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SCO to Take On Hollywood
An anonymous reader writes "Daniel Lyons, the man you may remember for calling the FSF 'Linux's Hit Men' is now reporting that SCO is 'Holding Up Hollywood.'
Their reasoning? It's because 'They're using a ton of Linux in Hollywood, so they've become a lightning rod for us,' says Darl McBride, SCO's chief executive.
As usual, Groklaw provides insightful commentary concerning rehash SCO has planted to remain in the news, saying 'Maybe they should fulfill prior threats before they throw out new ones? Otherwise, it could lead some of us to doubt their sincerity.'" At least it's smarter than trying to sell a license to every home user of Linux.
SCO is making a movie freely available to consumers?
If you're religishitty, KILL YOURSELF!
In a shocking move today, DreamWorks Studios announced the next Bruce Willis feature would include the company SCO as the primary antagonist. "Yes, Bruce Willis' character will have to blow up SCO. It should be quite the scene." said director Mark van Flemburg of the as yet unnamed movie.
Now that will be interesting. The MPAA in one corner, SCO in the other, and no-one wants to bet on either of them.
home
Taking on a group with deeper pockets and more political clout than IBM? That has to be the biggest brain fart in history.
McBride needs to remove his golf shoes before he steps on his dick again.
Professional Politicians are not the solution, they ARE the problem.
Don't tell them that those aren't just special effects!
"WTF - you come to take our money??" Hollywood'll rip SCO's head off and sh-- right down its neck.
As a Free Software developer this SCO news bothers me more and more as the story unfolds.
From GPL violations to this gangster type activity you would think that someone would put SCO to task here. I still own one share of SCO stock and am holding on to it for no other purpose than to help bring suit to them for these type of actions. What can they be nailed on and how can I as a stockholder help?
Note: I sold the rest of my SCO stock when this mess first started and purchased Novell.
Free Unix? Free Windows. http://www.reactos.com
*Wipes away a tear*
The Internet is just so wonderful...
clifgriffin > blog
First you decide that you need to take on one of the most powerful computer companies in the world thinking that you will make them roll over and pony up your extortion fee. IBM will basically make SCO eat their own lunch and then make SCO say "Thank you sir, may I have another".
Since that is not enough, you decide to pick on somebody else. Let's see...who might be using Linux that should just roll right over again....Oh, I know....Hollywood!!!
Yeah, those movie companies don't mind too much about paying extortion money to annoying gnat-like computer companies that have no legs to stand on. Excellent decision Darl. I am sure that Spielberg and his crew at Dreamworks and Lucas and others will surely just pay up, no questions asked.
SCO, I have to admit that you have some of the biggest balls in the computer industry. Unfortunately, your balls are filled with the hottest of air.
No trees were harmed in the composition of this; however, numerous electrons were inconvenienced.
SCO, which has retained hired gun and Microsoft nemesis David Boies, plans to target titans of financial services, transportation companies, government agencies and big retail chains, says Christopher Sontag, an SCO senior vice president. Woah, they really plan to rule the world. They are targeting all the big players in the world.
Or is it a corporate suicide?
Montreal - Best city to live in!
Right when I am getting ready to start work in the entertaiment industry again (in a week) SCO has to pull this stunt. I sure hope this doesn't scare people into dropping linux on the desktop or the renderfarm, the industry has just really started embracing it. The cost of swtiching to linux wasn't cheap, the cost switching back, that would be way way too expensive. Compaines with 1000+ box render farms would probably fight SCO on this (I can only hope) because the non linux solution would be going back to Solaris or IRIX, neither of which are cheap OS's or cheap hardware.
This could be the last stupid move that SCO makes. Maybe they are wanting to be bought out. HP has to hate this too, because they are really, really heavy in the CG industry as a Linux solutions provider.
-Tim
-I just work here... how am I supposed to know?
anonymous coward us and tell us what the hell is going on up there? Someone get their hands on a little too much nose candy?
Lyons suggested that I didn't really care about the whole SCO fiasco, and I was trying to demonstrate the depth of my feeling. It was stupid. I'm sorry. It won't happen again.
Another thing he said that didn't make it into the article, for some reason, is that the reason SCO is taking on Hollywood is to generate publicity -- that anything to do with movies gets many times the publicity it deserves.
What this implies is that they don't really want money from this, they want press, they want buzz, they want to be in people's faces. The obvious reason would be to raise the stock price, something that has been flat for the last two months.
thad
I love Mondays. On a Monday, anything is possible.
I don't know much about law/the justice system, but WHY THE FUCK haven't we seen the government/any other body take action against SCO, for it's actions which seem so painfully obviously wrong, unfair and plain fuckin' evil, and which have been growing steadily worse for the past 9 months?
An Indian-American Hindu committed to non-violent thought/speech/action alarmed by the global explosion of radical Islam
If nothing else, SCO could sue Lucasfilm for using Linux in a very inappropriate way....digitally creating Jar Jar Binks
That has to be worth some amount of punitive damages...
No trees were harmed in the composition of this; however, numerous electrons were inconvenienced.
First they try to take on the open-source community, then IBM, then corporate america, and now hollywood?
For SURE with the arrangement they've taken with their lawyers; that they'll be paid handsomely no matter what, it becomes quite evident that the only people who are rich enough to take on all the avenues and still only spend pocket change is
Microsoft.
But as usual, they've come to the premature conclusion that they are smarter and more able to defend themselves against the whole world than everyone else, and I expect that like usual, it'll backfire on them.
I don't know the meaning of the word 'don't' - J
It's just insane. I can't find any cohesive thread tying all this together.
Bush: He's Liberal in all the wrong ways.
They have sued for $3B but this is just a number. It could just as easily be a gazillion.
To collect anything in the unlikely event that IBM is found to be at fault, SCO needs to establish a Loss.
They way to do this is to stated a value times the Units used. This is most likely why they have introduced this silly $699 scheme.
For the value to be "deemed" acceptable they need to sell at least some licenses at that price . It is not enought to point to MS and say they bought licensing for $8M.
Now if they can swing somethng with a Film maker this would go a long way to establish "credibility", so I guess this is at least one more reason for this apparent Suicide mission.
Help fight continental drift.
IBM, huge company, deep pockets, lots of lawyers. Hollywood, deep pockets, lots of lawyers. Seeing as SCO are coming over all suicidal at the moment, I guess their next target will be the US Army. Please please please. "Darl, meet my friend Mr. 5.56mm"
Yes, Yes I did, because I saw it last week.
This weekend only! Live in Hollywood!
In this corner, the reigning heavyweight champion, with millions of dollars in court awards over the years: The heavyweight champion, the MPAA!
In this corner, the challenger, featherweight SCO. With no significant assets, no business plan, and no hope in hell, SCO.
Personally, I don't really care who wins. I'm just hoping it goes the distance and we see a lot of blood...
Silly SCO - Hollywood only writes the copyright laws, they don't actually obey them themselves!
When information is power, privacy is freedom.
First question I have is this:
Are SCO/Sontag/McBride digging their own financial graves should the suit get thrown out as being baseless?
Whats the likely effect on Hollywood? Are they going to be scared of the SCO monster and back down, or will SCO have made another enemy that mobilises its army of lawyers?
Can the investment firms named also be sued? Like in class action lawsuit?
StarTux
Wow!
