While the world seems bent on reforming Apple's digital rights management practices, it seems ironic to me that for once, the finger pointing is not aimed at Redmond. Microsoft appears to be staying largely out of the fray, and some observers -- such as the Seattle Post Intelligencer's Brian Chin ("Microsoft on DRM: Who cares?") -- make a good argument that World's Largest Software Company is pretty much just a bystander in this spat. After all, Apple is the 500-pound gorilla in the digital music business, not Microsoft.

But for my money, it's no coincidence that Bill Gates has not rushed to Steve Jobs' side to support his call for the eradication of DRM. And it's not because no one is listening. I think Microsoft is more than happy to let Apple draw fire from the trust busters this time. Does it mean that Microsoft's hands are clean in the matter? Not necessarily. In fact, Microsoft has the most draconian DRM protection in the business, in my opinion, and I have had many occasions to curse them for it.

Before I continue, let me reveal my bias in the matter. You see, I'm one of the unenlightened slobs that never wanted an iPod to begin with. I had already been listening to MP3s for well over a decade when latecomer Apple came on the scene with iPod. Personally, I was unmoved by its pretty colors and newfangled navigation buttons. I was all about bigger storage capacity and connectivity to my PC.

In fact, it wasn't just iPods that failed to fire my imagination. iMacs, iBooks and i-everything-else have never really grabbed me. I know the risk I am taking with this admission, but it's time for me to be brutally honest. When it comes to the whole Apple experience, I just never got it.

Sure, I've always had friends who used Apple equipment, and they all seemed to like it -- often to the point of fanaticism -- but for some reason, I was never susceptible to the contagion. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I recognized that the Mac aficionados I knew were among the most creative, talented, and even inspired individuals in my acquaintance. I put it down to coincidence. I also was vaguely aware that these people never seemed to experience the full range of emotions relative to their computer hardware. I seemed to be constantly cursing my PC for its temperamental performance and its frequent failure to support my simple goal of putting in an honest day's work. Meanwhile, my Mac-connected neighbors seemed to remain annoyingly serene. Their computers never seemed to crash, even when they asked them to do extraordinary things. I consoled myself with the greater horsepower, flexibility and software library that were available to me as a PC user. It helped me get through the day and ignore those smarmy Mac people who seemed to coast through their workdays, pausing only to flaunt their latest creative achievements. After all, I told myself, where's the challenge in using a personal computer that is always quietly capable and compliant?

Now, after years of i-indifference, my house is suddenly overflowing with Apple trappings, and it is killing me. This was the year my children discovered digital music, and each received a shiny new iPod for Christmas. It was a joyous scene, until they asked for music to be placed on the insidious devices. Of course, I had amassed a considerable library of digital music, most of it purchased from a variety of online sources. These had always performed flawlessly on my Windows-based players, but when asked to work on an iPod, they balked. Their Windows-based DRM was apparently incompatible with iPod. That's when the fat hit the fan.

Wasn't it enough that I had finally succumbed to popular culture and outfitted my minions with their coveted iPods? Was I now expected to kick even more into Apple's coffers and repurchase the music I already owned, just so my children could court future deafness with their Apple earbuds? And whose fault was this fundamental incompatibility that had driven the Christmas spirit clean out of my house?

Well, the world appears to have laid the blame at Jobs' doorstep. After all, he could have licensed Windows DRM and saved Christmas, or allowed Microsoft to license FairPlay and achieved the same end. So, is calling Apple's DRM technology FairPlay actually an oxymoron? Perhaps, but I can’t help feeling that Microsoft wasn’t exactly praying that Apple would see the light in this matter. Microsoft was sparring over DRM technology with rival RealNetworks  long before Apple came along, and its modus operandi has always been more of the “take no prisoners” than the “let’s be friends” variety.

Incompatibility with the iPod is not my only gripe against Windows DRM, however. But that's another story, and it will have to wait for another day.