Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft Segments Linux "Personas"
RJ2770 writes "Microsoft has started a project for their partners to help identify the personas of different Linux users in an attempt to sway them toward Microsoft products. In addition to the web site there is a podcast on the market research behind the project, again directed at Microsoft's selling partners."
I bet that the "Selling Partners" just happens to be a company named Dell.
Under the "Application Driven" Persona Profile:
- place application needs ahead of platform decisions
- will support whatever platform best fits the application
- application needs driven by business needs
- very satisfied with current Linux installations
So, remind me again how these bullet points help win AGAINST Linux?
-theGreater.
Like M$ has 90% of the desktop I would think 90% of linux users are "advanced" computer users.
Libertarian Leaning Political Discussion Forum.
Probably most of those don't even know that Linix is involved.
Engineering is the art of compromise.
LaCie (www.lacie.com) by selling it's "LaCie Ethernet Disk RAID" is
1 0876
m ?id=10101
violating copyrights of hundreds of software developers by distributing Linux,
Busybox, Samba, etc... Without a copy of the GPL (or even a notice of the gpl.)
I also called their tech support line (503-844-4503) and they have told me the
source code was not available and that the OS is proprietary. They said someone
would get back to me about it 2 weeks ago. When I called back, they told me the
source code is not available.
See product at:
http://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?pid=
They claim in the product spec sheet that the OS it is running is "Linux
2.6." So there is no question to if they are violating the GPL or not.
You can see they are using busybox by downloading the latest firmware for the
product at:
ftp://207.189.107.141/BCFv13b524-external.zip
link from the page:
http://www.lacie.com/us/support/drivers/driver.ht
(the pkg file is just a tarball with some extra info at the start of the file.)
LaCie's contact info can be found at
http://www.lacie.com/us/contact/index.htm
LaCie apparently believes it is above the GPL.
Maybe they should be using Microsoft if they don't want to honor the GPL
It seems to be aiming at enterprise. They focus more on business executives and application developers, except for the "Linux Aficionado", whom most Slashdot Linux users would fit in.
The problem for Microsoft is that many Microsoft users loath it's software, Linux users also loath Microsoft software, so it'll be hard for Microsoft partners to try and "convince" them to switch. I think Microsoft's greatest fear is that businesses which have traditionally went with them will try Linux for their servers because of all the security bugs and malware. Linux is too complex for the "average luser", so Microsoft isn't as worried about them, but business and server users are more knowledgeable about computers and would switch easier, so this is their new strategy to keep them with MS.
Hydraulic pizza oven!! Guided missile! Herring sandwich! Styrofoam! Jayne Mansfield! Aluminum siding! Borax!
Seriously, when was the last time MS came out with something that really got you excited, something elegant and useful?
Exactly, I mean...doesn't MS at least try to sue anyone with a domain name that resembles or includes theirs? I know they are free to have their own Linux distro. But to use the name for their own promotional material, I find that a bit strange.
"Thanks for all the money you paid to us. We've used it to buy off ISO among other things" -Microsoft
Who is this you? unline Microsoft, Linux is not a single , profit driven entity. And that is the beauty of it. It was always designed to be a problem solving and technology driven entity. The GNU people helped a great deal with adding problem solving tools. I don't use Linux heavily because it I think it is generally easier (which I do), not because access to it is free (which I appreciate, and helps takes the complexity out of things)... but I use it because I think it suits me, and the majority of my needs better. Any need I have, or can think up which Linux (and software currently running on it) does not satisfy for me, would be satisfied by the Mac guys (and software running on it). So MS is free to take "me" seriously or not, it doesn't change the fact that Linux continues to solve my problems.
"Thanks for all the money you paid to us. We've used it to buy off ISO among other things" -Microsoft
http://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/feedbac
Just about everyone I know who installed SP1 has run into this problem. We're all professional developers. Check out Microsoft's "resolution": Thank you for reporting this issue to Microsoft. It has now been fixed and the fix will be available in a future release. That's right. It's fixed, but you can't have the bug fix. It's only a critical part of the language they've screwed up. It only means you have to hunt through a few million lines of code to add workarounds for it. We'll give you the fix in "a future release".
How we know is more important than what we know.
That's standard sales training. That's what everybody learns in basic marketing management.
A big problem with the open-source world is that it doesn't develop marketing use cases. How little need a user know to successfully run Linux on the desktop? That's not something one hears in KDE vs. Gnome discussions. Yet it's the question that matters.
Linux users have been profiled by market research firms for a long time now. If you want proof, check out this transcript from Frontline's "The Persuaders":
s uaders/etc/script.html/
:-)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/per
Do a text search for "linux" on that page, then back up a bit and read it in context. If you watch the show online, it's even better - and more creepy. They don't call 'em "persuaders" for nothing.
