The lost generation of computers and Microsoft’s new opportunity

From March 13 Google ceases support for older browsers like Internet Explorer 6. This presents a great opportunity for Microsoft to grab the lost generation of computer users.

The lost generation are the computer users who’ve skipped the last few five year cycles of computer upgrades. There are two reasons for this: Windows Vista’s poor reputation and the concept of “good enough computing”.

While Vista has a lot to answer for, good enough computing is the main villain — for most household and business users, a Pentium IV running Windows 98 or XP with Internet Explorer 6 was good enough for their daily computer needs.

So Google’s move to abandon older browsers is going to force many of that lost generation to upgrade. This means those running computers more than six years old will probably be looking at new systems rather than the expense and compromises of upgrading.

A year ago, the smart money would have been on many users buying netbooks running Linux and a good proportion switching to Apple Macs, however Microsoft’s release of Windows 7 has turned the tables and it’s fairly safe to say most upgraders will be sticking with Windows. Which is a great opportunity for Microsoft to claw back market share and revenue.

Microsoft’s challenge lies in convincing these buyers to upgrade their other software. Many of these people will baulk at spending several hundred dollars on new office, photo editing or entertainment software, given much of it is available cheap or for free on cloud-based services.

For home and business computer owners the next month will be the time to consider if your older computers are due for an upgrade. If you find they stop doing the things you want or are slow and unreliable then it might be time to consider your upgrade options.

For more Tech Talk blogs, click here.

Paul Wallbank is a writer, speaker and broadcaster on technology issues. He founded national support organisation PC Rescue in 1995 and has spent over 14 years helping businesses get the most from their IT investment. His PC Rescue and IT Queries websites provide free advice to business computer users and his monthly newsletter has over 3,000 subscribers.