Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft To Exhibit at LinuxWorld Expo
Earendil writes "Linux Today has a confirmed report that Microsoft is going to be an exhibitor at LinuxWorld Expo. One can only guess at what Microsoft's motives might be. It will be interesting to see the reaction to the appearance of a Microsoft booth." No doubt this
means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.
Oh oh, I know, a broadcast floos of NetBIOS and ActiveDNS requests on the exhibitors LAN!!!
Luck favors the prepared, darling.
This will actually be very good! Just wait.
No doubt that their display will consist of Linux running on an Xbox.
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
It's a linux expo? I mean, I have nothing against Microsoft, but I'm pretty damn sure they don't have a linux distrobution (God forbid the day of a "Microsoft Linux").
Anyways, I guess they're just going to try to show the competition.... but that makes absolutely NO sense because, again, it's a LINUX EXPO.
Wouldn't it be grand to laugh and yell to them "Hey, get your crappy product out of here. We are in control for once and your product is a big segmentation fault".
The thought of an MS rep in a penguin suit is enough to make me gag! ;-)
No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.
Hi pot, this is kettle. You're looking mighty black today!
Does mooning their booth make the community look bad?
(B) + (D) + (B) + (D) = (K) + (&)
If I recall, MS was running an anti-linux campaign not 3 months ago......
Bill G in a dunking booth. That would be funny.
Their theme could be "Hugs, not Hurts."
"Would it kill you to put down the toilet seat?" -- Maya Angelou
to see what the more childish among us do!
We have finally assimilated them!
And they're making Windows open-source...
I am sure they will be pushing .NET, with Mr Gnome following close behind. Oh well hopefully people will have sense to stay out of the clutches of the evil empire.
Though being a huge corporation with mounds of cash they might just have some Hot Booth Babes .
Hmmmm... so THIS is why Licoris decided not to call it "Redmond Linux" anymore...
This space left intentionally blank.
Oh, but don't forget to take off your Darth Vader helmet first.
Well, Taco you can start making slashdot look less childish by using a decent Microsoft icon, instead of the Bill Gates borg.
SIG:Slashdot: indymedia for nerds.
First they ignore you...
Then they laugh at you...
Then they fight you...
Then...
--------
Bleah! Heh heh heh... BLEAH BLEAH!!! Ha ha ha ha...
WINIX.
It doesn't run on the standard EXT2 fs, but rather a strange variation called NTFS. It runs a non-standard X, closed source GUI that isn't very stable. It also comes with leading edge programs such as a solitare simulator and productivity applications such as Wordpad and Calculator. Promises to be great!
Wait. That was Win95. 'Scuse me, I need to go gouge out my eyes. Why exactly are they attending!? That's like the NSA attending Defcon.
They deserve one, enough of their NT / 2000 source is stolen from the unix distros...
Like they're going to be contributing anything worthwhile tot the Linux community anyways.
Give me a break. Linux is MS' mortal enemy.
The only thing they'll be there to do is spout BS FUD about how MS is superior to Linux.
They'll probably point out a bunch of "flaws" in Linux which are unrelated to its superiority as an OS; i.e., "there's no clear scheme of ownership in Linux". They'll, of course, have no constructive criticism: all there will be is propaganda on how Linux is "fatally and irrecoverably flawed". They certainly won't offer any insights into solutions for the "problems" they point out, other than to switch to MS.
social sciences can never use experience to verify their statemen
Hell ... is ... getting ... chilly ...
(unlike Boston today.)
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----rhad
Slashdot needs to interview Natalie Portman.
Do you think the Xbox Linux Project's anonymous hacker will be willing to give M$ his $200,000? =) Wouldn't that be amusing...
Seriously tho, it would be interesting, mabey they will be able to see first hand how a stable Operating system is suppose to work! ;)
an alcoholics anonymous booth at a beer convention?
Or do you think MS is going to actually give in to Linux?
~ kjrose
Why would microsoft be there? Are they going to introduce there own linux distro or somthing gay? I can only imagine now a Linux XP *Shudders*
Everyday You see me is the worst day of my life -Office Space
"Well, Taco you can start making slashdot look less childish by using a decent Microsoft icon, instead of the Bill Gates borg."
I'd rather see a Gates icon that looked like Neelix. In terms of trekdom, Borg are still cool even if "Voyager" made them banal. Talaxians like Neelix are never cool (the "lets make a new costume by combining a baseball with Ron Howard" look).
than a self-righteous prick, eh Taco?
No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad.
Can anyone please explain to me what that comment is supposed to mean? Who is "us", and to whom are we looking bad?
This isn't a rhetorical question. I really want to know what the hell Taco is talking about, so I can post a witty retort making fun of him.
My first question after reading the headline, and even after reading the article was "Why?" Does Microsoft expect to try and win converts? I seriously doubt it, and I don't think anyone will believe that they have something to contribute. So, why?
I think they are trying to cause a reaction and get people upset. They can point to this and say, "Look at how uncivil and mean these people are. Do you really want to be associated with them?" This will give them more leverage in the business world, where professionalism means quite a lot. Remember, MS is more about marketing right now than solid products.
I dunno. Just a thought.
"...At the end of the day"..."when everyone goes home, you're stuck with yourself." RIP Layne Staley
Ok, granted this is odd, but one has to wonder what their goal will be. Microsoft is a LOT of things but one thing they do well is market. So they must have a goal in mind to risk walking into such a hostile environment.
Just BEING there lends credence to the expo in the minds of "Microsoft only" people. And MS certainly should know they aren't going to win any converts there. So what IS their goal?
Could they be there to announce (and promote) a possible MS Office for Linux? A MS distribution? What?
Then I guess that this is no longer a spoof?!
Like the 'BSD is dying' troll here, or Joe Barr?
You all remember Joe Barr - The Mindcraft letter...
"No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh"
Considering Microsoft has called the GPL a "Cancer" and attacks linux publicly whenever possible by telling outright lies, how can we ever look bad?
Microsoft is publicly out to destroy linux and whatever their motives, they have a lot of nerve to show up in the first place.
Feel free to pelt them with eggs, because that pales in comparison to their attempts to spread FUD and eventually make our OS illegal or impossible to use. Feel free to mod me down, but nothing I said is a lie.
If you wanna get rich, you know that payback is a bitch
Comment removed based on user account deletion
The personnel manning the stand must have balls bigger than their brains. This deep into hostile territory they ought to have air support.
"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them." -- George H. W. Bush
Watch out geeks, it may be a trap. Can anyone say Jihad XP.
If you can't beat them, blow them up and kill them.
Now that BSD's fate is tied to Apple Computer, it will die into the irrelevant ghetto that is the Apple community, that paltry 9% of users.
Is this so impossible to imagine?
... it could happen.
Say that the leadership at some point looks at a there internal research and notices that Linux's market share is growing against Windows.
So a batallion of MS programmers are thrown on the tast of creating a Linux distro that runs Office and some other MS apps (it would be much better that WINE).
And the unintelligent masses leap on to this wonderful new technology called Linux brought to you by MS...
The best thing that anyone going could do is to simply avoid the MS booth(s). Don't go to them and don't even look to see what they have to offer. Simply avoid anything with MS related to it and they will get the picture real quick.
Isn't that usually you? Seriously, nothing personal, thats what the site is about, but your comments after most story submissions tend to represent the worst elitist, one sided opinions of the community.
Their booth will be right next to the exhibit floor exit, with a big sign that says "WE HAVE THE WAY OUT."
Call (206) 338-5780 COLLECT for information about a genuine BA, BS, MA, MS, MBA, or Ph.D.
ya gotta admit that Office for Linux would be a useful thing to have around.
sulli
RTFJ.
They might set up laptops with shared source for anyone to browse. In a few seconds you could make yourself ineligible to ever work on a related open source project.
.NET CLR to Linux, claiming that it would be faster to port and superior to Mono due to more people (MS developers) having worked on it.
They might further call for developers to port their shared source
Why does them pushing .NET not make sense? Gnome supports it and De Icaza love it. Hence my guess that Microsoft will be pushing .NET, cause I doubt they really "love" Linux.
Who are you?
Or, more specifically, male or female?
I think we all know that in marketing "speaking about" is important.
They probably will show nothing really interesting for the linux community, BUT ms will throw a clear message to the masses: "here we stand".
Among other things, we all are now interested in what are they going to do at the expo... so we are "speaking about": MS marketing departement is really good. They just made a good point.
Or are they going to show some new linux-compatible technology? Or a distribution? This is going to be the most exciting happening at LinuxExpo, i fear.
:dikappa
Not know what Microsoft will exhibit(Office XP for Linux?), I would guess that they view this as an attempt to get a feel for the crowds and a list of the attendees. Co-opting to show? Maybe. Or maybe they view the Linux market as mature enough to support porting their Windows apps.
Say what you will about all their software (the Soft in microsoft), but they do make some pretty decent keyboards and mice which Linux users can make use of.
They'd best emphasize the hardware over the software; a Linux crowed is not the most recentive place for the software anyway.
They've been running ads, along with UNISYS, for a while now, about a certain offering. Who doesn't expect this to be the focus of their exhibit?
- A.P.
"Remember when the U.S. had a drug problem, and then we declared a War On Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore?"
The rumors about MS releasing a version of *nix
have resurfaces recently. Let look at the dirt.
Mac OS-X is based on FreeBSD
MS has a version of Office for Mac OS-X
MS FUD has been directed at Linux and GPL, not against BSD based OSs and Liciense software.
What it adds up to is MS releasing it own verion of BSD, hoping to kill two (2) birds with one (1) stone:
Apple's OS-X and Linux/GNU/GPL
... to do so would only result in no further invitations to similar conferences, and getting them bad press amongst a market I'm sure they see as potential customers.
More likely, I expect they'll have information about their Microsoft Windows services for UNIX
Showing off services for Unix goes much further toward generating revenue for Microsoft than trying to tell people why *nix is bad or somehow inferior. It actually shows that Microsoft cares about interoperability with *nix. True of false, that's probably the message they'll try to convey. I'll withold my opinions on the validity of that message.
They'll be announcing Office XP for Linux?
put the what in the where?
that MS does have a unix kernel. They use it in thier migration from Unix to Windows stuff I think. MS does do some *NIX stuff, they just don't like to admit it. It will be interesting to see what they bring to the *NIX table though.
Remember, in the end MS is out there to make money. Ruling the world is just a means to that end.
Laugh!
