14 Classic Tech Rivalries

After supplying the operating system for Sega's Dreamcast console, Microsoft ventured directly into the console race--with the PlayStation 2 squarely in its sights. Unlike the PS2,the $300 Xboxboasted a built-in 8GB hard drive and was broadband-ready out of the box (the Xbox Live Online gaming service launched a year later). The powerful Xbox had a PC-like design and used a modified 733-MHz Pentium III processor. One of its launch titles, Halo: Combat Evolved, emerged as the best-selling game of 2001. Microsoft slowly gained traction with its original Xbox. The company got quicker off the mark, too: In 2005, the original Xbox's successor,the Xbox 360, reached stores a full year before Sony countered withits PlayStation 3and Nintendo unveiledits Wii.

Ballmer vs. Torvalds

WhenSteve Ballmer,aka Goliath, sets his sights on something, he gets it. Or hethrows a chair (allegedly). Or hejust goes crazy. He thinksLinux is for commies. Much of Microsoft's tremendous growth has occurred under Steve's watch as CEO, which began in 2000. His tenure has been marked bythe acquisition of other companies, including Visio, Great Plains, and Groove Networks. Along the way, he became a billionaire. And with a couple of Microsoft compatriots, Steve appeared as one of thevery few PC World centerfolds. But with software as we know it moving off of PCs and onto the Web, Ballmer desperately needs to acquire something new (like Yahoo or Facebook) to avoid being gnawed to death by Google.

Linus Torvalds,aka David, isn't against Microsoft products;he's just not interestedin them. He began tinkering with the free, open-source operating system named after him while working on his master's degree in computer science. He doesn't throw things (even allegedly) or go crazy. Though he has final say over which programmers' contributions gain entry into the Linux operating system kernel, he is essentially a lowly programmer working for theLinux Foundation. Still, thanks to Torvalds, open-source software--and Linux in particular--may eventually eat Microsoft's lunch. And remember, David won his battle.

No, not theDavid Lynch movie, but the cursor controller that sticks out of the middle of some laptop keyboards. Lenovo calls its versionthe TrackPoint. The obvious plus of the eraserhead pointer is that you don't have to move your hands from the touch-typing home row to move the cursor around the screen. Also, it's tactile, but not so easy to maneuver that you can make mistakes just by hitting it. Admittedly, the rubber tip can get slippery or gummy, depending on how sweaty your finger is and/or what you ate for lunch. But why mess with success?