After conquering the search realm, what’s next for this Mountain View-based maverick? A Google OS? It may take a while before we see this but all signs point to Google’s desire to own the desktop. You can also call it the final showdown with Microsoft.
We’ve seen the wars they’ve fought (example: Google vs. MSN Search, Gmail vs. Hotmail, Google Talk vs. MSN Messenger) and the wars they have yet to fight (example: Google Browser vs. Internet Explorer); all hint at an imminent battle for control of the desktop with Microsoft. Charles H. Ferguson gives an excellent outline of the battlefield in his What’s Next for Google article in TechnologyReview.com.
Why are these two destined to fight to the death? Kevin Kelleher in his Google vs Gates article in Wired Magazine gives us a the best clue so far:
For all their differences, the two companies have a lot in common. Microsoft looks at Google and sees its own past, full of promise. Google looks at Microsoft and sees the future – a swaggering company that dominates the tech landscape. It’s a classic battle between youth and experience or, as Google likes to believe, good and evil.
Now does that not sound like Star Wars?