I'm sure it's not lost on Microsoft executives that the world's third largest computer company is from China. Microsoft has a problem: PC growth is highest in emerging markets like China, where software piracy rates are high. China deals could be construed as generating goodwill, which Microsoft would want to use to gain greater Chinese government cooperation fighting piracy.

A system that will run Windows Vista may not be capable of using all of its features.

On a zero-day exploit, it is kind of tough to move fast enough.

Once an individual or company makes an investment in Windows, buys the software, and continues to spend money on upgrades, it will not suddenly shift to Mac.

It used to be that the corporate network was totally separate from the home. Now we have a commingling of network roles, of devices, of technology, and of user behavior, and all of that increases the attack vectors open to hackers.

The Office group is known for running a pretty tight ship, so if he can bring more discipline, that could be very beneficial to future versions of Windows.

The Office leadership is known for getting things done. While the Windows and Windows Server groups are renowned for product delays, the Office folks tend to ship pretty much on time. There appears to be tighter execution and control.

It is the most visually oriented social networking application I have seen thus far.

It may be the technological equivalent to the shot heard 'round the world. If Massachusetts follows through with this plan, it will be a radical departure from how Microsoft and other businesses work with state governments.

It looks to me that Microsoft has added another layer of bureaucracy. At a time when startups are starting to show some real promise again, Microsoft now looks even bigger and potentially slower than it was before.