Last month I talked about Apple and its push for the corporate desktop with Mac OS X. Well, apparently the corporate desktop is going to receive even more attention, this time from Sun Microsystems. Thin-client computing is back on the radar, as is Sun's office productivity suite, StarOffice.

Sun is attacking what it sees as the soft underbelly of Microsoft - namely licensing costs and total cost of ownership (TCO) - with a whole raft of thin-client solutions that will integrate with existing Microsoft technologies. As with Apple, integration with Microsoft - whether Microsoft likes it or not - appears to be the order of the day.

When Sun first promoted StarOffice many moons ago, it would have taken a brave man to predict that the suite would be a key weapon in the company's attack on Microsoft, but that now appears to be the case. Functionality of office suites is set to become a hot topic, at least if Sun gets its way.

The Sun proposition, unsurprisingly, is that the huge functionality of Microsoft Office is wasted on the vast majority of users. They just want a simple word processor they can type a letter on, or a spreadsheet that allows them to add up a few numbers. Microsoft, also unsurprisingly, would dispute that claim, saying that there are more "power users" in organisations than vendors such as Sun would like us to believe.

Probably the truth lies somewhere in between. Businesses still have a choice between the two desktop office suites, or they could use both. If they choose one then Microsoft will win nine times out of 10; many firms won't want to take a risk with Sun's lowest common denominator. On the other hand, if they decide to use both then the value proposition becomes less clear-cut.

Regardless of the specific pros and cons of one solution over another, Microsoft's licensing and high prices are seen as a chink in its armour. Anyone with an appreciation of irony must take delight in the thought that while Microsoft is aiming to move its products higher up the food chain, those IT vendors that have existed at the uppermost echelons are moving lower to try and remove the foundations beneath Microsoft.

Another irony is that everyone's favourite stick with which to beat Sun - the issue of proprietary solutions - is being now being brandished by Sun itself. With a finesse worthy of a champion bridge player, Sun is putting itself forward as a company that can help open up Microsoft systems with alternatives to Microsoft products.

These developments show that after several years when the pickings for vendors were easy, and competitive positioning owed more to hyperbole and posturing than true product differentiation, the gloves are now off.

Users are now, quite rightly, demanding solutions that are cost-effective and do not require corporate tie-in for the next 20 years, and some vendors are trying to answer the call.

Have your say: contact IT Week

More IT Week Comments