How much evil can this person harbor ? This crusade is becoming the essence of immorality and hate. This has much less to do with IBM as it has with his (for hire or not) hate of Linux and the free software movement.
I do not have words to express my feelings that perhaps Darl McBride isn't human, seeing how he lacks even basic empathic capabilities.
"I'd be surprised if we make it to the end of the year without filing a lawsuit."
Yeah, I'd be surprised, too.
The revolution will be televised. Blackout restrictions apply.
ususally for something to be considered news their needs to be something new about it.
"SCO maid no empty threats last week" that would be news worth reading about.
I am not sure how much extra publicity linux is getting any more, and it seems to me that getting SCO out of the news and into court would be the best strategy.
Meir.
- SCO Takes on IBM, that is bad from many people's perspectives, but the media doesn't take notice, so many others don't care.
- SCO takes on Sun, SGI, and the like, and no one really cares beyond the computer enthusiasts.
- RedHat files against SCO. No one who isn't a computer enthusiast seems to really notice.
- IBM counterfiles against SCO, which is slightly noticed in SCO stock, but probably more because it's IBM suing, rather than what the suit is about.
What's going to happen when SCO starts actively taking on the very media that has publicized it's side but not publicized the other side of the argument? Remember, many media conglomerations own movie studios, television networks, newspapers, internet sites, and radio stations, or if they don't own them outright, they have a significant financial interest and a certain level of control. If the media feels that it's being attacked, it's in a great position to do two things: show the stories in a positive light for others that are also being attacked, and to villianize the attacker. This has the potential to be the single largest screwup that Caldera International d/b/a SCO Inc has committed.This one I'm actually interested to see play out. This is going to be fun to watch.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
Coming this fall from MGM studios
(long pause)
James Bond 007 in
(another long pause)
SCO: The World In Not Enough 2
Maybe Slashdot should have a new category called SCO on their webiste. It would sure be updated more often then some of the current ones.
*cough*books *cough*apache *cough*Interviews
The AI-driven battle simulation software used to create the fighting scenes in the LotR movies now has a greater purpose than merely retelling the saga of how Sauron was defeated, survival of Middle Earth, and all that.
...
Now, the Orcs can have (3D rendered) faces more in keeping with the times. I'm thinking the new enemy could be called the Makbrydes, or perhaps the S'nntogks.
Click this button to begin the Linux-powered renderfarm
timothy
jrnl: http://tinyurl.com/c2l8yr / foes: http://tinyurl.com/ckjno5
Has this asshole recieved any death threats yet? Seriously.
In this hilarious update of the much-loved Hollywood classic, Steve Martin turns in a winning performance as Darl McBride, the befuddled CEO of SCO who has a hard time maintaining his grip on reality when Hollywood effects shops unexpectedly chooses to use Linux. Tickling funnybones and touching hearts of critics and audiences alike, this entertaining treat chronicles Darl's hysterical trials and tribulations leading up to his downfall. Funnyman Martin Short lights up the screen as the off-the-wall Linus Torvalds. Father of McBride promises to love, honor, and deliver the kind of motion picture fun you'll thoroughly enjoy.
And not to mention being smarter than SCO paying Linux-using businesses to use products SCO doesn't even own. Yeaaah... great revenue generator, that one.
The Free desktop that Just Works
I hear the MPAA uses Linux servers for there logging and firewalls! I also hear that the SCO has millions of MP3's on their workers computers!
Now, let them sue each other and get these two stupid companies out of mainstream public news. Here's an idea, lets just all sue each other!
What a stupid mentality...
Microsoft.
But as usual, they've come to the premature conclusion that they are smarter and more able to defend themselves against the whole world than everyone else, and I expect that like usual, it'll backfire on them.
In recent years Caldera (Sco) has shown a desire to be the Microsoft of the 'nix world. They have flagrantly disregarded the community etc... These are all Microsoftish tactics. My own belief is that Sata...Microsoft noticed Sco and has put them up to the recent mischief promising great things. What Sco doesn't realize is Luci...Gates does not make mutually beneficial deals, he eats sou...Companies. MS knows Sco will fail. Their is only room for one hel...Software Monopoly.
Do you ever get the impression that SCO is turning into a kind of software tabloid company? They keep making ridiculous claims/statements, and they keep making news. The more ridiculous, the more people discuss SCO.
(I wonder what they have on page three... I bet they have spreads on page three -- well, maybe spreadsheets...)
Although seriously, maybe that's the whole idea. Maybe they're trying to increase brand awareness by making news so often? Dumb idea, if you ask me, but I've been around enough marketing types to know that it's the kind of thing they would suggest.
Punctanym: alternate spelling of words using punctuation or numerals in place of some or all of its letters; see 'leet'
Those insane IP laws the studios wanted are coming back to haunt them. It's not so much the specific laws, but rather the culture they foster. This probably won't do anything other than further convince the fat cats in the movie industry that they need more protection from the proles.
Click here or a puppy gets stomped!
Let's hope he continues this lawsuit mania. Why? Because most members of the gov'ts servers are linux. Congress (the democractic party at least) is beholden to lawyers who file these frivilous lawsuits. They won't institute tort reform until it bites them in the ass. Darl could just be the one to do that.
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
where do they get their material? i've been reading a lot about how television viewership is on the decline of late. umm, mr. television programming director... this one's for you.
Since the SCOrons didn't register their copyrights, aren't their damages capped at something like $150,000?
If the interpretation of "derivative works" for Hollywood was defined in the same way that SCO wants Linux classified as derivative of Unix, then Hollywood stands to make a mint for doing absolutely nothing.
It's not as if SCO is a jackal trying to nip at Hollywood, there are jackals on both sides of this court case. Perhaps Hollywood will act innocent and put up a marginal defense, but they stand to gain much if SCO loses
Dear Most Honorable Premier of China
It has come to our attention that there are a number of IP infringements occurring in your most wonderful country. To remedy this problems, it is recommended that you quickly submit a small token of appreciation in the form of a chek to cover your use of this so-called "Linux" operating system. Since we are aware that your country is actively developing a version "Linux", a monetary payment will cover your licenses for developing your inferior....I mean...most honorable OS.
Because we wish to maintain our most excellent relations with your people, we are offering a substantial discount on your licenses. If you act now before the end of the year, you may purchase the necessary 1.2 billion licenses for only 499 yuan. After the new year, the price will unfortunately have to increase to 699 yuan.
If possible, please submit your payment to my personal bank account in the Grand Cayman Islands. It is imperative that you act quickly and most importantly, do not say anything to the US government about this most honorable deal.
My most sincere respects
Darl McBride
P.S. After the new year, you may reach me personally in some South American country where the extradition laws are lax. I will be going by the name Diego Montoya.
No trees were harmed in the composition of this; however, numerous electrons were inconvenienced.
This article was mostly good, but I wish they had picked apart McBride's "'Boy, this free stuff is sure cool!'" lie - the difference is that the creators of movies don't want them to be free, while the creators of Linux do, and McBride's the one usurping our copyrights. Also, the author slipped up and called Linux freeware, but that's a minor distinction to everyone but us. And there was quite a bit of emphasis on people investing in SCO, but hey, this is Forbes, so what a company does is secondary to how its stock will react.