They could always tell him to read CatB, re-read the Halloween Documents, and spend a week reading /.
look! it's a bird, it's a plane, it's....a girl? yes, a girl browsing Slashdot on Linux
The presentation is not about the users of Linux but about businesses and servers who use Linux.
And I noticed there is few bald faced lies in the presentations too. It is expected that Microsoft would mislead and lie to people.
But the point is clear. Microsoft considers Linux a threat and are actively trying to fight us.
We need a an equivalent to Mozilla's Firefox Flicks program for Linux.
\
If their idea of taking us seriously is making a Flash webpage where the "linux aficionado" is balding and wearing thick glasses, and the reasonable-looking women are labeled "open minded" and "pragmatic", no, they're not taking us seriously. (And those Bill Gates / borg images are us taking them seriously!)
Put another way: Vista is getting lousy reviews, and generally sucking. If their solution is hiring a flash developer to try to make Linux users look lame, that's thousands (millions?) of dollars they're not spending on making Windows suck less.
I invite our friends in Redmond to spend all the money they want on cheesy flash animations. In the end, if it doesn't work, it doesn't work, and no amount of advertising is going to change that. (I work at a BigCo which is *very* Windows-friendly, but for lots of things, Windows doesn't cut it. We've got Solaris and Linux boxes, too -- not because of politics, but because they get the job done.)
Does anybody really think this is new for Microsoft? It used to be name-calling; now it's showing unflattering stock photographs.
This is the last stage: desperation. "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
They tried to pass laws against open source which failed because too many enterprises use it. They tried (and continue to try) a FUD campaign which fails because too many people in the IT industry see the benefits vs the costs (both in downtime and in software price). They tried attacking through a separate company (SCO) but that failed and actually created a media storm for Linux and open source. Now with Novell, they are trying bundling with Linux.
Microsoft doesn't know who, where or what to attack. For every foe they take out, another more innovative implementor arises. Could Microsoft have seen Ubuntu taking off? By the time they notice the threat, come up with a plan and act, it's already too late. The lb of flesh has been removed from their corpse. They act out of arrogance and in shows in everything they do as well as this latest campaign.
This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is mine.
o The tree-hugger : Loves Linux because it's open source. Like to have freedom to access everything he paid for. He finds the concept of "you don't own the software, you own a license that enables you to use it" ackward. ...but I think it'll be just as effective as the TCO / Get the facts
:
- MS may mention the Microsoft Shared source project, and the pacts with some government and military to share the source of select OS parts.
o University shops : Ok, the campus discount prices are a good thing, but some work need highly customisable code to hack until it fits the solution. Also, lot of clusters running in the physics, biomed and math department. Plus, CompSci needs a OS freely hackable to teach OS programming.
- MS may mention the MS-Shared source project (not interesting for CompSci they need OS source)
or Pact with governments (out of University budget) or Windows CE custom kits (out of University budget due to number of seats) or MS Windows Cluster edition (not hackable).
o The I WANT TO BE IN CHARGE Linux user : he bought, he wants to be in charge. He hates DRM and his worst dream is TCP.
- MS May mention that DRM is needed for the market place, or go for the Jobs defense (I isn't my fault, the MAFIAA made me do it). They may try to show that MS can lead a game of cat and mouse chase in terms of format compatibility.
o The "I want a standart format" OOo user : he want a well documented format, that he'll be able to open on other OpenDoc compliant softs and could store for long term without being affraid of un-supported / out dated / license-expired software.
- MS should mention that their OOXML format is soon ISO standart too and has many features that lacks in... (Shut up ! 6000 pages is a joke)
o The complete free ride : he wants to pay absolute 0$ for things that can be downloaded free. Preferably in a legal manner.
- MS should mention that the beige box hardware came at a price.
- MS should mention the cheap Starter Edition... ok we all know this one is a joke. Then MS should secretly point out that pirate edition of its software is widely available, and Genuine Advantage can be circumvented.
o Google : They mostly use Linux to avoid astronomical license cost and to have customizeability.
- MS should send Balmer to fucking kill them throwing chairs
o The I don't play games guy : The single actual good argument for Windows is gone.
- MS... is doomed.
Seriously, to respond to this Linux community should focus on the main points Microsoft will never be able to compete with
- Free/Libre Opensource software : No matter what, what you got is yours and you're free to do whatever pleases you with it. You can even share those results as long as you comply with the license. With microsoft, unless you're a government or military, or if you buy (wads of cash) $ for a customisable kit (WinCE or Win XPe) you'll never be able to hack legally the OS nor distribute the modifications.
- Every improvement of the OS technology done as a Master Thesis can be implemented for Linux (instead for some toy proof-of-concept OS) and if it proves useful, pass tests and is accepted by A. M., it can immediately be made available for all users around the world. You can't do the same stuff for microsoft products, or then you must work in the MS campus and your improvement will be sold as the next pay-for version of Windows (if it has the chance not to be scraped together with WinFS and all those cool features that were always promised and always postponed to the next version).
- No DRM : You are the one in charge of you computer.
