No doubt links to stories like the Washington Post's Microsoft Outlines Next Move in Antitrust Case will proliferate on the web today:

Microsoft Corp. plans to argue in court hearings next week that if antitrust sanctions sought by state prosecutors are granted, the company would be forced to pull its latest Windows computer operating systems off the market and be unable to develop new systems.

In court filings late Friday, the company said the recently released consumer operating system, Windows XP, and the business-oriented Windows 2000 system could not be redesigned to satisfy state demands that they be made available in separate versions, with and without key programs, such as the Internet Explorer Web browser.

I find it hard to believe that Microsoft would have 'accidentally' made their systems so dependent on IE. It has to be a deliberate design decision. So, IE is Microsoft's cyanide pill. What Microsft are saying is that rather than reengineer Windows they'd bite down on the pill. Hah!

Or maybe it's more akin to MAD - Mutually Assured Destruction B-}

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