Posted on 05/23/2007 6:47:00 AM PDT by ShadowAce
"Microsoft patent threat to Linux! The world ... It ends!" shriek the headlines. There's so much hysteria over this it's like a being trapped in pre-teen sleepover. "And when they got home, a bloody hook was hanging from the car door handle!" "SQUEAL!!"
Can we all get a grip, just for a few minutes, pretty please? Ignore all those sources of conventional wisdom who rarely dig into a story, but simply slap together a Frankensteinian blend of warmed-over press releases and quotes from random people who get quoted just because they answered the phone. I know, we all love gossip and drama, but maybe we could put that aside for a little while and at least pretend to be rational, thinking people. Because there is no patent threat. None at all. I know, a lot of Linux fans have nothing to live for if they can't maintain a continual state of righteous indignation against Microsoft. And gosh knows there is plenty to be lathered and dudgeoned about. But there is more to life than being mad all the time, and it's a waste of energy being mad over nothing, which this whole patent hooha is.
We can let the fine spokespersons for Microsoft speak for themselves:
"Gutierrez refuses to identify specific patents or explain how they're being infringed, lest FOSS advocates start filing challenges to them. But he does break down the total number allegedly violated - 235 - into categories.""All of this blustering and posturing are signs of desperation, a company that has lost its way and cannot find the way back."
—Microsoft takes on the free world"We don't believe it's constructive to identify specific products and start labeling them as infringing when responsible companies show an ability to manage patent issues privately."
— David Kaefer, Can Microsoft shelling out for Linux be good?"If a customer says, 'Look, do we have liability for the use of your patented work?' Essentially, If you're using non-SUSE Linux, then I'd say the answer is yes."
— Steve Ballmer, Ballmer Invites Patent Talks with Competing Linux Vendors
Now really. Do you have to be a legal or patent expert to identify a basket of road apples? Isn't this the same tired unproductive passive-aggressive stance that causes marital problems the world over?
"Ok, what's wrong now?"
"You mean you don't know?"
"That's right, I don't know, so that's why I am asking."
(Fit of weeping, loud nose-blowing.) "Well if you don't know, I'm certainly not going to tell you!"
(Weary sigh) "So what do you want me to do?"
(Perks up) "Buying me something useless, hideous, and frighteningly expensive will make it all better. For a little while."
Can they get any more undignified or childish? This is the biggest software company on the planet, and the most obscenely rich company of all time. Yet they pout, throw public tantrums, and emit the most amazing line of pure baloney on a regular basis. Nothing is ever good enough and everyone picks on them, all those mean governments and unhappy users and mouthy Linux hippies and everyone.
All of this blustering and posturing are signs of desperation, a company that has lost its way and cannot find the way back.
There is a saying in the marketing world—the more you mention your competition, the more you show you have nothing. Wouldn't it be a radical concept to focus on promoting the merits of their own products and services, and maybe even telling at least a close approximation of the truth? Though that would require having a product line worth touting in the first place. Though hawking crapware has a long and honorable tradition. People will buy anything.
A lot of people smarter than me are calling this "patent threat" a protection racket, and I have to agree. Microsoft does not know how to compete, and will not (openly) use Free and Open Source software, so now it's trying to place a Microsoft tax on sales of Linux. Just like Tier 1 desktop PC customers pay for a Windows license whether they want one or not. Unfortunately it appears that Novell fell for it, and now Microsoft is trolling for more suckers.
If companies want to appease the bully, that's their business. Some folks fear it will set a legal precedent that could be used against all Linux users, not just commercial Linux vendors. I think that's a pretty remote possibility, though in this here modern world you never know what sort of insanity will triumph. And that's exactly what the root of all of this is — if you're in doubt that a company can be mentally ill, Microsoft's patent shenanigans make the case for it.
That's pretty hilarious, considering Microsoft is at record profits, Vista is the fastest selling O/S of all time, and Linux is making copies of Microsoft disk formats just to get their foot in the door.
