The post-Gates era of Microsoft is already showing signs of a material difference in the company's objectives and its core message. During yesterday's keynote address for the company's single-day "Heroes Happen Here" launch event, CEO Steve Ballmer presented fewer of the meandering metaphors and enumerated participles that spawn, most obviously, from Bill Gates' mode of speech. And gone was any hint of the almost apelike stance Ballmer took during his famous "Developers, developers, developers" rant of years ago -- though it still managed to populate the screens of show visitors even yesterday, thanks to YouTube.
Instead, having been introduced by no less than Tom Brokaw, Ballmer took the stage in a dark knit suit minus the tie, and offered a more complex, nuanced message. Sure, many of the typical Microsoft-isms did pop up, including one new phrase that truly is a gem for the ages.
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