While I agree with all the comments presented, the problem is that large companies sow the seeds of FUD constantly. Micro$oft is not alone in rubbishing their competition.

Busy non-technical managers are constantly bombarded with corporate propaganda, and they see the argument that company X makes OS Y, which works well with application Z. If it's all the same company it must work better!

I've just convinced my managment team to go with a Linux/mySQL/Apache/mod_Perl/mod_PHP web solution, that I'll custom write for them. The arguments have not been technical at all, but it's been a case of using FUD against the original NT/MS-SQL/IIS/ASP model.

While there is no ONE way, at the same time we can't stand around pontificating TMTOWTDI, while the industry "ONE WAY" monsters flatten us. While we may have won the tecnhical arguments, MS et al still have the hearts and minds of most corporate managment teams.

Thus even though there is no one way, we must at least sing from the same hymn sheet, even if we are singing different things!

I don't know how to phrase this properly, but we have to project, as a user body, a united front with one corporate voice. Even though we do things differently we must strees our unity, that is to say that the more than one way is our one way!

Our detractors see "more than one way" as our great weakness, we have to win the management argument that this is our strength. We can't use tecnhological arguments, you should see their eyes glaze over, we have to win on the home territory of the enemy, we need to win in the board rooms of corporations, not the operations room.

My very humble 2p.