One thing that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has always been great at is admitting whether or not another company has struck gold with a product, and following the trend of the times.

Ballmer has been adamant about Microsoft’s venture into tablets, like he is with anything Microsoft-related, and told financial analysts that Microsoft would be entering the tablet scene with “full guns” and that the Microsoft-manufactured tablet would be running a version of Windows, presumably a variant of Windows 7.

“They’ll be shipping as soon as they are ready,” Ballmer told the conference, not giving any details. “It is job one urgency. No one is sleeping at the switch.” Ballmer also noted that his company’s goal was not to only deliver products, but “to deliver products that people want to buy.”

As to how many iPads have been sold, Ballmer said, “they’ve sold certainly more than I’d like them to have sold.”

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft Corp.’s current Chief Executive Officer, may be packing his bags and leaving Redmond, the place he called home for over 30 years. Why would he be leaving? Not many like the CEO’s approach to defending Microsoft as he bashes its competition, but the one reason that would surely have him packing his bags, are the shareholders.

In June, The Wall Street Journal published a chart that showed Microsoft and Apple’s yearly earnings when Bill Gates was at the helm and after he left the company to Ballmer in 2000. One could only blame the fact that “geeks” are being rapidly replaced by MBAs in large technology-based corporations. Quite simply, the vision is gone.

There is no question about question about whether or not Apple’s innovations are leading the market, but Microsoft desperately needs to compete. Nokia has been much competition since Apple took over the smart-phone market, and look where that left the Finnish-based company.