As for SCO itself, it's difficult to understand why they are so suicidal. They've ruined their defense against RedHat by explicitly threatening to sue their customers (assuming RedHat has at least one customer in Hollywood.) They're extorting from companies even bigger than IBM, companies which might have more to lose, companies that exert some control on the media, which SCO desperately needs. Everyone assumes Microsoft, but one would think Microsoft could buy higher-quality FUD, and hide its ties better. Pump-n-dump doesn't quite fit either - McBride isn't making any attempt to appear like he has a case anymore. Anyone who can't tell he's a raving lunatic isn't looking hard enough. I remain frustrated at our incredibly slow legal system, which won't do anything about this for at least two more years.
Litigious bastards
how long until SCO gets the shit kicked out of them legally?
It's IBM! and whats that in it's hands? It's a chain saw! They're taking them both out in one fowl swoop. What a grisley display.
who in the right mind could possibly want their name beside SCO's...
And with all the bullshit SCO has already handed out, look at what the new owners would have to clean up...
Surely anyone in the industry who is challenged just has to say "We're running a customised kernel, we have modified lots of code. Show us your code and we can tell you if we've replaced it or not".
They're not going to pay up if there's any chance they're not even using the SCO 'IP', are they? Couldn't this force an admission of code?
This idea was invented by Shampoo.
The Crack Smokers Association of America sues SCO for bringing their name into disrepute.
It is an insult to Linux and good humor everywhere.
Sincerely,
Linus T.
Do you have to ruin everything?
Here we go again, McBride making outrageous claims whilst his stock skyrockets, and his cronies and himself reap in the profits. This man must be investigated by the SEC; he is taking advantage of many people in the tech world.
how is this offtopic?
Maybe SCO hopes Hollywood is more likely to buy it out.
Unlike IBM, Hollywood is unfamiliar with the legal underpinnings of the GPL and more vulnerable to smoke and mirrors.
Yet, like IBM, Hollywood also has deep pockets.
SCO has already contacted sony. Will sony pony up? Not a chance in hell. SCO is going after any one that is using Linux that they might be able to squeeze some money out of. With Novell buying SuSE and claiming it still has certain rights that it can wave.... SuSE is pretty much a safe bet. HP is imdemnifying its customers as well. Red Hat is waxing the floor with them. Are there any other companies that they can go after? The IBM suit is only between IBM and SCO. It does nothing else for the rest of the industry. SCO can still try to go after other Linux contributers that have access to SVR4 source code. DoD, that could be a funny attack. They are stupid enough to try it, but will not succeed. Hollywood s the only place they almost possibly have a prayer that they can extort some money. Everyone else is pretty much safe at the moment. They could go after other distrobutions, but there isn't any money left. If Novell does still have rights to waiver infringments....then all people have to do is switch to suse and keep on trucking. There shouldnt be any need to go back to windows or sun, irix,hpux, or other proprietary os. They also would have to prove that they have infringing code in the Linux kernel and other GNU software if they are to attack HollyWood.
I think SCO has just reached 100 deciJobs in the reality distortion field.
Stop signs are only Suggestions
cuz you want to leave room for when Arnold RAMS HIS FIST INTO YOUR STOMAHK!
Hehehe. Maybe SCO should look a little closer at the use of Linux (particularly SUSE Linux) within Deutsche Bank.
They could be the first licensee.
Darl,
Keep up the good work buddy. The check is in the mail.
Love,
Bill
Ok, let's see, that's the $14 mil from Microsoft and Sun and the $50 mil BayStar stock deal.
Lessee, take out the stock deal because that's not really a sale, round off, carry the one, adjust for sample error, that's approximately. . . no sales.
SCO's a playa!
KFG
I can just picture Darl in a big dark helmet, having his head rams into the soles of his shoes as the SCO Legal Department jumps to Ludicrous Speed :)
"'I pass the test,' she said. 'I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Galadriel.'"
- JRR Tolkien.
IMHO, most linux users are pro Open Source, and the GPL, This is the fundamental problem. No Linux users are genuinely going to beleive the FUD that comes from Utah.
...
Lets say you work in a department and you use a considerable percentage of your machines are Linux, what are you and your fellow hackers going to say when mr PHB comes down from head office and asks you about the SCO thing ?
Hopefully you'll convince him that SCO are talking out of there ass. So there inherently lies the problem, most organisations are not going to change. I havent yet heard of anyone who's actually bowed down to SCO.
These absurd threats and forays they are making must surely be reaching a climax. I dont think there can be any doubt now that Microsoft are behind this. SCO are nothing but a pawn in Redmonds little game. One way or the other the results of this court case are going to forge the future business strategy of Redmond. One thing is for sure though, SCO are going down and the world will be a better place without them.
Redmond dont want to destroy Linux, they want it, the problem is it just doesnt fit with their proprietary business model. If only they could find a way to make Linux a proprietary system by invalidating the GPL. That is the real reason behind it.
My real fear is that when SCO finally does go down, who's going to get to pick up the peices ? i.e. the Unix rights?
nick
Electronic Music Made Using Linux http://soundcloud.com/polyp
Chant the mantra: There is no SCO, there is no SCO, there is no SCO... Let's all just ignore SCO and they will stop their bullying. Ok? Don't write any more about SCO. They don't exist.
Let's see what they dig up.
You forgot "and cover up." Remember that MPAA studios own all major commercial television news media in the United States (except for MSNBC until NBC merges with Universal). They'll dig up a lot of dirt on SCO and cover up their own faults.
Will I retire or break 10K?
Why not do SOMETHING ?
1. Go after SCO's customers that use linux and tell them that they will be sued unless they STOP paying the SCO license.
2. Go after Sco customers that don't use linux and warn them that the SCO operating system may have GPL code in it and they will be fined a million dollars.
Attack where Mcbride attacks.
Linux users can also participate by emailing the SCO's big $$$$ Clients and warning them that you wont buy their product.
Sitting back for court cases is not what Mcbride is doing and neither should people that believe in
open source.
This is like getting previews and teasers to one of the most anticipated movies of all time. I just want to be able to see what the outcome of this case is. I want to see SCO's ass kicked in court.
This has to be a unique moment for me personally. I normally don't give a rat's ass who wins a litigation in the USA - it seems to happen to damn often - but SCO are really asking for it. They're like the dumb little kid in the playground who's taunting the big fat kid, and you just want the big fat kid to pound him so bad...
Gentlemen, start your penguins
I'm preaching to the choir by responding to this, but it's worth saying that the difference bettween the two cases is that the holder of the copyright gets to declare the terms of distribution. If Hollywood wants to sell their product, that is their choice. If Linus (& friends) want to give their product away for free, that is their choice. If Hollywood wants to simultaneously reap the technical/financial rewards of the GPL and the financial rewards of selling their movies, there is no hypocrisy -- so long as in both cases the terms of the respective copyright holders are honored.
SCO, which has retained hired gun and Microsoft nemesis David Boies, plans to target titans of financial services, transportation companies, government agencies and big retail chains
I think the "Microsoft nemesis" meme here is very interesting. Lawyers are only enemies-for-hire. Since Boies is no longer working on the DOJ-vs-MS case, it doesn't make sense to think of him as their nemesis any longer. Still, I wonder if he was specifically hired to give "plausible deniability" to any alleged MS funding of SCO's actions (knowing how most people probably don't understand how dispassionate lawyers can be if enough money is on the table.)
The "cue the foo posts in 3, 2, 1..." posts will commence with no subsequent foo posts in 3, 2, 1...
glorious!! Where may I subscribe to your newsletter?
