Microsoft warns Asian nations to stop using Linux or face lawsuits.
Here's the story:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...osoft_linux_dc What do you guys think? I think it's good cause more people are going to get on the Open Source Community's side. |
I think that's funny... It is true that many places are claiming Linux violates patents.. but there really isn't any proof yet... SCO is nuts.. but we all knew that...
I especially loved the part at the end... about how Microsoft is so much more secure than open-source... lol.. yeah okay... |
It's typical of Microsoft's bullying tactics. That how imperialists operate, be they corporate or governmental.
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these acts show microsoft's sheer frustation of towards governemnts adopting LINUX
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We know EXACTLY who build open source software. Their name and email is usually ALL OVER the source code. On the other hand, we have NO IDEA who wrote the source for MS stuff, and I'm sure they won't tell us either, based on the idea that it's "trade secret" or whatever. Of course HE knows who wrote their stuff because he's their boss, so I'm sure he's sleeping better at night. But how about looking at it from the customer's point of view for a change. |
You can expect more of the same from Microsoft the more popular Linux becomes. Munich, Germany recently decided to switch all of their city computers over to Linux and pondered the patent issue before making the switch. Yet they decided to go ahead despite potential patent issues. In the US the NSA uses and openly supports SeLinux. Is Microsoft going to sue the NSA ( the US government) next? Also, wouldn't it be kind of hard to sue a communist governement like China? I really don't think they care about what a court in another country says.
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On the other hand,Linux has been widely used in many developing or developed countries like China,Germany,Singapore and even the United States.And as zajelo3 said,how can you sue ASA?.Because there are a strong support behind Linux (Many Countries,IBM and lots of SME (Small Medium Enterprise).If you do something which affect a large group of people,you are not gonna be success. That's my opinion. Why don't Microsoft fight with Linux face to face?Let's deal with the problems on Microsoft. 1.Your software is extremely expensive.Selling WinXP for about U.S. $300 in Hong Kong. 2.Your software is seriously spent computer resources,which makes you upgrade your hardware to an endless cycle. 3.Your software always talk about money with me,which offer no choice to me. 4.Most importantly,your software is not that secure.Internet Explorer is an example. If no competition is in the market,as we all know,there are no advance/improvement in the market,too. |
[QUOTE] Ballmer said the security fears some governments had about using Microsoft software were overblown.
"We think our software is far more secure than open-source software. It is more secure because we stand behind it, we fixed it, because we built it. Nobody ever knows who built open-source software," he added.[/QUOTE What a bold face lie! Ballmer's tactics with SCO was a stroke of genius, however. He persuaded the CEO of SCO to engage in a baseless lawsuit for $40M, then the investment firm fronting for MS told SCO to stop all support and development of UNIX and devote all resources to IP lawsuits. SCO complies, and MS was able to eliminate their only commercial server competition for what for them is pennies. Now MS's tactics is to claim Intellectual Property rights to the IP v4 and IP v6 protocols. If you want to use the internet, you need their permission. Meanwhile the RIAA is suing to make the Shift key illegal, thanks to the Millennium Copyright Act! The lawyers in the US are totally out of control. Even the Supreme Court was upset about congress increasing the term copyrights to 120 years! They upheld the law by a 5-4 margin, because the right is in the constitution, but they all agreed that the congress is ignoring the balance between the rights of the holder and consumers benefit. |
America is run by terribles
That ending QUOTE was just total bull. I don't even use linux like I do windows and have done but I love linux. And I've learned before I even tried installing linux for the first time 4 years ago that it is the most secure.
MS = Resource Hog . More Virus + Popups . Must upgrade your system for OPTIMAL performance Linux = User controlled . Hard to learn . No Resource Hog . Less Viruses + Popups . Conclusion: F**** Microsoft --- Microsoft wants to be Microhard and get into every humans life. FORCEFULLY --- |
I find it extremely unwise that Microsoft keeps yelling that Linux is bad because of this, that, blah, blah... Why can't they spend the energy on developing better software instead of resorting to stupid scare tactics like this one?
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Tactics like these are not going to scare off the aware users.What is even more ridiculous is MS threatning governments against using open source software.I think they have tried this before and have been told to try hell.Why in the world would someone use an inferior product,when other more robust and better ones are available?These are the signs of frustration of a giant in danger of losing it's grip on the home computing market.
