I don't usually comment on technical things here, but I think Adobe's acquisition of Macromedia deserves mention.
I have been a big fan of both companies' products for many years. Unlike most "knowledge workers" who spend their days in Microsoft Office, as a web designer/photographer most of my days are spent in Adobe Photoshop and Macromedia Dreamweaver and Flash - I almost never use Microsoft products, as much a function of my work as much as my preference.
And Microsoft is the elephant in this equation: Adobe feels the need to bulk-up against them, and I wouldn't disagree at all.
But where does that leave us ordinary people? With fewer choices and less competition.
As companies get larger and larger, they get slower and slower; less interested in innovation and more interested in market share. We've got five major oil companies, four record companies, three wireless companies, two operating systems companies -- how does this concentration of assets help anyone except the companies and their stockholders?
As Devo once said in a lyric, "Freedom Of Choice is what you've got, Freedom from Choice is what you want."
Well, we're getting it. Everyday there are fewer providers than the day before; whether it's pineapples, television programs, surfboards or software.
Think about that next time you abandon the corner store for the big box down the road...
