Seriously, these out-of-control “anti-monopoly” lawsuits HAVE to stop. Not long ago the EU ruled that Microsoft’s inclusion of IE8 in their upcoming Windows 7 product is “anti-competitive behavior”. As a result, copies of Windows 7 sold in the EU will be shipped without a web browser. Let me explain why this is a MAJOR problem.

If you choose to not use Internet Explorer as your primary web browser, you must install an alternative (like Firefox or Chrome). However, what’s the most  basic way of installing them? By downloading them from the internet! If you don’t have an internet browser to begin with, you have to jump through all sorts of hoops to get one… hoops that the VAST majority of computer users have no idea how to jump through. Additionally, they can’t just Google how to do this because they don’t have a web browser to get to Google in the first place! It’s a HUGE disaster!

Why do you think Mac OS X has become such an enticing alternative to Windows? I’ll give you a hint. It has nothing to do with it being “the most advanced OS ever” (which I strongly contest). It’s not that it’s any faster or more powerful than Windows. The biggest thing OS X has going for it is that it’s an entire ecosystem that just works out-of-box. It includes a web browser, an email client, a photo manager, etc… and all of these applications play very nicely together.

Now, when Microsoft is finally getting their act together and releasing a not-horrible web browser, the technologically illiterate anti-trust lawyers come out and completely screw over the consumer by claiming that bundled software is anti-competitive. It’s disgusting, and a perfect example of our out-of-control sue-happy legal systems.

Source: CNet

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