Sam Ramji, Microsoft's Open Source Guru, Is Moving On

barking_at_airplanes writes "Some called him crazy a few years ago when he joined Microsoft to run the Open Source Software Lab, but Sam Ramji endured and made real differences to how Microsoft treats open source and how open source people view Microsoft. Ramji is now heading back to Silicon Valley to join a cloud computing startup. Sam comments in his announcement: '46 months later, I am amazed at the changes that have occurred for the company, for the team I belonged to, and the sentiments of the industry.' It's a statement which, 46 months ago, few Slashdotters would have thought could come true! With Sam leaving, can Microsoft's positive momentum into open source continue successfully? Bill Hilf says they're 'actively seeking someone to fill Sam's shoes.'"

Comments

Really?

[kubrick]

Sam Ramji... made real differences to how Microsoft treats open source and how open source people view Microsoft.

[Citation needed]

Re:Really?

[minsk]

I believe it.

A few years ago, Microsoft was ignoring Free Software and Open Source. Now Microsoft has moved onto misleading branding, false marketing, patent threats, and courting developers with what traditionally turned out to be empty promises.

So, the same way they treat other competition.

Re:Really?

[Anonymous Coward]

"Now Microsoft has moved onto misleading branding, false marketing, patent threats, and courting developers with what traditionally turned out to be empty promises"

[Citation needed]

Re:Really?

[wampus]

Sorry if I don't trust your source. It's always been a little slanted...

Re:Really?

[fyrewulff]

Granted, the first one isn't a true open source project in that they don't accept patches from the community

There's nothing about open source that says that the original maintainers have to accept patches from outside the initial group.

What are you smoking?

[Grokmoo]

The article claims Ramji has improved relations between Microsoft and open source people? Since when have relations between Microsoft and open source been anything but negative? We read stories on here almost every day about some new point of conflict.

Re:What are you smoking?

[Locutus]

that Microsoft Linux Lab is just a training facility for Microsoft upper management so they can be exposed to what open source is and so they can then be moved into other positions within Microsoft and use what was learned to advance Microsoft Windows or at the very least, protect its position. It's not about making money of open source, it's about understanding it and the people behind it. They go to open source conventions, not to sell Microsoft open source products but to see what others are doing and talk to them to learn their strengths and their weaknesses. They join open standards bodies not to move open standards forward but to move them in directions which leave holes open for Microsoft to leverage and to slow down or distract the committees while Microsoft embeds similar technologies into Windows or their other desktop or server apps.

Do pay any attention to the man behind the curtain. Microsoft's Linux Lab is a travesty. It's a travesty of a mockery of a sham of a mockery of a travesty of two mockeries of a sham. And then some. IMO

LoB

Microsoft's Open Source Strategy

[sk999]

Here is how Bill Hilf explains Microsoft's Open Source Strategy:

http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=203100965&pgno=3
".. our PREFERRED plan is to LICENSE ... versus LITIGATE."

Gee, where have we heard that before? Oh yes. Darl McBride, CEO of The SCO Group:
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/media/news/2003/07/59701

"We would PREFER LICENSING to LITIGATION,"

Such a nice bunch of guys.

Re:I know!

[FunPika]

Even scarier would be Stallman, Ballmer, Gates, Jobs, and Torvalds all together in the same room planning to take over the world...

We would all be screwed.

!change

[should_be_linear]

they still do all these "little things" like screwing Grub after Windows installation, something they can fix in one person/day. Not to mention "big" things, like document formats etc. I don't know what this guy is really talking about...

Not ever Microsoft employee is evil

[Enderandrew]

The overall direction of the company is evil. They have done plenty of evil things. Balmer is still a patent troll. But Microsoft is a giant company win tons of divisions. And many of their employees are real, decent human beings. Not all Microsoft divisions agree with patent trolling, FUD, extinguishing open standards, etc. In fact I talked to a Microsoft employee who once said you have to realize this is a company that doesn't have the management or foresight to have the Exchange team directly tied to the Outlook team, because Exchange is a separate server product, where as Outlook is merely part of the Office team.

I think a lot of people fail to notice that Microsoft is LESS EVIL than they were before. No doubt, guys like Sam Ramji played a part in that. For that, I am grateful.

Kudos to you, sir.

That being said, does his non-compete kick into effect since Ray Ozzie said Microsoft's future 100% lies with cloud computing, and Ramji is going to a competing cloud computing company? And do you want to run a start-up trying to compete with a multi-billion dollar behemoth that likes to crush competition?

