS


We've seen the passing of another year.
For many it's been filled with pain and tears.
We've seen our loved ones in their decline.
We've had to accept that they won't be fine.
Some of us had to say good bye,
To a long time loved one, and we've all cried.
But there have been times in this past year,
That certain events have brought us cheer.
There are so many friends that are on the list,
And I know there's names I will have missed.
But better friends I could not have bought.
And here is just a New Year's thought.
If it were possible that a wish could come true,
Then this is my New Year's wish for you.
May the coming year be full of hope,
And may we be given the strength to cope.
Let courage, faith and patience abound.
And let us pray that a cure will be found.
And now at the close of another year,
My friends, I wish you a Happy New Year.



THOUGHTS OF CHRISTMAS


When I think of Christmas morning,
The gaily wrapped gifts and the tree;
Brings to mind a gift so precious,
And all He was meant to be.
When I look at the tree Christmas morning,
The lights that twinkle and glow;
I think of the manger in Bethlehem,
Of a babe born on a night long ago.
When I see the joy Christmas morning,
The faces so filled with delight;
I think of the bright shining star,
That guided the wise men that night.
As we meet together Christmas morning,
To celebrate anew the birth;
The coming of the prince of peace,
Is the greatest gift on earth.

I Hope you have a great Christmas.

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Real-World AJAX Seminar

Where: New York Marriott Marquis Times Square -- New York City
When: Monday March 13, 2006
Website: http://www.ajaxseminar.com

BY NOW THERE ISN’T A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER ON EARTH WHO ISN’T AWARE OF THE COLLECTION OF PROGRAMMING TECHNOLOGIES KNOWN AS AJAX!

How in concrete terms can you take advantage in your own projects of this newly popular way of delivering online content to users without reloading an entire page?
How soon can you be monetizing AJAX?
This “Real-World AJAX” one-day seminar aims to answer these exact questions...

Led by “The Father of AJAX” himself, the charismatic Jesse James Garrett of Adaptive Path, “Real-World AJAX” has one overriding organizing principle: its aim is to make sure that delegates fortunate enough to secure themselves a place -before all seats are sold out- will leave the seminar with a suffi cient grasp of Asynchronous JavaScript and XML to enable them to build their fi rst AJAX application on their own when they get back to their office.

And a total of 15 distinguished speakers and panelists, presenting 11 sessions on Monday, March 13, 2006 in New York City. With this introduction, we welcome you to “Real-World AJAX” one-day seminar.

Please make sure to bring your WiFi-enabled laptop to view seminar presentation slides in high-res, participate in quick polls during presentations, and to ask questions to speakers as this seminar will be simulcast outside the studio audience on SYS-CON.TV.

Resources:
Learn more about AJAX and how it works.
http://ajax.sys-con.com/

Jesse James Garrett, The father of AJAX.
http://www.adaptivepath.com

AJAX Seminar Website.
http://www.ajaxseminar.com/

New Features Added To GMail

is still surprising us everyday with TONS of new stuff..


today's new updates are:

Vacation auto-responder:
Set an auto-response so that if you’re lying on a beach or taking a train across Siberia, your friends will know you won’t be checking your email.

&

Contact groups:
One of our most-requested features is finally here! Now you can send messages to a group instead of having to pick out the individual addresses every time.

To view the complete list of updates since GMail had been released:
http://mail.google.com/mail/help/about_whatsnew.html

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Hotmail Really Surprised Me!

wooo hooo
FINALLY and after a long long struggle with Hotmail..
i got surprised today when i entered my inbox..
i felt something not right about the inbox size,
so,i looked at the account meter and found that i'm just using 1% from my account,
surprised again! what's happening..
i looked to the total space of the inbox and yoooooo,
it's 250MB,

OH MY GOD

i don't believe it til now..
when i saw it, i got shocked and the first thing i did is to get here and write about it in the blog.

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Ready To Launch

Right now i'm back from the Microsoft Lauch Event for SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio 2005 and BizTalk Server 2006..

The launch held in City Stars Hotel in Nasr City - Cairo..

It showed how businesses using this integrated platform can help to deliver connected solutions faster, more efficiently and make more informed decisions and drive even the most demanding mission critical applications.

