I think that’s more of a statement than a question these days. Vista is, at best, seeing lukewarm reception in the OS marketplace. And the Zune? Hmmm. Not much to say about that. Microsoft has seen a string of music services go down in flames to Apple’s iTunes Store and iPod juggernaut.

So how about that core?

If Microsoft resolves all those concerns, no one (including the Open Document Format camp) will have a problem with it. Microsoft doesn’t seem to grok that true openness breeds trust. If it were submitting a truly open standard, it wouldn’t matter what anyone thought of the company submitting it.

It looks like Microsoft’s days of rolling over opposition with a superior lobbying budget and the lack of clear alternatives is over. It might actually have to play nicely now with the other children. Imagine that.

To me the question isn’t so much is the core business fading, but rather can its new businesses and related services like Xbox make up the difference? If Microsoft can iron out significant manufacturing problems with the Xbox 360, and keep its (very) healthy share of the server and corporate desktop markets, it’ll be ok for the next half decade. If not, watch out.

Thanks to GamePolitics.com we are now privy to the knowledge that Bill O’Reilly thinks that PS3, Xbox and iPod use contributes to the downfall of the United States.

If the overblown FOX hack lunatic had any credibility to lose, he lost it with this:

I don’t own an iPod. I would never wear an iPod… If this is your primary focus in life - the machines… it’s going to have a staggeringly negative effect, all of this, for America… did you ever talk to these computer geeks? I mean, can you carry on a conversation with them? …I really fear for the United States because, believe me, the jihadists? They’re not playing the video games. They’re killing real people over there.

Note to O’Reilly: your premium content pay site offers podcasts for download.

My buddy at work is a Sony fanatic, and he’s always on the very positive end of the Outcome Possibility Curve™ for the PS3, so I’ve been keeping an eye on news to get a balanced scoop.

I’ve been guessing — even with the news (see below) — that Sony’s replacement to the wildly popular PS2 game console would come in close to Xbox price. I think Sony knows a $600 price tag would be a disaster, especially with the next Nintendo device already slated to appear under Xbox’s price.

At first the PS3 was certain to debut just after Xmas 2005, six months ago. But you know how these things are: delicate balances between expectations, features, and competitor intimidation.

Then it was Spring 2006. Then about two weeks ago I read a September 2006 launch was likely. Now news that the launch may be as far away as 2007 in the US.

Let’s look back at the current Xbox’s development for a minute. With this latetes PS3 delay news firmly in our data buffers, it’s clear one thing that MS did right was learn from their experience developing software. To get out Xbox II (”Xbox 360″), they knew they could fart around (add features) or they could get it out before PS3. They got down to business and got the thing out, hitting the Xmas 2005 target even.

Farting around would have probably seen a next-gen HD DVD drive incorporated into the 360, and would have seen it match the PS3 in horsepower, for bragging rights if nothing else. Also, MS passed up matching PS3’s 1080p video signal, settling for 1080i.

IMHO Sony’s plan to cram in a little bit more into their console than their competitor was risky. Hindsight is 20-20, but adding an unreleased technology — like say something as massive as The Next Home Movie Format — should set off alarm bells in anyone’s head. Now, it looks as if that decision could really hurt Sony because it’s still changing.

Big players in the arena are still making changes in the anti-backup OOOPS I mean anti-piracy used in Blu-ray

All MS’s non-farting around worked. I think the team was focused, and the results are tangible.

A bird in the hand…