Re:Not ever Microsoft employee is evil

[Darkness404]

I think a lot of people fail to notice that Microsoft is LESS EVIL than they were before. No doubt, guys like Sam Ramji played a part in that. For that, I am grateful.

How are they less evil? All they have done is simply went from ignoring OSS to attempting to embrace and extend it. All they have done is realize that OSS is in actual competition to their software and if they don't at least make improvements to their software, people will chose OSS over MS software.

And do you want to run a start-up trying to compete with a multi-billion dollar behemoth that likes to crush competition?

One way MS likes to crush competition is by buying them. When you get millions for your company for doing very little, I'd say its a success. Yeah, if your an employee things might not be as good, but if you are owning the company? Its a great thing and you get a pretty early retirement if you so choose.

Re:Not ever Microsoft employee is evil

[steelfood]

Microsoft management, starting with Bill Gates, has always been evil. Gates is an evil genius, if there ever was one. And part of his genius is looking good to the public eye despite all the crap he's pulled.

Sure, he's done a lot of good things, like consolidate the IBM PC industry into one platform, resulting in the rise of the computing age. And he's not nearly as evil as Jobs. But that's like saying, without WWII, the American industrial complex would've never developed, and Stalin is worse than Hitler (yes, I know I just Godwinned the thread), but that doesn't invalidate the fact that he's one evil bastard.

Ballmer is more of an oaf. He's Bill Gates' lackey, and not much more. He's competent, but hardly the genius that Gates was. Microsoft's current situation reflects this, and this is not necessarily a bad thing. After all, there's really little need for them to pull their old stunts, now that they're the 800lb gorilla in the IBM PC market. Remember that the last time Gates tried to play hardball, they got hit with an antitrust lawsuit. So it's probably a good thing for them.

But don't think that anything's actually changed. Management is still management. Employees may be human, but the officers and upper management are nothing short of sociopaths. And if they are threatened, they'll bust out their old play book and go right back to their old tactics, especially if they know they can get away with it.

Some companies are inherently good. Their founding principle is to primarily benefit society, while making a whole lot of money along the way. These companies do a lot of good things for society, improving it, forming a bond of trust between them and the people who use their products. Google is trying to be this kind of company, and I'd say they're pretty successful. Microsoft is not one of them. At best, they're dormant right now.

Re:I know!

[i.of.the.storm]

Can you really attribute the Unix philosophy to Torvalds? I mean, the fact that Linux started as a Unix clone kind of goes against attributing that to Linus.

Re:I know!

[Anonymous Coward]

He's the only one of the four who understands and follows it.

Re:Microsoft promises to play nice *this* time

[cenc]

MS "embracing" open source I believe is the ultimate nuclear option for MS to take open source apart from the inside out. Watch them put on the sheep's clothing, and then try and run it in to the ground.

Re:Might I suggest

[Blice]

Head of Gnome, right? Lead developer in bringing Microsoft .NET to Gnome, worked in Novell as vice president of development (which is partnered by Microsoft) and now is a director for Codeplex, Microsoft's new opensource foundation.

If that isn't unsettling enough, he's a /b/tard. Look at this post from his twitter:

"That last picture from @abock is photoshopped. I can tell because of the pixels and having seen a lot of shops' myself."

holy shit

I just think this guy is a massive troll. I can just picture him doing all this Microsoft shit with a troll face.

The entire development cycle of Gnome suddenly makes sense to me now.

Gnome developers: Look at all this cool stuff we can do for Gnome!!! We'll be way more awesome than Microsoft now with this stuff!
Miguel de Icaza: No. I want to keep Gnome stable and unimproving. *trollface*
Miguel de Icaza: But lets go ahead and bring .NET to Gnome. *trollface*

Another gem:
http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2009/Sep-10.html

"I hope that I can last more on this foundation than I lasted at the FSF, where I was removed by RMS after refusing to be an active part of the campaign to rename Linux as GNU/Linux."

You forgot one...

[ichbineinneuben]

You forgot to add corrupting an international standards body...

Reality show...

[marciot]

But you have to admit, it would make for an awesome reality show.

Re:I know!

[D4C5CE]

I just had this image of Stallman and Ballmer in a room together.

1. ???
2. ???
3. Profit!!!

You mean as in:

1. RMS leaves for Google
2. Chairs get airborne
3. Gravity takes its toll
4. Profit for the furniture store?