Novell,MS and Xen

[Bruce Dawson]

Not to throw cold water on these well-fanned flames but...

Prediction: Microsoft will buy Novell/SUSE or otherwise acquire all the
Unix IP and try to litigate Linux/Unix out of business. Then it will
turn its lawyer cannons on the GPL.

Its interesting that Microsoft isn't satisfied with the legal gains it
made with licensing and copyright protection, so its going to start
bankrupting its "competition" with patent litigation.

It will shortly become too expensive for individuals to develop software
for commercial use. Looks like us programmers will go the way of the Ham
radio operator and backyard mechanic. There will be no more Wilbur and
Orville Wrights in this industry if Microsoft is successful with its
Novell "acquisition".

--Bruce

Bill Sconce wrote:
> On Fri, 10 Nov 2006 14:08:56 -0500
> Neil Joseph Schelly <neil at jenandneil.com> wrote:
> 
>>> Running a Windows server does not constitute interoperability.
>>> Interoperability is the ability of two distinct and different entities
>>> to cooperated with either other using a common set of protocols and/or
>>> interfaces.
>> I agree here too and would much rather everyone play along.
> 
> Wouldn't THAT be nice.  When pigs fly...
> 
>     "Five year deal in a six year plan"
> 
>     "For five full years, Microsoft says it will promote SUSE. For
>     five years, Novell will guarantee its customers immunity to
>     patent lawsuits by Microsoft.
> 
>     "What happens after the five years pass? I seem to recall
>     Microsoft made five year (or similar length) deals with Sybase,
>     Symantec, Corel, Borland, Citrix, and other companies that
>     thrived before the deals only to be reduced to insignificant
>     gnats afterward. All of these deals involved giving the company
>     a bundle of money and promising them they'd prosper. All of 
>     these companys were promptly discarded as partners once 
>     Microsoft gained what it needed to eliminate them as serious
>     competition.
> 
>     "Microsoft has once again suckered a company. It dangled pretty,
>     shiny short-term gains in front of Novell/SUSE while, at worst,
>     planning their long-term extinction, at best, planning to use
>     the success of Novell/SUSE to bleed its customer base. If 
>     Novell/SUSE becomes the king of Linux in five years, you can bet
>     Microsoft will send its thugs over to Novell and raise its
>     "no-sue covenant" protection payments through the roof."
>     
> My own bet that laying a foundation to sue over virtualization is
> one of Microsoft's prime goals at the moment.
> 
> (Quote is from
>     http://www.linuxjournal.com/node/1000121
>     -our friend, the gentle Nicholas Petreley)