Microsoft at 50: Its incredible rise, 15 lost years, and stunning comeback - in 4 charts

Microsoft owner and founder Bill Gates poses outdoors with Microsoft's first laptop in 1986. Joe McNally/Getty Images Microsoft is celebrating its 50th birthday this week. I've been a keenly interested observer for most of that history. I started writing about Microsoft technologies as a full-time job more than three decades ago, and I was an enthusiastic early adopter of the company's products for a decade before that. Thinking back on that history brings back a flood of memories. When one talks about Microsoft, it's tempting (and easy!) to focus on the numbers and the milestones. Revenue. Gross margins and profits. The number of employees and partners. And, of course, the stock price. You will be bombarded with timelines and charts this week, I guarantee. Also: Microsoft's free AI skills training 'Fest' starts soon - how to sign up Those numbers are important, of course, but for me they're mostly markers, small flags thrown down to mark the ebb and flow of a company that has genu ... Read full article.