Microsoft's Reality Check

摘要

From the viewpoint of skeptics, SQL Server 2005 and Microsoft's whole "better together" campaign are clever levers for strong-armed upgrades and whole-catalog purchases. It's clear that Microsoft is targeting Unix competitors with an enterprise portfolio focused on integration and out-of-the-box functionality. Better together. Sounds a lot like "lock yourself in, you'll love it." And yet slowly, Microsoft is making togetherness valuable for its customers. SQL Server 2005 joins Visual Studio 2005, Virtual Server 2005, and Windows 2003 Server R2 as products that work better together because their requirements were driven by Microsoft's most demanding customer: Microsoft.