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MS Releases Open Source Alternative To BigTable
gollito writes in with news that Microsoft has released an open source alternative to Google's BigTable file system, which is used on large distributed computer clusters. Matt Asay writes for CNet: "I also believe that Microsoft's fear-mongering around open source cost it years of productivity and quality gains that it could have been delivering to customers through open source. I hope that reign of ignorance is over."
"Or this is Microsoft trying to hurt Google because they fear them more than open source"
Or this is Microsoft trying a variation on its old tactical moves. Their usual game is proprietary lock-in. They can do that with open source through extension. e.g.
Step 1: Create an open source project, carrot on a stick.
Step 2: Promote and support open source project, to build up numbers of developers so other competing software projects die out.
Step 3: Earn money from extensions to core project, but say you are focused on support of core.
Step 4: Focus on money making extensions so original open project becomes ever less of overall software project.
Step 5: You win, everyone is making software compatible with your software.
Corporations like to build in ways to control markets into their products. Control is central to their planning long term. (Microsoft are not the worst company in this respect at all, but they are a very high profile company). (Corporations are often run by control freaks. They want to be the boss and in power over others, so their thinking centers on how to control others, its how they fight to the top in corporations. So once you see their moves in terms of control, and how to achieve control of others, their tactical games often become a lot clearer).
For example, Windows was built onto DOS, now DOS is all but dead and Windows is central. If they gave the source code to DOS away it would make no difference to them.
Most Corporations think in terms of how to create control, even though they would use any excuse they can to say they are not aiming to control. So I can't see Microsoft stopping its lock in games. Its founded on control of a platform at its core. As they evolve their core, everyone else has to rework their code as the old core dies out and looses support. DOS, Win3.1, Win95, Win98, Win2000, XP, Vista, Windows 7 ... same game each time, their focus is on control and extension. It helps them milk money out of other companies and places other developers at a disadvantage as they are dependent on what Microsoft do and so Microsoft can undermine other developers whenever they wish by undermining the foundations of other software projects built on Microsoft core software.
Control is central to the reasoning behind Microsoft's game of moving and extending their definition of an OS until everyone ends up writing Microsoft programs where Microsoft has to be central to all software everyone creates.
So looking at this news of Microsoft's alternative to BigTable file system, its their game all over again.
Microsoft don't just compete by trying to make better products as they don't even need to be the best as they instead compete by becoming central to other people's development work and so gain benefit from many other people's work building up the profile of Microsoft's core software, which is made central to everyones work. Plus being in control allows Microsoft to undermine the foundations of other software projects whenever they wish.