Useful Free Applications
About a year ago there were lots of rumors of an Opera acquisition by Google and Microsoft.Matt Hartley, from OSWeekly, wrote a column today titled ?Microsoft and Opera: A Marriage Made In Heaven?. In his column, he discusses why Microsoft should ditch Internet Explorer (IE), and buy the Opera desktop browser. And, likewise, use the Opera Mobile browser instead of Pocket Internet Explorer (PIE) for their Windows Mobile Smartphones.Should Microsoft approach Opera with an acquisition offer, I doubt Opera would even consider it (at this time). It?s more likely, I believe, that Opera will license the browser?s rendering engine to Microsoft, like it does with Adobe?s Creative Suite (CS2).For too long the Opera browser has been the non-Microsoft product. Becoming part of Microsoft wouldn?t go well with many of the longtime Opera users.At last year?s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Microsoft?s CEO Steve Ballmer was quoted saying to a Norwegian Newspaper is relations to the rumors about Microsoft buying Opera ?in the first place, I do not know if they would be interested, and furthermore every government in the world would have reacted strongly if we did it.?The controversial John Dvorak also made similar suggestions last year for Microsoft to seriously consider buying Opera. He got lots of flack from that, I?m sure Matt will too.
Microsoft throwing in the towel on Internet Explorer...just can't see that happening.
