Gartner analyst Allen Weiner called Bartz "a very solid pick" who should be an "easy sell" to investors, partners, employees and advertising customers. "She can bring the adult supervision the company has lacked," Weiner said.

He downplayed Bartz's lack of experience in the Web 2.0 world, saying plenty of people at Yahoo have that type of knowledge. Bartz brings a steady hand that will give Yahoo operational direction and strategic focus, just as Eric Schmidt has done at Google, Weiner said.

"She's the person who can come in and put the peanut butter back in the jar," he said, referring to a controversial memo a Yahoo executive penned in late 2006, in which he likened Yahoo's lack of focus to a spread of peanut butter: amorphous and shallow.

Industry analyst Greg Sterling from Sterling Market Intelligence said his initial reaction to Bartz is "cautious." Bartz seems like a solid, competitive manager and a safe choice for Yahoo, which could have gone for a flashier pick from the Web 2.0 ranks.

The question is whether she can lead Yahoo out of its yearslong crisis, given her lack of experience with the Internet and online advertising markets, Sterling said.