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.

Comments

Their display will consist of...

[gosand]

No doubt that their display will consist of Linux running on an Xbox.

Re:Their display will consist of...

[Khalid]

They probably want to win the 200000 $ grant :)

Childish

[Wrexen]

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!

I can't wait...

[bahamat]

to see what the more childish among us do!

Embrace and Extend.

[bigpat]

We have finally assimilated them!

Probably .NET

[jsimon12]

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 .

Re:I don't really get it

[Jucius Maximus]

""Microsoft Linux" You realize that this is inevitable though?"

Haven't you heard the news?

You gotta hand it to them...

[Subcarrier]

The personnel manning the stand must have balls bigger than their brains. This deep into hostile territory they ought to have air support.

Rumor:

[vegetablespork]

Their booth will be right next to the exhibit floor exit, with a big sign that says "WE HAVE THE WAY OUT."

Depends...

[unformed]

Who are you?

Or, more specifically, male or female?

Re:I wonder...

[ender81b]

Does mooning their booth make the community look bad?

That depends. Since most geeks don't have ass's like britney spears I am very much betting it would make the community look bad. Nobody wants to see hairy ass, nobody.

The top-10 list of reasons...

[Anonymous Coward]

1. That $200000 prize for Linux on X-Box is just too tempting.

2. Office on Linux.

3. DirectX compatibility-layer for Linux.

4. .Net for Linux.

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!

Star Trek VI?

[dimator]

Does anyone else picture RMS and BillG sitting at a dinner, speaking of the Undiscovered Country?

Re:I wonder...

[warmcat]

Actually the goatsex guy would probably give it a go.

here is

[waspleg]

a map of their exhibit from linuxtoday.com linking to linuxworldexpo

http://www.linuxworldexpo.com/linuxworldexpo/v31 /f loorplan/floorplan.cvn?b=224&exbID=118

might be helpful so you know where *NOT* to be standing when the ticking mechnical suicide penguin bombs come waddling in

Re:Of course it won't happen but

[Moonshadow]

ya gotta admit that Office for Linux would be a useful thing to have around

Yeah, I've been needing something to load test my machine with.

two words

[TheTomcat]

No doubt this means that the more childish among us will make us all look bad. Sigh.

Tesla Coil.

S

Protesters dressed as Borg?

[emil]

It is probably best that we get this all talked out now, and treat them as fairly as possible. However:

• Have a whole bunch of guys show up with arms in plaster casts and signs on their necks with "Compaq," "Gateway," "Dell," "HP," "IBM," etc. Just mill around their booth.
• How about a coffin with "Digital UNIX on Alpha - Rest In Peace - BRING THE MICROSOFT MURDERERS TO JUSTICE!"
• I love Slashdot's "Bill the Borg" logo. How about a T-Shirt? Sold from a booth right next to them? Who has the booths right next to them? Will they play along?
• How about a T-Shirt like this:

  Windows NT Server $1,000 = Linux Free
  Microsoft Office $300 = Openoffice Free
  MS SQL Server $5000 = Sybase Free
  WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE THINKING?!?!?!

• Another T-Shirt: Microsoft DRM - We've got all your money, now we want your civil rights.
• How about Thomas Pensfield Jackson as a keynote speaker?

  There are lots of things that could be done to convince Microsoft that this is a really bad idea.

ADDITIONAL reasons...

[happyclam]

1. They really want that Peruvian government contract.
2. They felt that Linux users around the world were deprived the added vacation time enjoyed by Windows users, so they are appearing to show off their three new Linux-based viruses.
3. It was part of the "community service" they have to perform as part of their antitrust settlement
4. They will be collecting names of attendees... their software license audit list is getting short and they need to keep the pipeline full
5. Their marketing department has automatically signed them up for every "expo" in the country because it has the letters "xp" in it.
6. Their booth will actually be empty. They just wanted to thumb their collective nose at the Linux community with their $44 billion in cash reserves.
7. They've ported Clippy to Linux.
8. It's a new form of hazing for all the fresh-out-of-college marketing employees.
9. The network on the show floor has always been impervious to viruses; putting a whole bunch of Microsoft Outlook boxes on the network will solve that problem.
10. It is classic cold war, arms-race tactics. By showing up with the biggest booth and the biggest budget, soon they will dominate and co-opt the entire show, and the little fish won't be able to show up any more. In five years, LinuxWorld Expo will be dead, or at least turned into a sidelight for another Microsoft lovefest. I wish it weren't so.