How Many SUSE Subscriptions Can You Get For $240M?

itwbennett writes "According to an SD Times article, Microsoft is almost through passing out the infamous subscription certificates for SUSE Enterprise Linux that it purchased for $240 million as part of its investment in Novell. According to the article, Microsoft says that 'a total of 475 customers have used an unspecified number of coupons.' Blogger Brian Proffitt calculates that 'if indeed just 475 customers have received these coupons, then Microsoft has essentially subsidized SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) deployments to an average tune of US$505,263.16 per customer.'"

Comments

Re:Microsoft hounds

[mcgrew]

The Microsoft shills will mod you "flamebait" for your funny comment, Mr. Neal!

Re:Xcalc?

[nomadic]

Was that before or after jumping into his Ferrari and flashing his iPhone? Why do people need to display their smug superiority from the unwashed masses when any decent calculator would give the same result?

Nonsense, my calculator made of rich mahogany and fine corinthian leather is far more accurate than your lower-class calculator.

Re:Free?

[sakdoctor]

M$? Everyone knows that £oo£l€ are the new evil empire.

Re:Xcalc?

[c0d3g33k]

Because "firing up [my] calculator" is necessary and sufficient to describe an action that has been commonplace for more than 30 years now. It's an unremarkable action, so any mention of specifics has to be deliberate. Maybe smug superiority wasn't the intended goal, but something was. Perhaps an attempt to self-identify as a 'cool' FLOSS user' or a hardcore nerd. But something.

For example:

"I drove to the recycling center and got in line behind the other cars" vs. "I drove my Prius to the recycling center and got in line behind the SUVs"

or

"I wiped up the spill with a paper towel and tossed it in the trash" vs. "I wiped up the spill with a recycled paper towel from Whole Foods and tossed it onto my compost heap"

Adding detail where none is needed is a deliberate act intended to convey a message.