SerNet asks Microsoft to disclose protocol definitions
,----[ Quote ]
| By this judgment Microsoft is forced to publish protocol definitions for
| Windows servers under "reasonable" and "non-discriminatory" terms so that
| fully interoperable software can be developed by other parties. The deadline
| set by the Court is January 15th 2008. Microsoft accepted this judgment. Now
| SerNet asks Microsoft to disclose the protocol definitions for use in
| developing the open source software Samba. SerNet is the leading service
| company regarding Samba with offerings to customers worldwide. The Samba Team
| is an international association of software developers, working together on
| Samba - that is in principle an implementation of the SMB/CIFS protocol for
| Linux/Unix and some other operating systems.
|
| [...]
|
| "It is of course crucial that Samba can be developed continuously under the
| GPL in version 3," says Johannes Loxen, author of the letter on behalf of
| SerNet, "Microsoft's programs MCPP and WSPP are not feasible regarding
| Samba."
`----
http://www.sernet.com/News!/PM-20071001.html
The abusive monopoly tries to use the Novell deal to keep its 'extensions'
secret/pricey.
Related:
James Allchin
'---[ Quote ]
| In relation to the issue of sharing technical API and protocol
| information used throughout Microsoft products, which the
| states were seeking, Allchin alleged that releasing this
| information would increase the security risk to consumers.
|
| "It is no exaggeration to say that the national security is
| also implicated by the efforts of hackers to break into
| computing networks. Computers, including many running Windows
| operating systems, are used throughout the United States
| Department of Defense and by the armed forces of the United
| States in Afghanistan and elsewhere."
`----
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Allchin
Halloween Memo I Confirmed and Microsoft's History on Standards
,----[ Quote ]
| By the way, if you are by any chance trying to figure out Microsoft's policy
| toward standards, particularly in the context of ODF-EOXML, that same
| Microsoft page is revelatory, Microsoft's answer to what the memo meant when
| it said that Microsoft could extend standard protocols so as to deny
| Linux "entry into the market":
|
| Q: The first document talked about extending standard protocols as a way
| to "deny OSS projects entry into the market." What does this mean?
|
| A: To better serve customers, Microsoft needs to innovate above standard
| protocols. By innovating above the base protocol, we are able to deliver
| advanced functionality to users. An example of this is adding
| transactional support for DTC over HTTP. This would be a value-add and
| would in no way break the standard or undermine the concept of standards,
| of which Microsoft is a significant supporter. Yet it would allow us to
| solve a class of problems in value chain integration for our Web-based
| customers that are not solved by any public standard today. Microsoft
| recognizes that customers are not served by implementations that are
| different without adding value; we therefore support standards as the
| foundation on which further innovation can be based.
`----
http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20070127202224445
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