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With M$ saying that open Source is Illegal are they forgetting that Apple's OS X is based on the open soucre project, and furthermore Apple does have their Soucre Code available on their Developer's website. Excluding The GUI of OS X.
Apple's OS X is no more different then Linspire's Linux Based OS. And Linux has been around for a Very long time. M$ is just scared that they are goig to loose their market share in a few years. I work for Apple and because os Mac OS X there has been a huge increase of sales of Apple Machines and tons of Switchers, that come from Windows to Mac and just fall in love with the system and like how easy it is. In a Few years I also see that Linux will be a little bit easier to learn for the newbie in to Linux, and with software such as CodeWevers Crossover and Transgaming's Cedega, you can still play your Win Programs and Games in linux with out a Dual boot machine, and with out windows installed on your computer. I started using Linux back in 95, and now after almost 10 years since I've been playing with it, there has been a huge improvement. So in Conclusion, M$ Bites the Big one, and they will loose there Market in a few more years hopefully Linux Rules :Pengy: |
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Hardly anything short of the implementation of Universal Health Care (which I certainly never expect to see, due to the money-grubbing, constituents-be-damned attitude of U. S. legislators) would please me more. I would weep for joy to see the fall of Microsoft. |
What Microsoft is doing is trying to promote FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) about Linux. Which at best will delay peoples and businesses migration to Linux. The only bad side to the Linux phenomena is that it will force Microsoft to improve their software or die. It's good to see a software movement that was mainly invented by people giving their time and expertise *freely*, doing so well against a "do anything to crush the competition", monopolistic, money loving corporation. While money is a necessity to live today, the *love* of money is the root of all evil, and Microsoft is a good example of that.
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OK, my rant:
a. The whole practice of using patent law to protect software is a legal abuse of the system. But thanks to stare decisis, it seems we're stuck with this odious practice. b. MS hijacked almost all basic concepts of Windows fron Xerox (which was too stupid to know what it had developed -- they couldn't understand how computers would make people want to make more photocopies!). c. Bill Gates was annointed a multi-billionare by IBM because it was stupid enough to pay him a fabulous royalty for a flawed operating system that he stole from a fellow programmer (the world's greatest con job!), and with that money he has been able to buy all the legal enforcement in the world to keep his crappy system so dominant. It may seem funny that the biggest crook of all can now threaten governments with extortionist lawsuits, but unfortunately, it's no joke. Bill Gates can bury little countries like Thailand with meritless legal shenanigans to the point that they have no choice but to settle up with him. Whew! Now I feel better. |
You can be sure that china and the rest of the newly industrialised asian countries will make an awful fuss if the US come after them for not using their products. I am not sure that western government won't back down in the face of what there is to gain (licensing revenue for a few companies) and what there is to loose (major trade crisis with one of the most dynamic economic region in the world)
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I hope foreign governments will prevail against this corrupt Goliath, but they'll probably get no help from our (U. S.'s) "leaders." |
I concur with Jon...
When we hear of Microsoft getting fines of 583 million dollars in Europe for monopolizing media player... We think.. wow.. that's a lot of money...but in reality... it's not to them.... It's about he same as your average citizen getting a traffic ticker for speeding, and unregistered plates... sure it sucks... and you have to spend about a 50% of your weekly income to get the fines taken care of... So for the next month or two... you're gonna be really careful.. and after that... you forget about the fines... 500 million isn't going to break the bank for Microsoft... not unless Europe, India, China, and the US all fine them at the same time... (the US fine M$??? heh.. now I'm being facetious..) Anyways...I would love to see anything *NIX based really cut into M$ profits... Then let M$ get hit with a big fine(s) and let them drop down to a reasonable economic standpoint... give 'em a taste of reality... I don't see it happening anytime soon though... |
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" Linux violates more than 228 patents, according to a recent report from a research group, Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said at the company's Asian Government Leaders Forum in Singapore."
Could someone list these 228 violations? |
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do u have some material on that?? regards |
Microsoft is one a downhill journey whichever whay you look at it. They are fast losing their reputation even in their strong markets and their fear is driving them to crazy heights of ridiculous nonsense.
