Posted at 11:51 AM PT, Feb 2, 1999
WASHINGTON - - In an embarrassing slip-up in Microsoft’s defense, the company’s expert technical witness conceded that a videotaped demonstration was mistaken when it purported to show delays in the Windows 98 operating system caused by a program that attempts to remove the Internet Explorer Web browser. However, he then came back after a break to explain what he said really happened in the tape.
The embarrassment came during the second day of cross-examination of James Allchin, Microsoft’s senior vice president in charge of Windows, who is also testifying as the company’s technical witness. On Monday, Allchin testified to the accuracy of a two-hour videotape that showed – among many other things – Microsoft employees demonstrating flaws in a program that one of the government’s technical witnesses, Princeton University computer scientist Edward Felten, wrote to try to remove, or hide, the IE browser from Windows 98. Microsoft contends the browser is so deeply embedded into the operating system that it cannot be removed without damaging operating system functions.
In order to demonstrate that “performance degradation” results from the removal program, the company’s video attempted to show that the operating system was slowed when a user attempted to call up the Windows Update function.
“It’s taking a very long time – unusually long – to access that Web site,” an announcer says on the tape.
But David Boies, the U.S. Justice Department’s lead attorney in its antitrust case against Microsoft, introduced his own screen shots that demonstrated how a title bar at the top of the screen changed after the Felten removal program was run, from saying “MS Internet Explorer” to saying “Win98.” In Microsoft’s videotape, the screen still showed “MS Internet Explorer” during the purported delays.
“This video you brought in and vouched for in court and testified how much you checked, that’s just wrong, isn’t it?” Boies said, to the chagrin of the soft-spoken and mild-mannered Allchin, who looked like a deer caught in the headlights.
“In this case, I don’t think the Felten program was run,” Allchin admitted.
“It’s not slow due to the Felten program,” Boies continued. “It’s slow because of Windows 98, isn’t it?”
“The performance problem exists,” Allchin countered. “I apparently didn’t check the title bar close enough. But I personally tested this and I know it to be a fact.”
“How could your people have run this program calling it the Felten program?” Boies went on, going in for the kill. “You do understand you swore this was accurate, don’t you?”
“To the best of my ability,” Allchin said.
“You know it does matter whether what you say here is right or wrong. You know that does matter?” Boies asked, mostly as a rhetorical question.
“What’s on the screen is the truth,” Allchin said.
“I accept you telling the truth,” Boies stated, “but your trust was misplaced.”
What’s worse is that we’re always joking about the Thundercats when our three feline companions are in the throes of their “10 o’clock crazies” and are tearing through the house like a gang of wild things. So much for cats being quiet critters!
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Bravo!