Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
> __/ [ Mark Kent ] on Thursday 15 March 2007 21:09 \__
>
>> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
>>> __/ [ BearItAll ] on Thursday 15 March 2007 09:01 \__
>>>
>>>> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> S&P Cuts Novell to Strong Sell
>>>>>
>>>>> ,----[ Quote ]
>>>>> | Downgrades to 1 STARS (strong sell) from 2 STARS (sell)
>>>>> `----
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>
> http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/mar2007/pi20070314_025087.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_investing
>>>>>
>>>>> Novell linked to 'Windows cheaper than Linux' statement
>>>>>
>>>>> ,----[ Quote ]
>>>>> | Novell has issued a joint press release with Microsoft, in which
>>>>> | HSBC, a customer of joint technology from the two companies,
>>>>> | claims that Windows has a lower total cost of ownership than Linux.
>>>>> `----
>>>>>
>>>>> http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,1000000121,39286295,00.htm
>>>>>
>>>>> So Novell is Microsoft's bitch now.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Also see discussion in:
>>>>>
>>>>> http://boycottnovell.com/2007/03/14/novell-openoffice/
>>>>
>>>> I wonder if Novell would be willing to hand openSuse to another party in
>>>> a bid to make ammends as well as to protect the openSuse project.
>>>
>>> The domain freesuse was registered just a few days before the deal. Some
>>> might still be thinking about forking... you know, rebrand the whole thing
>>> and un-novellise it. Just like Unbreakbale and CentOS... make a branch of
>>> this fine distro that is now bound to greedy execs and their foolish
>>> agenda.
>>>
>>
>> This whole thing is quite unsurprising, though - I refer readers to my
>> long-ish article of some time ago describing how I believe the whole
>> issue came about. The bonuses paid to the senior execs from the
>> Microsoft hand-out were so substantial that there is no way that they
>> could make the same money from doing business, so they will continue to
>> lie as Microsoft ask them to in order to get another such bonus next
>> year.
>>
>> This serves Microsoft in a deeper way than I had imagined, though, which
>> is that they get to kill SuSE in the process of doing what they are
>> doing. Presumably that Microsoft game-plan will be to go around to
>> each commercial distributor in turn and attempt to buy-off the
>> executives as they have done with Novell. Still, the name Hovsepian
>> will be synonymous with killing SuSE in the history books, just like
>> McBride is synonymous with killing SCO. Both with a /lot/ of investment
>> from Microsoft in order to do so, though.
>>
>> The kiss of death for a linux distribution is clear, now, though - it is
>> exactly that moment where a traditional software vendor takes control of
>> it. Look at this:
>>
>> 1. Corel Linux OS - Microsoft invested in Corel => distro dead
>> 2. Caldera OpenLinux - SCO bought, Microsoft invested => distro
>> dead
>> 3. SuSE Linux - Novell bought, Microsoft invested => distro
>> dead?
>>
>> So far, Red Hat have refused Microsoft's attentions, and none of the
>> remaining distros have yet become powerful enough to gain the interest
>> of Microsoft, /however/, I'm quite sure that their invest and destroy
>> approach will be repeated with depressing regularity.
>
> Could you turn this into a short stand-alone (context) essay and lend it to
> BoycottNovell.com? Please?
>
I'll have a go, certainly. I think the issue is important enough to
make it worth raising yet further.
--
| Mark Kent -- mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
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|
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