The much ballyhooed new version of Windows from Microsoft will be on store shelves for the first time Thursday --- drummed into town with a $200 million marketing campaign that includes Madonna. But Windows XP is being introduced at a nightmare of a time for a new product. It's a frightened world and one where the economy is on the downswing. Definitely not a material world. In fact, after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Microsoft considered pushing the product launch back. But a telephone conversation between New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Microsoft co-founder and Chairman Bill Gates persuaded the software giant to go ahead with business as usual.
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