There are a few reasons for going to trade shows. so what has microsoft picked.
Try to get people interested in your warez.
Check out what the competition has to offer.
Recruting new staff.
Get a load of fit birds to strip so that no-one even bothers to leave you stand.
hmmmmmmm........
thank God the internet isn't a human right.
Since KDE continues to just rip it off why not show up and take credit for it.
Went to Thinkfree, and buried in the site is the fact that I have to pay for it. Rename the thing Think50Bucks, instead of trying to cash in on the free software movement.
If slashdot sucks, why did you dupe their look and color scheme? Secondly, why did you do such a bad job at it?
SlashdotSucks sucks.
python -c "x='python -c %sx=%s; print x%%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))%s'; print x%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))"
I hope the MS booth persons have bullet-proof vests.
It wouldn't surprise me in the least if some of the more, ah, vocal *nix folks get that hostile. Esp. if the MS booth is there to spread FUD....
So rise up, all ye lost ones, as one, we'll claw the clouds.
1. That $200000 prize for Linux on X-Box is just too tempting.
.Net for Linux.
2. Office on Linux.
3. DirectX compatibility-layer for Linux.
4.
5. Finally, a unifying desktop environment for Linux: 'LIN32'.
6. A new kernel, now featuring Palladium (tm).
7. No product, they just want to say goodbye to all of us before new laws make Linux illegal. Possibly they'll be mooning _us_.
8. The booth contains a powerful explosive, set to go off as soon as a keep-alive timer from a PC running Windows XP fails. Talk about a 'blue screen of death'...
9. They are not yet aware that they are invited to a _Linux_ expo. It is all a weird joke by Larry Ellison.
and finally... (drumroll please!)
10. They have ported Microsoft Bob to Linux!
Didn't Microsoft announce some time ago that they were going to open source some of their software to educational facilities for students? Maybe that has something to do with it. Perhaps they have some news that they are going to use to appeal to some of the open source fanatics to try to convince them to use the Windows platform?
This will be interesting to say the least.
Well I am clueless as to how this is news... It's not really important as far as I can tell... I don't use Linux to spite Microsoft, I use Linux so that I can get my work done. What does it matter what Microsoft does?
Granted buying laws and that is important to know about, but the fact that they are getting a booth at a Linux Expo doesn't really matter other than something to gossip about.
ie Nothing here move on.
/* TODO: Spawn child process, interest child in technology, have child write a new sig */
At least there is one addition this year. Last LinuxWorld I was at was terrible. Was half the previous size and the remaining companies were just holding on.
Pretty soon they'll be holding it at the VFW...
Obviously this is some kind of trojan or rootkit. We better check our logs to see what happened.
They can get our backs in case the Mac kids come over to start sh*t.
Where does the school board find them and why do they keep sending them to ME?
microsoft: lets have some fun with the linux nuts. *poke* ... *poke* *poke*
Which is more users that were using Unix on the desktop before OSX came out.
If anything, OSX will help take Unix to the mainstream. That's something that happened on release and that Linux and the other *nixes haven't been able to acheive in several years.
You guys don't seem to get it, It is not MS Linux, it's MS-OSX. They already have a native version of
Office for OSX. If Apple can create a version of FreeBSD, way is so hard to believe that MS wouldn't
release thier own version of *BSD to torpedo
OSX and Linux.
a hypnotist? brainwash everyone in the place into thinking that open source is bad. God knows they've got enough money to make a brainwashing mashine
I never said I was smart, I just said I was smarter than you
Does anyone else picture RMS and BillG sitting at a dinner, speaking of the Undiscovered Country?
python -c "x='python -c %sx=%s; print x%%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))%s'; print x%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))"
Comment removed based on user account deletion
I've heard mention of this from a few Microsoft'ers... it's likely they'll be unveiling the Microsoft apps layer that sits on top of the Linux kernel. This makes me shudder... In the span of 20 years they've come up with a metric ton of software through embrace an extend, it would be unwise to presume that there is no possibility of a world where the "Linux" product in the eyes of the consumer has turned into another version of "Windows" that has Microsoft apps written on top of the Linux kernel...
Are they going to be plugging this creature? They are testing it against RedHate Linux.
Keine mitleid fuer microsoft!
haven't you all heard? MS new OS is going to have an underlying unix like kernel....sorta like MacOS X I guess.
My fear is that Microsoft writes something like wine and sells it for Linux. They don't need you to buy their OS, they get you to buy their propriety compatibility layer and their software. Just think how many places that use Linux will be willing to pay $50 for the ability to use Windows apps. Microsoft will make money, and increase market penetration w/out giving anything to the community. Getting Linux users to run Microsoft software may be their first step in fighting Linux.
t'nera semordnilap
The site www.linuxworldexpo.com is running Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4/Windows 98.
Go, Linux! Rule the web! Go, go, go! Oh, wait... damn.
if the M$ booth was politely ignored as offtopic :)
errr....umm...*whooosh* *whoosh* Is this thing on ?
details about their enterprise wide lisencing schemas
You need to run a SQL database just to keep track of the licensing?
10. Bill's wallet is a little heavy. What better to do than leave a couple of billion at the Sourceforge booth?
9. Steve Ballmer has a pengiun fetish. It's just not the same since "Bloom County" was cancelled. Time to get another fix.
8. They think it is a Microsoft expo to which some Linux folks have been invited.
7. Microsoft loves trekkies. Going to be a lot of them there at any Linux event.
6. Its like "A Christmas Carol". The Ghosts of OS's Past, Present, and Future have finally convinced Ebenezer Gates of the error of his way.
5. Due to budget cuts in Redmond, they are really sending the booth crew to collect a load of free pens from the other booths in order to supply the home office.
2. (don't look for #4 and #3. They were lost due to an XP bluescreen). They are there to market the amazing new LinuXbox.
1. Yes, certainly. Giving out free copies of those surplus Windows 3.11 5.25" floppies will win over all of those Linux hippies.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
My guess would be that they still haven't figured out this whole concept of "Open Source", and that their booth will really just be a front so their spies can sneak and "steal" some highly-coveted source code that actually works!
I'm sure Microsoft will be there to present their latest virus vulnerability.
With all their marketing $$, I hear they might be giving away free bugs at their booth this year..... YIPPIE!!!
Crapdot
News from birds. Stuff that splatters.
My guess is that Microsoft is there to announce their formal adoption of Linux, and replacement of all future server products with Linux based solutions, with the next generation of Desktops being based upon Lindows.
That or they will have strippers, so that nobody visits any of the other booths.
Microsoft's Booth is right between "Cybozu Corporation" and "LTrix Engineering". Oooo. Prestigious location.
Spreading FUD doesn't look bad unless you expose it as FUD; and people aren't going to take egg-throwing idiots like yourself seriously - you're just going to make the people that are actually trying to dispel the FUD look like idiots by association.
In other words, by acting like an ass, you've already given up. Congratulations. Enjoy your continued Microsoft monopoly...
It is 5% if you count the people that user Apple computers. It is 9% if you count also the users who bought macs cuz they look so cool but have never turned them on.
I'm not going! there's liable to be violence, or dare I say it, a riot?
Set up a situation in which a few people, freely speaking their own minds, are spun by the Micro$oft flacks into FUD for consumption by the various Micro$oft mouthpieces: ZDNet, et al...
Kinda takes trolling to a whole new level.
t_t_b
I'm on PJ's "enemies" list! Are you?
Microsoft Mktng Geek: "Hi, this is Microsoft. We'd like to buy a booth at LinuxWorld."
LinuxWorld Sales Geek: "Damn kids, quit calling here. I don't know who the hell you're trying to amuse. It's not funny, and you're wasting my time."
You KNOW this happened.
ceci n'est pas un sig.
a map of their exhibit from linuxtoday.com linking to linuxworldexpo
1 /f loorplan/floorplan.cvn?b=224&exbID=118
http://www.linuxworldexpo.com/linuxworldexpo/v3
might be helpful so you know where *NOT* to be standing when the ticking mechnical suicide penguin bombs come waddling in
Don't believe me? Read the rest of the comments in this article.
Conspiracy theories on this topic over at newsforge.net ;)
TuxReports has "the scoop"
Stick them right next to the rms booth see how long that lasts
Remember, in the end MS is out there to make money. Ruling the world is just a means to that end.
Then why is Bill giving away so much to charities? Just for PR? Maybe.
I think it's more likely that the Microsoft coporate personality is more like a control freak than just greedy. Money is the way they maintain control, not the other way around. Remember, money is power.
Nope, no sig
Right across from the weavers? Not bad placement. For CodeWeavers that is.
NexuSys - Linux support by the best
Sometime ago /. posted a link to a letter of some Cuban statesman (http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/25157.html ), in answer to a M$ FUD-letter. Why not have this letter printed on poster-format and hang it all over the place, say two posters per booth (except the M$-booth maybe :-) ). I think all M$ FUD will be more then compensated!
What person will donate an airborne act of love?
He just does that on Slashdot.. nobody of any importance reads Slashdot ;) Expos, meanwhile, are open to the public, and sometimes get like media coverage and shit.
"Your typical Linux Administrator... are you sure you want this running your company?"
Linux is just not as good as FreeBSD.
Microsoft actually exhibits at the booth,
and everyone keeps 10ft away from it and refuses to acknowledge it's existance,
or the existance of M$'s droids when they wander the floor trying to drum up interest.
The folks with booths near M$ should request to be moved.
They'll be trying to show that their latest stuff is cool, try to get some respect/mindshare. It'll probably be a big bust, becaue it'll keep malfunctioning, by collapsing under its own weight, with a few straws added by other show attendees (running large trucks through the holes in their software, most likely).
Make 'em pay! http://Payola.org #include "stddisclaimer
Microsoft Linux® to be unveiled.
Actually a ploy, they'll show up with buckets of money and try to buy loyalty
Show all the technology they own and you can't see the source code to - Nyah!!
We Have The Way Out and we'll show you as soon as we can get the Powerpoint presentation to work
Rollout, denied-until-two-months-ago-existence, of Modular Windows
A test to see how low the temperature in Hell can actually go, below freezing
Demonstration of how Linux servers and Windows workstations can live in peace as soon as their engineers stop changing the specifications every five minutes.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I feel really sorry for the exhibitor who is getting this as an assignment. The amount of abuse they going get just being there. However much the company as a whole deserves it. I hope people video tape the abuse it would mae a great reality show.Streaming a live feed of their booth would be great too. SphynxSR
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
Very insightful. I just want to add the fact that MS Office makes up about 60% of MS revenue. It's their most profitable product, by far.
