Scoble points to the David Coursey column: “What Microsoft needs to do in 2004.”
A couple words: First, I agree with Coursey that developers need a good beta of Longhorn. However, it’s not just Longhorn that we need. We need to see the first generation of development tools that hide or generate or edit XAML.
But I’m less and less convinced that Microsoft should resist the urge to release an upgrade to XP. If Longhorn slips into 2006, I think it should. The reason is that people are using XP. It may be obvious to everyone else, but I’ve been noticing that PCs have expanded into even broader use–causing me support problems. Lots of friends have been asking for help with their computers, email, Internet, wireless connections, etc. I don’t think I’m alone in this. Even at Thanksgiving I got an earful from some neighbors over their frustrations with computers. Microsoft needs to make computers easier, more stable, and more manageable for the larger pool of home users that just want to use computers and not learn all their idiosyncrasies. If an upgrade to XP would help, I’d say go for it.