Microsoft seeks to prove browser, Windows are one

A Microsoft Corp. executive testified Wednesday that it was impossible for the software giant to comply with an order suggested by the U.S. Justice Department that would require it to separate its Internet Explorer browser from the Windows 95 operating system.

David Cole, a vice president in the consumer platforms division, gave a demonstration showing that Web browsing technology remained in Windows 95 even after removing the visible aspects of Internet Explorer.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson asked Cole directly whether it would be possible to install Netscape Communications Corp.'s Navigator browser without impairing Windows 95 functionality.

"Yes, absolutely," Cole said.

The two-day contempt hearing was set to resume with government cross-examination of Cole.

The issue is crucial as Microsoft defends itself against Justice Department claims that its inclusion of the browser with Windows 95 violates a 1995 decree settling antitrust charges.

Justice Department officials contend the inclusion of the browser is allowing Microsoft to improperly leverage its domination of the operating system market and capture an increasing share of the browser market from Mountain View, Calif.-based rival Netscape.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates was not in Jackson's packed courtroom Tuesday but is following the case closely, concerned that an adverse decision for the Redmond, Wash.-based software company could hamper its ability to add new capabilities to its market-dominating operating system, company spokesman Mark Murray said.

"He feels it's very, very important to the future of the company and to the future of the software industry," Murray said.

Microsoft has appealed the preliminary order and asked Jackson to remove a Harvard law professor he appointed to study the facts of the case.

The contempt hearing focuses on Microsoft's decision to comply with Jackson's order by offering computer makers either an outdated version of Windows 95 or one that both sides agree does not work.

The Justice Department contends Microsoft is in contempt of the order and should be fined $1 million a day until it complies.

As lawyers, reporters and courtroom observers watched on oversize computer monitors Tuesday, Justice Department consultant Glenn Weadock demonstrated how he removed Internet Explorer from a new computer without causing significant change in the functioning of Windows 95.

In aggressive cross-examination, Microsoft attorney Steven Holley sought to establish that Weadock had no experience in operating system design and no knowledge of the computer language in which the Windows 95 source code is written.

Weadock, a Denver-based author and consultant who specializes in the installation of Windows 95 for businesses, said the retail version of Internet Explorer 3.0 included more than 220 files of code, only 26 of which were deleted when the browser was removed using the built-in Windows utility.

The remaining files include ``shared program libraries" and other code needed for the functioning of the operating system, Holley said.

"We feel the proceedings so far underscore our central argument that Internet Explorer is fully integrated with the operating system," Murray said.

It is not known when Jackson will rule in the case.