Developers: We can use your help.
I hear alot of people saying something to the effect of "I hope that the MS booth gets trashed because MS Sucks" This is probably EXACTLY what microsoft wants. Think about it, MS has done all it can to portray Linux as a system designed by crackers and script kiddies, one stop short of terrorists. How do you think the government will react if MS get physically attacked at a trade show? MS Will say: "See, we told you that those Linux geeks are all hackers, you cant trust them to make secure systems, but you can trust us, were the victim here." Which is what will happen im sure.
The real reason is so that linux geeks everywhere will lose hours of productive time wondering why MS would have a booth at LinuxWorld.
This comment was generated by a Squadron of Ultra Ninjas
Really, what better way then to make the community look bad then to send in their enemy. When the "childish" start throwing tomatoes, we will only further distance linux from mainstreem and scare off the more "casual" computer users.
Most people aren't thought about after they're gone. "I wonder where Rob got the plutonium" is better than most get.
Is anyone else tiring of these "clever" comments appended to every story submission recently? It's as if the editors no longer cared enough to think through the ramifications of reader submitted stories. And if the editors are providing no content of value .....
I guess if I were Microsoft I would want to be there to "gently reeducate" those IT guys that run MS shops but are considering Linux.
If I were an IT guy going to the show as a seeker of answers, I would see what Linux has to offer and ask people why I should switch my servers over - get their real life experiences from those that made the switch. If I were an MCSE, possibly investigate how much I'll have to learn to make the switch.
If I saw the Microsoft booth, I'd then want to ask MS why I shouldn't switch my servers over to Linux and then weigh the pros and cons in the days/weeks/months after the show, probably do a little more investigation. If the booth isn't there, I might not ever ask MS what the cons would be to making the switch.
The booth might be there to spread FUD/pro-MS information to those on the fence about considering Linux for their servers or recommending Linux to their bosses.
Plus it doesn't hurt when some kid is mooning your booth while you're talking to one of these on-the-fence guys so you can say "You're gonna trust your company's servers to these kids?"
I wonder how this would be taken by the Linux Community, if this is whats about to happen. Would they ignore their hatred for all things M$ and use it? I'm sure the compatibility would be useful, but i doubt it'd be as stable RH/Mandrake woteva. I'd be interested to hear your response.
Everything sucks except musicandstuff
at Microsoft must have lost an office contest or pool -- and his "reward" is to man this booth.
Who said they never had a sense of humor? Kind of like the principal that says: "If you sale 10,000 candy bars for the school fund raiser -- I will shave my head, and move my office to the top roof for a day...."
(+1 Funny) only if I laugh out loud.
"Hurry Hurry, step right up. Hey you! With the face! Wanna come work for us?" What better way to improve the talent than to pick up some Linix geeks? Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
I'm willing to bet that its gonna be their We have the way out project.
---
Always standing, I am a tree awaiting the lightning. -Samael, Crown
I would doubt that Microsoft would want to transfer their Office programs to Linux, as it would only encourage their customers to linux and get the word of linux out more (i.e. shopping for MS Office, and see MS Office for Linux, and check out what it is about, realizing they can get a free operating system!) That would probably be a bad business choice...much like Nintendo deciding to make games for Playstation 2...it just wont happen.
Maybe they'll exhibit some server performance testing side by side on windows and linux.
Please help! I'm stuck inside my virtual reality headset!
Watch out for free stuff that makes a ticking sound from the MS booth...
crazy dynamite monkey
Not a bad strategy, even if I thought of it myself. Microsoft has a golden opportunity to transform themselves during the "Years of Appeals" by releasing Linux compatible software. Thus de-fanging critics and "dem nasty revenuer" types. All the while embracing, extending, and finally extincting Linux. Should be good for 10 to 20 more years.
Come on, give out you latest distribution! ;-)
Seriously, if nobody does anything, at all. Don't atlk to them, don't pickup their vendor goodies, don't molest their Hot Booth Babes , it won't give them anything to work with. I understand this is a monumental assursion of self-control for some, but just don't do anything. The conference is about Linux, and MS has repeatedly made Linux interoperablity as difficult as they could manage. They have no software for the platform and no interest in sponsoring any projects. They have nothing to say.
Spyder
There is ONE type of product that M$ does well, and makes an honest living with - Input devices. This is the ONLY area where I've seen them actually innovate. (Mouse wheel, first company with an all-surface optical - The grid-pad opts from Sun don't count).
As long as they stay far away from software, they're golden.
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
The Linux community is off base on this one.
It's not MS-Linux but MS-BSD.
They already got a native port of Office for OSX
which is more or less FreeBSD
some part/faction of the companmy actually likes Linux. That damn company is so big, it's left hand cannot possibly know what its right hand is doing. The XBox group is probably encouraging Linux. We already know they've taken code.
They say that MS always has the prettiest booth babes - and probably the largest stand to put them on. So they just aim to sabotage the show by distracting everybody.
The only possible response is to dress up in penguin suits and form a 'ring of herring' around the Microsoft booth.
-- Ed Avis ed@membled.com
No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.
You mean like yourself?
I've seen MS ads in most Linux magazines I've bought. Mostly touting their "enterprise" products, and even offering to GIVE away a copy. Remember, the first dose of herin is often free ;)
.NET and maybe their "We have the way out" foolishness is what they will be doing on the surface. But the real purpose is intimidation.
They are there for intimidation purposes, pure and simple, the same reason why they advertise in the mags. "We are Microsoft, we are everywhere, you are not to HAVE your own space without us" is the attitude.
The best thing to do would be for people there to ignore them and move on, just as I do when I encounter one of their ads in a Linux mag. I don't blame the magazine for taking their money.
My bet would be they will be touting
=== The price of freedom is eternal vigilance
Clearly because of the economic downfall, they (microsoft) are looking for a cheap way to have a look at all the great stuff that linux has to offer!
They're only there to find more things to copy or for more things they can use for their FUD...
The optimistic among us might think in ways like: if you can't beat them, join them... but I don't think microsoft will ever use that tactic.(they're more the "if you can't beat them, buy them" kind...)
Beware of Programmers who carry screwdrivers. -- Leonard Brandwein
It's not MS Linux it is MS-OSX.
They've already got a native port for OSX
Seems like that alone would make Linux more attractive...
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I would laugh until I passed out if a few of the more "childish" among us beat the living hell out of the MS reps, and then chased their tripping, crying, shirtless nose-bleeding-all-over-themselves asses into the streets.
Just like happened to me and my friend in that puerto rican bar that one time.
pr0n - keeping monitor glass spotless since 1981.
No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.
Tesla Coil.
S
Seriously, do the organizers have to allow Microsoft to even be there?
I think its funny that Microsoft carries so much muscle that even the Linux community will bend over to please Microsoft.
"Oh, you want to put an exhibit at the LinuxExpo?", LinuxExpo.
"Yep", Microsoft sales person.
"Great, we'll put you right across from the 'I love Richard Stallman' exhibit."
Give me a break.
LoRider
It is probably best that we get this all talked out now, and treat them as fairly as possible. However:
There are lots of things that could be done to convince Microsoft that this is a really bad idea.
'No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.'
We should all be careful not to put the Linux community in a bad light. I plan on wearing a Groucho Marxs disguise when I hit 'em with a big slimy spitball. How about you?
"Time wounds all heals" Groucho Marxs.
The race isn't always to the swift... but that's the way to bet!
"One can only guess at what Microsoft's motives might be."
Perhaps that want to make a nice salad? They will certainly be inundated with fresh produce.
=brian
I think a good peaceful, yet effective, thing to organize would be to calmly take whatever they are handing out at their booth (software, etc.) and organize a bonfire later in the conference. Sort of a BOF session---"Really want to burn Microsoft? Come to our bonfile at such-and-such-a-place at 10pm. Don't bring an attitude, but do bring plenty of Microsoft wares!"
The ending is "Then the people who will give up liberty for safety deserve neither safety nor liberty."
The quote derives from Mike Godwin, a socialist who worked for the EFF in 1898 and wrote the original version of the Pledge of Allegiance
* Insert typical ultra-biased "MICROSOFT BAD, LINUX GOOD!" comment here *
Microsoft suicide bombers.
Just another obscure company hoping to get noticed. Nothing to see here, move along.
"Gentlemen! You can't fight in here, this is a war room!"
Creationists are a lot like zombies. Slow, but powerful and numerous. And they all want to eat our brains.
the real reason is that microsoft wants to show off the xbox running linux, so they can claim the $200,000 - hey atleast they make money on one of em!
From: Joe Barr [joe@pjprimer.com]
Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 1999 8:02 AM
To: sales@mindcraft.com
Subject: Industry Scum
Hey, Mindcraft
I am writing an article about asslicking whores in the industry.
You know the sort, they bend over for folks like Bill Gates by
producing totally false "benchmarks" based on liess, mistests,
biased hardware and software, and scores of other unethical,
deceiptful, dishonest, duplicitous means.
Like your reviews of NT vs Novell and Linux. Classic cases of
professional prostitution.
Cock sucking the geeks in Redmond.
The question for you maggots, whores, whatever you prefer to be
called, is: how much does it cost to buy one of your benchmarks?
tHANKS,
Joe Barr The Dweebspeak Primer
And remember Linux kiddies - Joe to this day 'speaks' on behalf of Linux.
I been a Linux user since 1995, just so you known where I'm coming from OK.
It's not MS-Linux it's MS-OSX/BSD.
Considering that MS already has a port of Office
for OSX which is more or less FreeBSD.
And that MS FUD is directed at GPL and
not BSD OS/Software.
Why is it so far fetched to think that MS couldn't or wouldn't create there of version of OSX?
Hoping to kill off Apple OSX and Linux at the same time.
For some reason, as of this post, 50% of the posts are modded as Funny.
Can this antecipate some behavioural pattern ?!
*sigh*
They found out who's been leaking all those internal emails from Redmond and this is the guys new assignment. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Microsoft exhibiting at a Linux expo just begs for someone to pull a prank with their booth. Nothing illegal, but something that could really cause a headache.
:) That was the name of the non-existent computer that Steve Jobs (believe it or not, I don't think it was actually Woz who did this) made a fake brochure for and planted at the MITS booth, MITS being the makers of the real Altair.
I wonder if someone will pull a "Zaltair."
