Why Microsoft's Mapping Efforts are "Low Profile"

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Tuesday, April 10. 2007

Why Microsoft's Mapping Efforts are "Low Profile"

I'm responding to The Maproom's query on the matter. The post suggests a few good answers: name changes, limited platform support, more complex interface, limited goodwill. I'll add one, which those who've been reading this blog for a while will expect: challenged marketing. I'll leave it at that.

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Microsoft at 14:42 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)

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A few days ago Paul Graham posted the controversial (and according to some, link-baiting) "Microsoft is Dead."

http://www.paulgraham.com/microsoft.html

And by dead he means increasingly irrelevant. (Kottke).

Maybe that has something to do with the matter, too.

#1 Atanas Entchev (Link) on 2007-04-10 15:12 (Reply)

Not to pile on, but the amount of research it took me to partially figure out what the web portal--Virtual Earth or whatever name--does vs. what is offered via MapPoint is still memorable for the myriad web pages I had to visit just to piece together a semi-coherent answer I could then communicate to a potential client.

Personally I think they have great components by the whole doesn't quite equal the sum of its parts. As others have noted, functionitis (a common enough plague in the GIS world) too often wins out over usability.

All that said, however, if MS adds spatial to SQL Server's intrinsic functionality and they can get their web mapping platform talking to Office (Excel, Access), they could take a huge portion of the potential market share that's still lagging in geospatial uptake.

BT

#2 Brian Timoney (Link) on 2007-04-10 15:59 (Reply)

Interestingly, our company has a product that does just what you are talking about: Toucan Navigate. We will have a free version out next month. We can map from SQL, Excell, Groove, etc. Our client is lightweight 1.8MB and can work online and offline. Check it out. We are a small organiZation and we still need to update the web site. Let me know if you want to get the free version when it comes out.

#2.1 Neil Alderman (Link) on 2007-04-10 20:01 (Reply)

It is a good question. We have been hoping that SQL Server would add support that was compliant with the Open Geospatial Consortium. If you don't care about future compatability issues there is a good article at http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms345264.aspx

#2.2 Glenn Graham (Link) on 2007-04-25 12:58 (Reply)

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