Given that DreamWorks made an award-winning film called Shrek that allegorically attacked The Walt Disney Company, is there honor among thieves? Will those studios that SCO does not attack make SCO out to be the "good guys"?
Will I retire or break 10K?
The same thing we do every night Darl, try to take over the world!
-Obligatory Warner Brothers Reference
The $150,000 figure is "statutory damages." Such damages are available only to a copyright owner who registered his copyright either before the infringement happened or within three months after the work was first published.
Actual damages are not capped, but they're also much harder to get than statutory damages.
Will I retire or break 10K?
I still own one share of SCO stock and am holding on to it for no other purpose than to help bring suit to them
You probably won't be able to sue SCO executives unless and until they cause you to lose at least twenty U.S. dollars (Amendment VII). What is SCOX worth again? Have you held SCOX stock since late 2000, the last time it was worth $20 per share more than it's worth now?
Will I retire or break 10K?
Rollin' rollin' rollin'
Keep that FUD train movin'
Damn my ass is swollen
Rawhide!
But then again, they will just export the animation labor to Korea.
Newt-dog
My Doctor prescribed daily nasal saline irrigation, hehe
Really... some legal group should get a cease and desist order put on SCO and their frivolous claims to IP infringement until 1 of two conditions are met..
They show the linux community offending code so that it maybe remedied.
Or the courts rule on their claims. In which case if their IP rights have been violated the linux community will be able to remedy the situation and life will go on without SCO making news every other day.
Who needs WiFi when we can have Packet Over Sheep! http://datacomm.org/PoS-InternetDraft.txt
How about they dare sue the goverments which are using Linux, or haven't they got the balls?
Comment: Yes I realise the username 'fuckfuck101' makes me sound intelligent, no you cannot buy it from me.
Good. Then maybe the people can stay on nice, clean, beautifull virtual world, instead of being dragged to the nuclear-wintered "real" one, and not be killed by sunglassed maniacs playing heroes. Really, the first movie started by these "heroes" killing cops and the agents trying to keep them alive.
Forget magic. Any technology distinguishable from divine power is insufficiently advanced.
For a SCO section on Slashdot, bookmark the SCO topic page.
Will I retire or break 10K?
Hollywood: "They've stolen our idea, to cheat, lie and steal and make a profit from it!"
Comment: Yes I realise the username 'fuckfuck101' makes me sound intelligent, no you cannot buy it from me.
I highly encourage everyone to browse to the Yahoo News article written by Mr. Lyons, and vote it as a ONE (ie would not recommend this article to everyone).
Not many people use the feature, and maybe it will send Yahoo a message about posting drivel like this in the future.
-- No matter how great your triumphs or how tragic your defeats, approximately one billion Chinese couldn't care less.
The sooner we stop paying it any attention, the sooner they will go away.
I say, ignore them, let them do battle and they will just... sod off and die.
I really get sick of hearing SCO fud.
We should just STOP listening to it!
but some software products support RH only (like Maya)
In that case, if Alias continues to provide Maya only for Red Hat Enterprise Linux, watch CG production companies not upgrade to new Maya because they can't afford to pay Red Hat to upgrade from the free pre-Fedora Core OS they currently run to a per-CPU license of RHEL. Should SCO win, watch Alias port Maya to FreeBSD.
Will I retire or break 10K?
This page says that "SCO Clears Linux Kernel but Implicates Red Hat and SuSE"... so why is it g oing after linux users in general?
sounds much better.
Five percent of one year's DoD budget puts us on Mars.
I think the lawyers decided work was running a little too slow. So they called their friends at SCO, and told them to start going after more people.
Perhaps they (MS) know that the GPL would be held up in court.
Perhaps they know Linux would always best their products on the technical front.
Perhaps they're planning on SCO pissing off enough companies, Linux developers, and Linux users to force to sue SCO. Perhaps they are planning on using this litigation in a anti-Linux / anti-GPL / anti-open source marketing campaign.
See how litigous the Linux developers are? Do something with Linux that they don't like and they'll sue you!
It's possible. It's entirely possible. Perhaps we (the Linux community) isn't looking far enough ahead. We're playing a game of chess here and our opponent is distracting us with stupid moves of his pawns while the queen gets in position for the kill. It's possible that we just aren't looking at this from the right angle. We need to be predicting their moves further in advance. Thoughts?
I will not pay you in Japan,
I will not pay you in Thailand.
I will not pay in Spain or France,
I will not pay you, not one chance!
I will not pay you, S-C-O,
I need not pay you, no, no, no!
Will I retire or break 10K?
Actually SCO might be doing the world a favor. Without Linux do to the special effects and stuff people might actually be forced to make movies that entertain people using plot and a decent story.
Don't get me wrong, I liked Toxic Advenger and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, but when was the last time a movie came out that people didn't bitch about?
Losing faith in humanity one person at a time.
It's SCO they shun the idea of common sense. Let's see, they've sued about everyone in existence for about anything they can think of. They're now trying to piss of major movie companies for fun. It's best not to make an attempt at applying logic to their actions, it'll only make your brain hurt.
If you piss off enough people, you'll eventually piss off somebody that realizes hit men are cheaper than lawyers. Doesn't Hollywood have ties to organized crime? (Just try getting a movie made without paying off Union heavies.) Can the SCO lawyers really be so naive as to not realize there are some people you just shouldn't fuck with?
Well, I guess in light of this course of legal action, Hollywood won't be using SCO either.
You win some you lose some I suppose. SCO isn't doing anything to win new customers.
Now I'm confused -- I don't know whether to root for SCO, or the MPAA. Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll take each other out? One can only hope...
The contest for ages has been to rescue liberty from the grasp of executive power. -- Daniel Webster
(Shamelessly ripped from a great Simpsons episode)
McBride: Mr. Spielberg, we've got some source code, some powerpoint slides, and a paper trail a mile long.
Spielberg: Yes. But I have ten high-priced lawyers.
McBride: Ya, ya, yaaa!!! [runs out of office]
Spielberg: He left his briefcase. Hey, it's full of SCO press clippings!
"Hey! Unless this is a nude love-in, get the hell off my property!!"
Hasn't SCO heard? Never get into a fight with someone who owns a printing press. (forgot who said it) Taking on Hollywood is a great way to get the media to make you look really really bad.
There's also "The Single Guy", yet another (hopefully) prescient movie by Steve Martin about a guy who couldn't buy a date. I hope Mr McBride will have plenty of idle time to think about his antics, looking for work in all the wrong places (e.g. anywhere on this planet).
"McBride points out that Hollywood studios, keen to protect their movies from being pirated on the Internet, have preached the need to respect copyrights. 'It's hypocritical for them to be going around saying that they don't want their stuff to be given away for free, but at the same time saying, "Boy, this free stuff sure is cool,"' he says."
Errrrmm, this may be because Hollywood generally pays someone to write a script or buys one from someone else, hires the actors, CGI guys, film crews, director etc., maintains a level of control over the production process then credits (and pays) those responsible for their contribution.
This differs from your claim which is based on the concept of "we didn't actually contribute any effort, development funding, or anything really but feel we deserve money because IBM included software THEY'D developed to work on UNIX into Linux" a concept that is stretching the term "derivative work" to the limit.
The two are wholly different claims and your idea as expressed above is akin to wholesale distribution of Windows or your proprietry UNIX or ripped of movies via the net.