From what I've read, it was hilarious - the poor MITS people were inundated with questions about a product they didn't even know existed (which wasn't their fault, since it didn't)! The real kicker is that Jobs even managed to arrange the brochure so that the hidden "clue" pointed to a different company, Processor Technologies. The only reason we even know this is because of the confession a few years later.
I can just imagine it now - someone will plant a professionally-made brochure for "Microsoft Linux" or a proprietary Windows emulator for Linux, and the Microsoft reps will be bombarded... or at least, teased mercilessly.
MS is out to destroy GPL, not BSD.
After all MS already has a port for OSX which
is +/- FreeBSD.
Why not a MS-BSD?
That works fine for me. I use Linux because it doesn't suck, and even most distributions do. I couldn't give a hoot if M$ wants to enter in it or not. All that means is that I'll be able to run IE and Office under Linux, which is fine for me. I'm not a GPL biggot.
Strange, I wonder what MS will be doing there?
hopefully no one burns their booth down...
How long before their demo machines get hacked, anyone wanna take up bets???
how is this new?
i've been going to linuxworld for a few years now.. and well.. m$ has been there EVERY year.
Is the signup page for linuxworld Slashdotted yet?
And when you look at how much $$$$$$ passes MS's hands the $$ that goes to charity isnt that much.
Yeah, Bill "only" has the biggest charitable foundation -- in history. The foundation has more money than it can even conceivably spend. When you also factor that the mission of the foundation (worldwide immunization of children) has absolutely no direct benefit to Bill or Microsoft, I think you you are way off base here.
Criticize Microsoft's business practices, fine, but at least give credit where credit is due.
Boycott! Simple as that. Make those Micro$oft feel very much alone at the expo.
if the Xbox was the reason they were there.
Obviously Microsoft will do or related something related to BSD. Microsoft likes BSD, since they can rip off all the code (run the 'strings' utility against MS' ftp.exe :-)). At least they gave something "in exchange" to the community, namely a .NET implementation for FreeBSD.
A monkey is doing the real work for me.
I hate microsoft as much as the next guy, but as long as we're letting the BSD guys take such a huge part in the show, we can't complain when Microsoft comes in.. it stopped being "Linux"world a while ago..
"Make it idiot proof, and someone will make a better idiot."
Perhaps they are going in with windows as an 'alternative' OS display, which it would be, taken in context of the show.
.. like office.. ( yes i know, when pigs fly.. )
Or have some hidden linux app they have been hiding
---- Booth was a patriot ----
> (God forbid the day of a "Microsoft Linux").
When MS sold its Xenix to SCO (yes it really was Microsoft Xenix before it was SCO Xenix) it signed an agreement that MS would never issue another Unix operating system. This was to ally fears in SCO that MS wanted to dump Xenix (an edition 7 Unix) to bring out a System III based Unix.
Now Caldera owns SCO, and thus this piece of paper. Ray Noorda has sucessfully sued MS by buying DR-DOS from Novell and using that as a means of suing. Perhaps the real reason that he bought SCO was this piece of paper so that he can sue MS if they ever brought out a Linux or BSD based OS.
Some of the big Open Source Developers are almost violently opposed to Microsoft. And if MS in on the turf and they do ack like children then the Buisness people who are there to determin if Linux suits there needs sees this behavior they may just leave with the opinion that Linux hasent matured enough for the buisness class. Or better yet for MS a crazy Open Source Developer attacts a MS representivie, then that is one more OS(Open Source) developer put into jail and one less OS programming. So if we act like a kids that are acting like the level of my writting (probably 2nt grade). Then MS looks good.
And if we are all professional which I think may be closer to the truth then MS will have the opertunity to give their side of the story. Eather way it is win win solution for MS.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
They would probably be correct in thinking that a lot of developers will be in attendance....
Will be empty, with a blue curtain pulled in front of it....
I hope they get heckled.
.Net/XP upgrades, File and Print servers, extensive staff to track patches and bugs on a yearly basis.
:-)
If I had the time I would go. But unfortunately, I have a appointment with a few companies that feel they are spending too much money on
Did I say they just might need a Linux box here or there to replace those, just maybe baby cakes?
Hack
Got Geometrodynamics? Awe, too hard to figure out? Too bad.
Maybe aside from the .NET push MS will do at the expo they will also show new (ported) native versions of their software for the LINUX world.
Wouldn't it be great to have a native MS Office running on your box so you don't have to worry that the resume you just whipped up in Star Office (OO) will look good on the execs own computer?
I personally don't think MS will try to discredit LINUX at it's own show if anything this will give LINUX even more credibility in the corp. world.
IE. if MS is taking note (positive note at that) of this "new" linux movement then it must be good
I doubt I'll be seeing the MS, booth,
as it will probably be modded down as flamebait, beneath my threshold.
Think of it! I wonder how long it'll be before their entire booth is running Linux...
I'll bet their machines will be on a network... Bwahahaha...
I am not interested in articles about life extension advancements.
The devil came to my house, so I let him in. He sat at my table, so I gave him a cup of tea. He offered me a wish, so I made one. And then he stole my soul and left.
I suppose I have only myself to blame, but he seemed like a nice fellow despite what others have said about him. Perhaps I should have kept dear the warnings of the others that have fallen before me.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety" - BF
He looked at me and said, "Kid, we don't like your kind, and we're gonna send your fingerprints off to Washington."
This is obvious flame bait.
But I'll try to point out once again what the Open Source (BSD & GPL) in general and Linux communties
keep overlooking.
1. MS has ported Office to Mac OSX
2. OSX is more or less FreeBSD
3. MS FUD attacks have been against GPL/Linux and
not against BSD Liciense and BSD based OS.
4. Apple has already done the marketing for MS.
5. Why is so far fetched considering 1-4 that
MS would release there own version of *BSD?
6. What is the underlying OS for XBOX? Could
it be *BSD?
My feeling is that they probably get some kind of information about how many people showed and other statistically useful information. Just like they insisted on pulling $1 from each copy of SCO UNIX and kept close tabs on how many copies of OS/2 sold.
The use this information to determine how much of their $40+ billion they need to spend on FUD and if more goes to "F", "U", or "D".
They don't belong at Linux Expo but they are a marketing company after all.
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
Email from my CS Dept, I saw it after I read
Microsoft software distribution is here!
Through Microsoft's MSDNAA program, we now have a site license for academic
use for *all* of Microsoft's systems software. This includes everything except MS Office. You can copy this software (e.g. Windows XP Professional) for free.
If you are a current student or faculty member you may check out a copy of this software to be copied for your use. The check out period is 2 days. You must have an ID and be a current student (if a student) to do this. We currently have made copies of Windows XP Professional, Visual Studio
http://www.msdnaa.net/products/descriptions.asp
You can expand the categories listed there to see what's available. Note that special requests of unusual items on this list should be directed to Paul Ford in CS support, and will require some time for him to make the copies.
When you check this out, you will be requested to sign a form explaining the terms of use. Some of the pieces of software require an enabling license number, which you can copy down for some of the products. Some other products (Visio, Win XP) require you to get an activation sticker (limit of 2 per person). You will also be asked to write down how many installations you plan on making with the software, which we need to summarize and report to Microsoft periodically.
See Jennifer in the main CS office (SEO 1120) to check out the CD's. There may be a rush at the beginning of this program, so please be patient if the copies you want are already checked out.
Enjoy!
Why should a mere Linux show scare them?
Martin Brooks / Slayer99 #linux / UIN 2178117
whatever their motives, they have a lot of nerve to show up in the first place.
Having nerve is a Very Good Thing. So at least someone here is paying them the complement they deserve. Will MS be there nay-saying? Unlikely. Will they be there knowing they're going to be the target of a LOT of abuse? Yes. Are they going to pick fights or throw things? Unlikely. They'll run a class act in hostile territory, and improve their image immensely. The media will love their confidence and their nerve.
Well, Taco you can start making slashdot look less childish by using a decent Microsoft icon, instead of the Bill Gates borg.
Hunh? No. It's perfect. This is exactly what Microsoft is. They've taken advantage of a very imballenced copyright law to dominate thousands of smaller (and even larger) businesses. The fact that Billy's net worth is greater than 40-45% of the U.S. Population combined is just stunning, no other word for it -- something is horribly, horribly wrong here. Calling a spade a spade is exactly what is needed. Microsoft *is* the Borg if anything could be the borg.
Now we all know who the anonymous $200,000 donor is for the XBOX Linux port! I shoulda seen it all along! ;)
Domains for only $8.75/year! Transfer your domain for on
Yeah, you guys can be joking around up there. Be glad you're not down here, Satan's bitching all day now about that freezing cold we have now. You know, hell used to be a lovely hot place, but now it's just friggin' cold down here and Satan is swearing all the time. No fun.
Well, not specifically that. But, my guess is that they'll have a booth with descriptions of all 538 Microsoft pure thought patents that linux users violate every time they turn on their computers.
They'll have cameras and facial recognition software to use to find out who's at the expo since they can assume that everyone there not working for Microsoft must be using Linux or wants to use Linux.
That way, they can go after current hardcore users of Linux for infringement of Microsoft's pure thought patents, and make it clear that anyone who even attempts to use Linux will put themselves at grave risk for future lawsuits!!!
Or, they'll exhibit Palladium.
But I repeat myself.
Best. Comment. Ever. Enjoy!
as in the ratio or stupid 1337 do0dz to the real linux supporting crowd? I am guessing about 80 percent, given the "squeeky wheel gets the oil" factor. Stupid people are generally outspoken in their stupidity. The amount of sheer rhetoric parroted back and forth between zealots and microsoft folk will be entertaining at first and depressing for the rest of the time.
Doesn't anyone else think it odd that a company with $40 billion in cash would get a 10'x10' booth in the "startups" section at the Linux show?
Perhaps the single most plausible explanation for this is that Microsoft recently acquired a company that had already paid for their booth. There are several companies listed on the rookery page of the conference web site that do not appear on the show floor map. These include Globetrotter, Shaolin Microsystems, APPX Software, and Cylant. None of them appears to have anything on their web sites about being acquired, however.
He looked at me and said, "Kid, we don't like your kind, and we're gonna send your fingerprints off to Washington."
Maybe 40 people dressed in Tux outfits should circle their booth and stay there for the duration of the Expo. And say it is for security reasons. :)
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
A big part of .NET is web services, and Microsoft has already published articles dealing with SOAP and interoperability. With Linux enjoying some reasonable success in the server market, it makes perfect sense for Microsoft to show how .NET web services can play a role in Linux dominated environments.
