Microsoft and Bill Gates may be suffering image problems within the industry, but that is not the case among PC users. Steve Ballmer, Microsoft executive VP of worldwide sales, was recently heard admitting The number of people who are enthusiastic about the company has clearly taken a dip. It’s not cataclysmic, but it’s clear. But in spite of Microsoft’s ongoing problems with the US Department of Justice over its browser technology, Americans still love Bill Gates. In fact, as the high-profile case has made him almost a household name, his popularity has increased. A recent CNN/Time magazine poll showed that Gates’ popularity among computer users in the US has grown from 42% a year ago to a high of 52% in January. That being the case, maybe it makes sense for Gates to push his second book at the technical elite, rather than the general business audience and non- technologists addressed by The Road Ahead. Reports in the New York Times suggest that Gates is currently in talks with publishers based in New York concerning the book, which aims to boost Gates’ technical credentials.