Again, it's fairly easy to spot when a movie has stolen the plot of another movie makers work and you can bet Hollywood would jump on the back of anyone who stole significant chunks of a film script without crediting the original.
One more time:
YOU HAVE NOT PROVIDED A SHRED OF CONVINCING EVIDENCE TO BACK UP YOUR CASE! YOU HAVE NOT PROVIDED ME OR ANY OTHER LINUX USER WITH ANY CONVINCING SOLID REASON WHY WE SHOULD BELIEVE A WORD YOU SAY!
So until you are willing to put the proof to public scrutiny, and I can download the kernel source from any Linux distro or kernel.org so don't give us this "it'll be revealing our trade secrets crap, shut the fuck up and start behaving like an adult.
Hmmmmmm..... Deep fried and look like Squirrel.
YES! SCO as Spaceballs! It's perfect! :)
The Free desktop that Just Works
I'm running a special this week. I'll sell you an official GPL license for your favorite version of Linux for only $99.95 USD. S$H is included. Call for volume pricing.
Most of the posts on article are modded "5 Funny", anyone would think that no-one's taking SCO's claim seriously.
Except Uncle Darl that is.
Hmmmmmm..... Deep fried and look like Squirrel.
Exactly what I was thinking. My God, I wish I'd sunk a coupla K's into SCO about a year ago...
Daniel Lyons - what is he getting out of this?
Although, Hollywood should know all about hacks being paid to write propaganda.
Darly Mcbird, playfully challenging an anonymous coward to fistucuffs?
Bwahahahaha.
Ceci n'est pas une signature
Maybe this will have a good effect, considering most people that read this will probably dismiss SCO's claims as weak, but may think, "Linux does all that in Hollywood?"
No publicity is bad?
Lets say you work in a department and you use a considerable percentage of your machines are Linux, what are you and your fellow hackers going to say when mr PHB comes down from head office and asks you about the SCO thing?
Usually, PHBs don't ask tech about legal issues, they ask legal. Lawyers like to keep all bases open, so they're probably not ready to dismiss it completely, even if they have some clue about the case. Good old "Cover Your Ass", they don't have all the facts, so they can't make it 100% definitive. Then the PHB will percieve this as a risk, and *then* he'll come down to tech and go "Can we do something about this 'Linux' risk?" Don't expect him to take your legal advice "SCO is smoking crack" at face value.
Instead, show him all the people they've threatened. IBM (don't forget AIX), Linux distributors (Redhat countersuit, Suse getting gag order in Germany), Linux users, SGI, HP (which offered indamnification), Hollywood, the list goes on and on. Make them sound as if they're trying to take on the world, suing everybody and anybody, demanding money for allegations they won't prove. In short, make them sound like one of those "companies" sending out fake bills, only in this case they're using licence fees instead. "Pay us this licence fee/bill, or else..." "Else what? For what?" "Uh nevermind..."
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Ah, so Darl thinks he's Zeus now? The thing to remember is that after the storm and noise are done, it's the lightning rod that remains. And he should be careful with electricity when he and his claims is so obviously groundless.
One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
I find this move particularly convincing as proof that a relationship between Microsoft and SCO exists.
Consider:
1. clustering is one technology that Microsoft has not had much success with. Part of it is the structure of Windows itself that leads to technical hurdles. But, even if they had efficient clustering built into Windows right now, the licensing terms that Microsoft has held dear for so long (i.e. one computer, one license) would kill them in the clustering marketplace.
2. Bill Gates, in an interview that I can't find right now (I'm sure someone out there can provide a link), claimed that one of the features of the new Longhorn product would be the ability to share computing power over the network and allow anyone on the network to take advantage of idle computers on the network. Most of the analysts took this to be a reference to Grid computing, but I saw it as a direct shot at the clustering capabilities of Linux.
3. Notice that SCO's claims from the beginning (specifically the suit against IBM that this all started with) named multi-processor capability as one of the technologies stolen by IBM and imported into Linux. Notice also that SCO's licensing for Linux has always discussed a "per-CPU" license, not a "per-computer" license. As far as I know, Microsoft's licensing, other than the fact that the version of their OS that runs 2 CPUs costs a little more (not double) than that which runs on a single CPU and the version that supports more than 2 costs more than that (still not linear cost increments with the # of CPUs), does not exact a fixed cost "per CPU".
Make no mistake about it. This has all been carefully orchestrated by Microsoft to make Windows look more attractive in a market that traditionally has belonged to Linux and Unix variants. When Longhorn is finally released, I predict that it (or atleast one version of it) will have:
1. clustering capability built-in (can you say "my cluster neighborhood"?).
2. the ability to remove (or disable) the GUI, whose overhead is not needed or desired in clustering situations. Isn't a CLI something they have been touting lately?
3. a pricing structure that will look ery attractive when compared to SCO's $699 per-CPU cost. Where did SCO come up with that price anyway? I suggest it was fed to them by Microsoft.
I wonder if SCO is doing this so they can distribute "binary license" copys of films that use linux to create special effects...
They are stealing the linux kernel the next logical step would be movies, then music.
It's interesting--most people don't realize that lightning rods are put in place in order to decrease the chance of lightning hitting there. The pointed tip 'leaks' out the electric charge of the earth, decreasing the voltage and the resulting chance of arcing.
So does that mean that the fact that Hollywood uses lots of Linux mean that they have a lower chance of being sued?
Help find a cure for cancer. Join the [H]orde
SCO Vs. MPAA/RIAA
wooohooooo let the fight begin !
...and claims that Hollywood's films are a "derivative work" of SCOs IP, and demand royalties, the comedy will be complete.
What I really don't get is the publicity SCO hopes to get out of this - sure they'll get a lot, but the movie industry *is* more or less the media. That ensures that it'll pretty much be all bad about SCO.
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
After the SCO execs dump their stock and become rich, the SEC will come after them. So they decide to do some completely insane things with SCO, so that they can maybe get off under a claim of temporary insanity.
After all, I don't think there any drugs that can mess up someone's brain that bad...
#include "sig.h"
I can't believe that SCO really wants to sue the Hollywood studios for using Linux software. I think they forget that the entertainment companies retain VERY powerful lawyers who have far more experience with intellectual property rights than SCO will ever have (and then some).
This a major losing proposition for SCO, to say the least.
The movie studios will pay. Gladly. Like microsoft. Linux prevents them from deploying widespread DRM stuff. So there is a natural synergy (gack) between the two - the MPAA funds SCO to make linux go away.
Before SCO shut down it's download site, I downloaded the SCO Linux kernel files from the ftp site (ftp://ftp.sco.com/pub/scolinux/server/4.0/updates /SRPMS). (At least I think it's the kernel files, they all start with kernel-source[stuff here].rpm) 10 files, totaling 123 MB. Are these things the SCO kernel? Would anyone benefit from having them available on a mirror site? If they are, I'd like to make them available for download.
who do you hate more. SCO or the entertainment industry ?
:)
If only there were a way that both sides could lose... ?
My opinions are my own, and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.
Perhaps we (the Linux community) isn't looking far enough ahead. We're playing a game of chess here and our opponent is distracting us with stupid moves of his pawns while the queen gets in position for the kill. It's possible that we just aren't looking at this from the right angle. We need to be predicting their moves further in advance. Thoughts?
Do not attribute to malice that which can be easily attributed to stupidity. If you look at the agreement between SCO and their legal team, the legal team has signed on for a no win, no fee contract. This means that despite how much it baffles all of us, they actually intend to win.
