Today's Rant - Microsoft Drops Office Accounting

Actually this has been a weekend rant since I received the email on Friday evening stating that MS was discontinuing Office Accounting. As an independent consultant this is a very easy piece of software to use and the integration with Outlook Business Contact Manager is excellent. I can turn calendar events and tasks into timecard entries making invoicing a breeze. This event really added insult to injury, as I was in the process of converting MS Money to Quicken (another defunct product) this weekend. Earlier this week I had to get rid of MS OneCare as I migrated two of my machines to Windows 7, although on that front MS did provide a replacement Anti-Virus application (Microsoft Security Essentials).

This year seems to be a banner year for cutting consumer and small business applications. I know these were not top selling applications but they provided excellent functionality. At some level it feels like MS is abandoning the consumer and small business application market. This move may drive more independents to Apple and it makes me wonder what's next on the chopping block?

With my interest in smartphone technology, it is interesting that OEM manufacturers and cellular carriers have been hedging their bets with Android against Windows Mobile. With the many missteps made by the Windows Mobile team could they be next on the chopping block? I know Steve Ballmer is touting Windows Mobile 7 but if it is a flop, I think MS will run away from it as fast as possible.

-- Post From My iPhone