DEBRIS.COMgood for a laugh, or possibly an aneurysm

I’ve seen two interesting anti-Microsoft articles this week:

One Dead Opossum, in which Applelinks.com’s Del Miller compares Microsoft’s impending domination of the Internet to an attack by a diseased rodent.

A revolutionary pursuit: Freedom from Microsoft, in which the San Jose Merc’s Dan Gillmor compares consumers’ migration away from Microsoft software to the Revolutionary War, and the 13 colonies’ battle to reject the foreign rule of the British government.

I find the metaphors remarkable: Microsoft is a software company, but it has been compared to vermin and to an oppressive government. Think that through… according to these writers, you cannot afford to ignore Microsoft, or (like an infected rat, or an evil bureaucracy) it will harm you personally. Apathy is a dangerous thing.

Miller’s article addresses one of the most frightening aspects of Microsoft’s newest line of products: the subscription fee model. You will no longer be able to “buy” software from Microsoft; you’ll be forced to “rent” it, through expiring software and forced upgrades. I figure that within 3 years most of you will get a bill in the mail every month with this logo on the envelope.