Hmmm - lets see Bond had the media mogul/software villian, Anti-trust was a rip on Bill Gates...
Anyone want to bet an SCO type company will be the next super-villian? You do NOT want to piss off hollywood.
For example, they could create an evil company, thinly modeled on SCO and its executives. They could for example make the bad companies ceo into kiddie porn, drugs, prostitution, etc.
Of course the company would be a work of fiction, and any similarities to people living or dead is strictly coincidental...
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. Shakespeare, Henry VI, Part 2, Act 4, Scene 2
"We're going to force people down a path,"McBride says. "They can choose licensing or litigation. If someone says they want to see a court ruling before they pay, we'll say, Fine, you're the lucky winner. We'll take you first.' I'd be surprised if we make it to the end of the year without filing a lawsuit."
This is intense! We all know Microsoft doesn't have the best Karma on the planet, but at least they pretend to be friendly. This attitude is akin to professional wrestlers growling "I'm gonna tear off all his limbs and put them all back in the wrong sockets! He's gonna be crying for his momma when I pull out his tongue and hang him with it! GRAAAAAA"
I like the suggestions of making a movie out of this... I hope some Flash ninja will put together a comedy of this whole situation. Although it'd probably have to be based on the Moon, because it's so fucking ridiculous anyway.
I refer especially to this part of the article:As is evident from this quotation, what SCO is targeting is (a) dazzling effects: I am sure you agree Jar Jar Binks simply does not fit into that description; and (b) watchable films: it is old and well-established law (I am too lazy to look up the appropriate cases) that any non-exhaustive list is considered to include non-mentioned items but only if they can be considered to be in the same vein/category as those mentioned -- I've heard it called the 'cow and snake' rule -- i.e., a list ennumerating cows, goats and sheep is not considered including also snakes: cows etc. are domesticated animals; snakes are not (no, pets don't count). As you can see, the article mentions only three watchable films. As Star Wars films containing Jar Jar Binks are not watchable, they cannot be considered to be part of that group.
The liver is evil and must be punished.
At last, a common enemy for OSS advocates and the MPAA to unite against! But who would want such a thing? Steve Jobs? Sony? AOL Time Warner? Did any of they set this up?
BUT don't forget about what the contract says about a sell whilst they are in the middle of litigation. They get something like 20% if memory serves me correctly. It's a win-win situation for the lawyers no matter what they do. Sue and win and they make green. Sue and get bought out and they make green. Win-win situation for the lawyers, unless the SEC brings them down for pumping and dumping SCOX stock.
Remember when IBM was sued by SCO, and everyone presumed that it was just to get bought out and go out quietly? That when IBM responded with legal action, SCO started panicking and kicked in the pum-and-dump scheme? SCO's out of options on "Get bought out by IBM" front. Now they're trying to get bought out by someone who doesn't know as much about technology. And who knows less about technology than the people running the movie studios?
Sigs are like bumper stickers.
It's like being forced to watch a sick dog go through death throws. Forget PeopleSoft, Oracle should buy SCO and put *them* out of their misery. Heck, Redhat's worth $2.4B and SCO's only worth $240M. Please!!!!!!!
At least it's smarter than trying to sell a license to every home user of Linux.
Yeah, but so is taking a dump on a cop car.
No. Taking on a group with lots of public visibility, and little reason to stick with linux.
Translation? SCO thinks they can easily threaten Hollywood into switching back to what they used before, and they're hoping to sway onlookers when the 'villains' are convinced to 'comply with common sense'. SCO's common sense.
The 60's were the hippie decade.
The 70's were the "me" decade.
The 80's were the Al Franken decade.
The 90's were the dot com decade.
So far the 00's are shaping up to be the Who Cares If Everybody Knows You're An Asshole As Long As You Make Money decade.
The main thrust of 21st Century innovation, at least in America, seems to be in blatantly profiteering from defects in the system and shoving it in everybody's face. Sleazy business tactics like obstructive litigation, bogus intellectual property claims and political bribery are nothing new. The innovative element is that these activities now occur right out in the open. In many cases we know damn well that what some CEO is saying is absolute and utter crap. They know that we know; they just don't care. They've spent a lot of money tailoring the legal system to their needs, and they aren't going to hesitate to use it just because they might look bad. Advertising and low prices will eventually buy public forgiveness.
There is no pride or shame in high places anymore, only a pervasive arrogance.
Somebody should write a story titled that
"Fighting terrorists with millitary might is like killing a mosquitor on your Dad's forehead with a rifle."
Don't they have proverbs in every known spoken language that warn against this sort of futile move? For example, don't awaken a sleeping bear.
If the RIAA and their partners in mob syndication...er....syndication, the MPAA can unlease hell on innocent ppl with all that mass lawsuits and stuff....and they have the lobbying power to have the FCC and quite a bit of Congress in their pocket, one would think that it isn't wise to use a similar technique on them. 'Cuz once you piss off old man Jack Valenti, there's hell to pay...and this time, I'll support da Jack-ster.
Go kick some SCO butt!
Hmmmm....maybe pitchforks and flaming torches will be in demand by Hollywood too....
Not true at all, Boies and Co. not only get a huge cut of any winnings (yeah right), but they also get a 20% stake if the company is sold, and 20% of any equity raised. The $50 million that was raised recently, 20% of that is in Boies pocket right this minute. Plus, they got a ridiculously large chunk of stock as well (400,000 shares).
Here's one source
In short, SCO management is almost certainly telling suckers (er... investors) that the case is contingency based, but the lawyers have already been paid.
--
Power to the Peaceful
This scene would fit right in. Darl Helmet: "How many assholes we got in this company anyhow?" Entire SCO staff: "Yo!"
From the article:
Some tech execs say SCO is bluffing and running a shakedown. Investors believe otherwise; after all, SCO previously bought a little-known program related to Microsoft DOS and exacted a multimillion-dollar settlement from the formidable software giant.
I must be missing something. What is he talking about? Is it DR-DOS?
Come on, big bucks, big bucks, no actual resolved lawsuits... STOP!
Hopefully they'll hit a whammy sooner or later...
[Picture of Whammy as George Washington on face of dollar bill]Hee hee hee! I cannot tell a lie, you lose![/Whammy]
As I think we have all concluded, SCO knows they don't have a snowball's chance in hell of ever winning a dime in any lawsuit. Their strategy is very simple: delay, delay, delay. The longer they delay, the more they can run up their stock price so the execs can make millions.
That's precisely why they are dragging things out with IBM's discovery motions by filing incomplete, vague, and weasel-worded replies. They know they'll lose. They're just counting on the usual glacial pace of the legal system. If they can drag the suit out over a year or two - not at all difficult - they achieve their goal of artifically inflating the stock price.
They don't care about winning. They know they can't win. But they also know that perception is what matters, and that there are a lot of greedy people out there, salivating at the thought of owning stock in a company that claims to own Linux, who will buy the stock.
Look for SCO to face the "Mother Of All Investor Lawsuits" once the case is lost and the brutal sodomy of the average stockholder by the board of directos is expsoed.
Screwing around with Hollywood is only one or two steps less serious than screwing around with the New York Mafia.
They also usually win.
The MPAA vs SCO maybe they will wipe each outher out.
Well one can wish.
A pox on you SCO.
Darl may you break out in bleeding boils and sores all over your body.
