Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Linux And Beijing

Posted by timothy on from the that's-a-lot-of-beta-testers dept.

Headed by an unnamed correspondent, many people have written about this story: "The China Red Flag Linux has surfaced again, this time in the New York Times. Turns out there may be some truth to the story that Linux is being pushed by the Chinese government." I do like this tidbit, even though it demonstrates the article's overall superficial tone: "Nonetheless, Great Wall Computer, one of China's biggest PC makers, has already shipped 200,000 desktop computers loaded with the Linux operating system, which looks much like Windows though it cannot yet match all of Microsoft's features." I can think of some features we can do without ...

2 of 131 comments (clear)

  1. Re:nothing to do with Communism by Detritus · · Score: 5
    China does have legitimate security concerns about using a closed source operating system. U.S. intelligence agencies have a history of arranging for design modifications in equipment provided to intelligence targets.

    Would the NSA sign off on the use of an operating system for sensitive data by the U.S. Government if they weren't allowed to audit and evaluate the source code?

    --
    Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
  2. Re:what's unfortunate by blakestah · · Score: 4

    is the WHY behind linux in china. Basically they decided that they can't have a capitalist OS like M$ Windows being supported by a communist country.

    No, that is not it at all, not at all.

    If you read the history of this a little, you would find that Taiwanese programmers were responsible for making Windows Chinese friendly. They inserted quite a few Easter eggs making fun of the Chinese.

    If there is one thing the Chinese government hates, it is a lack of respect. They would actively hurt their own interests to avoid using Windows at this point.

    Here is a quote from the (no account required) article in the NY Times


    The turning point in Microsoft's image was the introduction of its Chinese-language Windows 95 operating system, which was programmed to display references to "Communist bandits" and to exhort users to "take back the mainland." Beijing, infuriated to learn that Microsoft had used computer programmers in Taiwan to write the software, demanded that the company hire mainland programmers to fix it.


    Just another case of Microsoft rushing a product to market before checking it out thoroughly.