Interesting Opinion Column on Microsoft's 2009 Successes

"The year 2009 was pretty good to Microsoft, even as the weak economy ravaged sales. Microsoft actually did a few things right. The did-wrong list will come later today.... For now, I present the list of 10 things Microsoft did right in 2009 -- in no order of importance. They're all important. Microsoft: 1. Flawlessly launched Windows 7...."

Read the article to see whether you agree with Joe Wilcox on these 10 items or not. As a fan of Windows 7, I'm not surprised to see it at the head of the list. Bing also seems to make sense, and Silverlight and PCs with less bloatware are probably worthy of applause. However, I have mixed feelings about Security Essentials, although that is primarily a carryover of the "Microsoft is gobbling up all the small guys" mentality. And I cannot help but wonder about the Microsoft retail stores, in light of the difficulty other computer / technology stores have had: is two stores enough to really improve sales? If not, can even Microsoft afford to launch and maintain a nationwide chain?