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I applaud the Indian government's stance--I, too, would like to read more about this if a link can be furnished. |
Yeah,more governments are switching over to Linux having experienced its obvious and not so obvious benefits.
Try this: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...artid=24598339 In fact the government is bringing Linux to educational institutions by making it the standard OS for such purposes.Also, with more than 20 major languages being spoken in the country, the govt. has released the regional language versions of Linux.This will be a mighty boost for the pen source movement,what with 150 million students in the country. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow?msid=185058 As for the Microsoft threat report,I learned that from my father who works in the Ministry for Commerce. |
Thank you, corbis_demon, for those links. They are the most satisfying stories I've read in several days. Encouraging news indeed!
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Microsoft is a company which believes in Money,BSD[blue screen of death]
and F****r Gates.Somebody might have thrown some shit on his face rather putting cake!! HAIL LINUX!!!!!:newbie: not any more!!! |
"The secret to Linux is that it permits no secrets"
Microsoft, OTOH, stays in business by ensuring that what goes on behind the GUI remains a secret known only to them. IMHO, M$ is the primary reason Johnny can't program. M$ takes great pains to insulate little Johnny from his big, scary, mean old computer. If little Johnny tries to find out just exactly what the heck his computer is doing, M$ has a terrible ogre name EULA to scare Johnny out of his knickers and chase him back into the sunny land where computers are abstracted to pretty pictures, cheerful sounds, and wonderful blue screens of post-life experience. Current Windows code is mostly undocumented spaghetti dating back to the early days of NT4. If you doubt that, just check their own security advisories to see how many of the patches they issue affect every version of Windows back to NT4 SP0. Their new releases never FIX anything, they just pile tons of new crap onto the same old pile. It's kind of like that big pile of horse manure over at the local horse race track. It just keeps getting bigger and smellier as time passes. Of course, they would rather threaten everyone on the planet with lawsuits rather than shovel out that pile of manure. Hopefully, enough of the rest of us will refuse to have anything to do with them that they will suffer the consequences of their hubris. Pulling the software patent gun on the Asian community reminds me of the scene in Blazing Saddles where Sheriff Bart (Cleavon Little) pulls his six-shooter and holds it to his own head, yelling to the mob preparing to do him great bodily harm : "Don't move, or the Sheriff gets it!". (I think he means it. We'd better back off. NOT!) If Linux has violated 228 patents, M$ has violated 228 ^ 2 patents. I believe British Telecom owns the patent to the mouse click. I wonder how many of those M$ owes royalties on by now? Maybe we could click billg onto the welfare rolls. So here's the strategy: If they come after Linux with all their $666/hr lawyers blazing, switch to BSD for a while. Pretty much everything compiles and runs there. If it doesn't, fix it. If they then go after BSD, switch to Apple OS/X. They can't touch Apple. It's the only company left to keep them out of prison. Don't work for them or with them. Don't buy their products, unless you'd like to build the world's largest Beowulf cluster running on Xbox's. That would cost them dearly. ( I wonder how much they lose on each unit?...) In short, ignore them. Make them irrelevant. Here is Microsoft's big secret: most of the really smart people called in rich 5 years ago. They are trying to coast on the reputations and abilities of people who are now sunning themselves on their own private islands or shooting rockets to the fringes of space. In short, they are a hollow , bloated shell of the company that produced that wonderful NT 3.51 product. Their current product line consists mainly of obscenely bloated piles of overpriced garbage. They can be beaten, I know that for a fact. The vast majority of their employees know only how to pass the MSCE. If you put them in front of a keyboard and give them a real-world task, they are helpless. If you challenge them technically, they fold. Most have very narrow skill sets. M$ seems to be trying to find out if it is possible to aggregate enough mediocre employees to create a few virtual geniuses. It doesn't seem to be working, but I invite them to keep trying. Maybe they could cluster them. Oh, I forgot, you can only cluster four M$ hosts. Can you say "boycott"? I can. <s> John Galt |
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It bothers me to go into the public library, or the University one for that matter, and see dozens of terminals hooked up to a MS Windows network. This is financed by my tax money! I think it's as wrong as can be that taxpayers finance Microsoft. And how many complain? Most people never give it a thought, any more than they think about what they're doing when they use MS products at home. It really makes me feel physically sick.
