MS Silverlight / Linux Moonlight

[Ben Scott]

On 9/6/07, Bill Sconce <sconce at in-spec-inc.com> wrote:
> So much of Microsoft's struggling has indicated "don't get it".  *THIS*
> indicates "gets it".

  Parts of Microsoft get it; others don't.  Heck, there are good
people working towards good ends within Microsoft.  The biggest
mistake people make when dealing with Microsoft (or any large
organization) is assuming they are a single organism.  This is a
subtle point, but an important one.  When someone finds evidence of
cooperation from within Microsoft, they might dismiss fears such as
ours as "Oh, that's just anti-Microsoft ranting.  I know so-and-so at
Microsoft is legit."  The problem begins when someone higher up than
so-and-so decides it is time to subvert so-and-so's work.  Given that
anti-competitive behavior is established as standard practice at the
top[1], such subversion is very likely.  Only a significant leadership
change at Microsoft will mean otherwise.

  I expect Silverlight is, at present, more about targeting Adobe
Flash than Linux directly.  Let's face it, on Linux, Flash doesn't
work all that well, either.  Adobe, on the other hand, is making money
selling proprietary Flash software.  Microsoft wants that money, so
they're dumping a product on the market (remember MSIE, that "free"
browser?) to get people to switch to their stuff.  Once Adobe Flash is
dead, they can ratchet up the price.  Harming Linux by yanking
cross-platform support is just an added bonus.

  This might actually have an unexpected benefit for the Linux world.
Maybe this will make Adobe will realize that there is no such thing as
a "Microsoft partner" (only future victims), and become more friendly
to Linux.

-- Ben

[1]  Findings of Fact, US vs Microsoft, 1999.
http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/f3800/msjudgex.htm