The event had also featured Microsoft's partner pavilion hosting 23+ Launch partners showcasing business solutions and applications.

We had speakers from Microsoft Egypt and USA, also we listened to a Sweden speaker from Intel about the innovation between Microsoft & Intel for 20 years..

They gave us presents consists of the showcases, samples, manuals and CDs..and some lucky fellows had FREE exam vouchers for Microsoft new products..unfortunately, i wasn't from them.. ;-(

It was a BIG event with 5000 attendees, the biggest number of attendees ever for a launch event in Egypt!..

This event was very helpful to developers and i appreciate Microsoft for its endless flow of information!

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ADOBE To Acquire MACROMEDIA -- Where To?

This is an overview of the very main points of the acquisition, if you want more very detailed info, check out the Resources section.

SAN JOSE, California - April 18, 2005
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) today announced a definitive agreement to acquire Macromedia (Nasdaq: MACR) in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.4 billion.

That means,
Adobe and Macromedia have agreed to a deal which allows Adobe to purchase Macromedia for an estimated 3.4 billion dollars (USD).

And then,
SAN JOSE, California – December 5, 2005
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced the completion of its acquisition of Macromedia, Inc. The transaction was finalized on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2005. As a result of the acquisition, Macromedia common stock is no longer being traded and shares of Macromedia common stock were converted into the right to receive 1.38 shares of Adobe common stock.

**About Adobe Systems Incorporated
Adobe is the world’s leading provider of software solutions to create, manage and deliver high-impact, reliable digital content.

**About Macromedia
Experience matters. Macromedia is motivated by the belief that great experiences build great businesses. Our software empowers millions of business users, developers, and designers to create and deliver effective, compelling, and memorable experiences - on the Internet, on fixed media, on wireless, and on digital devices.

The move also accelerates Adobe's strategic initiative to advance a powerful software platform, based on PDF and Macromedia® Flash® technologies, that scales from mobile devices to high-end servers.

Management of the combined company includes executives and board members from both organizations.
Macromedia’s stockholders will own 18% of the combined company.
Unfair, isn't it?
That leads us to an important question:
Did Adobe pay $3.4 billion for a Flash plug-in?

Another area of interest concerns the various reactions found in web developer and other Internet technology-related forums. This is where talk of an Adobe monopoly was the loudest. Many posters see the deal as Adobe consuming their competition, while hurting
overall developer software innovation.

Also..
Bruce Chizen, chief executive officer of Adobe says,"Customers are calling for integrated software solutions that enable them to create, manage and deliver a wide range of compelling
content and applications – from documents and images to audio and video, by combining our powerful development, authoring and collaboration software – along with the complementary functionality of PDF and Flash – Adobe has the opportunity to bring this vision
to life with an industry-defining technology platform."

and says too: "The merger will mean cost savings as the two companies' workforces are streamlined, but he stressed the motivation behind the merger was to expand and grow their business by integrating their respective product lines."

Well, i don't think so!

Still reading?, Check this...

Will there be a reduction in force as a result of this acquisition?
Yes. but guarantee employees that leave with programs to help them work again!

How many employees does Adobe have?
Adobe has approximately 4,000 employees worldwide.

How many employees does Macromedia have?
Macromedia HAD approximately 1,450 employees worldwide.

What will happen to the Macromedia corporate brand?
What will happen to product and technology brands, such as Dreamweaver and Flash?
To provide the most consistency and clarity in our communication with customers, the Macromedia corporate brand will immediately be retired, and the company will fully align behind the Adobe corporate brand. Adobe will continue investing in key Macromedia product brands. Initially, product brands acquired from Macromedia will include the Macromedia name (for example, "Macromedia Dreamweaver"). Over time, Macromedia products will migrate to the Adobe brand (for example, "Adobe Dreamweaver") during planned release cycles when packaging materials and user and marketing collateral are updated.
Just in one simple word about MM brand --> Die

Do you expect to integrate the FlashPlayer and the Adobe Reader?
The complementary functionality of FlashPlayer and Adobe Reader will enable the deployment of a more robust cross-media, rich-client technology platform. The combined company will continue to be committed to the needs of both the FlashPlayer and Adobe Reader users.

