How times change. Yesterday Michael Dell took to the stage at the to discuss not only a pocketful of Android phones (apparently he made a show of pulling them from his pockets), but also to talk of a future where he anticipates the workplace is full of Apple, Android, and Microsoft computing devices. Dell also briefly confirmed a planned .

Dell acquired back in February. KACE's appliances allow remote management of computing devices, allowing managers to do things such as patch computers, enforce security policies, and generally keep an eye on things. KACE specialises in a multi-platform approach--Microsoft, Apple and Linux are all supported, as are mobile devices such as iPhones.

But what is the earthquake that's causing a once-homogenous IT landscape to became so broken up?

but didn't succeed. Many companies tried and failed miserably. A different approach was required and therefore several companies attacked Microsoft's Achilles' Heel: mobile devices.

The amount of money Microsoft has invested in mobile computing since the late 1990s could clear the debt of a smaller European country. However, it was RIM's BlackBerry that was arguably the first true smartphone success. It snuck under the door and hinted at a world free of Microsoft. the best of times recently but the lubrication it left behind makes it easier for the likes of Google Android and even Apple's iPhone to squeeze into the workplace.