So Microsoft have done it

[oracleslave]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7163547.stm

[AtW]

Netscape are the ones guilty in making crappy v4 of the browser - IE4, and especially 5 was much better than anything Netscape did, only many years later they got better stuff and only because volunteers forced them to work on standalone browser rather than a bunch of things that few people used.

FF users for many years now and never look back at IE.

[thunderlizard]

I used Netscape up until 3 or 4 years ago, when they released a version that had the hugest memory leak I've ever seen (that must have been v4 - thanks AtW). They were good for a while but threw it all away long ago.

Michael Lewis's book about Jim Clark is a thumping good read though, and a great way to relive the 90s.

[lilelvis2000]

The court case was just for show. Microsoft stalled until it didn't matter..It was a win win for them.

[AtW]

Court case had wrong vector of attack - they somehow tried to argue that bundling IE was anti-competitive whereas it was 100% Microsoft decision to do so, what WAS anti-competitive is Microsoft's threats to remove Windows license from OEMs who would bundle Netscape as well - now THAT was 100% illegal action by Microsoft and this is what prosecution should have focused on.

[d000hg]

Netscape's foul-up is web-known and their own fault. MS ensured they are the dominant browser but Netscape were the ones who lost out to FireFox through ludicrous decisions.

[AtW]

Netscape were the ones who lost out to FireFox through ludicrous decisions.

Netscape did not exist at this point - there was brand Netscape and a handful of people employed by AOL, but they did not have a clue much like AOL did not have a clue when they bought Netscape in the first place.

Good thing is that they funded Mozilla however - otherwise we'd be stuck with IE.

[2uk]

[QUOTE=thunderlizard;403412]I used Netscape up until 3 or 4 years ago, when they released a version that had the hugest memory leak I've ever seen QUOTE]

Or Windows had a secret feature ...

[AtW]

Or Windows had a secret feature ...

This is one of the biggest rubbish myths out there - secret APIs that made Microsoft stuff better.

[2uk]

This is one of the biggest rubbish myths out there - secret APIs that made Microsoft stuff better.

If you have missed , Sun a couple of years ago had a successful case against Microosft. The case was that MS has not disclosed enough information about Windows internals making Sun's product less , less , less... capable of working correctly on Windows.