So my University, like all respected Universities around the land, has a Microsoft Student Ambassador. The dude [or dudette] has the task of advertising MS events, products, get students in touch with MS etc. And, unlike some other places that I’ve heard of nowadays, there was a Vista launch event last week. We got the e-mail - spam, as it may be, I think there’s something useful to be gained from knowing when these things are, professional connections are never a bad thing.

But then the guy posts the same thing [below] to the course newsgroups.

Hey all

So you have heard all the hype about the new OS from Microsoft–Windows Vista.

Are you eager to have a click through it to see some of its new features? Do you have any questions you would like to ask but not sure who can answer?

Then this is the event for you!

Your Microsoft Student Partner of <name of institution> will be hosting a Campus Launch Event for all students of <same institution>.

At this event, you will learn new features of the operating system and also get some hands on experience to play with the OS.

[...]

Now, in what I believe to be a sad attempt at generating more audience, the day before the event the newsgroups got this message too. Big props to one of my TAs for laying it as it was - that course newsgroups are not meant for these things etc. Putting aside any issues I may or may not have with Microsoft, there is a lot to be said in how they choose their reps. After all, the Partner/Ambassador does reflect, to some extent, the image of the company. His methods were lame and poorly thought out - do I need to mention that he did not cross-post the message but actually went into every one of the computer science groups and put this in? - and did not win any sympathy from people that had issues with Microsoft before. Sure, maybe Redmond does not care - or do they? After all, their existing user base, as large as it may be, needs to be kept across the new generations of coders, hackers and technology enthusiasts that are coming up. This includes me, my TA, my friends that have good business ideas ready to pursue once they graduate and maybe have not decided on a platform just yet.

People kept saying that geeks bear little in the way of decision-making in jobs and companies. That even a community like Slashdot has a limited potential to eat into Microsoft’s share of the bounty despite the wide array of people that may want to cause that. That Linux is not yet ready for prime-time.

Think about the Firefox revolution. Think about Apple’s increasing market share. Does Microsoft really want to screw themselves up in Universities, where their next customers or employees are coming from?