.NET, they'll deliberately break compatibility to force everyone to become a Microsoft customer.
Interoperability is a good thing, but remember when you see their demo that interoperability will only last as long as it suits their needs. If they reach critical mass with
Make no mistake, Microsoft is actively strategizing the death of Linux, and they've got a hell of a lot of resources to put to the task. Where's the strategy for Linux, and who will lead the charge?
Post a simulation of a MS EULA with a question:
Is this a cancer?
It probably would need to be a simulation, as I believe that the terms of the EULA prohibit you from disclosing it to anyone else. And copyright law would certainly prohibit you from distributing it. But it should be easy enough to make something that looks convincing at the start and end.
I think we've pushed this "anyone can grow up to be president" thing too far.
Much my suprise netcraft showed that www.linuxworldexpo.com is running on MS machines!
Now I know that the web server s/w id can be faked (eg walmart) but the OS is shown as MS too!
also they have had linux+apache listed in the past, so i can only guess that they may have a mix (mirrors) or have switch to MS totaly =/
Does this mean they will be showcasing their FreeBSD mail servers that have served them so well with hotmail?
He who has no
I have a theory. Bill Gates is working on the new M$ OS and wants to see what he can steal I mean barrow from the open source community, I mean look at what Apple has done with OS X. I think M$ knows that it has done wrong and look for them to make a *Nix based OS. I mean what other reason would they even show up? They could try to use guerrilla tactics for advertising but I do not think that will go over well with that group.
I can accept that throwing eggs isn't a good idea. This doesn't tell me what is a good idea. Maturity may be great, but it doesn't in itself suggest a path forwards.
How can this be used to the advantage of the community?
How can this be used to the detriment of MS?
These are reasonable questions. I don't have a reasonable answer to either of them. (Outside of the trivially obvious.)
I suspect that if MS saw any possibility of a large downside that they wouldn't show up.
I think we've pushed this "anyone can grow up to be president" thing too far.
They smuggle a large BOMB into their booth.
FRA: STFU GTFO
You have to remember that Bill gives his cash away often just so the feds don't get it.... like many of us who donate to non-profit organizations. A lot of his "gifts" are tax-write offs. I'm not saying that's not a good thing... b/c he directs his money towards what he would like to improve directly instead of letting the feds decide where it goes for him. I don't know how much of what he gives away is deductable... and what isn't... but... let's not pretend it's all out of kindness & good will... k?
Codeweavers (Booth 1289)
Does Microsoft feel that they are their greatest threat or is this just a conspiracy theory???
From excellent karma to terible karma with a single +5 funny post...
For anyone who is going to be attendance with a booth and everything, why not take the initiative to properly "welcome" MS to the show as soon as they hook their boxen up to the show lan? I humbly suggest repeated nessus scans from multiple sources. Maybe some packet fun with nemesis or rain. Free Caffiene Linux t-shirt to the first person or team to own their systems.
The story has been updated with the Microsoft replies as of 2103 UTC.
Peace,
LinuxScribe
a/k/a Brian Proffitt
Linux Today
Because of their licenses.
I could go into a lot of details, but that's the core. They treat their customers no better than they treat their business associates. And they treat their business associates no better than they treat their competitors. And they try to kill off the competition.
Work out the logic, and you will see why no civilized community should consider them for membership.
I think we've pushed this "anyone can grow up to be president" thing too far.
I know it's gonna take some real wunder-spin, but I'm expecting that they will coo on about interoperability, co-work, and lots of nice management platitudes.
:)
In other words, I'm expecting that they're looking on this as a mild publicity stunt. Kudos, though; gutsy move.
Oh, and as for the people Taco thinks will make us look bad, don't think for one second that the people manning the booth will not be prepared.
They have the funds to prepare such that they come out smelling like roses.
Money, in decent quantities, buys perceived reality these days. Remember the last presidential election?
Blearf. Blearf, I say.
Nobody going to the microsoft booth, I think it would cause more of a fuss if _NO ONE_ went to the booth than if a few hecklers stopped by to poke fun at the poor dears...
/* oops I accidentally made a comment, sorry */
How about Bill Gates keeping every dollar spent on charity and then pulling rank on MS to make the goliath a better behaved machine?
This would directly impact many more people who are capable of in turn generating more good for humanity than a bunch of children who cannot, due to their social status, receive the treatments that they "need".
I mean, charities are goddamn shortsighted. Say you immunize a pile of kids, then what? Typically these children have families with little to no income in the standard sense. Now they die of a different cause. Whoopteedoo.
There are an infinite number of more inventive things Bill Gates could do with the massive amount of capital and rank he controls in Microsoft, and spending a token amount on a charity is a copout.
I mean c'mon, everyone knows that the born rich guy who buys the big ol' rock for the girl is no cooler than the blue collar who has to scrimp, scrape, and bloody his knuckles to put together a car for her. Mr. Moneybags can mailorder (internet clicky click) the jewel, whereas there's only one way to build the car, IYKWIM, AITYD.
The point is that I feel that Bill Gates should set his standards higher before he gets props for starting a charity.
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
The ace is called WinXP. Possibly Win2000 also, I'm not sure. I believe that things are such that it is illegal for Wine to successfully emulate the WinXP standards. If they want to emulate Win95, Win98, or WinNT I think that they can try, but I believe that MS has a legal hold over WinXP. I probably believe this because of the recent articles I've come across about the now current MS sdks requireing that the software not be used in conjunction with any GPL software. And because of XP software wanting to register itself much more verbosely than it once did. And because of an EULA that gave MS the right to add, copy, remove, or change any information on you hard disk. But this is clearly not sufficient to justify the belief, so there's probably some other source that I can't call to mind.
If this is correct, then all that Wine can do is collect the folk who weren't upgrading their MS software anyway, and this probably wouldn't bother MS all that much. It doesn't cost them anything, it keeps their best software in front of people, and it continues to give people an incentive to "upgrade" to the most recent MS software. Which, of course, would need to be on a windows machine.
I think we've pushed this "anyone can grow up to be president" thing too far.
Unfortiunately, they may actually have a reason for being there to show interoperability.
MS does have a product that they call "Unix Services for NT" and "Microsoft Windows Services for UNIX (SFU)"
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/sfu/productinf
Then there is the FUD from
http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/migrat
--
Time is on my side
Microsoft was there with one big-ass booth, completely devoid of spectators. It was the best short-cut to get to the "Windows 95 = Apple 84" t-shirts ;-)
They generally took it in good spirits.
Sorry bucko, but the world does not universally accept the notion of destroying a vibrant industry in order to establish a re-hash of a failed socialistic vision of the world. Those of us in the real world have tried communism, and it has been and will always be a collosal failure.
Any software liscense that has as its stated purpose the destruction of the software and IT industry and the devaluation of IT professionals (to the point where they should take day jobs and program as a hobby) sucks, and if you support such a liscense, then you suck!
It is all one big conspiracy!
/msg BillGates Begging wont work.
Pixels keep you awake!
Someone send Satan a parka before he gets sick!
We need to make THEM look stupid:
Point a microwave dish at their computers, talk busily on youyr cellphone to your boss, and pertend you're laughing about the stupidity of MS porducts, and do it loudly. Screw with their power supply, make it look like the'yre totally unorganized and sloppy. Make things crash, make it look like everything is sucking ass, and then have some of your well-dressed friends stand around and chuckle.
Maybe they're about to release MSLINUX.
If that's exactly what they want, what could disappoint them more than providing a "security detail" of responsible geeks to ensure that the less mature members of our community don't end up representing us all?
-Cutt
Why worry about what the more childish in the crowd may do? It's fair to say that Microsoft would do better to show more earnest intents in the real world first, rather than simply showing up at a fanboy [not a flame] trade show and thinking all will go well. If they lived their lives in competetive harmony with the Linux world, they would be accepted at such an event without incident. As it stands, I want to see them run out of the joint. I don't feel being a better person about it will help them change, but I do think the bad press they could get would benefit us all.
The fact that Billy's net worth is greater than 40-45% of the U.S. Population combined is just stunning, no other word for it
I think you meant average. Seeing as Bill Gates is part of the US population his worth can't exceed it
Drive On!
Oh boy you guys relly got us, first the Dr.Who joke and now this. wow this has got to be one of the best...
Wait, my calender says July 3rd... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
Sounds like a good time to bet on the falcons winning the superbowl.
There is nothing wrong with being gay. It's getting caught where the trouble lies.
They'd better watch out for Belgians with Pies.
No seriously, I think the most powerful statement we can make is to completely ignore the M$ booth.
Have the curious journalists make snapshots of the empty M$ booth.
The M$ era is over, and it's about time we showed the world... Which we will not do by making a big deal out of this..
It is *irrelevant*. Please act accordingly.
1. Microsoft will not man the booth. In fact, they will not even bother with banners. They will come in early in the morning, dump a huge pile of quite-ripe fish guts in their booth spot, and leave.
There won't be hardly anyone left at that expo by noon.
It's like some kind of twisted variation on the antitrust trial. "But of course we have to let them in, and give them space if they pay for it. How else do you expect them to threaten our customers?"
I'm pretty disappointed that this was allowed. Can we have a bit of perspective here? Is this show not private property?
but MS did not port office over to the bsd layer. apple has thier own api's and toolkits that run on top of the BSD layer. you should know this, it's basic knowledge. you can't simply take something written specifically for OSX and compile it on freebsd. you must also port those toolkits, api's etc...
shouldn't there be a corresponding .fud communications protocol to enhance the .net framework? hmmmm... I need to check up on the latest RFC's. (http://www.ietf.org)
C|N>K
Here's something from an article titled "Microsoft Seeks Industry-Wide Collaboration for "Palladium" Initiative" I found on Microsoft's website:
.NET is only a part.
PressPass spoke to John Manferdelli, general manager of the Windows business unit that is building Palladium. He says that while Microsoft's global outreach to the rest of the computer industry has only just begun, the response so far has been very positive. "The development of Palladium is still in its infancy," he says. "While we realize there are many more constituencies that need to be brought into the process, we have every reason to believe this is a technological breakthrough that the industry can really get behind."
I think they're coming to LinuxWorld in an attempt to get Linux/OSS developers on-board with Palladium. That's the big story, of which
a bunch of yahoos dressed as penguins, mooning the M$ stand while hollering
show us your source!!
