Writing for The Seattle Times , Glenn Fleishman said that Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit exhibits “a lack of attention to detail.” The comments are in a new Practical Mac column entitled Microsoft unit bungles details on its OS X applications.
Admitting that Mac users’ enmity with Microsoft is less deserved than ever given the “superb” overall quality of its efforts like Office v. X and Internet Explorer, Fleishman also noted that he’s given up entirely on Microsoft’s OS X-native e-mail app Entourage in favor of Bare Bones Software’s Mailsmith. Fleishman chalks up his switch to problems with corruption to his e-mail database and Entourage’s painfully slow search capabilities.
Fleishman is also disappointed with Microsoft’s lack of ability to get a Palm OS conduit working with Entourage (one was released and then pulled from circulation shortly thereafter). Fleishman cited Power On Software’s example as a case done right: That company has a working Palm conduit for their Now Up To Date and Now Contact software working on OS X.
Encouraging Microsoft to make good on a promise to open up a “direct line of communication” to the Mac business unit on its MacTopia Web site, Fleishman added, “Given the missteps and remaining problems in otherwise terrific software, it might be time for MacBU to launch that feedback line and do what the company does best: listen.”