A Sweet Deal In Suite Software

Simdesk Technologies Inc. is a strange little operation, even for an Internet company. Its chief executive, Louis A. Waters, is not a techie but the retired head of onetime sanitation giant Browning-Ferris Industries Inc. And while it's little known, the 100-person Houston firm has a gargantuan ego. Having won a few deals over Microsoft Corp. (MSFT ), executives are convinced the Redmond (Wash.) giant is obsessed with squishing them before they get too powerful. Among other fears, SimDesk founder Ray C. Davis believes Microsoft may have tapped his cell phone and worries that it has planted a spy in his staff. "I think they'll go to any limits to squelch us," says Davis.

But here's the strangest part: Microsoft should be a tad nervous. That's because SimDesk may be closing in on one of tech's Holy Grails: anytime, anywhere computing on the cheap.