The one company that, needless to say, wants nothing to do with the Network Computer is Microsoft Corp. The company, and chairman Bill Gates are not necessarily against the concept of a cheap Network Computer – just the one being proposed by Oracle Corp. Microsoft, which sees the Network Computer movement as a product of what Gates calls the anti-PC crowd, calls the proposed device a lightweight machine that will appeal to only a small market niche. Microsoft is working on its own Internet appliances that would be compatible with existing personal computers running Windows. Microsoft turned down an offer to join the Network Computer party because the proposed standards rule out any commonality with Windows.