If you don't like what I write don't be a CS and mod it down. Refute it.
Yea I can't spell. So what is your point?
How about a dyslexic lawyer who is lead counsel to a lawsuit involving software code. It is a real nailbiter with a suprise ending when you find out no malfeasance is possible on the lawyers or Company being represented's part because of his handicap, and that the company doing the suing just walks away and says, "We should have had better legal advice." You will leave the theatre after this movie thinking these guys make Darth Vader look like a girl scout.
Shouldn't be too hard for Lucasfilm to create a bargaining chip "Drop the Suit, or We'll Release Jar-Jar McBride"
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
now wait a second...
Darl McBride actually has a dick? or one long enough to be stepped on or one of any sizeable length?
wow, that's a shocker
Anyone else get a kick out of this bit?
Translation: "Hey, that's a nice server farm you've got there. Wouldn't want anything to happen to it, would you?"
[TMB]
Big money on the wrong side, backing a bunch of whackers making exhorbitant claims and trying to "kill" innocents... what fits that?
Either way, D'ohl and his crew of vultures stand about as much real legal chance of succeeding as an insect in IBM's headlights. If any of the studios are challenged, they'll either push SCO's brains through their collective rear or say "we're waiting on the outcome of the IBM case" and sit. It's a lose, lose, lose situation.
Except for Microsoft.
How many people will foolishly turn back to Microsoft simply because there's corporate headcases loose in Linux land? "I'm not playing with that bunch, there's a kid with wild, staring eyes who keeps kicking the others and demanding their milk money."
Want to make sense of what's happening? Simply follow the money. Who stands to profit the most? "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." Sounds trite but it's absolutely true. Money is a game counter that lets the power-hungry keep score, and power hungry people aren't in the game for your benefit.
Got time? Spend some of it coding or testing
You are absolutely right. MS stands to gain no matter what happens with this trial.
Outcome A: SCO wins. Ms wins because the GPL is no longer valid. All GPLed code is now public domain and the FSF has to start from zero with a new license.
Outcome B: SCO loses, GPL is valid, SCO gets buried buy the IBM countersuit and the suit from Redhat. MS takes full page ads all over the world saying that SCO got bankrupted because they used GPLed software and it bit them in the end. Use GPL, become bankrupt.
MS wins either way and for a cheap price. I figure in the end they will spend less then 100 million which is a drop in the bucket for MS. The Borland settlement was more then that.
Bill G thinks in the long term. That is why he is able to kill anybody who gets in his way. I know many people here underestimate him but he has crushed many companies and has many more on the ropes. If MS can deliver a blow to Sony so severe that it's staggering think of what it can do OSS.
Bill G is not a nice man. He does not play for second place. He enjoys destroying the competition and "hearing the lamentation of his women?" or in this case "sending their employees to the unemployment line".
War is necrophilia.
"Yes, Bruce Willis' character will have to blow up SCO. It should be quite the scene."
Especially considering that Hollywood[tm] will be buying out SCO so that in the filming they will actually be blowing up the real SCO offices, and if law enforcment agrees, it will still contain SCO executives when it is blown up.
A Hollywood[tm] producer was quoted as saying: "Some might say that it is too expensive to blow up the real SCO offices for a special effect, but we think we will make it up at the box office."
The rumor that Linus Torvalds will be making a cameo has not been confirmed.
This signature used to contain a cute kitty virus with ansii art. Please set the slashdot editors on fire. Thank you
Well, I suppose Astroturfing, magazine arm twisting and a huge advertising budget might convice a few clueless people that is true. But as someone once said, "You can fool some people all the time and you can fool everyone some times but you can't fool all the people all the time." Fanboys live in their own little M$ universe.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
try suing disney...
I think you're a fucking idiot. I'm not blind to some of the shit that Microsoft has pulled - and continues to pull - but please give it a rest.
SCO will be dead and buried within a year, and I'll happily dance on their grave along with the rest of Slashdot. Just stop the MS conspiracy bullshit - sometimes an asshole is just an asshole.
FUCK YOU SCO
Linda Boreman (aka, Linda Lovelace) would have been perfect to play Laura DiDio. I'm having trouble coming up with appropriate people to play the SCO legal team but the gang of crooked lawyers from "The Firm" comes to mind other than they seemed to be halfway competent. Of course, the Iraqi Information Minister plays Darl McBride. Any one have any suggestions of an actor who played a corrupt but incompetent journalist for the part of Daniel Lyons?
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither safety nor liberty.
Ben
I believe the motivation behind SCO is pro GPL'd software. The GPL didn't have any legal presidents. SCO was dying, i.e. edging on bankrupsy and soon to be carved up for sale). Remember SCO was in the linux bussiness and is connected with various interests, and the fact the GPL did not have any tangible legal foundation is a definite issue with corperate customers and investors. I don't think Microsoft is the primary or even signifigant funding behind SCO. I think it's investors building a foundation; look for the major players present and future of Linux companies.
If Microsoft or any other real anti GPL company were in such a lawsuit the case and issues would be much stronger; they would start with the strongest potential problems with the GPL. Instead the SCO legal team seems to be pulling at straws just to get rid of them. I'm telling you they are building a solid legal foundation for the GPL. And quite frankly the Slashdot community should be praising them.
For the record I'm against the GPL; it's socialist. I'll gladly use the software though. But companies such as IBM, Sun, SCO, and other such big names don't care anymore because they finally realized they are not really in the software market. They are in the hardware and support market. Linux implementations are so fragmented and varried that Linux's complexity from such non standardization becomes attractive for service and support contracts.
I think this is a "good thing"[tm] for at least one reason: people are going to start saying, "Hey, even Hollywood uses Linux? This must be something pretty cool. Let's take a look at it."
Dlugar
Computer Go: Writing Software to Play the Ancient Game of Go
The trial isn't until 2005? IANAL, but 2005 seems like a pretty far out date. I'm shocked that SCO is able to threaten Linux users with litigation without even settling the matter of who really owns the IP in question. Can they really do that? If the IBM case gets dismissed before it goes to trial, can SCO still press on with suits against users?
If so, SCO's antics are going to cost the taxpayers (that's me, goddamnit) an assload of money in court costs. There is also a lot of potential for this to significantly slow the adoption (and adaptation) of Linux in so many industries (although I'm still not ready to believe any of the MS conspiracy theories). Any folks with some knowledge of the law have any insight to share on the legality of the stuff above? (But please, not the MS conspiracy theory stuff).
-Turkey
We will not pay you Darl McBride, Your claims are non-specific and wide, You can't revoke our AIX, You'll learn in jail, through anal sex, We will not pay your license fees, Now get down on your fucking knee, And suck my cock, you trolling whore, We *will* not pay you any more, Linux is free and free will stay, And not a dime will people pay, To run an OS that isn't yours, Now bend over the bed, and drop your drawers, We're going to pay you what you're due, An ass like Goatsecx man for YOU!
Thousands of developers have released software under the GPL, software that you, SCO, are now *stealing*. Trying to retroactively change the terms of the GPL that YOU agreed to is plain and simple theft.
So far the 00's are shaping up to be the Who Cares If Everybody Knows You're An Asshole As Long As You Make Money decade.
:/.
It's not exactly the first, nor the last, time that's happened. While the 90s might have been the time of the dot com, I think the 2000s will go down as the digital "dark age"... the period when Internet was maturing, piracy was rampant, while the companies didn't have a clue on how to handle it.
