* Roy Schestowitz peremptorily fired off this memo:
> ____/ Homer on Thursday 26 June 2008 23:20 : \____
>
>> Verily I say unto thee, that Roy Schestowitz spake thusly:
>>
>> It's still on CNet where it was published first:
>>
>> http://news.cnet.com/China-to-view-Windows-code/2100-1007_3-990526.html
>
> Oh, thanks. I was actually told this by someone who sent an E-mail (he provided
> this as one among several examples of articles that disappear or move). I did
> a Web search on the headline, but couldn't find a copy.
That was 2003. In the article, Gates was said to be pleased. Of
course! Maybe he thought that tearing down the "Chinese wall" between
Windows and the Chinese producers of "Red Flag Linux" and "RedOffice",
thus opening the way towards subverting the clean-room aspect of their
open-source efforts.
This guy (2007) thinks Microsoft beat Linux in China:
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=525
However, Red Flag Linux has turned out to be little more than a key
bargaining chip in a high stakes game of commerce between the Chinese
government and the world\u2019s largest software maker. Thanks to
some major concessions on source code and a precipitous price drop,
the Chinese government has now thoroughly embraced Windows and
Office. And thanks to a major about-face in the way that it deals
with piracy, Microsoft has also won over the Chinese people.
How?
In 2003, Microsoft began a program that allowed select partners to
view the source code of Windows, and even make some modifications.
China was one of 60 countries invited to join the program. Then
Microsoft got serious about competing on price by offering the
Chinese government its Windows and Office software for an estimated
$7-$10 per seat (in comparison to $100-$200 per seat in the U.S.,
Europe, and other countries).
. . .
Microsoft realized that it was powerless to stop widespread piracy in
China, so it simply threw up the white flag. If Chinese users are
going to pirate software, Microsoft wants them to pirate Microsoft
software. Plus, Microsoft has made it easy for Chinese users to
purchase legal copies by offering a $3 Windows/Office bundle to
Chinese students.
More recently:
http://www.betanews.com/article/Microsoft_and_Novell_to_convert_China_to_Windows_and_SuSE_Linux/1208799861
Microsoft and Novell announced extensive plans to convert
"unsupported Linux users" in China to combined implementations of
Windows/SuSE Linux, just as Red Hat admitted to delaying its release
of an international Linux desktop.
--
An INK-LING? Sure -- TAKE one!! Did you BUY any COMMUNIST UNIFORMS??
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