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I agree with your general point, but I would say respectfully that the assertion that "taxpayers are financing Microsoft" because its products are being used in public facilities isn't really accurate. Govt agencies obviously need to buy goods in order to make them available to the public, and if you wish to argue that taxpayers are financing Microsoft on the basis of a library or university having purchased Microsoft products, then you would be obligated to make that same claim for *all* goods that were purchased from any manufacturer. In other words, you would also have to assert that the govt would be financing GE if they were using GE lightbulbs, or that it was financing Xerox if they were using Xerox copy machines, etc. The only way to avoid this situation would be to disallow any govt agency to purchase any product from any manufacturer, which just isn't realistic.
I do agree with you though that govt agencies should be promoting competition in addition to trying to save money, and with the typical Linux distro now providing functionally equivalent capabilities to Windows at basically zero cost, govt agencies should be actively investigating Linux-based alternatives. Just my 2 cents -- J.W. |
Thank you, J.W.; I agree. I get carried away by my personal loathing for Microsoft quite often. Your points are all valid.
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Well, for what it's worth, suffice it to say that I've also done my fair share of grumbling about Microsoft, and most of those comments would probably be unsuitable for printing in a family newspaper.
The one thing that just drives me nuts is the automatic "help" that Microsoft Excel gives me by doing me the "favor" of dropping leading zeros from numbers. In my work, I regularly deal with zipcodes, and this "helpful feature" is impossible to turn off (at least to my knowledge) and therefore *always* does exactly what I don't want it to do. Arrgghh!!! ;) -- J.W. |
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That Economic times article was most illuminating. I think that the government has done two excellent things here:
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Jon:
Re: the dropping of zeros from the front of numbers: Have you tried formatting the cell in Excel as "text"? I do this all the time in Version 2000 and it works for me. Not that I use it from preference, just my employer loooves paying licence fees. |
http://comment.zdnet.co.uk/other/0,3...9174385,00.htm
Ballmer and the revenge of the Jade penguin Leader ZDNet UK November 19, 2004, 13:00 GMT Tell us your opinion! Microsoft's Steve Ballmer has been warning Asian governments that Linux may infringe software patents. James Cagney, move over. There's a new hard man in town... He couldn't have been a better gangster if he'd worn spats and carried a violin case. Steve "Monkey Boy" Ballmer was out talking to the East Side gangs, and they'd better listen. They'd better listen good. "Nice operating system you got here," he said, running his kidskin-gloved finger around the whorls of the carved jade penguin. "Very nice. Be a shame if anything happened to it." The East Side leaders looked on impassively. They'd seen worse. "News reaches me and my friends that you lot have been gettin' together. What happened? The Beijing Boys, the Tokyo Jokers and the Seoul Brothers – youz like cats and dogs. Now you're makin' pally, workin' on this Linux crap. Co. Operating. Windows not good enough for you creeps?" "Open source is more secure. It costs less. We can do more with it," said the smallest of the East Siders. "Secure? Secure? I'll tell you what's secure. We are secure. We fix stuff. You don't know where that open-source dirt comes from..." "It says the author name on each module, Steve," said the smallest leader, mildly. Monkey Boy was getting overexcited again. "Don' give me that! Look, wi' us you know what you're getting. If you don'..." "What, exactly?" "Patents. You hear me? Someone's gonna get angry wi' you." "You're going to send the boys round, Steve? We're your best friends." "I didn't say that. Did I say that? I didn't say that. Look, you keep takin' the Windows and we'll see you right." The smallest leader leaned forward. "Perhaps we will, Steve. Now, if you've got something you'd like to show us? Longhorn, perhaps?" There was a ripping sound, as if someone had tried to slam an oriental paper screen door, and the East Siders were suddenly alone. "Software patents," sighed the tallest leader. "Tell me, do we even have them over here?" "No," said the smallest one. "But we are funding the American deficit. Nice economy they've got there..." "... be a shame if anything happened to it," finished the tallest one. A stray beam of sunlight caught the placid face of the jade penguin. For an instant, it might almost have been smiling. |
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All I ask is that Microsoft allow the user the option of enabling or disabling the "drop leading zeroes" function. The fact that they (apparently) refuse to do this just drives me nuts. Sorry for the rant. -- J.W. |
The Chinese don't really give a rip about Micro$loth or their threats.