Unfortunately? Didn't you see that bit about the more immature of us? Thanks for stepping up to the plate. People like you really really make me hate being in the linux camp. 9/10 of you make me look like a total idiot with your constant, insane, knee-jerk stupidity.
Geez, The linux expo is 90% Linux FUD. The MS FUD would only serve to actually clear the air a bit!
This would directly impact many more people who are capable of in turn generating more good for humanity than a bunch of children who cannot, due to their social status, receive the treatments that they "need".
Yeah, you've convinced me, man! Screw all the people in those other countries. If they can't pay for their kid's medicine, then they are better off dead. Hell yeah!
I mean, it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain that Microsoft being mean to their competitors or not having an "approved" license is infinitely more important than children dying by the millions from preventable diseases. The less of "them", the better. After all, they're just gonna keep breeding, and we don't need that, do we?
You've made it all so clear to me! Boy, I used to think people like you had their priorities out of whack to care so much about what Microsoft does, but you've straightened me out.
Testify, brother!
Indian (Navajo): You want to hear the story too don't you old man...O.K.
She came upon a poisonous snake frozen in the snow. She took the snake home with her. She put the frozen snake on her favorite blanket by the warm fire. She fed it and nursed it back to health.
One day she picked the snake up and it bit her on the cheek. As she lay dying she asked the snake, I loved you, why have you done this to me? The snake answered, "Look bitch, you knew I was a snake."
--NBK
Which one of these buttons calls your parents to pick you up?
- Triumph the Insult Comic Dog
The best response, to tell the truth, would be for everyone to simply ignore their booth ;) Dont give them any eyeballs, DEFINITELY dont argue with them, dont even talk to them.
My guess is that they are there to see what and who they have to buy off or sue out of business in order to stop or slow linux...
microsoft linux
isn't that along the same lines as
"military intelligence"???????
Base 2 yields only ARTIFICIAL Intelligence
Maybe they're setting up a booth where you can return those unopened copies of Windows that you paid for with the computer you bought just to run Linux! This is great! People should bring their unopened copies of Windows with them to the show to have ready. Or maybe not.
Of course in real life people drool over $200.000 to pick the green snake up. They still die in the end (it's *still* a snake after all), but their funeral will be grand and splendid (with flowers from WA), as opposed to the funeral of the projects they neglected in favor of the treacherous snake.
Microsoft has every right to exhibit at that expo. As to what they'll do there, they'll obviously try to convince some of the attendees that they have useful products and services for sale. Since Linux seems more a threat to proprietary Unix vendors than to Microsoft, I'd guess they'll hype Unix-Windows interoperability gizmos.
-- Slashdot: When Public Access TV Says "No"
FIX IT, TACO!
I would venture the thought that they are there to data mine for ideas and show off XP spinoffs. Maybe some new type of operating system that is in development. Do not BSD people tend to have booths there? So whats so wrong with them doing the same? IBM will probably be there. Everybody used to hate IBM. Now everybody loves them. They are in with the cheese of the Linux camp now.
whats immature about voicing an opinion? the previous poster shows you that although he/she does not like the fact that they have Unix connectivity software, he/she does link to the pages that contain the info so that you can decide with your own reasoning.
My USB optical mouse causes my X-server to crash. Silly MS, can't even resell mice properly
Sweeeeeet, Maybe now we can see some Microshit on Linux boxes.
Once upon a time, I once I had a great Sig.....then I lost it.
I'm gona throw a bucket of human shit at their booth.
...get an axe!
Me and my Uni mates went to the Java Conference 98 at Olympia in London,
Microsoft had a nice large stand there...
But the funny thing was was that the M$ employees didn't look like they were having a good time (i.e. THEM vs. us), on the Sun stand they had mock adverts on a huge monitor that always made a dig at M$ in some way.
We also stole enough of their free CD's (to use as coasters of course) that nearly got us chucked out of the conference.
I wonder what kind of reception they'll get at the LinuxWorld expo... hmm, NOTE to all /. attendees, try and make them feel as 'welcome' as possible ;-) he he he (a Catbert laugh)
I mean, it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain that Microsoft being mean to their competitors or not having an "approved" license is infinitely more important than children dying by the millions from preventable diseases.
If it was obvious I would leave it for someone else to point out.
The idea is not that helping children is bad, it's that the money/rank/influence could be spent for alternate, and more justifiable, causes. The "helping children" part is a plea to the masses along the lines of, "I'm cool. Really. I LIKE kids even though I don't have any."
Who the FUCK is going to say something bad about that, ASSHOLE?
The less of "them", the better. After all, they're just gonna keep breeding, and we don't need that, do we?
I'm talking probabilistically here, man. As a simple probe:
Count all of the children that receive benefits from Bill Gates' charity.
Count all of the children of employees in firms that were negatively influenced by Microsoft's practices:
and only those who Bill Gates would have to agree "were hurt and for no real reason other than to help us".
Just for THE FUCK OF IT multiply the expected probable "dollars_earned_for_CHARITY/child" times each.
I guarantee you that the number will be higher in the second category.
Think about the real fucking world. We're all in it. Some of us just want things to be better. Handing out capital to people who don't know what to do with it doesn't work.
Philly has tried this, the Church in all of its institutions has tried this. It doesn't work.
Bill Gates and his wife are seizing on the public soft spot for charity to assuage their guilt for the fucking house they own. GAFC!
They're not the only ones. They're just a popular target here.
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
Why would a Linux Conference with any respect allow a fucking Microsoft exibit into the building after MS has shit on the community.
I hope somone calls in a bomb scare every fucking day !!
It's only logical that they should want to return to the operating system they created (the commodity Unix), on the machine they made popular (the PC Compatible).
Microsoft's presence at the linuxworld show will be about their offerings for embedded devices, and how they compare to Linux; a statement made my a Microsoft rep. can be found at linuxdevices.com.
A small bit of interest, at least for me it seems. Looks like MS will be virtually right across the hall from Codeweavers. Perhaps MS has other things in mind also?
Yeah, now that's the spirit.
:)
I was also thinking maybe the signs to stick on the booth attendees backs should rather read "Please don't kick me!"
The Windows computer is the one without the virtual desktops. Everything running is piled up on one desktop.
Remember Xenix ? It was a Unix-like OS that ran on 8086s and maybe 286s. No reason to abuse Linus's trademark when they've got one of their own...
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
Acording to the box that my mouse came in, Genius has the patent on the Scroll mouse. But I dont have the box anymore so it is possible that they are one and the same.
Microsoft would be absolutely crazy to do an Office port to linux. MS Office is the only app that is keeping the vast majority of desktop computers running Windows (MCSE are tools, not apps). Once linux has it there really isn't that much reason to run windows on the desktop anymore. Linux is much easier to administer and lock down. With Office on linux, it seriously reduces the retraining costs and at the same time seriously reduces the OS purchasing costs. Without Windows on the desktop, Windows in the back room also falls apart (I could frig with Windows networking for a couple of days or I could use NIS and NFS).
Nerd: Derogatory term typically directed at anybody with a lower Slashdot ID than you.
Think about the real fucking world. We're all in it. Some of us just want things to be better. Handing out capital to people who don't know what to do with it doesn't work.
Exactly what makes you think they're just "handing out capital"?
And by the way, cynicism is inversely proportional to wisdom, and is not a substitute for intelligence despite what people like you seem to think. Gates is not some comic book villain, despite what you want to believe. Did it ever occur to you that he picked this cause because he thought it was a good one, and not just for the PR aspect? Maybe you might want to do some reading on exactly how he came to pick this cause (which is not his only one, by the way).
Count all of the children of employees in firms that were negatively influenced by Microsoft's practices: and only those who Bill Gates would have to agree "were hurt and for no real reason other than to help us".
You know what, I have to respond to this stupidity, too.
First of all, employees of companies that Microsoft "squashed" simply found other jobs. It's absurd to argue that children are dying because Microsoft put a company out of business.
Second of all, with very few exceptions, most companies that Microsoft has "stomped" deserved to die. Let's take Netscape, who put out one of the worse pieces of crap ever made. Or how about WordPerfect? Ditto. Later versions of WordPerfect became buggy pieces of crap (which is why I originally switched to Word).
On the other hand, look at Quicken. They survived Microsoft's onslaught nicely, thank you very much.
You have a highly inflated opinion of Microsoft's importance in the world. Here's a hint: They're importance is almost nil.
I read it somewhere that M$ is loosing the server war. Linux is beating them. So why not go and show off their products? Kind of a head for head display. Pure marketing geek thinking.
But the odds are its a way to spy and grab information. Remember this is the real Borg we are talking about! Not those wimps on StarTrek! A lot of usfull key info can be found out at a show. Esp when you pump a marketing geek with praise.
childish == honest, selfish and unpretentious?
I just wonder who within Micro$soft has the balls to stand inside that booth. If they are smart, they'll send a few fucking good looking babes as reps. Otherwise, poor of the bastards! They better dressed as penguins or else!
MS already have a Linux distro out. Check out www.mslinux.org for details.
:-)
Enjoy
Exactly what makes you think they're just "handing out capital"?
I have to assume that they are distributing something since they are a charity after all. If it's not exactly capital then what the fuck is it that this charity has achieved such that they can create something to be distributed that is NOT equitable with capital?
And by the way, cynicism is inversely proportional to wisdom, and is not a substitute for intelligence despite what people like you seem to think.
Is this just a piece of wisdom that you involuntarily spewed through your hands onto the keyboard? I'm just asking because it does not appear to be relevant. If you were referring to me then you're mistaking my attitude for cynicism. It's not. It's something else entirely.
Gates is not some comic book villain, despite what you want to believe.
I have to think that you mean Buck2 specifically when you say this, although it's questionable since the last sentence was so general. In any case, "Yeah, fucking duh!" I don't actually have this picture of Bill Gates flying around on a sled shooting people and cackling. I _do_ think of him who started a snowball with a bad course, though. And I feel that if he wanted to take a bit more responsibility about it then he could so. He could, for example, denounce some of the Microsoft practices publically.
Did it ever occur to you that he picked this cause because he thought it was a good one, and not just for the PR aspect? Maybe you might want to do some reading on exactly how he came to pick this cause (which is not his only one, by the way).
Fuck you. I HAVE read about it. For a while there I thought the same as a lot people when they hear about someone giving money away to the little brown people in need, ie "What a great person."
Have YOU read about how much money he's really giving away? Have you looked into how much he is REALLY involved in this?
