Fire Steve Ballmer and sell off the XBOX division?

I came across a short and sweet business article on a video game discussion board talking about a group of Microsoft investors (who own 1% of Microsoft stock) wanting Steve Ballmer fired and the XBOX Division sold off.

Seeing stories like this make me laugh. Even if it makes no money, the XBOX brand does attract a lot of favorable press/consumer attention to M$ most of the time so, it ain't going away. In fact, has M$ ever left a business once they muscled their way into that market? Their cell phone software was CRAP for many years but, now, it does increasingly better business for them. I still don't trust Windows Phone enough to even give it a chance, though.

In fact, I don't even own a smart phone.

I don't want one, either.

Yes, I am old-fashioned in that area.

No, I don't care about keeping up with the Jones's...

All that being said, I have no interest in the next XBOX console or even the current 360. Knowing M$, they will find a way to make this thing an unreliable pile of junk. It's amazing, really... The first XBOX was something they considered a failure in many ways yet, that's the one that I have in my collection and actually like... How did that happen? Better yet, I have NEVER had any trouble with that machine and have never heard of anyone else having trouble with it, either. Weird...

As for Steve Ballmer, I doubt he's going away, either. Bill Gates picked him to be his successor. Bill's place in Microsoft is just like Steve Jobs' place over at Apple, except without the Cult of Personality and Megalomania surrounding him. (Well, maybe a little Megalomania...) Ballmer will leave only when he's ready to leave.

If Microsoft wanted to worry about a truly bad product though, tell them to look at Windows 8. Not everyone has (or wants) a touchscreen PC yet, they made their core OS product heavily dependent on this still emerging technology. Why? Do they think they can force everyone to go out and buy a touchscreen device? If Apple couldn't make that cool for everyone with the iPod Touch and iPad, then how do they expect to succeed here? Appealing to the usual Microsoft customers at businesses may not work. Business people are not always imaginative and rarely embrace change.

Then again, I don't run a multi-trillion Dollar international technology conglomerate so, what do I know?

- Lord Publius

Also, made a few additions to my massive game collection today...

Atari 2600

Air-Sea Battle
Ice Hockey
Popeye

Atari 5200

Q*Bert
Popeye

Intellivision (INTV)

Burgertime
Stadium Mud Buggies

Colecovision (CVIS)

Decathalon

Super NES

Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits

SEGA Master System

Blade Eagle 3-D
Choplifter
Shanghai

SEGA Dreamcast

Worms World Party (Factory Sealed)