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EXECUTIVE PROFILE: Sun Microsystems' Scott McNealy: Page 2 of 2

McNealy acknowledges that software hasn't been delivered for Sun yet, but he says the strategy is misunderstood by critics. He is also quick to remind people that Sun has almost $6 billion in cash on hand. And he has remained characteristically defiant, even in the face of Merrill Lynch analyst Steven Milunovich's scathing report on Sun's problems, in which he said McNealy could use a personality "makeover" to tone down his "brash and contrarian" nature.

All in all, McNealy's moves this year reveal something you could have expected from him: He appears to believe that the best defense is a good offense. Says Rob Mock, CEO of Dewpoint, a Detroit-based member of Sun's VAR council: "You've got to give McNealy credit for being sincere in his convictions. As a Sun stakeholder, I just hope he's sincerely correct."