[gecko]

I'm not sure it's fair to say that Microsoft has "screwed up" every technology they've had a hand in. Ajax, notably, is a Microsoft invention. What I do think is a fair statement is that Microsoft has historically been slavishly backwards-compatible even with obvious design mistakes and implementation artifacts, whereas the other two 800-pound gorillas (Google and Apple) have a mantra of never keeping legacy tech around when it can safely be replaced. The latter results in cleaner technologies; the former results in longer-living technologies. As a programmer, I prefer the Google/Apple take, but it's worth noting that Microsoft's variant has a clear advantage for the user in at least the short-to-medium term.

[bgilroy26]

>Microsoft's variant has a clear advantage for the user in at least the short-to-medium term.

The approach also often comes out on top when the client is a business and accounting considerations take the lead, as opposed to B2C situations.

When you divide the cost of a Microsoft license by 7 (number of years a business will be running XP on a workstation) it turns into a really great price.

The reverse compatibility mentality is universal in the enterprise.

[huggyface]

Ajax, notably, is a Microsoft invention.

To put that into proper context, XmlHttpRequest was a hack by a single person at Microsoft -- with zero input or coordination or working groups or long term planning -- on the MSXML team to do a favour to the Outlook team. Further it could only happen because of ActiveX, and paralleled various other light request tools that existed at the time.

XmlHttpRequest is a great demonstration of a hacker getting a solution out there.

EDIT: Downvotes? I am intimately aware of how XmlHttpRequest came into existence, having been closely involved with its birth, so if someone has some correction to add, please add it. But in no universe does XmlHttpRequest vindicate Microsoft on moving web standards along. Their contribution was unintentional and largely accidental.

[specialist]

I wouldn't down-vote your comment.

During my interview with that team, one of the kids proudly took credit for the span tag. A weekend hack. Committed the code and shipped it. No review. SOP.

Being more standards-minded at the time, I wanted to throttle the kid.

With the benefit of hindsight, I see that all the jitter and experimentation was pretty much ideal. If a feature proves useful, other browsers may adopt it, and it may become a de facto standard.

[cheatercheater]

And if it didn't, it still stayed in and caused one of a thousand incompatibilities used by masses of clueless people around the world.