Yesteray I read that Microsoft finally was introducing tabbed browsing for IE. It was by way of the MSN Toolbar, but still it was a momentous moment for Microsoft. Of course, The IE weblog mentioned that IE7 will have tabbed browsing, but that will not be available until the end of the year at the earliest.

For many years, Microsoft has clamored about how their customers were not interested in tabbed browsing–all of their research indicated that wasn’t a big deal. However, I think that anyone who has used tabbed browsing knows how great it is, and tabs are one of the reasons for Firefox’s success.
So Microsoft has changed their opinion…way too late. A comment on the IE Blog astutely states:

Stop gloating about how you’ve caught up with five years ago

Microsoft is five years behind the times because they chose to follow their narrow perspective and to ignore what the public was saying. Sure, they hid it with “case studies” and “market research” but I suspect that they found the answers they were looking for. One of the leaders of the division didn’t like tabbed browsing, so it wasn’t on the plans for the product.
I know of another organization who was handicapped its web team because it won’t allow javascript on the site. The directive against javascript came from the top. Why? you may ask… The “official” answer is that some people don’t have it and the site would be inaccessible for them. Some people do have javascript turned off, but I suspect that it only matters that one person has javascript turned off: the boss. [Digression: I'll post some day about bosses that meddle with their employees skill one day].
Here’s the deal…Microsoft has finally caught the picture and made the change to tabbed browsing. Great for them! But think of all the time and money they wasted attempting to fortify their position. Their once impenetrable hold on the browser market is beginning to fade.
In your life and your company, do you have a set of “ideals” that you blindly follow; concepts that you are enamored with; things that you hold onto without contemplating and analyzing if they are beneficial for you?
We should reconsider our presuppositions and stubborn goals to ensure that they are not hindering our progress in life.