Windows user share dips below 90%
The proportion of Internet users running Windows has dropped below 90 percent for the first time. While the dip may be more pronounced thanks to a timing quirk, it’s symbolic of a consistent trend.
The figures come from Net Applications which monitors visitors to websites owned by its clients. That’s not a perfect measure but as the client list runs into the thousands, it’s a pretty decent sample size.
During November ‘only’ 89.6 percent of users were running Windows, down from 90.44 percent in October, which is apparently the biggest monthly fall in the survey’s history. Mac OS X is up to 8.9 percent, with Linux at 0.83 percent.
The study noted a significant fall in XP’s share and rise for Vista which suggests the effect of the removal of XP from most mainstream sales has started to kick in.
It was bad news all-round for Microsoft as the browser figures showed Internet Explorer fell below 70 percent for the first time, with Firefox breaking through the 20 percent barrier.
While there’s no disputing the general pattern of Microsoft losing market share in both operating systems and browsers, the November figures may look artificially bad according to the staff behind the study. That’s because home users are much more likely to run Macs or Linux and try different browsers (it’s easier for a single user to switch than an entire corporate network).
Not only did November have an unusually high 10 weekend days, but most American computer users will have had one or two extra days off work for Thanksgiving. This means more website visits than usual will have been from home machines.
Given that it still dominates the operating system market, the 90 percent barrier is more symbolic than anything else for Microsoft. However, with browsers such as Firefox not being system-specific, there’s more likelihood of users experimenting, and it’s certainly conceivable the day will come when Internet Explorer is no longer used by the majority.
Related Posts:
December 4th, 2008
Quote: “The proportion of Internet users running Windows has dropped below 90 percent for the first time.”
Quote: “[...] figures showed Internet Explorer fell below 70 percent for the first time”
Thus confirming that “if things continue like this, Microsoft are going to succumb to the technical equivalent of death by a thousand cuts”.
Quote: “It was bad news all-round for Microsoft”.
vista.blorge.com agrees with Hugh. What a shocker.
QED, Ken.
December 4th, 2008
Quote: During November ‘only’ 89.6 percent of users were running Windows, down from 90.44 percent in October.
Yeah, that .4 is a real killer. Expect everyone to dump the stock, immediately switch to BSD.
For those of us without Microsoft Derangement Syndrome: Yawn.
This wasn’t a real strong example of statistical evidence of the failure of Microsoft.
The leap of reporting a .4 meaning Microsoft is on the ropes is funny. Stopped quoting a bit soon didn’t you?
“While there’s no disputing the general pattern of Microsoft losing market share in both operating systems and browsers, the November figures may look artificially bad according to the staff behind the study. That’s because home users are much more likely to run Macs or Linux and try different browsers (it’s easier for a single user to switch than an entire corporate network).”
Meaning those big fat VLA’s are still pumping in the cash.
Thanks for playing. Apple is uninterested in the enterprise and Linux won’t be able to get much in the way of Desktops. The base OS isn’t where the majority of MS money comes from.
I’m not happy about it, I would much prefer a more open standard, but facts are facts.
And before you get all happy about this section of the blorge agreeing with you, 99% of the posts in this section are slanted against MS. Here is the text of an email I sent on 5/25/08 to John:
John,
Have you noticed the 99.9% anti/ridicule Microsoft and Vista in that section ? And all the gushing Apple love and inept MS in the Mac section? None of my business, of course, but it’s been like that for months. It seemed to really kick into high gear when Jonathon got his MacPro. Are any of your bloggers even running Vista? Perhaps you might find someone who is running Linux since that is also changing the market and gets an entry every once in a while.”
I’ve tossed the reply, but it was a polite thanks for the input and I’ll bring it up with the staff.
Agreeing with you is not a shock.
December 5th, 2008
Ken,
The article above notes that the latest figures are symptomatic of a trend. So it’s not the size of the change that matters, but rather the trend. Microsoft appears to be going downhill – surely this shouldn’t be too hard for a “Director” to understand?
As for the “99.9% anti/ridicule Microsoft and Vista in that section”, I personally think that it’s great. Anyone who knows how much venom Microsoft have spewed out over the years recognises poetic justice when they see it (you do know, don’t you, that he he lives by the sword will die by the sword?). I would also have to say that if there is a strong slant against Microsoft and Vista, any anti-MS comments I might post are in fact very much in a relevant vein, contrary to your assertions elsewhere.
