Office On Linux?

highly anticipated services packs out today. No, it's not the security fixes you're all expecting in Windows XP Service Pack 2. But the Office 2003 update could finally get your customers to actually deploy their upgrade licenses.

Speaking of Office, more and more of you have started asking if and when Microsoft will release its market-dominating productivity applications for some Linux platform. This topic was the subject of a thoughtful column by BusinessWeek contributor Alex Salkever. His point: Why should the Office team be hamstrung because of the developer's platform aspirations?

As someone who uses the Macintosh edition of Office, I sure wish the Office development team could bring some of the integration features to my preferred work platform. To my friends at Microsoft: Sorry, but it's a family thing. I got hooked on Apple equipment when I first used a Lisa computer back God knows when, courtesy of my mother.

Apparently, there are a growing number of you who think Office could prove to be a valuable tool for Microsoft in the whole open source debate. Why don't you weigh in on the controversy? E-mail me at [email protected]. .