Good to see this being discussed. Sound and speech are only going to become more important as we move forward.

Need to tie the discussion in with English Query and...

Bryant,

Good points. I certainly wouldn't argue that some of the IBM and SAP (and many others) types of forced dependence are a good thing. They aren't. But I don't see too...

Bill,

Excellent comment.

A good read is

 "Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies"

by James C. Collins, Jerry I. Porras

Still true but forgotten by many companies who...

Steve,

I've been working in IT since 1958 one way or another, on all types of systems.

I find the entire "open" OR "closed" discussion quite silly. Both models have their place....