While .NET may offer lower development costs, we should all be careful before we drink the MS Kool-aid.

There are other factors that CIOs must consider before making the leap. Those factors are the cost of maintenance, licensing, support, security, downtime, and the danger of putting all of the corporate eggs in one basket.

Do you really want Bill G. to own you? If you buy your DB, desktops, servers, development tools, networking, enterprise framework, (etc...) from Mr. Bill, you lock yourself into his world. A world where competitors are eliminated, customer negotiation is non-existent, and vendor support is defined as "Yeah, it does that sometimes. Just reboot the box. If that doesn't work, then reload the OS and the application. If that doesn't work, then we'll sell you our 9th OS REPLACEMENT in 7 years. You'll be no better off Mr. Customer, but at least I'll have another billion."

Bill: "Microsoft is committed to better security! Trust me!"

Press: "Microsoft hit by Slammer worm. The worm that MS warned you about 6 months ago."

Press: "Microsoft distributes virus on .NET development tools CD."

I'm not saying that .NET is not without merit. I'm just saying that heterogeneity can be a “good thing”.

Caveat emptor!