After spending three and a half years, five million hours of labor and $2 billion, Microsoft begins a huge campaign today to woo millions of computer programmers to use its new generation of Internet software tools. Programming tools may be an arcane niche of the computer industry. But, underscoring how crucial the new campaign is to Microsoft's strategy for growth, Bill Gates, the chairman, is scheduled to speak to thousands of software developers in San Francisco, and Steven A. Ballmer, the chief executive, will speak to thousands more in Chicago.
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