In China, copyright means "the right to copy," and I know of no one who actually pays for any version of Windoze, or any other software for that matter. Well, they will pay about 12 cents USD for the copy CD. And they seem to get everything before it's even released on the market in the States. If China's entry into the WTO eventually leads to Micro$loth being able to get the right to enforce their software patents or whatever it's called, the Chinese will just use Linux instead. Oh, happy day! |
World War IV the rest of the world vs Bill Gates and co, The USA should take a good look at history, Empires have a regular habit of imploding!!!
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I can understand that attitude. The same can be said for many Asian countries including India. The bullying attitude of global corporate giants just doesn't work over here. People care two hoots about patents and copyrights and the law enforcement is equally apathetic. If Microsoft want everybody to play by their rules, then they should change the rules to be accommodative and not arrogant and abrasive. |
Clearly a lot of animosity in this thread.
Ballmer's threats smack of desperation, a company on the precipice of change. Microsoft will not go away -- they could live off their mountain of cash for years -- but they will be forced to evolve. If nothing else, Linux based operating systems have accomplished what no other corporation or entity could do -- present credible competition -- and will undoubtedly prosper, which is good for everyone. It must be a staggering revelation: Microsoft can no longer rely on the two cash cows, XP and Office, to maintain the monolith. They now have to truly innovate, successfully diversify, and perhaps trim the waste and fat. They no longer have the luxury to make huge blunders or bury litigation in money. They must learn to become responsible for their products, lawful in their conduct, and competitive in the marketplace in order to survive. Ballmer can rant all he wants. I find it amusing because I have faith that business will discover the true benefits of Linux products as many individuals and governments have already. Linux and open source software ride on an unstoppable tidal wave of momentum and Microsoft must acknowledge this truth and react more accordingly. |
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he'll never respect others and conduct business legally. He is out to conquer, not coexist. They'll not innovate, but rather, buy or kill in court as they've done in the past. |
calm down.
I feel that this thread is wildly going out of control to slander.
Sure I hate Microsoft. I like there operating system personally but the company personally is a tragedy, they make things propietory and hold back the growth of the world as a whole. Linux is the future, I personally believe for a united front of this world. Microsoft is just putting up blockes and keeping it from being a global handshake to the other operating systems, more on domination then fitting together. and I think that is the worst thing. What are the 228 violations that Linux has? MP3 support? we need to bind together figure out how to get those violations off of linux and find a different way, sure it will be hard, but as long as Microsoft is trying to keep it the way it wants, I am pretty sure that linux is in for a lawsuit or some legal alligations from them. we need to look at what we have and fix it. what are the 228 violations? somelinks: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...ialinux24.html |
Microsoft has tried to lay claim to technologies such as IP and DNS. :tisk:
It all sounds like M$ FUD to me. |
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"Microsoft Patches Critical IE Flaw" "Failed Windows XP Upgrade Downs 60,000 UK Gov't PCs" Kinda says it all. Lee Kaiwen, Taiwan |
Yeah,I mean Microsoft must've released umpteen number of patches to cover flaws in previous patches! Now that, absolutely sucks.Microsoft has no moral right to even continue producing software,what with the kind of money they've looted by duping people.
P.S.Although this doesn't belong here,but still,since most forums are down,I'd like to convey my heartfelt sorrow on the passing of Dimebag.This is the greatest loss the metal community has suffered in the past decade.Rest in peace,my friend. |
Re: calm down.
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At work i deal with 90% spyware and virus issues. I love how HP and compaq preinstall this hassle for you! then people ask me what i do to save my own butt. i simply tell them i use another OS and browser, and that i am more careful about stuff. they then want to know what other OS i use. i usally get asked if it is Mac and sometimes DOS. they then are shocked to hear I use neither, well i do have a mac too, and that my OS of choice is linux. they are even more serprised to hear it is free. most of these people don't have a clue.
one woman wanted me to do a redo of her system. she claimed not all the viruses where gone. well i turned it on and found all the software on the system was illegal. like winXP professional beta. i then told her that she really had no way to protect her self and she was lucky we didn't report her to microsoft. now i personaly would not report her, and i don't think anyone else would. however if you are gonna be a moron and treat us badly because you can't get things your way. well then i don't really have a problem calling good old bill, even if i don't care for microsoft. |
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