“I’m not happy about it, I would much prefer a more open standard, but facts are facts.”
It sounds like you’re not happy period. Your posts make you sound ambivalent, and sometimes the suspicion crosses my mind that you are in fact a Microsoft shill. You are prone to accuse others of foaming at the mouth, but it seems to be *you* who is often going off like a packet of crackers. I think that you should try and keep things in perspective, and not get so carried away – after all, this is a discussion regarding I.T., it’s not a religious war.
December 7th, 2008
Yeah, I’m a Microsoft shill. This site is full of my pro MS commentary.
I don’t believe I’ve ever started a comment by admitting I had never used the ribbon interface in Office ( the subject of the article) and never intend to followed by Microsoft is the Devil statements.
The size of the change is indeed relevant. I also understand a time tested measure of the health of a company is profit and income and which direction it’s headed.
Microsoft revenue is larger now than it was pre-Vista. Asserting Vista is the monumental, game changing OS of doom is wishful thinking unsupported by any facts I’ve seen. It’s hard to see any support of your downhill claims.
The Director also understands when the people who gather and publish the information say it is likely skewed and inaccurate, .4 is going to fall in the margin of error. But accuracy and numbers is hardly a concern in a religious war, now is it.
I don’t disagree that Linux has many advantages over various Microsoft products. I really do feel it’s superior. I also felt my Betamax was much better than my VHS.
That isn’t what we were discussing. We were talking about the market and Microsoft’s position in it. You’ve stated at various times Microsoft has no credibility, is collapsing and is doomed.
I belonged to a Linux forum for several years that was very useful because the users would discuss the strengths and weakness of the OS in a clinical manner and the moderator worked diligently at keeping the discussions focused on reality.
Most of us were Pro’s who viewed this stuff as tools to accomplish tasks and kept the fanboy stuff to a minimum. Sure we kicked around MS and Gates and marketing and business practices. We also hammered people who tried to tell us Linux was a superior consumer desktop back in 2000.
It was stated pretty clearly in the mission statement if you were looking for an echo chamber fan club you should keep looking. We didn’t want a person dropping in for the first time out of curiosity to be driven off or thinking you needed a penguin tattooed on the ass or seeing perfectly logical positions on why Microsoft Windows was better in certain aspects getting hammered on by zealots. We were perfectly fine with any position backed by logic.
Stating Windows was much better handling wireless would get agreement and a dispassionate discussion of the reasons without overtones of Gates using underhanded bribery and torture to shore up his evil empire built on sand. We had a lively, robust little corner of cyberspace and a lot of referrals from MS forums because our reputation was a place to get information without having to separate truth from axe grinding.
The moderator reached a point of being unable to continue and passed control to a person who had the opinion the main use of Linux was to vanquish Microsoft back to the 9th pit of hell it sprung from. You’d love him. Logic and reason flew out the door, people stating any position even mildly positive to MS was hooted at and called a shill.
It drew MS haters, no new blood and anyone there for a look see saw the odds of credible discussion wasn’t happening. Where we used to see new folks switching using attraction, very few new folks stuck around long. A forum that was averaging 3000 posts a month, very good for Linux in 1999-2002, dropped to 1000, and in 8 months 300. 90% of us left. More time was spent on negative MS bashing.
You will never beat Microsoft at promotion and Linux suffers when the source of information is a fanboy. Your credibility is zero.
I don’t doubt you think 99.9 % of skewed information is wonderful. You get to hang at the he-man Gates hater club where accuracy doesn’t matter and reasonable people ignore what you say because, well, lookup fanatic.
It is much easier that way. You never need to respond by backing up assertions with evidence. Much easier to attack the source with some long distance psychology.
If you want a better illustration, go to Macworld and read some comments, Then go to MacDaily News and do the same.
“anyone who knows how much venom Microsoft have spewed out over the years recognises poetic justice when they see it “.
“I think that you should try and keep things in perspective, and not get so carried away – after all, this is a discussion regarding I.T., it’s not a religious war.”
The irony is amazing. At any rate, this is my last comment on this. I commented hoping you’d understand people who are curious won’t listen to a fanatic.
Dropping totally off topic comments and hateful rhetoric plays only to the choir and makes you a member of a club average folks don’t want to belong to. I seem ambivalent to you because real life nothing is a 100% negative or positive. That means balanced and honest to most folks. It is shill to you.