'If we give basic windows OS, we don't have a story'

Every school of thought accepts that if a country wants to become a global

player, R&D is vital. Microsoft had set up its R&D base in Hyderabad few

years back. Microsoft India Development Center (MIDC) MD Srini Koppolu, often

known as the man who brought Microsoft to India and with around 10 patents to

his credit, believes that Indian talent is being used for the right purpose and

that they are playing an equal role in the development of Microsoft products.

Read on, to find more about Microsoft and its activities as told to Sunitha

Natti of CyberMedia News.

What are the activities of India Development Center (IDC) and Global

Development Center of India (GDIC)?



While IDC focuses on Microsoft products worldwide and supports product

development, GDIC focuses on Microsoft's internal activity development. IDC

targets the end users whereas GDIC targets Microsoft's internal applications

like HR, coordinates OEM relationships, leverage extensively with partners like

Satyam, etc.

What are the key business areas of Microsoft?



We have seven key business areas in Microsoft. They include client business,

server and tools business, Knowledge worker, Microsoft business solutions, MSN,

home and entertainment business and mobility business.

What products does IDC in Hyderabad cater to?



Of all the seven business areas, some of them are mature like knowledge

worker, and client business. For each business areas, we have product families.

We in Hyderabad try and create groups aligned with the product families.

Srini Koppolu

For some business areas we have one primary product family like in Knowledge

worker, and some businesses have multiple product families. So our high-level

and long-term goal is to have for each product families a group providing

support. We are almost getting there and for all the key Microsoft product

families, we have a group here.

We have a team for the Microsoft tools development called the Visual Studio

team system, which focuses on product development technologies. Then a group

called windows group for the windows OS, which works on technologies and the

other group called services for units that works on products. Then we have an

enterprise storage group that is working on data protection server that would be

shipped sometime in 2005.

What's happening on the Windows Server for Unix front?



Windows Services for Unix product is one area where we have been focusing on

at the Hyderabad IDC from day one. The shift from proprietary hardware-based

model to x86-based model has been dramatic because of the low cost of x86

machines. Sun is the only vendor producing Unix machines, while x86 is produced

by multiple vendors like Dell and HP. Therefore, there exists competition among

vendors leading to availability of x86 machines at low prices.

So the industry is moving to cost effective machines. We as a company have to

attract people migrating to windows. The whole knowledge investment and the

investment on applications are to be taken care of. So when a Unix user sees a

value in x86 machines and if we just give a basic windows OS we don't have a

story. For us to be competitive, windows service for Unix provides shells,

utilities, etc., facilitating knowledge transfer and support script migration.

They can also take existing applications, take the source code, recompile the

application and run it on windows.

What are the versions of Windows Services for Unix?



When we provide the Unix application on the Windows OS, users don't

migrate at one shot. Interoperation happens at different levels. So we have

shipped the product in various versions. The first version targeted the

interoperability aspect. The second version focused on script migration, while

the third offered migration of applications and source code.

And the yet to be released fourth version would allow a Unix application

running on Windows to see the future of that application. But how can they

integrate that on a .Net platform, we are contemplating on the same to provide

the functionality that will not only allow migration but also see the future and

integrate all other third party window components and applications.

Will the fourth version mark an end to the investments and innovations on

the Windows Services for Unix front?



Well, every product will reach the end of its life. But version IV is surely

not the end, because we are talking of enterprise customers. So when we develop

a product we try and provide key features, but until they take the product and

start deploying the product, features keep adding. We would be releasing version

IV in 2005 and more can be talked about only after deployment.