Microsoft's Unwinnable War on Linux and Open Source
,----[ Quote ]
| How is an untouchable superpower defeated? In many cases, it foolishly
| engages itself in an unwinnable war and simply consumes itself.
|
| Microsoft, threatened by the encroachment of competition from open source,
| has long waged a detached propaganda war against free software and in
| particular Linux, but has recently escalated its conflict into a full blown
| attack.
|
| [...]
|
| As Microsoft begins waging its all out war against Linux, how far wil
| its popularity decline? And will that war be conveniently limited to
| a far away land, or might it cause fear and distress to Microsoft's
| own customers? Would Microsoft's own customers be targeted as
| potential enemies in massive, RIAA-style crackdowns?
|
| When asked by Fortune whether Microsoft would ever seek to ?sue its
| customers for royalties, the way the record industry has," Microsoft
| CEO Steve Ballmer answered, "That's not a bridge we've crossed, and
| not a bridge I want to cross today on the phone with you."
|
| That should certainly scare the Windows out of Microsoft's
| customers.
`----
http://www.roughlydrafted.com/RD/RDM.Tech.Q2.07/878F362F-2BF5-4C86-84E7-9C976F7BDDD4.html
Long article.
Also leading to alienation and hate:
Microsoft's patent hard line hardest on startups
,----[ Quote ]
| The infringement claims are an indication of Microsoft's declining
| position in the software industry, Lyman said. "It tells me that
| Redmond is now officially afraid of open source and the negative
| revenue impact it is having upon Microsoft as a corporation," he
| said.
|
| [...]
|
| The infringement claims are an indication of Microsoft's declining
| position in the software industry, Lyman said. "It tells me that
| Redmond is now officially afraid of open source and the negative
| ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
| revenue impact it is having upon Microsoft as a corporation," he said.
`----
http://news.yahoo.com/s/infoworld/20070515/tc_infoworld/88504
What Does Microsoft Want From the Free World?
,----[ Quote ]
| "I remain convinced that the software patent system is fundamentally
| broken," O'Grady said.
|
| Broken or not, "After the KSR decision, software patents are
| especially vulnerable now," Jenkins noted.
|
| O'Grady doesn't believe that Microsoft will sue its own customers,
| despite the fact that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer left that option
| open. "I don't believe, at this point, that users should be concerned,"
| he said.
`----
http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/57370.html
|
|
