It's unofficial: Ballmer is No. 2

NEW ORLEANS -- To no one's surprise, the unofficial "No. 2 guy" at Microsoft is Executive Vice President Steve Ballmer. But have you ever heard you-know-who say it before? I hadn't, until Monday.

In a seemingly off-handed remark during a press conference at CA World in New Orleans, Gates referred to Ballmer "as the No. 2 guy at Microsoft."

Is Bill preparing us for his exit? Has he had enough of traveling to trade shows and talking up technology? Word was he delayed his trip to CA World so he could celebrate his daughter's second birthday on Sunday.

Also, what does Ballmer's official No. 2 status mean for other top Microsoft execs like Bob Herbold, Paul Maritz or Jim Allchin?

In February, 1997, Gates told PC Week he'd probably hand over control of Microsoft by the time he turns 50. That does not happen until Oct. 28, 2005.

The big question
As Gates walked off stage, I tried to get off one question. He looked at me, hesitated, smiled and said "sorry." He must've read my mind. I was going to ask if he thought all the governmental investigation into the company would delay the planned June 25 delivery of Windows 98?. No upside for him answering that one.

Gates used to be marvelously accessible after press conferences and speeches, but now he's backstage quicker than a Big Blue suit.

So we were left to wonder what the message really was. In my experience with Gates, remarks like that are neither innocent nor unintended.

He was sharing a stage with CA Chairman and CEO Charles B. Wang. Together, they were hyping a deal where CA's Real World Interface, a browser-based application that views Enterprise Systems Management (ESM) data, will be installed directly in the forthcoming NT 5.0.

Despite the event's arcane nature, the room was filled with reporters, TV camera and analysts. Even a bemused Gates said he was surprised the topic would get "quite this much attention and press."

Of course, they were they because Bill was. For the most part, he stuck to the script, but when a reporter asked him to compare two competing ESM standards - WBEM (Web-based Enterprise) and the Java Management API, he couldn't help himself.

"I guess you can put a J in front of anything," he said, an obvious shot at Java. Then he praised WBEM as "not where one company is doing the standard." That was a tweak at Sun, which ultimately decides the fate of Java.

And while we're dissecting his words, one other comment jumped out at me for its deliciously obvious nature. Asked where CA and Microsoft compete, he and Wang said there is very little overlap between the two companies' stable of products. "Heterogeneous systems is not an area where Microsoft has chosen to invest."

Now that's an understatement.