It doesn't have to be PR (talk about cynical), it's just that giving money to, or starting, charities is the EASY way to look good. Regardless of your intent.
I'm not convinced that Bill Gates, or his wife, thought about what he was doing even three times as much as the thought that you gave about your last post.
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
> Count all of the children of employees in firms that were negatively influenced by Microsoft's practices: and only those who Bill Gates would have to agree "were hurt and for no real reason other than to help us".
... is almost nil.
You know what, I have to respond to this stupidity, too.
Are you just writing to be read or would you like someone to actually think about what you're saying?
If the latter, you might want to think about how you start your flames.
First of all, employees of companies that Microsoft "squashed" simply found other jobs. It's absurd to argue that children are dying because Microsoft put a company out of business.
That's a good point. Did you also know that gravity is a theory that describes why masses "fall" towards each other? Oh, also, grass is usually green, although sometimes brown, people in France still speak French most of the time, and Japanese people speak, [drumroll] JAPANESE!!!
We're so smart.
Second of all, with very few exceptions, most companies that Microsoft has "stomped" deserved to die.
What is your point? Is it that Bill Gates giving ASSloads of money to needy kids in the ghetto of my hometown pays back for all of the companies that didn't deserve to be stomped because they were playing by the rules while his didn't?
I'm sorry for being so FUCKING dense, but you're a little unclear.
Let's take Netscape, who put out one of the worse pieces of crap ever made. Or how about WordPerfect? Ditto.
So, you refute my arguments about Bill Gates having been able to better spend his time helping the world than sending money to another organization with remarks about pieces of software that should have died. Your argument is nontopical and it makes little sense in the long run.
There are many, many people who would have benefited from BETTER fucking software than Microsoft provided a long time ago. Because of the weasely position[s] they have taken and the monopolistic "screw you" attitude they've adopted, millions upon millions, billions even, it might be, have been lost due to people with good faith getting hammered by Microsoft's inadequacies.
Do you think that Bill Gates' flinging a few hundred million off to some charity pays everyone back?
And the whole FUCKING point is WHO you are screwing over. The people that are getting reamed up the ass are the goddamn CONSUMERS. The people on the recipient end of charity are getting money/drugs/attention for absolutely no reason other than they happen to exist on this planet.
You have a highly inflated opinion of Microsoft's importance in the world. Here's a hint: They're importance is almost nil.
You're right. I guess I shouldn't even care. I'm surprised that someone even responded to me since: Microsoft's importance
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
Last time I checked, April Fools was 3 months ago.
I'm sorry for being so FUCKING dense, but you're a little unclear.
That's OK. I have a feeling you're pretty young. When you get older and more mature, I think you'll get a little better perspective on these issues. Right now, I don't think you have enough experience to understand what we're talking about.
Give it a few more years.
Here's how people need to respond to this:
1.) Entirely ignore any presentations they put on. Standing around watching just wastes your time and gives them apparent credence, especially with the press.
2.) Wear subtle anti-MS themed clothing to the Expo. Simple, witty statements that get the truth across.
3.) Overwelm their representatives with fake interest--in other words quietly D.O.S. their trained FUD-spewing drones--but don't give them any feedback as to how to attack next. Play dumb while gaining recon on their latest propaganda tactics.
In other words quiet, peaceful subversion. It's self defense people. They're looking to stir up a fuss and gain some ground somewhere.
I'm not sure if it's off-topic, but I've a gut feeling that Microsoft comes to show you little kids how a big guy plays the game.
We've an exhibition in Hong Kong with Microsoft's booth surrounded by their rival companies.
Microsoft didn't bring any technical man, not much sales or marketing guys, no free gifts. However, we all lost the publicity - see it yourself why
Can you top that?
I already paid for two people and IDG has a "no cancellation" policy. This sucks.
Treatment, not tyranny. End the drug war and free our American POWs.
See my user info for links.
Thanks for responding.
I have a feeling you're pretty young.
It's all relative. I'm 26.
When you get older and more mature, I think you'll get a little better perspective on these issues. Right now, I don't think you have enough experience to understand what we're talking about.
I cannot but hope that you are incredibly wrong about this. I cannot feel more certain about many things other than the claim that, "If Bill Gates really wanted to help people he could do a fuckload more than just giving chump change to some charity."
Maybe in my thirties I'll realize the virtue of hiding behind "the public good". In the meantime I'll just watch all of the mature people wallow around in excess, occasionally fling bits at the poor, poor needy folks, congratulate themselves about how good they are, and then stick their heads in the sand with respect to any questions about the morality of their corporate activities.
Perhaps I'm misled by the latest catastrophes in accounting by our business leaders. They were really for all of the employee's good. I guess I'll just have to live on the planet a bit longer before I "really" understand why fucking people up the ass is ok as long as you give a tenth of the proceeds away to starving kids in a different country.
I'll be sure to give it a few more years.
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
...I know this is a late response and will not likely get much readership but I'll toss my comment in here anyway.
When I think of Microsoft at a Linux show, I think of Hare Krishnas at the airport. No one wants to see them there and they know it, but they come anyway. They just can't "not" come.
But you know? In some respects, I'd like to see them there just to see what happens!!
First and foremost, I like MSIE as a browser. I'm not yet satisfied with Mozilla on my Redhat box... (I'm also getting disillusioned with Redhat since Gnome 2.0 RPMs aren't quite keeping up and Mozilla 1.1a RPMs aren't to be found yet... go ahead, call me a moron... I can take it.) I also like MS Office although admittedly, I haven't explored Open Office much deeper than a surface glance. And the #1 reason I still use a MS operating system is it's Japanese language support and handling. When I can acquire the convenience and compatibility with apps that Windows gets for Japanese language I/O under Linux, I'll finally dump MS altogether.
(Perhaps it's just me... there is something about Japanese support under Linux I don't yet understand...)
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The best response all of us can make to an MS presence at a Linux show is to ignore them totally. Let me speak not as a geek, but as a former sociologist and as someone making his daily bread by practicing behavior modification.
The best way to extinguish a behavior is to NOT give it attention---ignore it (then replace it with something else later on). Ignoring undesired behavior is the most difficult thing you can do. If you can pull it off, though, it works wonders. If we (Linux/GNU/OSS/free software people) indulge ourselves in adolescent get-back/revenge behavior toward the MS folk we look like idiots they try to represent us as to the public at large. If we do this, they can beat their collective MS breast about the childish, unprofessional and irresonsible behavior of the Linux, etc. community. Right or wrong, we would be handing MS plenty of public ammo to discredit us.
So what's more important to you---the immediate gratification of insulting, harrassing, or otherwise flipping off the MS exhibitors, or the long term---and long lasting---gratification of NOT giving them what they really want. And what they want is for you and me to make asses of ourselves in public by insulting, harrassing, or otherwise flipping off the MS exhibitors. That WILL be played as FUD for an audience who will never see anything but those publc instances of Linux-people being public asses?
You choose. Only respond to direct mis-statements of fact, and then do so with NO emotional loading, or with any response other than naked fact. No preaching; no prosletyzing. Then shut up. And NEVER ask a question---that just gives them a chance to say whatever they want heard, NOT to answer your question. For the same reasons, NEVER ask them a question. Got it? Good. Remember, they WANT you to act out, so don't. Be perfectly respectful ladies and gentlemen, no matter how much you want to puke.
Now go have fun anyway. And maybe they'll have some foxy looking babes and boys (not all geeks are guys, y'know). BTW, excuse my possible incoherence. I've been across the street drinking rum all night---Independence Day party, y'know.
Happy weekend,
Thumper
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Perhaps I'm misled by the latest catastrophes in accounting by our business leaders. They were really for all of the employee's good.
No, you're "misled" by painting with a broad brush. There are ALWAYS going to be negative aspects on ANY subject you name. So what? When did anyone promise you life was going to be perfect?
The question is whether the inevitable excesses are self correcting. You'll note that as bad as Enron was, it eventually collapsed under its own weight, and the collapse will bring about reforms. Are we never going to see this happen again? Of course not. But the point is that the system lurches back and forth, and on the average, progress happens.
You should be happy at these scandals, because that's the proof that the system works. When you should sorry is when things have the appearance of being perfect and unchanging.
I guess I'll just have to live on the planet a bit longer before I "really" understand why fucking people up the ass is ok as long as you give a tenth of the proceeds away to starving kids in a different country.
What you really need to understand is that Microsoft is just not that big a deal, and Microsoft has done FAR more good than harm to the industry. Have they done harm? No doubt about it. But you also have to look at the good. They standardized software and hardware. They basically popularized computers by providing commidicizing hardware.
Don't believe me? Look at what Microsoft could have done. How about if they went the Apple route and made a Microsoft PC? How would you like it if you had to go to Microsoft for software AND hardware? But they didn't.
I'm not going to argue that Microsoft hasn't gotten too powerful and too arrogant with that power. But it really isn't that big a deal in the scheme of things. Computers are not as good as they should be, but for the most part having a standard operating system has been a huge boon to having shrink wrap software. You probably don't remember the Bad Old Days when every program shipped their own printer drivers and display drivers.
The thing about it is, if Microsoft didn't exist, we would have someone else acting the role of Microsoft. An operating system is a natural monopoly. There is too much of a benefit to having a standard set of APIs that everyone writes to.
Anyway, my bottom line point is that very few people have been "fucked up the ass" as you put it. Yes, some companies probably got squashed. But the consumers for the most part are not harmed by Microsoft. Computer can be better, but they are definitely good enough for hundreds of millions of people. And again, the question of what software runs on PCs is just not that huge an issue in the scheme of things. The latter is the perspective that I think would do you a lot of good.
They're gonna try to get Linus drunk and steal the source code for the Kernel!!!!!! For heaven's sake, don't let them steal the source code for Linux!
You should be happy at these scandals, because that's the proof that the system works. When you should sorry is when things have the appearance of being perfect and unchanging.
... I'm a person that can stand to gain from charity. I live in another country. I don't need immunization, I need an education (or something other than what Bill's charity is providing). Like a tree falling in the forest Microsoft fucks a bunch of people over in some place I really don't know much about. Specifically because of this I don't receive the charity that I might have received if others had been better off and feeling more generous.
I'm only quoting to give a point of reference. I have to agree with everything above this. I'm glad that the crap is coming out. I'm glad that bad management, misuse of public trust, and shirking responsibility sometimes lead to people having to come to terms.
