[Gllug] Linux migration CD from M$

[Alain Williams]

On Sun, Sep 09, 2001 at 12:40:25AM +0100, Nix wrote:
> On Mon, 3 Sep 2001, robin c. smith stipulated:
> > Microsoft must now know that they will eventually lose out to Linux.
> 
> Wrong :( they can engage in legal warfare. They have lobbies, at least
> in the US (in the UK Blair is of course in their pocket already); we do
> not.

This is my biggest concern: make some technology important and then stop
us using it by use of s/ware patents, etc. There is that item that someone
is attempting to make law in the USA: that every OS must, by default, enforce
copying restrictions on music CD, DVDs, etc. The next step is to say that you
can't enforce it on Linux since it is trivial to recompile/... and so it is
illegal to sell/install/... Linux systems.

As usual the battle will be won on non technical reasons. M$ is conducting
a big marketing onslaught but is hedging it's bets by getting lots of legal
cannons ready.

One area where M$ is much better than us is in the planning dept, they will
plan market dominance as a strategy over many years into the future.
Because of the fragmented nature of Open Source development (they all tend
to be independent of each other) this cohesive planning is something that
we don't really have. This is something that Miguel De Icaza seems to be
starting to try to do with Gnome, but he doesn't really have the muscle to
do it.

M$ will also cynically plan dominance through restrictive & anti competitive
practices - something that we inherently abhor.

-- 
Alain Williams

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