Personally, just as a fundamental rule, I tend to stay away from all things Microsoft. I'm a UNIX systems administrator, so yeah..
Anyway, I've been looking for an excuse to switch from Yahoo's portal, which I've been a loyal user for the last 11 years, to Google's portal page. Its far superior in every way. I've got several gmail accounts. I use Google's search almost all the time over Yahoo search. So I might as well make the complete switch now. Once Microsoft gets it hands on Yahoo, Yahoo will never be the same. Maybe that's a good thing for both Yahoo and Microsoft. I dunno.

When Yahoo bought Geocities innovation dropped to a crawl. Yes ordinary people created ugly websites, but those with design sense could easily make respectable sites. So easy to use, Geocities could easily have become MySpace, YouTube and WordPress before the others were even born.

Watch history repeat as Microsoft buys Yahoo. Innovation stops, driving passion and good sense depart.

as all things Microsoft touches,I think they will screew it up.(yahoo)they dont have a great track record for safty.I for one will leave if it goes through.

We have to fight the duo monopoly of Microsoft/Google or we will all suffer. If Yahoo (for all its strengths and weaknesses)goes then we must encourage smaller competitors.

When Microsoft bought Hotmail from its Indian founder, Sameer Bhatia, they buggered it up. This led to hundreds of thousands of Hotmail users to switch over to other e-mail services, in particular, Yahoo. I was one of them. I admire Bill Gates but not the under-arm and strong-arm tactics employed by his Co. The Windows OS was originally developed by Apple. Microsoft stole it. Windows can't hold a candle to the Mac OS. Yahoo is an iconic brand on the Internet with a wide range of services that cannot be matched by Microsoft. I pray and hope that this acquisition does not go through. Or, if it does go through it will mark the beginning of the end for Microsoft - the bully of the digital world! Microsoft can compete with Google by spending that $45 billion on innovation rather than hostile takeovers.

In response to Mucundh---Amen