Browser in the OS

Some part of this debate relates to the issue of whether the browser is a logical extension of the operating system. When I explain to people what we are doing with help - moving away from a proprietary format with special tools to HTML and how that hleps users people start to understand. When I explain about bowsing information locally and remotely people understand. When I talk about letting ISVs call our html for LOCAL and remote display as well as link resolution etc... people start to understand. I also think we need to talk about our use of HTML for forms. Only by doing a document that EXPLAINS why we are putting the browser into the operating system will people start to have more sympathy for why this makes sense and understand that the government shouldn't be blocking this. Right now people think the ONLY reason we are putting the browser into the OS is to gain share which just is not true - we didn't get share from IE 1 in the OS or IE 2. IE 3 got us share before it was in the OS because it was a strong product. I think we need to do a piece on WHY we are putting the browser into the operating system and our future plans. I think we need to make that document widely known. I want to get Eric Schmidt in particular to comment on whether he thinks it makes sense or not. I wonder who really thinks browsers don't belong in the OS. Detrouzos of MIT told me how he had been saying this before Netscape was founded and even said so in some speeches. More important I want to get a survey done where ISVs declare whether they think having the browser in the operating system the way we are planning to do it makes sense and is good. We might want to do some users as well. We have never put crazy stuff into the OS and its time for people to know we are doing this for developers and customers. It would HELP ME IMMENSLY to have a survey showing that 90% of developers believe that putting the browser into the OS makes sense. I am sure we will get like 60% before we explain our plans. Once we explain our plans properly I think we will get more like 90%. Even that insane SPA document didn't try to suggest that browsers don't belong in the OS. Ideally we would have a survey like this done before I appear at the Senate on March 3rd. I think David should have someone take a shot at writing up our plans for the browser in the OS and Brad/Tod should figure out how to get that distributed and do some kind of survey.