10 Biggest Microsoft Mistakes Ever

Bangalore: Microsoft rules the roost in software arena despite stiff competition from rival companies like Apple, Google, and others. The software giant kept up to its legacy for over 27 years now. But even with all this dominance and expertise, the Redmond biggie had rolled out clunkers from time to time. Read on to know 10 such worst mistakes from Microsoft ever, compiled by InformationWeek.

#10 SPOT Watch

Smart Personal Object Technology (SPOT) was developed by Microsoft to personalize Household electronics and other everyday devices from toaster to TVs by smart software and hardware, to make their uses more easy and versatile. It used MSN Direct network services to deliver across U.S. and Canada based on FM radio broadcast signal. The service cost $59 a year.

It however attracted geeks, and other common people were put off by too tech feel of SPOT watch. Despite Gates’ prediction that SPOT to ultimately provide interface to number of household appliances, it remained mainly desktop-bound software.  

#9 Microsoft Bob

The Microsoft Bob, code-named as “Utopia,” was a non-technical GUI (graphical user interface) software product released in March 1995. The child-like GUI was built around a virtual house with virtual objects in the house standing for computer applications like word processors and spreadsheets. It miffed the users for obvious child like tutoring, and had to be called off finally with relatively grown-up GUI of XP’s next versions.