Microsoft BASIC was originaly written by Bill Gates. I know because I tried to optimize some of his code while I was there - a non-trivial task, as I discovered.
Yes, Microsoft bought 86-DOS from Tim Patterson's Seattle Computer. But what is not so well known is that Tim Patterson himself worked on the PC-DOS 1.0 project.
Customers were not required to buy DOS for their IBM PC, at least not in the early days. The original IBM PC was sold with a choice of operating systems. CP-M/86, P-System, PC-DOS and I think one other.
PC-DOS (as it was then known) cost $50 dollars, the others cost around $400. Which one would you have bought? (Just to help you out, minimum wage back then was about $2.65/hr)
Microsoft is where it is because they got a number of things right about the software business: They were the low cost provider. They were the open supplier - MS products were the first which offered binary compatibility across hardware vendors. And they understood that volume is more important than margin.
A lot of things happened later: Microsoft became the IBM it was trying to dethrone. But that's another story...
In the year 2525 If Bill is still alive If Linus still can hack they may find
In the year 3535 Ain't gonna need to tell the truth, tell no lies Everything you think do and say Is stored on the RAID you took today
In the year 4545 You ain't gonna need your teeth, won't need your eyes You won't find a thing to chew Google's gonna do that for you
In the year 5555 Your mouse hangin' limp at your sides Your legs got nothin' to do Windows 55's doing that for you
In the year 6565 You won't need no husband, won't need no wife You'll pick your son, pick your daughter too Who'd have thought, Windows would do that for you?
In the year 7510 If DOS is a comin' He oughta make it by then Maybe He'll look around Himself and say Guess it's time for the judgement day
In the year 8510 Linux is gonna shake His mighty head He'll either say I'm pleased where man has been Or tear it down and start again woh oh
In the year 9595 I'm kinda wonderin' if Google is gonna be alive He's indexed everything this old Earth can give But He won't retrieve nothin more woh oh
Now it's been ten thousand years Google has filled its googleplex For what we never knew Now Windows reign is through
But through eternal night The twinkling of Windows-lite So very far away Maybe it's only yesterday
In the year 2525 If man is still alive If woman can survive, they may find......
Open Office is dual licenced. You can pick which license you want to use.
"The libraries and component functionality of the OpenOffice.org source code" are LGPL, which allows them to be linked in to proprietary works.
It is also possible to license OO.org under the Sun Industry Standards Source License (SISSL). This allows you to make proprietary, binary only distributions, if you maintain compatibility with with the APIs and XML formats.
Microsoft could download the entire source, add an MS-Office GUI and a their own Word importer and make "MS-Office Released" out of it. As long as they don't break any interfaces, that's OK under the SISSL.
Why doesn't MS import OO files? Because they don't want to. Perhaps they need some convincing...
If the law sanctions attacks on my property, does this constitute unreasonable search and seizure? Does this violate Due Process? Is it a bill of attainder (condemnation by legislation, not by the courts).
Does the right to bear arms and form militia give us the right to own electronic arms, which defend against electionic attack? Given that pre-emptive defense is increasingly acceptable, perhaps we should form unregulated militia, which defend themselves with D-DOS counterstrikes against the RIAA?
Laws like these foster a very hostile climate on the Internet, with implications that go way beyond the problems of the RIAA. Do our legislators really want to bring this on?
Downgrade this for getting the facts wrong.
Microsoft BASIC was originaly written by Bill Gates. I know because I tried to optimize some of his code while I was there - a non-trivial task, as I discovered.
Yes, Microsoft bought 86-DOS from Tim Patterson's Seattle Computer. But what is not so well known is that Tim Patterson himself worked on the PC-DOS 1.0 project.
Customers were not required to buy DOS for their IBM PC, at least not in the early days. The original IBM PC was sold with a choice of operating systems. CP-M/86, P-System, PC-DOS and I think one other.
PC-DOS (as it was then known) cost $50 dollars, the others cost around $400. Which one would you have bought? (Just to help you out, minimum wage back then was about $2.65/hr)
Microsoft is where it is because they got a number of things right about the software business: They were the low cost provider. They were the open supplier - MS products were the first which offered binary compatibility across hardware vendors. And they understood that volume is more important than margin.
A lot of things happened later: Microsoft became the IBM it was trying to dethrone. But that's another story...
In the year 2525 v2.0
In the year 2525
If Bill is still alive
If Linus still can hack they may find
In the year 3535
Ain't gonna need to tell the truth, tell no lies
Everything you think do and say
Is stored on the RAID you took today
In the year 4545
You ain't gonna need your teeth, won't need your eyes
You won't find a thing to chew
Google's gonna do that for you
In the year 5555
Your mouse hangin' limp at your sides
Your legs got nothin' to do
Windows 55's doing that for you
In the year 6565
You won't need no husband, won't need no wife
You'll pick your son, pick your daughter too
Who'd have thought, Windows would do that for you?
In the year 7510
If DOS is a comin' He oughta make it by then
Maybe He'll look around Himself and say
Guess it's time for the judgement day
In the year 8510
Linux is gonna shake His mighty head
He'll either say I'm pleased where man has been
Or tear it down and start again woh oh
In the year 9595
I'm kinda wonderin' if Google is gonna be alive
He's indexed everything this old Earth can give
But He won't retrieve nothin more woh oh
Now it's been ten thousand years
Google has filled its googleplex
For what we never knew
Now Windows reign is through
But through eternal night
The twinkling of Windows-lite
So very far away
Maybe it's only yesterday
In the year 2525
If man is still alive
If woman can survive, they may find......
With apologies to Zager and Evans.
Just as you said, we have the US Congress. I can't imaging a better lobbying organization then that!
I wish congress would lobby for my project. Imagine what a 1 Billion $ appropriation would do for MythTV!
"The libraries and component functionality of the OpenOffice.org source code" are LGPL, which allows them to be linked in to proprietary works.
It is also possible to license OO.org under the Sun Industry Standards Source License (SISSL). This allows you to make proprietary, binary only distributions, if you maintain compatibility with with the APIs and XML formats. Microsoft could download the entire source, add an MS-Office GUI and a their own Word importer and make "MS-Office Released" out of it. As long as they don't break any interfaces, that's OK under the SISSL. Why doesn't MS import OO files? Because they don't want to. Perhaps they need some convincing...
If the law sanctions attacks on my property, does this constitute unreasonable search and seizure? Does this violate Due Process? Is it a bill of attainder (condemnation by legislation, not by the courts).
Does the right to bear arms and form militia give us the right to own electronic arms, which defend against electionic attack? Given that pre-emptive defense is increasingly acceptable, perhaps we should form unregulated militia, which defend themselves with D-DOS counterstrikes against the RIAA?
Laws like these foster a very hostile climate on the Internet, with implications that go way beyond the problems of the RIAA. Do our legislators really want to bring this on?