And, most importantly, I have to agree with you that these things will always correct themselves. I just think that I have a longer term picture than you might think I or you do.
What you really need to understand is that Microsoft is just not that big a deal, and Microsoft has done FAR more good than harm to the industry. Have they done harm? No doubt about it. But you also have to look at the good.
How about I look at it this way
Doesn't make sense? How about if you're someone working in a competitive company? What if you're here in the marketplace busting your ass and you get screwed by a company that's not playing fair. Then, on top of all that, the head honcho gives a paltry bit of the proceeds away to people you've never heard of and could care less about and walks away like Robin Hood. Do you think that person is going to go and spend time building homes in Mexico? Maybe he or his children might have if things would have worked out differently.
My whole point is that this is a closed system here. Economically the amount of damage that Microsoft has done far outweighs the tenpence that Bill is giving to needy kids out of guilt.
Look at what Microsoft could have done.
See, this is evidence to me that we are talking, in some respects, about different things. I could care less if someone COULD have run over five people if he only ran over three. It makes no difference to the FIRST three. And giving money to OTHER people besides the survivors of the first three, or three-thousand, victims is comparable to a little bit more than a wave and a goodbye.
Everyone around here (USA) is so caught up in goddamn charities and penance and shit it's disgusting. It's like all you need to do to become a "good person" again is help someone with their hand out.
The thing about it is, if Microsoft didn't exist, we would have someone else acting the role of Microsoft.
This is unnecessarily pessimistic. I was accused of being cynical, but I would never say something like this. Would you argue that the Dark Ages would have existed even if the Church hadn't have been in charge? Do you think chinese labor would have been exploited by someone else had it not been for the people who had done it? Of course, everything that has happened in history has happened from someone and it's ridiculous to say it wouldn't have happened if that person/country wasn't there. But it is equally ridiculous to reprieve someone of the blame because of ANOTHER hypothetical bad guy who would have done it, too.
Anyway, my bottom line point is that very few people have been "fucked up the ass" as you put it.
My point is that if there was ONE person who was deliberately screwed over by Microsoft, then before any trucks of hypodermics are shipped off to some needy country, that person should be compensated.
Helping others does not fix the problem. People need to be held responsible. If Bill Gates is so damn smart, and especially innovative, I have no doubts he can come up with something a little more creative, and topical, than starting a charity.
And again, the question of what software runs on PCs is just not that huge an issue in the scheme of things. The latter is the perspective that I think would do you a lot of good.
WTF are you talking about?
Perhaps it would help if I put things in this manner:
Suppose I rob a bank and steal a dollar out of every one of the customers' money. I put it into little stock baggies and stash it in my hideyhole. After counting it I realize I have a veritable shitload. My wife and I wonder what to do with all this. Let's help poor kids! That's always a good thing to do. Ah, I'm glad I figured out that problem.
Am I now a person worthy of praise for helping poor kids?
As my father lik@(munch munch)...
check your math, retard
oh yeah, what larger business does microsoft dominate? oh that's right, none. the only business in the world that is bigger than microsoft is GE, and they're hardly dominated by microsoft.
I'd rather see their booth have no attendees. I imagine the view from above would be this small area around their booth completly barron of attendees. That's what I invision.
MS for the longest time was running a version of Unix which they lovingly called Xenix. MS Dos was acutally written on the OS along with various other programs that followed including Windows 3.11 I believe. Besides what's wrong with having a MS Linux? There's like a billion flavors of linux running I don't see the harm in having a billion and one. Personally I think MS will be pushing their new languages like C# and their .nets
-cp
"516??? NO!!! 5i6 ... 5*I*6 !!!"
4.
This is not an imaginary thing: Rotor, the shared source
Never underestimate the relief of true separation of Religion and State.
Found it, I think. You mean this guy?
That's weird, because my MS Intellimouse Exploder(tm) is the best mouse I've ever used under XFree86. If I only could use all five buttons.
It seems that they will be attempting to show off products with embedded XP technology, and various server products.
... there for ages. Hmm they seem to have trouble releasing on schedule ,)
Visit http://ringbreak.dnd.utwente.nl/~mrjb/growingbettersoftware to download your free copy of the book
Hi
For Microsoft, Linux is a disruptive technology - and its coming up fast.
How are they to deal with this?
1. Embrace it (read buy it, own it, pretend they invented it) or,
2. Disrupt it before it gets any further (how:- develop a windows emulator for it - see replies below)
Whatever , Microsoft are not daft.
For problems, seek only the simplest solution, complexity brings with it more problems.
I can't say who I am for obvious reasons, but it is a dirty little secret of Microsofts that Windows 2000 and XP are actually based on a customised Linux kernel! I have seen evidence of this with my own eyes, and I was able to telnet to a Windows 2000 server on a non-standard port. Even more shockingly, it turns out that the root password is "ltorvalds"! uname -s still reports "Microsoft Windows NT 5.0", but uname -a contains the string "Linux 2.2.18"!
I will publish these shocking findings within the coming weeks.
[Editor's Note: This story has been expanded to include comments from Microsoft on why they plan to attend LWE. -ed.] ...
...
7 -03-015-26-NW-CY-MS
After this story was initially posted, a representative from Microsoft did respond to questions regarding Microsoft's presence at the LinuxWorld Expo. Peter Houston, Sr. Dir. of the Windows Server Product Management Group, answered the question that has been on many people's minds since this story was broken: why?
"The audience that attends this show is very important to us," Houston explained, "we have some great products to show." He went on to add that Microsoft sees their particpation in this show as the first step towards forming an ongoing dialog with members of the Linux and Open Source community.
Check the news page at http://linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2002-0
Nope, in front of.
And the sign will have the subtitle "And for a low, low fee, you can use it."
That said, it's still wrong to rob a bank (or do something similarly illegal), even if you do intend to use the loot for charity. And Bill Gates stole a lot more than a dollar from all the people he screwed.
The only way the typical /.er can pick up a chick is with a forklift. -- AC
"The audience that attends this show is very important to us" == "and we would like them back in our matrix"
"we have some great products to show" == "especially the mind-reading prop from 'Batman' and various hypnotic tools"
"We have learned a lot at these events," == "as wise men say, 'know thy enemy'"
"These forums are a great way to establish a dialog." == "These forums give us another chance to tell you how wrong you are for leaving."
"I'm expecting good things to come out of this," == "Microsoft market share should increase at the expense of Linux and we might even discover that fatal flaw in Linux that we've needed to exploit."
"It's about that first step in a broader dialog [with the Linux community] and showing our customers some of the great things in our embedded products." == "I'm like a prostitute in front of a convent."
The bottom line is, MS is only going to LWE to subvert the conference, not to become a supporter of the community. It would be appropriate if their booth were shaped like a giant horse.
Taking stuff apart since 1969 (TM)
Remember the Boston Tea party?
Perhaps this Show where MS is going to show up...
Take all the MS stuff you have and make it unsuable.
Then dump it in the MS booth with a reference to the Boston Tea party.
I would really love to be there but I can't. But if someone will go there I have a suggestion:
.NET and Palladium, ask if you have the source of a .NET program and compile it with VB.NET, will it be able to run? If not, how will .NET programs developed in-house will run on your own computer you bought? If they answer it'll be signed automatically cause some technology always trust .NET ask them if you can do the same with a C program create in Linux would work on the same machine. I can bet they will be somewhat perplex and will have to pause for some time to think and will be very shameful to not answer and will say he will need to ask his manager.
... (you got the idea, just do not force too much as I exemplified, it was just educational :) ). FUD on its best form :) Again, it could be categorized as Beat Them In Their Own Game. Would be hilarious to see each and every suit hearing this, hilarious at best.
:)
1 - Beat them in their own game: Ask about Palladium, spend some time gaining the trust of the people there as you are "really" interested in
I would pay a lot just to see it. Obviously, be prepared to answer politely but also do it in front of A LOT of suits so they can become scared of the answers.
2 - Another linux guy would do FUD: Wherever a person ask any interested question for MS product or technology one of our guys "appears" and ask if MS can give him a CD with the latest service pack or hotfix that fixes the problem with Windows XXX (choose 2000 or XP) that permits a hacker to read all that personal files, including credit card info, lover name and phone, industrial secret, or that failure in Outlook that permits the new virus that signs you automatically in all p0rn sites in the Internet and sends a copy to the papers
Ok people, it was just too long for a post but these are just anecdotal pieces of a fighting strategy Linux people will have to prepare. Believe when I say MS will be prepared to fight. Read some Sun Tzu (know about the enemy and yourself and you will never lose).
Good luck and please report back the most hilarious pieces
Reading some of the responses to this item, just makes me feel that Linux is doomed to a geeky ghetto of its own making. With friends like some of the people posting here cackling with glee at nasty tricks they've thought of, who needs enemies?
Makes me ashamed to use Linux. Really they do.
Grow up, you cretinous poltroons!
"Information wants to be paid"
Years ago, it was fun and full of geeks. Nowadays? It's big money and marketing.
The Moscone center kind of sucks, too. Don't EVER eat at that "Jollibee" burger joint across the street. The organizers oughta move it to the Sacramento Convention Center.. not too far from SF, easy to get to, ample parking, and the fact that thousands of state IT geeks from dozens of government organizations would be coming over on their lunch breaks. Great chance to show off Linux to government agencies. The yearly Government Technology Conference expos are another way. Linux has absolutely NO presence at that expo. Past 5 years.. nothing at all. It wouldn't be that bad for SuSE or someone to rent a booth at an expo like that and show off what Open Source software can (and might already be doing) in a government environment.
At my school, microsoft made its presence known at unix install day by showing up and giving free copies of windows 2000 pro to anyone who would install it instead of unix
This is getting horribly offtopic, but I'll continue anyway. You're free to load stuff into the kernel that isn't GPLed (nvidia does it all the time), but you can't use stuff that the authors of GPL kernel components have said they don't want non GPL code to be able to use. There are GPLed portions of the kernel that aren't exported GPLONLY because the developer thought it was OK, or better in the interest of compatibilty. Non-GPL kernel modules can still use these things, and are free to load into the kernel.
You might say the purpose of that warning is to say that if a symbol doesn't resolve later, itmight be that the symbol is exported GPLONLY and the module isn't GPL. You can safely ignore the warning if you don't mind tainting your kernel.
As to 5 buttons - When I get home (Actually, when I get my desktop back up...), I'll email you my X config.
It IS possible to get all 5 buttons to work! \o/
It requires some oddball button remapping, though.
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?