Arjuna Krishna Das posted a link to an Information Week article on Microsoft’s fine from the European Union.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206900497
“Specifically, the EC ruled that Microsoft was overcharging rivals for the documentation they need to make their server products interoperable with Windows-based PCs and servers. The decision was upheld last year by Europe’s second highest court.
Following the ruling, the EC ordered Microsoft to make its technical documentation available to rivals under “reasonable” terms and conditions and to work to make its technologies more interoperable with third-party products.”
I seem to recall a presentation a few years back, where someone said that Microsoft was using journalists rather than technical authors to develop the Help for the Microsoft Vista Operating System.
Maybe there’s now a ROI case for Microsoft using more technical authors?
Yes, they could do a really professional job on Vista documentation, but I’m afraid this would be the equivalent of putting lipstick on a pig. In the end, you’re still kissing a pig.