There's an interesting interview with Kevin Browne, manager of Microsoft's
Macintosh Business Unit at:
http://macweek.zdnet.com/2001/01/14/0117browne.html
Pertinent snippets below:
"Q: So when did the relationship start when it came time to work on Mac OS
X?
A: We had been talking to Apple about Mac OS X for almost three years. I
mean certainly before they set out on the strategy to build Mac OS X they
checked with all their large developers, like Microsoft, Adobe, Macromedia,
and so forth, to assess our needs.
And we think they have been tremendously responsive to the needs that we
have. The challenge of bringing Office to Mac OS X was that we had over 25
million lines of existing code running on today's Mac OS. And we need to
bring that over and deliver everything that we've done before and enhance
that as well to take advantage of Mac OS X.
So over the last three years, we worked with them to develop our
understanding of what OS X should be. And I think we are at a place now
where since the release of Office 2001, we have been actually able to get
busy and start working. You saw this morning that we actually had some
results to show. So far, so good. It's a lot of work, and there is a lot
left that we want to do to the product.
Q: How many developers do you have working on this?
A: We had about 200 people in our Macintosh business unit, split between
code writers and testers and so forth.
Q: What has been the biggest problem you have had so far while working on
Mac OS X?
A: The biggest problem we've had so far: the combination of the set of
requirements that we have, the set of requirements that Apple has, the set
of requirements that our tool manufacturer has (Metrowerks CodeWarrior). ...
We're all still assessing what we need to do in tandem to some extent and
implementing those things, so it requires very, very strong communication
links in order to prevent one person in one of the areas disrupting the work
of the other person in the other areas.
So really it's just been that we all have been trying to some extent to keep
building in tandem.
Q: Was there any area that was hard to incorporate into the Mac OS X
application?
A: Not really, that I can speak of. I'm not one of the code writers, and
they might have stories about some of the things. I think that the work that
we have done to date is no harder than the work that we have left to do.
So then maybe we will run into one particular area where we just have a
tough time. But so far, aside from the fact that we're working on a
operating system that is still being built and working with tools that are
still being developed, we are in the process of getting people to know the
right people on each side, so that we can minimize the disruption. There is
going to be disruption any time you do this.
Q: You stated that you will have the version ready early in the fall. Is
that only in the United States, or does that include Europe?
A: We attempted to create a worldwide product that is localized and we have
a very efficient and fast localization process. With Office 2001, which we
released last fall, we had all of our international versions out within a
month of the release of Office 2001 in the U.S. I don't foresee any problems
in meeting that fall date for all of our languages.
Q: So what do you personally think about Mac OS X?
A: What do I think about it personally? When I first saw Aqua a year ago, I
said, "That's what we have been thinking computers should look like in the
year 2000." And I think to the extent that Apple and all of its ISVs are
able to imbue their products with that kind of design esthetic that only the
Aqua designers can bring to their design, it will bring that promise.
It isn't just Apple, it's all of us that have to deliver the right sets of
things for OS X. To be sure, there are some changes from today's Mac OS, and
maybe it's just a process of adjustment or a process of Apple continuing to
build in more things that make today's Mac successful.
But I am sort of reserving judgment until I see the final product. I love
the elegance and the efficiency of the current Mac OS, and I think Apple
still has a little challenge left to mask the complexity of the underlying,
sophisticated operating system with the same ease they have in today's Mac
OS.
That's a diplomatic answer. I am reservedly optimistic that they'll do it
because we've seen progress from the initial releases to the public beta and
then to the releases we have seen here at the show. I think Apple has been
very responsive to customer feedback.
Q: Is there going to be a Media Player for Mac OS X?
A: There is a Windows Media Player beta out right now. Another team outside
my business unit is doing that work. I'm not sure what their plans are
exactly for the final.
Q: Do you know anything about FrontPage?
A: There is a Version 1.0 for the Macintosh. My understanding is there are
now plans to update that. The 1.0 version went out there; they had some
success, but it was't overwhelming. Now with Adobe owning GoLive and
Macromedia owning Dreamweaver -- they are enormous competitors, they have
terrific Macintosh products. I think with the FrontPage guys ... I'm not
sure if they see it as a great opportunity with the market so divided
already into two very strong competitors.
A: Microsoft recently bought game developer Bungie Software. What can you
tell me about Halo?
Q: Actually Microsoft retained control of Halo and Halo will be released, as
I think we've announced, on all three platforms: the X-Box, the PC, and the
Mac. "
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