So why don't they just abandon Windows then? Big reasons:

• Microsoft's monopoly leverage and exclusionary policies have left few options.

• Re-training and deployment costs would be very high.

• "All Microsoft" is often decreed by top management. Microsoft sales pitches directly to line of business management and tries to cut the computer knowledgeable out of the decision loop. This is why so many corporate Linux servers are "stealth" installations. To get something that works IS must often violate policies handed down from the highest levels.

• The users have Windows on their home game computers, so they want it at work too.

This growing resentment in IS management ensures corporate developers' strong move to Java will just continue to gain steam - no matter how many magazine columnists shout "Java is Dead!".

So how long will it be before CFOs and CEOs wake up and smell the Java? Some think it is already beginning to happen. You can easily see why Microsoft feels so compelled to destroy all alternatives. If they exist, someone might take them.