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Open Source Advocate VP Chris Stone Leaves Novell
SafeTinspector writes "ComputerWorld has a story regarding the sudden departure of Chris Stone, a respected open source advocate and the man often sited as the architect behind Novell's acquisistion of Ximian and SUSE as well as the recent open source orientation of Novell.
At the same time, Novell has a web site dedicated to dispelling the mistruths propogated in Microsoft's 'Get the Facts' campaign. What does all this mean to the future of Novell's Linux and Open Source strategy? Does any of this relate to the imminent release of Open Enterprise Server? Anybody?"
At the same time, Novell has a web site dedicated to dispelling the mistruths propogated in Microsoft's 'Get the Facts' campaign. What does all this mean to the future of Novell's Linux and Open Source strategy? Does any of this relate to the imminent release of Open Enterprise Server? Anybody?"
I mean, all I want to do is bind to my god damned LDAP tree using SASL. Is that so much to ask? You can connect to IMAP servers using SASL mechanisms with Evolution, so what gives with LDAP?
Get help somewhere.
tr.v. sited, siting, sites
To situate or locate on a site: sited the power plant by the river.
tr.v. cited, citing, cites
To quote as an authority or example.
Do it now, before it's too late.
No, Vern. They just let him in.
http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?t
This does make sense. Microsoft has been under increasing pressure since *they* think that Open Source has really degraded *their* 'image'.
Though some of they work is good and genuinely well-intentioned, the OSS community know that they never really had an 'image' to begin with among the UN*X/OSS community - and I don't believe I need to expand or prove that claim. Maybe to organisations, companies and average users; but not to anyone who understand how MS 'thinks' collectively.
I think Ballmer's open desparation to cut-down Linux is continuing its established course.
As they have said Open Source/Linux is a concern to them and they continue to over-estimate the threat.
"Mr. Stone was instrumental in pushing Novell toward a strategy of capturing value from open-source software, as opposed to other members of management maybe more inclined toward giving away Linux to fuel demand for [Novell's] other offerings" As a potential user, and not a stockholder, his leaving doesn't sound like bad news. He pushed a Red Hat-like strategy vs IBM style strategy? "Respected open-source advocate?" Sounds like he was a businessman making business decisions.
1) If 'younger ones' at MSFT already know about this (suggesting it's widely known in Redmond), why is an AC posting on /. the first the rest of the world hears about the alleged offer?
2) From TFA:
Doesn't exactly tally with your tale of Ballmer buying him off. Which is not to say that he couldn't go to MSFT, but I doubt that Redmond was his intended destination when he left."The best argument against democracy is a five minute chat with the average voter."
--Winston Churchill
http://www.techworld.com/opsys/news/index.cfm?New
Even just reading the article, it sounds, at best, Stone was a "fan" or "enthusiast" not an "advocate." It doesn't hurt to remember that its flaky idealists who championed and continue to advocate opensource/free software. Its nice to have mainstream business understand the benefits, but these guys have different agendas- its "Evolution", not "Revolution," after all.
This is a hoax and many has pointed it out. But I'll point out another reason why it is a hoax.
He says he can't post using his real UID because it would jeopardize his job. Then he says that he is "coming _here_ to Microsoft".
If he was concerned about his job he would not have given an indication that he worked for MS, nor would he point out that he posts anonymously because he is at risk.
The Internet is full. Go Away!!!
I worked with Chris Stone at his startup company tilion. I was never really impressed by Stone and here's why.
We spent 2 years putting together a fancy XML based web application for inventory tracking at Stone's Tilion web startup company in Maynard. We went, burned, through about 26 million. The sales people couldn't sell the Tilion product at all. Nobody wanted it. Stone desperately tried to retool the product several times by adding in other third party software. We just ended up spending more money on a more expensive product that still nobody wanted! Eventually the investors showed up one day and pulled the plug on the company.
I followed his path for awhile after he left Tilion for Novell. He seemed to be doing the exact same thing he did at Tilion his failed startup: buying up third party software and mashing it all together. My guess is the same exact thing happened at Novell which happened at Tilion: a lot of money was spent and sales didn't increase -- a practice which is discouraged in the corporate world.
In conclusion, lately I have been seeing Stone as the Al Gore of software executives. Just because he claims to have 'invented' CORBA doesn't necessarily mean he is a good business leader. He is a decent guy but just not a great leader.
The difference in this case, is the tech community
has a mature understanding of where apple, microsoft, and even linux are heading both from social and technical perspectives.
with novell, the picture is a little less clear. who -really- architected novell's recent shift? assuming one person had the most influence, if -that- person bailed, would novell keep their current course or deviate again? what if -that person- was chris stone, as some speculate?
-ac
Well, if this does come to pass it may indicate a whiplash inducing U turn (MS embracing the internet with IE). Right now MS is trying to destory Linux with FUD and is failing miserably. Even Balmer has to see this. If MS really wants to prevail in the market, it will HAVE to return to it's core strategy of "embrace and extend". This would mean a MS branded linux, with ports of proprietary (non GPL) sofware such as DirectX, MS Office, IE, etc. Mixing proprietary with GPL has already been done in many distributions. They should also provide a developer kit for porting their applications to MS Linux, especially games. Right now gaming is where Linux is weakest and is a MS strength. IF MS were to port DirectX and a development kit (for porting MS Windows games to MS Linux) they would in quickly 'own' linux on the desktop for gaming and could leverage this to other core areas (ie. office software). I have to wonder if this wouldn't have happened already if Gates was still running the show.
