Re: [Pan-users] VDQ Re: Policy discussion: GNKSA

[Rhialto]

On Sat 09 Jul 2011 at 10:33:22 +1000, Steven D'Aprano wrote:
> Microsoft now is not the same
> as Microsoft of 1998, or even of 2005. Thanks in part to the
> European Union (who did what the US Justice Department refused to do
> and actually put MS over their knee and gave them a sound spanking)
> and in part due to commercial realities (Microsoft's customers said
> "Ballmer, we're using Linux and we want Windows to interoperate with
> it, get over it"), MS has developed an uneasy and reluctant but
> nevertheless genuine attitude that they have to Play Nice With
> Others.

Ha ha. They show that so nicely by threatening Android phone makers
with patents, and demanding money for every Android phone sold. Yes, the
Android which is not from MICROS~1 and which contains not a line of
MICROS~1 code.

Today, it is said that MS earns more money from Android phones than from
its own Windows phones.

Source: groklaw.net and its newspicks; e.g.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/070611-microsoft-android.html
http://www.geekwire.com/2011/microsoft-signs-android-patent-deal-with-military-contractor-general-dynamics
(unfortunately there are no permanent links for Groklaws newspicks
directly, i.e. the abstract and possible comment on it; I got the above
from http://www.groklaw.net/newsitems.php?page=2 but by the time you
read it it will have shifted down of course)

> Consequently, we now have entire departments of MS that publicly
> contribute to Open Source projects, the whole "Linux is a cancer"
> thing has been toned down, and there's hardly even any more talk
> about patent threats.

Nonsense. See above references. Patent threats are on the rise.
"The official announcement also contains a none-too-subtle message for
the other Android device makers that Microsoft is negotiating with
and/or taking to court over the issue." from the geekwire link.

> On the other hand, do you know who I fear? Google and Apple. Between
> the two of them, this could very well be the last generation where
> general purpose computing devices are available massively to the
> public, as opposed to specialist hobbyist machines. Between Google
> putting everything on the cloud, and Apple locking down computers
> and turning the operating system into a walled garden where you can
> barely write a shell script without their permission, the future for
> hacking is looking grim.

I agree with that, though. Not necessarily with (only) Apple and Google
but with any vendor who tries such things.

> Steven
-Olaf.
-- 
___ Olaf 'Rhialto' Seibert  -- There's no point being grown-up if you 
\X/ rhialto/at/xs4all.nl    -- can't be childish sometimes. -The 4th Doctor