Is the Mac vs. Windows cold war finally over?

The history of computing is one of two great computing monoliths, Microsoft vs Apple. The differences and difficulties of interoperability between the two giants’ operating systems has defined much of the computing landscape which we have inherited – until now. In the last few years, fundamental changes in what personal computing looks like and what customers are able to do with it means that the stand-off between the two companies may finally be ending.

It is worth saying, of course, that there was always a degree of interoperability between the two systems. Microsoft’s hugely successful Office program range, for example – including the company’s current subscription product, Microsoft Office 365 – has long been able to produce documents in a wide range of formats that have been compatible with Apple Mac just as with Windows. Apple has been a little more cagey, but ever since the launch of the company’s iPod and iPhone product ranges, interoperability with other OSs has been an essential part of the company’s business.

These, in fact, were the first signs that the future of computing is to be far more interoperable. Computer-linked hardware products like portable music players, mobile phones and tablets would not have lasted long if they had followed the single-OS approach of software products. This has slowly led to an opening up of computing between the big brands.

Today, huge leaps have been taken with the invention and proliferation of tablet computing which, far more than any previous products, overlap to a large degree with personal computers. The result is that in order to keep up with these trends, both Microsoft and Apple are having to consider interoperability in a far more serious way than in the past. In the same way, comprehensive online software products like Google’s increasingly relevant Drive service are meaning that the duopoly of old is finally being prised open.

The future relationship between Microsoft vs Apple products is still very much a mystery, not least because Apple has lost the iconic Steve Jobs and Microsoft has attempted to reinvent itself for a touchscreen era. One thing is for sure, though: the future is going to be far less duopolistic than the past. The computing cold war is coming to an end.

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