Internal politics, didn't like the traffic in Waltham (where Novell is now HQ'd), really did leave to "pursue other opportunities", doesn't matter.
Chris Stone said that "it is with some regret" that he is leaving and he got a big severance package. That doesn't sound like it was an amicable parting.
As much as folks invest in the cult of personality Linux wouldn't come to a screeching halt without Torvalds,
In this case, it's Wall Street and customers that may have invested millions that are practicing the cult of personality, and they will be practicing it with Novell the same way as they do with any other company. (Besides, like it or not, without these cults of personality, Linux, MS, Apple, and other big projects just wouldn't exist.)
No, the sky isn't falling, but this is the sort of thing investors do pay attention to, and the ball is in Novell's court to come up with an explanation and a reassuring response.
With the provisio that Stone may be going somewhere, the posters indication office politics are probably correct. The "Shootout at O.K. Corral" probably went along the lines of "Stone thinks he's responsible for the recent upswing in interest Novell products." And therefore threatens Messman tenure. Yet, "Messman thinks he made the right choice bringing Stone back and will make further right choices pertatining to the future of Novell." This probably went before the board. The board would have to decide in favor of Messman as he was there first. Messman gets the first chance to show that he is the one responsible for the turnaround. So Stone gets walking papers. Messman is on his own now. If Messman can't sustain the momentum, look for Stone to replace him (if isn't getting rich beating up Novell somewhere else). In the past Novell's boards have shown criminal neglect in monitoring their CEO's perfomances and thus slow to act when removing them. I mean, the rest of the world new Microsoft was wiping Novell off the face of the LAN, but no one at Novell seemed to. Novell fans can hope the board has learned how to read and do math by now. Personally, from some of the speeches Messman has given, I don't hold much out for him (Either Brainshare 2002 or 2003 I think). Not only does he not seem to know what open source is, but what Novell's role in it is either. He's been roundly ridiculed in the trade press for such gaffs and coming off as an opportunist rather than at a minimum, a convinced advocate. We should know in the next year or so. TT
Actually I doubt MS could open source all of windows even if they wanted to. I think there's a lesson to be learned from the Netscape code. Netscape spent a LOT of time ripping out proprietary parts that belonged to other people. I can only imagine how much licensed code is stuffed into windows.
> Novell has reinvented itself as a Linux shop.
Funny that you put this in the past tense, as if a bunch of promised vaporware is reality or something.
Novell's main source of revenue comes from NetWare-based products. They bought a money-losing SuSE, but haven't done much to reposition it or sell it to their current customer base, yet. They bought Ximain, but haven't articulated any clear plan for the "desktop" or developer tools (Mono). They haven't even put the SuSE (KDE) people and the Ximain people on the same page.
I only say this because Novell has a history of schizophrenic strategy changes every few years. They might become a "Linux Shop" in the future, but I wouldn't count these chickens before they hatch.
Whenever I hear the word 'Innovation', I reach for my pistol.
Unfortunately, Novell doesn't have a very good history of making good decisions by itself. Remember that Novell was about to die before they brought in Stone to change things.
The fact of the matter is, Novell has killed EVERYTHING it has ever touched. Everything. WordPerfect - All but Dead. OpenDoc - Dead. USL/Unixware - Dead. Etc.. etc.. etc..
I was rightly concerned when Novell bought Ximian, and even more concerned when they bought SuSE. Apart from the utter stupidity of an american company running the show at a german one (and a brazillian one), Novell doesn't know how to grow a company, how to change, how to adapt.
The best that can be hoped for is that Novell see's how incompetant it is and sell those divisions off again. At least that's what it did with WordPerfect and USL, but it was too late.
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RedHat was founded in 1993. SuSE was founded in 1992. Novell was founded in 1983.
The point is that from a technical prospective the differences between SuSE and RedHat are minor except to the most sophisticated of users. From the angle of experience in the Linux business again RedHat and SuSE are about the same. From the angle of experience supporting a very large customer base ranging from small to large businesses Novell trumps RedHat hands down.
In the end the battle for Linux (and OSS in general) is going to be won or lost based on quality of support.
That's not saying Novell doesn't have alot to learn and change, but as long as enough people at Novell recognize what is was about Novell that made it survive all these years and what it is about Novell that has to change with the switch from NetWare to Linux, they'll do pretty well.
Also, Novell has no choice but to stay the course, I don't think anyone there is stupid enough to think they can go back to NetWare.
After claiming they want to move to a more Service oriented model, Novell has lost (will lose, has it come out yet?) their VP of Worldwide Services, Bob Couture. Now they lose Chris Stone and the issue has reportedly has something to do with his management style with regards to their Open Source developers.
There is a culture war underway between the products side of the house and the services side. This is the beginning of much restructuring at the big red N house...
Over the years, Novell has had just four CEOs. I can't count the number of vice presidents/vice somethings they've hired that had intentions of ruling the Novell world. They read like the who's who in business.
The acquisitions were pretty good, although Novell's not known for integrating their acquisitions very well-- if at all given they let Unix slip from their fingers at a crucial time.
Novell has one of the strictest hierarchies in the business world. That hasn't changed, and likely never will until they're acquired. It's their corporate culture-- embedded by Ray Noorda-- still another guy that tried to face down Bill Gates and lost. So, Stone's departure isn't any news; it was simply a matter of how long Chris could survive there.
---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.