Seeking Alpha Seeking Alpha Portfolio App for iPad  The
announcement by Microsoft (MSFT) that the next version of
Windows will be Version 8.1 and be made available free to
Windows 8 users should end the company's bull run, but it
probably won't.  The news means that the vaunted "Windows Blue"
will be a bug fix, not a new operating system at all.  The stock
has been on a tear lately. Since the start of the year, it's up
27%. Compare that to the 16% gain in the S&P 500 or the 13% gain
in the NASDAQ -- it's more. The only one of its peers that can
claim a better return to investors during that time is Hewlett-
Packard (HPQ), up almost 50% from its historic lows since
January.  All this is driven by an assumption of a rising tide
lifting all boats. The recovery is real, technology has shown
itself to be cost-effective, so the assumption is that
Microsoft, and its OEMs, will get this Windows thing right and
get back their share of the market.  That's no longer a given.
Microsoft is no longer the king of operating s