Novell's conference won them over.) "We gave away 2,000 copies of Netware," chuckles Stone.
Still, Novell could be the rockiest test. The Active Directory, a crucial piece of the upcoming Windows 2000, competes head-to-head with Novell's flagship product. While Beton's team negotiates with Stone's team to make sure Novell's directory runs well on Windows 2000, it's also out touting the benefits of the Active Directory to large software developers like SAP (SAP).
"The directory is my major business," says Stone. "There are lines being drawn in the sand."
The ultimate goal of Beton's battle is the spread of Windows 2000 far and wide. Microsoft can't achieve that goal without convincing other developers to make Windows applications, despite its history of other antics: dominating the market with its own applications - the Office desktop applications, for example - or making third-party products superfluous by building features like browsers or networking software right into Windows.
Competing with Windows developers can cause a lot of "collateral damage," Beton acknowledges. He won't say how much influence he has on product strategy decisions, but, he says, "on behalf of companies we work with, we've recommended that Microsoft not do certain things."
As if the pressure of his divided role isn't enough, Beton will have more responsibility as the company reorganizes. He's now in charge of all developer outreach, including trade shows and Microsoft's online support resources. What's more, when his boss Tod Nielsen was dispatched to Washington, D.C., to help shore up flagging PR efforts during the antitrust trial, Morris took over most of his duties in Redmond.
That's a lot of pressure to add to Beton's shoulders, which makes what could be the toughest job at Microsoft even tougher. Adversaries like Novell's Stone shake their heads: "Man, I'd hate to be those guys."
