If you've been following Mark Harrison's and Spence Harbar's blogs, a recent
CMSWatch "Ask Tony" post and some vendor FUD has engendered anxiety about
the future of MCMS.

Just today I sent the following email to "Ask Tony" with my two cents' (Canadian)
worth:

Sent: Monday, January 10, 2005 09:31
To: 'askt...@cmswatch.com'
Subject: Ask Tony - The Future of MCMS
Importance: High

Tony:

No doubt you've had numerous replies to your recent post about the future
of MCMS 2002.  It is perhaps understandable since the MCMS and SPS development
teams have merged, and that there hasn't been any recent details released
about v.Next; however, your "increasing anxiety" about the product's future
is misplaced.  As someone who maintains very close contact with several senior
people in the MCMS and SPS group in Redmond, I can assure you that the future
of Microsoft's investment in MCMS is very solid.  I have it from very good
authority that Microsoft has in no way abandoned the web content management
market, and they have VERY aggressive plans to continue to continue to enhance
and extend this technology.  You can take the relative silence on v.Next
as an indication that the next version will not just be a point release -
it will be a major step forward.  We as MCMS and .NET integrators will naturally
need to re-tool for the new generation, but this is certainly nothing new.
 I look forward to these experiences as new opportunities to explore new
solution opportunities and apply the technologies in ways never possible
before.

I've also been assured that Microsoft is fully cognisant of - and values
very greatly - the extent of the existing MCMS user base and the enormous
intellectual capital that exists in the technology and the wide range of
available extensions to it (just look at all of the user-submitted MCMS tools
available on GotDotNet).  This is not just lip service.  MCMS now enjoys
the most extensive, active, and creative user community of virtually any
WCM solution available today, and Microsoft has no intention whatever of
turning its back on this enormous asset.  To the contrary, it is very clear
that they intend to reap more benefits from this community through successive
future product generations.

With all due respect, your post has only done service to the competing WCM
vendors who are simply fear-mongering (a.k.a. FUD).  I spent several years
of my career in the pre-sales world for a number of different software vendors,
and have seen this practice rear its despicable head again and again.  It
is a most reprehensible practice and belies a lack confidence in the vendor's
own product - and desperation to make a sale by slandering its competitors.

In your role as a respected WCM analyst I would suggest that you would devote
some time in your column to exploring this in a more objective manner, and
seek some direct input from Microsoft or other partners on the issue before
spreading fear.

Respectfully,

Patrick Gaul

_________________________________________
patrick gaul
proAxent solutions inc.