IN AN INFORMAL poll conducted by InfoWorld this week, 42 percent of respondents said that even though they currently use Microsoft servers they are planning to switch to non-Windows software on the server side because of discontent with the company’s controversial licensing plan for desktop products.

The prospect of IT shops gravitating away from Microsoft’s servers, at a time when the company is expected to deliver its critical next generation of Windows .Net servers early next year, could open up opportunities for competitors such as IBM, Sun Microsystems, BEA Systems, and the ever-changing collection of Linux vendors.