Adobe also says:
Our long-term plan is to develop a "universal client" by combining PDF, Flash and HTML in a single, integrated runtime.The integration of these technologies into a unified framework creates a ubiquitous platform that runs on virtually every device, and dramatically expands the opportunities to create compelling solutions.

All products continue to be available for purchase.

Assuming that all is goes as planned, Macromedia will cease to exist. Everything will be in the Adobe name and with the Adobe interface.
Ummm, What does this mean for the MX product line?

The desired products are Flash, Dreamweaver, and ColdFusion. The other products will be killed or merged into existing Adobe products.
So sad!

From the survey of all the commentary out there, the general feeling seems to be that Photoshop will kill Fireworks, Illustrator will kill Freehand, and Dreamweaver will kill GoLive. This seems to be confirmed.

Once Freehand, Fireworks, and GoLive are killed, customers will have the benefit of not having any competing applications to choose from, and we benefit from not having any competitors.

We just bought the only significant competitor to several of our flagship applications. We didn’t buy Macromedia, we bought the market.

The financial markets didn't seem to react too well to the deal. Adobe's stock price fell 8+% while Macromedia, which was offered $41.86 per share, only saw a rise to 36.72

Finally, i want you to use your mind and think about these few points:

** Adobe acquired Macromedia to increase their money investments.
** Did Adobe pay $3.4 billion dollars for a Flash plug-in?
** Adobe wants to kill annoying apps [e.g. Fireworks, Freehand, Director].
** Adobe wants to integrate specific successful, leading-edge technologies [Flash] with its name.
** Adobe wants to consume their competitors [Macromedia brand is dead].

If you can't beat 'em, buy 'em....

--------------------------------------------------
-- Critic opinions from readers, users and developers worldwide after declaring acquisition:

"suck adobe", "adobe rape mm", "adobe ruin flash", "f._.ck adobe", "really upset", "stop adobe", "against adobe", and "hate adobe". I'm detecting a tiny bit of anti-Adobe sentiment here...

"Many of the comments use words like 'bloated,' 'old,' 'not customer friendly,' and 'copying Microsoft's business plan' in describing Adobe..On the other hand, words like 'innovative,' 'attentive to customer needs,' 'dynamic and young' are used to describe Macromedia. Perhaps the Macromedia purchase will give Adobe a shot of vitality"

"I am tired of the battle over tools. When a carpenter buys a hammer, he doesn't have to change the way he builds houses based on the hammer he buys"

"Adobe's gonna screw it up. It's not an anti-Adobe or pro-Macromedia thing. It's just what seems to happens every time. What Adobe doesn't jettison they will cannabalize - imagine GoLive with Dreamweaver features - new and "improved". All because it's business - if you can't beat 'em, buy 'em - and so the technical decisions will be made from a business standpoint"

"You think the current version of Acrobat Reader takes too long to launch, runs too slowly, and uses too much memory? You ain’t seen nothing yet!"

"Macromedia is a smart, dynamic company brimming with people who understand their customers, understand the technology, and deliver top-notch products that really do what you need them to do"

"Adobe is a conservative, plodding company that too often puts company priorities above customer satisfaction. (Small example: an absolutely customer-hostile upgrade experience. And $150 for a .0x release of Photoshop.) I buy their products only because I have to have them. (Photoshop, Acrobat)"

"God Bless Macromedia"

"GoLive must die --- Long live Dreamweaver"

"GoLive is a sorry bag of bugs of an application while Dreamweaver seems to excell at everything it does. I hope Adobe kills GoLive. I have both applications and GoLive sucks BIGTIME!"

