Microsoft Goes to Pieces - Computerworld

Microsoft Goes to Pieces - Computerworld: "Having survived efforts to break up its Windows monopoly, Microsoft is now leading the charge to break up the very operating system it defended. With the release of Longhorn in 2007, the company has said it will offer 'role-based' versions of Windows in which only the code needed to perform a given function will be included in a particular build of the operating system. It seems that the monolithic, one-size-fits-all approach to Windows may finally be reaching the end of the road.
...
Microsoft's approach also represents a calculated response to Linux. The open-source operating system has done well in focused server roles, in part because IT professionals can disassemble the kernel and recombine the pieces required to create a purpose-built version of Linux. In so doing, it gives administrators a lot more flexibility than Windows allows today."