Netscape caused a shock within the computer industry. These codes which are closely guarded secrets of computer programmers acts very much like a Rosetta Stone that deciphers the programming language. The owners of Netscape did this in the hopes of being able to compete against Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in the browser market. By allowing other programmers to view the programming framework, Netscape also hoped that the combined forces would allow its Internet browser to evolve much more rapidly in public hands than in private development. By doing this, Netscape made no immediate economic gains, but hopes its product will survive to evolve and compete against Microsoft even long after the company Netscape is gone (NPR News May 5). This was seen almost like an act of desperation on the part of Netscape as a last ditch effort to combat the threat of efforts of Microsoft to dominate the Internet browser market.Even as I use this word processing program (Microsoft Word) to type this essay I do not have to worry about spelling “Microsoft” correctly. The auto spell checker underlines in red any misspelling of “Microsoft” to ensure that I spell its maker’s name correctly. I wonder if this program had any sentience, would it seek to destroy my essay which criticizes its maker, or would it just shut down completely and prevent me from typing any further? Fortunately, I do have the original word processing program which I can always load into the computer again. I also have the option of using another word processing program besides that of Microsoft’s (even though there is a dearth of non-Microsoft word processing programs), such as Lotus Wordperfect. I could also switch my operating system over to IBM’s OS2, which shares only a small fraction of all the computer operating systems in the world. Microsoft holds upwards of an amazing 90% or more of the computer operating system market ...
