Remember not-so-long-ago when Apple was the "doomed" tech company with a shrinking share of the computer market. Dependent on the Mac, the company was soon to be extinct, according to many pundits.

How the worm has turned. Microsoft still rules the personal computer world with Windows, but Apple is the dominant force in the smartphone and tablet worlds.

The lost enthusiasm for developing smartphone apps is being replaced by a new passion for tablets, according to the Strategy Analytics research group (http://www.strategyanalytics.com). The percentage of developers primarily supporting tablets is growing from 13% last year to 36% next year.

According to the Strategy Analytics report, “App Developer Survey: Developer Attitudes - 1H2012,” when Windows 8 and BlackBerry 10 are released, both
Microsoft and Research in Motion will seek to take advantage of the battleground moving from phones to tablets which will allow developers to easily build apps for both products. Strategy Analytics thinks Microsoft and RIM may even approach the 5% mark in the next 12 months.

Five percent, eh? Isn't that was the Mac's market share was when Apple was "doomed." Does that make Microsoft and RIM the "beleaguered" companies now?

-- Dennis Sellers