With so many technology jobs being axed, it?s refreshing to see that Microsoft is still hiring. Here?s a position that was recently posted on the Web:

Director, Open Source Desktop Strategy at Microsoft

Job description: The Windows Competitive Strategy team is looking for a strong team member to lead Microsoft?s global desktop competitive strategy as it relates to open source competitors. Our team mission is to gather intelligence, create business strategies, and drive action in the marketplace for the Windows Client business. In this job, you will be asked to think strategically, put yourself in the mindset of our competitors, influence multi-million-dollar marketing campaigns, and drive high-level executive thinking around business strategy.

As the Director of Open Source Desktop Strategy you will need to drive research and build holistic strategies across dynamic market segments like PCs, netbooks, and mobile Internet devices. You will be responsible for bringing our business strategy to life by discovering and sharing the market insights that set the foundation for our platform value dialogue with customers and the industry.

If we translate that into English and add some context, here?s what we might get:

Microsoft is looking for someone to figure out what to do against open source alternatives to Windows, including increasingly popular Linux desktop distributions such as Ubuntu. The company wants to gather a boatload of information about these competitors and develop strategies that will make people choose Windows over these free alternatives. You will have to think like Microsoft?s open source competitors, suggest ways to spend millions of marketing dollars to counter them, and help high-level company executives come up with a plan to deal with these open source alternatives. Strategies should cover traditional PC form factors, netbooks and other mobile devices where Linux is gaining ground. You will be responsible for finding reasons that will convince our customers to keep paying for Windows instead of switching to free operating systems that do pretty much the same thing.

Now I know I?m a little too old for the job, but I like a good challenge as much as the next guy, so here?s what I would do if Microsoft hired me.

First, I would install the latest version of Ubuntu on my office PC and use it exclusively for a few weeks, just to get to know ?the enemy.? Along the way, I would jot down the following advantages: 1) the operating system is free; 2) there are no annoying checks to see if I am using pirated software; 3) there is no real danger of viruses; 4) it?s just as easy to use as Windows; 5) the hardware requirements are less steep than Vista; and 6) there are free alternatives to the most common software applications, including MS Office. On a second column, I would jot down Ubuntu?s disadvantages: 1) It won?t run most Windows games; 2) some hardware won?t work with it out of the box; 3) It isn?t made or controlled by Microsoft. (I know, this last item isn?t really a disadvantage, but let?s pretend I work for Microsoft.)

Second, after doing a thorough survey of the market, and incorporating my own first-hand experience, I would recommend: 1) That we (Microsoft) market to our strength?Windows is a great game platform and we should play this up in all our marketing messages. 2) We still own 90 percent of the market, so there is still a lot of fear and uncertainty that we can foster about Linux. (You?ll go blind if you use Linux, so stick to Windows!) At the same time, we need to browbeat those pesky hardware vendors who are bundling Linux on their netbooks. That shouldn?t be too difficult, since there aren?t that many of them. Let?s see... there?s Acer, Asus, Dell, MSI and HP?wait a minute, doesn?t that list include three of the top five PC companies? Maybe they?re onto us. 3) Drum up interest in Windows 7 and never refer to Windows Vista again. 4) We must make sure Windows 7 lives up to the hype. Maybe we can open source it... 5) Make sure we sell only one version of the operating system, instead of artificially selling crippled versions for less money. 6) We need to do something about the price advantage of Linux, which is essentially free. We could cut the price of Windows dramatically, to, say, $20 a copy, or even give it away, especially to the poor saps who bought Vista. The second option has the added advantage of removing the need for copy protection. No pesky lawsuits by irate users who do not like software companies spying on them. 7) Silence all those pesky technology writers who are telling people they can do very well without Windows or Windows applications. Maybe we can offer them a job with the Open Source Desktop Team and toss all their findings in a drawer while we pump up the marketing machine for Windows 7.

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