Maybe it's got something to do with my fear of the (20)10s as being the age of DRM, where everything is locked down to hell and back. I think the pendulum will strike back. First it was too free, then it was too locked down. And the proper balance might not be expressable as black and white (0 and 1), no matter how intricate the system...
Personally, I find the future disturbing. I suspect that in the future, we will have to choose between no freedom of information, or complete freedom of information, 0 or 1. By that I mean that 010010001100101 might be the start of a constitutionally protected, non-libelious, non-copyright infringing, 100% legal free speech, or it might be the start of the most horrendrous child rape/torture footage you wouldn't even want to imagine, or even imagine exists.
Digitalization is the great equalizer, for better and for worse. A digital stream can be anything, speech, book, picture, sound, film, data, whatever. And you can either allow the free transfer of it, or you can not. Black or white. There is no longer a middle road
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Everyone have a look at Apple v Atari. It's important to note that for something to be considered intellectual property, it must have some flair that is not easily reproduced by some Joe Shmo looking to produce the same functionality.
I think SCO needs to be estopped from continuing its claims by a counter suit brought by a linux community force.
I mean, what are you going to do.. you do a suicide move taking on IBM, alleniate every customer you have (all 5 of them) and now you dis on Hollywood... you could have been the 8 o'clock movie man! I guess the National Enquirer will have to do... ooohh.. how about Jerry Springer!
The grocklaw article hit it right on the head. Novell now owns SuSE. SCO cant sue novell due to it's UNIX IP.
So, any major company who feels threatened by sco, only has to move over to suse linux, and they no longer need to worry... SCO then of course dies a slow, painfull death. woot.
"Computer games don't affect kids; I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms,
Bigger than IBMer? Who? Movie studio? I think not. The whole movie industry's income is less than $20 billion a year including every license, video sales and franchise. The box office income itself is not even half that.
IBM, on another hand, kachinged more than $80 billion last year, and 2002 positively sucked for IT.
Hollywood moguls gets tons of publicity and exposure, but they are noisy dwarves. IBM alone could buy the totality of Hollywood studios with its spare change (not that this would be a wise investment).
The IT industry completely dwarves the entertainment industry. Which is why IT should not accept crap like Fritz Holling's Hollywood-bought lobbying for universal encryption and DRM of every sound, video and computer system on Earth. It would make the $10B Hollywood industry happier while making the $300B IT industry miserable.
I will give you a guess. :)
It's IBM
IBM is as one of it's many many counter-claims (including sco violating (at least) 4 patents on all it's products (something SCO cannot fight back with: Novell owns those, and we know how friendly to novell is to sco...)
My thought would be wait for IBM to squish them.
Wow, talk about bad moves! If there's one thing a small company with a limited bankroll like SCO should not be doing, it's trying to push around a multibillion-dollar-a-year industry that has buttloads of cash with which to fight.
Wait, does this mean we have to side with the studios now?
----
Not to be confused with Col.
-
SCO sues PIXAR, DREAMWORKS, workstations number #444-#555
- SCO sues lunchbox for carrying linux diskettes
Okay, so maybe I can't visualize all the headline hilarity. The fact remains that SCO is amazingly, publicly, stupid.end of line
Many Thanks,
Luke
Let's see--it's early 1941, and you're Adolf Hitler. You've conqured most of western Europe but the Brits are still in the fight and you can't invade them because the Kriegsmarine, well, sux. It's just you and this one Major Power. What do you do? "I know, let's invade Soviet Russia! After all, they're only inferior Slavs, it'll be a walk!"
Now it's late 1941 and those "inferior" Slavs are proving to be somewhat more difficult to defeat then you initially thought, also, the Brits are still in the fight. Thus you are now at war with two Major Powers. Then you hear that your dumb-ass allies Japan have decided to go to war against the biggest kid on the block, the United States. You're under no obligation to join them at all so what do you do? "I know, let's declare war on the United States! After all, they're only inferior, mongrolized money-grubbing yankees, it'll be a walk!" And on and on.
Now it's 1945, Allied planes are wingtip to wingtip in your skies, there are traffic jams of Soviet tanks in Berlin and you're sitting in your bunker with a pistiol in your mouth wondering were it all went wrong.
That's SCO's future in a nutshell.
But the thing is, SOMEONE with the financial power to put the Unix codebase to use might want to put SCO to the test. These guys can mod me d0wn as -1 Redundant if they want but this question hasn't been answered. Longhorn has been in the Alpha stages for a little while now but what would a little *nix code that's legally owned by a certain company hurt? at least they don't have to GPL their source.
Sig not found.
Just picture:
SCO = the guy who jumps out of the bathroom screaming wildly and emptying his clip.
IBM = Samuel Jackson
Holywood = John Travolta
We are now at the legal equivalent of the point where Samuel Jacson and John Travolta look at each other...
-chris
San Francisco values: compassion, tolerance, respect, intelligence
Oh I wish the world media outlets would ignore SCO vs The World, because I am so tired of hearing and reading about it. I just don't understand how SCO's extorting tactics are legal.
-Slashdot Junky
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Landfill Mining Co.
Managing the (Un)natural Resources of Tomorrow
Ah, I didn't catch the parts about equity or stock. Hearing that does increase my assessment of the intelligence of the lawyers involved.
kinda seems like sco is trying to build momentum, KAMIKAZE STYLE! damn microsoft is some crazy mofos.
If only we could get SCO to go after the RIAA! That way we could all sit back and watch the bullshit flow - and kill two (ugly) birds with one stone. We could also follow the story in one SlashDot thread rather than two...
It looks like Darl really wants to meet some real hit men! If even the US government can't get Hollywood to pay tax, why does he think he can get some money out of them? Hold onto you kneecaps Darl!
Precisely. Despite all of the stuff I know about the case the fact that Boies and Co. were willing to take the SCO case on contingency always worried me. After all, those guys know far more about how to make money from litigation than I do. Even so, I couldn't figure out why Boies would allow McBride and the rest of the SCO management to shoot off their mouths in public about the case. Keeping management's mouth buttoned about pending litigation is standard procedure in cases where the party expects to actually win.
Once I realized that Boies had already worked it so that his company got paid the whole thing makes a great deal more sense. Now the entire case is all about dragging IBM (and Linux) through the mud for as long as possible with the hope of aggravating IBM off enough so that they buy SCO out. Boies is essentially wagering that IBM will cave. Otherwise, his lawfirm is going to be handing a very embarrassing defeat.
God you're a wanker.
Nice rhyme, though.
Didn't you see the "estate" in yerricde's subject line? The "estate" of Dr. Seuss is responsible for an amicus brief supporting the Bono Act.
... Has been digging a little too heavily into their sour-mash whiskey supply.
I'm being serious, here. The only times I have EVER made such utterly retarded claims as to who's ass I was going to kick have been when I was sloshed to pieces. I propose that from here on out, any lawyer stepping to the podium on SCO's behalf to deliver new targets in this sham of a lawsuit be subject to an immediate breathalyser exam. These rules are to be used:
1.) If he is found to be drunk, a severe beating is to ensue.
2.) If he is found to be sober, refer to rule 1.
at least then, we'll be secure in knowing he's been made to pay the price for the absolute shit we're about to endure.
Sure Bill Gates' hair is fugly, but give his barber some credit! At least he managed to cover the horns on his forehead.