WinFS: Stamping out the Roach Motel

For those of you unfamiliar with Don’s reference, a “roach motel” lets roaches in, but never lets them out. That’s exactly what most apps do today, i.e. take data in from users or import routines, but never let it out again. As Don states, one of the chief benefits of WinFS is that data that apps store in it will be available to other apps, thereby letting the roaches out of the hotel. Where Don’s analogy breaks down is that in the case of application data, letting the roaches back out of the hotel is actually a good thing. : )