Why do developers choose Microsoft® ?

Note: This is a post I will probably update once I get more ideas or thoughts I want to share. :)

It should come as no surprise that the majority of today's developer are mostly focused on technologies built on and for the frameworks offered by Microsoft®.

The topic of this post is why is that?

Basically we have an always evolving Market, that is always asking for better tooling and better software. Microsoft® is the biggest supplier of such software having their own operating system, as well as great development tools like Visual Studio and a platform like .Net that makes it easier, faster and funnier to develop programs.

Microsoft also offers Visual Studio® as Express Edition. What this means is that you have people curios about developing on the platforms offered by Microsoft® some nice tools with obvious limitations that let's them test the products and even develop programs.

Whenever you ask someone that is "old" in the industry ( by old I mean he has 10 years+ experience in the field ) they will always choose Microsoft® technologies because life is nicer when it's safer, and with Microsoft® you have the assurance that they will continue to improve the technologies that you are offered.

Most of the times they offer limitations to the products you are offered because there will always be those who will fill the loop holes for personal gain.

It's basically a symbiotic relationship, we pay Microsoft for the software we use. Others pay us to use and extend these products. To be honest I haven't really found any other software organization that gives so many extension points.

There are obviously those who hate that Microsoft® makes so much money and forces you to use their system and that it doesn't integrate nicely with stuff that was not built for their framework. I sometimes wish that I could write once deploy everywhere.

Well There is Mono. And my hopes are that they will do what Microsoft didn't directly do. Novel is the firm that's behind Mono, although it's an open-source project funding comes from the private domain, and Novel has partnerships with Microsoft.

Thinking of conspiracies and such is beyond me. The point is that Microsoft® offers security and a lot of jobs. Since in order to live we require money, it's probably best to have security over hate ;). Just go with the flow and never settle for just one thing.