- No per-seat price : You have on copy of Linux, you can install it on every one of the thousand computer in your shop, and let your users install it at their home, on their laptop, on their kids' computers, their neighbours', etc. With Microsoft even if you're a University with discount, you still have to pay a fee depending on the number of students, and only staff has the right to take home
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
Moreover, when Microsoft sold Xenix to the original SCO, it entered into a business arrangement never to enter the UNIX market again. Once SCO is out of the way...
I had a brief look at the screening tool. I use Linux on my desktop, I use it for mission-critical messaging applications in our production environment (and have been doing so for several years), I use it for the company's e-mail services. My IT team doesn't need any Linux/Unix training - we can keep things ticking over pretty nicely. I'm not interested in adding e-commerce functionality to our websites, because we already have it. I don't have any legacy Unix applications, so I'm not interested in migrating them. The screening tool thinks I'm a Linux experimenter?? I used to be, back in 1996. Now I'm using to keep a business in operation. I know the screening tool is probably aimed at a specific market segment, but it looks to be a very blunt instrument indeed. Surely Microsoft has better market analysis than this?
Look at the figures about whether the next server is going to be Linux or Windows.
We'll discard the Linux advocates and Unix transitioners. Of course those groups are going to choose Linux over Windows. Just look at the remaining groups.
In these three groups, the only group that shows a marked preference for Windows are the most risk averse. The pragmatic adopters are overwhelmingly satisfied with Linux and are planning to use Linux for their next server by nearly a 2:1 margin. The experimenters, who are Microsoft Windows shops that simply have dipped their toe in the Linux pool, still prefer Windows for their next server. But they do so by a razor thin margin: 46:42.
While there are a lot of risk averse people out there, if the pragmatists adopt Linux as planned and continue to be satisfied with it, it leaves the door open to considerable growth for Linux and companies with Linux offerings. If this is allowed to reach the point where Linux starts looking like the wave of the future, people in the market follower category are going to consider defecting.
In some ways Microsoft's long term position is most stable with the experimenters. These are apt to be people whose technical skills with the Windows platform are the greatest. They aren't scared off by Linux, but in the end have found that they can still do more with their current tools. I'd suspect that these shops will continue to be predominantly Windows for a long time, but they'll also make room for Linux where they think they can save a buck.
In any case, we're dealing with an MS dominated future for a long time. But the openness of pragmatic adopters to Linux is a chink in the MS armor that could allow Linux and F/OSS acceptance to reach the critical mass where they start driving the price MS can charge downward. Once the direct financial effect of competition begins to drive pricing decisions, the MS monopoly is over, although possibly not MS dominance.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
Microsoft has 95% or so of the PC market. That is not changing anytime soon.
A Network administrator at LSU told me the M$ share was already down to 80%. M$ only services now generate substantial outrage and resistance. It's getting easier to do without the soft all the time.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
I want a usable yet secure OS. I don't want to pay $50 a year for a security suite that's going to hog my system's resources and require I give express permission to every program that wants to run or connect to the internet.
I also don't want my OS to restrict what I can do with my own computer. I want to be able to use my media and my hardware without being told what is appropriate. I don't want my computer's security to lock me out.
I also don't want to rely on a particular company for access to my files. If MS files are only compatible with MS Office, and Microsoft decided to charge 10x as much for the next version of office, I'm either stuck with old, unsupported software, or paying out the wazoo to access my files. Everything I use comes with an open standard. If OpenOffice were to cease existing, someone else could easily replace them and my files would still be useful. If I could use open formats with MS office to ensure MS couldn't lock me to their products - this would mean I used their product because it was the best, rather than because I have to in order to access my files.
In short, if Microsoft wants to gain my business, they'll have to do it by creating the best product and convincing me I won't be tied to them no matter what for as long as I'm doing business. Right now, they seem more interested in satisfying media distributors and hardware vendors than the people who buy their product, and they'd rather create a market that requires you to use their product, rather than creating a product that's really superior.
Don't get your terminology confused. They dominate the DESKTOP market, not the PC market; they have never dominated the server market though they try to say they do by slanting in in SALES figures. But since OPENBSD, FREEBSD and LINUX don't cost a dime (generally), those stats from Microsoft mean nothing. In fact, stats from Evans Data Corp put Linux on approximately 33% of all corporate servers.
When you consider that Microsoft is still trying to fight SUN, IBM and the old UNIX's to get it's products onto your servers not to mention that they made this push before and it bit them in the ass (can you say Code Red?), this is a huge chunk of the market that just got nabbed right out from under them. And from the same report by Evans Data corp, Linux is in 67% of corporate server rooms, up from 43% only a year ago. Microsoft only wishes it could sell it's product this well.
Microsoft has to do more than sit back and mature. They need to grow up. That means stop being a child and let other people play with your toys/API's. How many times is the Justice dept/EU going to have to slap them before they get the picture?
This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is mine.