10 Better Questions for Don Box

In a recent interview of Don Box by Mary Jo Foley, I expressed my disappointment over the dullest of both the questions and the answers. Uncharacteristically ducking criticism, Don provided details of my frequent stays at his house suggesting an unhealthy love of his pets (which I love the normal amount, I promise). While this was amusing, it doesn’t give anyone any more information than Mary Jo’s interview did.

Anyway, talking about it on the phone just now, Don agreed with me that the interview turned out much less interesting than he intended and promised to make amends. Specifically, he said, “Chris, send me 10 questions and I’ll answer them.” So, here’s your chance. Reply to this post with the hardest hitting, most revealing questions and I’ll pick the best 10 to send along to Don. Don’t hold back — all questions are fair, although I’ll focus first on Indigo, then Longhorn, then technology in general before getting to Don’s own love of his pets (for example). Here’re some questions to seed your thinking:

-How does the version of Indigo shipping with Longhorn relate to what’s currently being used internally at MS? How does it relate to what you actually plan on shipping?

-What should an ASP.NET or WSE programmer *really* do today to prepare for Indigo?

-What’s the biggest surprise about the inner workings at MS?

-If you could do one thing to change MS, what would it be?

-If you could do one thing to change the IT industry, what would it be?

-How can ISVs be successful in the current IT industry?

-What’s the next big thing that’ll change the IT industry?

-What do you think is cool that doesn’t get enough attention?

-Has family scrutiny caused you to stop dressing your pugs in clown suits before expressing your love for them?