Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Where next for Apple?

Steve Jobs is taking time out, as you probably know. I wonder where that leaves Apple? Even more so than Microsoft when Bill Gates was in charge, Apple is Steve Jobs. Apple's shortcomings and strengths are also, therefore, tied up in him. So what might be on the cards for Apple if the new hand on the tiller keeps their own lookout and doesn't simply use Steve's binoculars?

I said yesterday that Apple's server offerings are awful, and I meant it. Microsoft's building all sorts of fun stuff into the Windows Server family these days - virtualization, remote application delivery with Terminal Server 2008, CRM; loads of good stuff. Plus of course, all the tried and tested backoffice stuff that we've been using for years.

Someone else is getting into virtualization now - Citrix are finally looking serious about gettnig into the game, and about time too, given that Terminal Server 2008 does everything that the Presentation Server releases of only a couple of years ago did. Whether it does enough to distinguish itslef from either the ubiquitous VMWare or Microsoft's own offerings is another matter. Citrix is looking like a company in need of a space.

Have Apple got that? They've got the iPhone, and the iPod, and the Mac, and Citrix is all about accessing the same applications across different platforms. If the downturn goes on and domestic customers find themselves unable to justify that new Mac, Apple's going to need business customers. For that, it needs something to put on its servers...

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I'm having a look. Deal with it.