.NET icon Brad Abrams moves on to Google

So the news is out: Brad Abrams of .NET, Silverlight and WCF fame is out of Microsoft (ok, that’s already so last week) and the next destination is Google (that’s more recent).

While I’m sad to see Microsoft lose the guy behind the holy Framework Design Guidelines and a lot of other stuff, it is something that needs to happen every now and then. But all in all, I think cross-pollination between the two technology giants is very healthy indeed.

I have realized that a big share of problems I’m seeing are actually about Microsoft vs. Google. Besides the Bing, Android and whatever battles, I frequently seem to encounter Google App Engine vs. Azure (and Google Docs vs. Microsoft BPOS) as well as GData vs. OData. Many of these questions are unnecessarily polarized by stark attitudes, but beside that, there is a whole lot of common between the offerings.

What the world really needs is people knowledgeable in both. It’s great to have people like Jon Skeet working for Google but also super-active in the Microsoft programmer scene. And again, it’s great to have somebody with as intimate Microsoft knowledge as Brad inside Google.

My hope is that the situation isn’t just used to grab the competitor’s secrets, but rather to understand things more broadly and push the envelope. Both companies have the resources and only need the vision. Microsoft’s sore points are design issues and slow execution of plans, while Google could certainly use some of Microsoft’s wisdom in creating developer communities. Good luck, Brad!

May 6, 2010 · Jouni Heikniemi · No Comments
Tags: Google · Posted in: General