SCO declares war on Linux (A study in self-immolation)

bscott at ntisys.com bscott at ntisys.com
Thu May 15 12:20:33 EDT 2003


On Thu, 15 May 2003, at 10:13am, gaf at blu.org wrote:
> HAVING FINALLY READ the GNU General Public License all the way through,
> SCO Group today announced that it is suspending Linux sales.

  SCO's PR is not entirely accurate.  SCO/Caldera is suspending sales of
*SCO* Linux.  They cannot, themselves, suspend sales of anyone else's
product.  They can sue for an injunction to stop such sales, of course, but
the judge would have to decide they have a case.  They would also have to
sue each Linux vendor individually.  And, of course, they would have to shut
down every web and FTP site hosting a copy of every distribution.  If the
much-larger media cartel can't stop trading in pirated music... well, I
don't think SCO would have much success.

> I thought it was interesting that SCO would sue IBM, but this seems to be
> bizarre.

  A drowning man will often grab his would-be rescuer so fiercely that they
drag them down with them.

> ... I'm wondering what affect this will have on the Linux community in
> general.

  There is potential for a lot of PR damage here.  Businesses still
uncertain as to the "safety" of Linux might get scared away.  And, of
course, opponents of Linux can use this for ammo.  I'm sure the marketdroids
in Redmond are rubbing their hands in glee.

  In this case, I think the potential impact will be largely determined by
the reaction of the community.  In other words, if we treat this as a
serious threat, others will consider it a serious threat.  If we consider it
the dying gasp of a failed software company, then the PR damage will be
minimized.  Perception is reality, for this sort of thing.

-- 
Ben Scott <bscott at ntisys.com>
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