"I can't wait till flash player runs on system startup and starts nagging me to download updates everytime I surf to a site using it. Outside of photoshop, Macromedia's products just seem to be a more professional grade"

"This is sad"

"I've eliminated all Adobe software except PageMaker 6.5. And maybe I will keep my copy of Dreamweaver. But other than those two, no more Adobe products for me. After all, I am not one of those highly qualified professionals that Adobe cares about. I am with the rest of the world that Adobe doesn't care about. And I sort of like it that way"

"Just when I was falling in love with everything Macroemdia has to offer - they go and let Adobe in. All I can say is they better not touch Coldfusion. I use Macromedia Homesite - so if they make that program a memory sucker - I guess I can always revert back to notepad"

"Not the end of Dreamweaver.
Actually I don't think anybody really thinks it's the end of Dreamweaver. More like we think it's the end of a quality dreamweaver"

"Don't get me wrong I like Photoshop and InDesign, but I just would prefer Adobe to leave Macromedia alone. I don't care that Adobe bought Macromedia, but I would prefer Dreamweaver, Flash, and Fireworks to maintain their look and feel. I don't want Dreamweaver to look like Photoshop. Dreamweaver has a very fluid design and it works"

"I don't know if this transition will be bad or not, but I would prefer not to find out"

"The death of Fireworks and Freehand?I personally like Fireworks, makes things a little easier for someone who is not a designer compared to photoshop. I doubt that they will keep both. Look what happened to ColdFusion Studio and Kawa after Macromedia took over Allaire back in 2001"

"If the new management is smart, they will change VERY little when it comes to product lines. Yes, there's overlap with Illustrator/Freehand, Dreamweaver/GoLive, and some would say Photoshop/Fireworks (I disagree on that one). Some products will benefit from integration, others will get new features to ignore"

"This is a good move for Adobe, but I really don't think Macromedia needed to do this. Quarter after Quarter profits post bubble and high endorsement rate of the Flash/Breeze platform were more than enough to keep me happy as a stockholder. Adobe is far less stable with thier income streams"

"Time will tell if it was a good move, or bad"

"Maybe a little hope, though, if the Macromedia people that are canned would band together and start over. If they do, using the lessons learned of course, it could be a very good thing"

"Looks like I'll be stuck at HomeSite 5.5 for a very long time"

--------------------------------------------------
-- Critic opinions from professional writters worldwide after declaring acquisition:

**Mike Chambers, a Product Manager at Macromedia says on his blog,
"Macromedia's 'culture of openness and participation' as one of the reasons that Adobe was interested in the company"

**Kevin Lynch, Chief Software Architect for Macromedia,
He's very hopeful about the future of the combined company

That's two employees of Macromedia chiming in about the acquisition on their blogs. And many more MM employees keep active blogs, so I'm sure we'll be hearing more from that side of the fence (although because of the legal stuff, it looks like posts about this need to be approved). On the other side, I've never heard of an Adobe employee that keeps a blog. Anyone?!

Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen says:
"That 9/11 was a bit of a catalyst for the deal, after 9/11, we both realized that being enemies didn't make sense".

Tim Bray, co-author of XML and Director of Web Technologies @ Sun,
Thinks that Adobe got Macromedia for their web products.Macromedia's Dreamweaver is the single most important Web-design product.

Jeremy Allaire, former CTO of Macromedia, had this to say about the acquisition:
"Macromedia lost the enterprise publishing race to Adobe, and Adobe lost it with the Web publishing community. So the deal combines the best of both worlds. It gives Macromedia a huge sales channel, especially on the enterprise side. This will probably make the channels as strong as Microsoft has"

--------------------------------------------------
Official Resources:

For information far beyond limits, i strongly recommend this PDF [98 KB]http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/invrelations/pdfs/AdobeMacromediaFAQ.pdf

Adobe to Acquire Macromedia
[Press releases - FAQs and fact sheets - Presentations, webcasts, and transcripts about the acquisition]
http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/invrelations/adobeandmacromedia.html

Adobe completes acquisition of Macromedia
[Links to complete information about the new Abobe]
http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/acquisition.html

If you want to go by yourself and dig alot more, use Google to search for [Adobe Macromedia acquisition], you won't believe how big the information is!

Check this place regularly for more hot news about the <.newAdobe />

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Welcome To My Blog

Hello Blogging World..

this is the 1st msg to my blog..
i'm preparing the resources right now.. it could take some time..
u will see the complete version by January 1, 2006..
please post a comment containing ur name and email to let u know when <.adjusterBlog> is published..

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