SLASHDOT——>>>>
Overly Critical Guy writes
“Microsoft’s figure of 40 million Vista OEM licenses sold has less impact when weighed against the expanded size of the PC market, according to IDC numbers. The myriad of factors involved in determining success in the market makes Microsoft’s constant comparisons to Windows XP less reliable as a growth indicator — particularly with Microsoft refusing to reveal the number of actual activated Vista licenses. ‘HP reported year-over-year PC sales growth of about 24 percent, or about twice worldwide PC sales growth. Whatever HP is doing right, it’s more than just Vista ... If Microsoft wasn’t so hung up on XP comparisons as the benchmark, it could really demonstrate that Vista sales are increasing. The first 20 million figure really represented four months of sales, and that could have been positive data because Microsoft protected its customers’ holiday investments. For free! Instead of making that point, Microsoft got carried away with making comparisons back to XP.’”
_____________________
I bought a pre-installed Vista machine and replaced it with XP. Being a monopoly on the PC, sales are bound to go up for Vista simple because people are buying PCs, and Vista is coming with it. That their Vista sales are lower than PC sales, in addition to counting the sales, shows just how many PCs are shipping without Vista, the supposed default. When Microsoft has a 94% market, why are their Vista sales only accounting for half of the PCs?
If you want to see numbers on popularity, try and get the numbers on people buying boxed Vista, and compare it to people who bought boxed XP. I seem to remember boxed XP flying off the shelves for people wanting to upgrade, but who’s buying boxed Vista? Microsoft won’t release those numbers because it will show how much of a flop Vista has been, and its only because of their monopoly that it’s getting sold at all. Vista is a huge example on the amount of damage Microsoft is inflicting on the industry by having a stranglehold on the OS that ships. They’re forcing people to pay for an inferior product on purchasing a PC, then charging them for XP when they want to replace it
Thanks but I could care less what is posted on Slashdot, like the open source movement itself the site is chock full of leftists and foreigners who constantly harp how evil the US and our profitable corporations are. If that’s your slant too have fun living in misery just wishing the US capitalists will some day die.
Okay, so zeugma challenged you to show an MS patent that Linux infringes on. In response you produced this patent, which is on the FAT32 file system. So it is obvious that you are claiming Linux infringes on that FAT32 patent.
I would like to refer to you the Microsoft document, Microsoft Extensible Firmware Initiative FAT32 File System Specification (available from Microsoft). Specifically, we're looking at the covenant section, paragraph (b):
LIMITED LICENSE AND COVENANT NOT TO SUE.So currently unless you can prove that the Linux FAT32 implementation does not properly implement the specification, then you are absolutely wrong....Microsoft grants to you the following non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, non-transferable, non-sublicenseable, reciprocal limited covenant not to sue under its Necessary Claims solely to make, have made, use, import, and directly and indirectly, offer to sell, sell and otherwise distribute and dispose of portions of products which comply with the Specification in unmodified form.
Linux legally implements FAT32, as do many vendors.
Care to throw out any more incorrect allegations?
You know Office2007 is fer shit! LOL. Vista is marginal improvement in a dinosaur OS. OS are commodity these days. Linux programmers can do what MS does with billions of programing dollars & hours making bloated OS
ROFL, no link of course. “Firmware” is glaring at the top too, LOL at your claims this protects all linux distributions from ms patents. Anything to defend those free copies made by leftists. Next you’ll be pulling out “the 180 day rule for criminal prosecution” like you did on behalf of those criminal Russian hackers LOL.
Interesting, back in this post you yourself posted a link to a Slashdot story and believed it over a Microsoft statement on the subject.
It is hypocritical to link to Slashdot stories and then criticize others for doing the same.
Or so you've been told. Fact is a few versions of Unix bring in billions every single quarter for their companies, far more than all Linux combined. And Microsoft charges more for Windows than ever before, while still setting sales records. But don't let facts get in your way.
Thanks for that. I'd not seen it before.
I do occassionally use a link to Slashdot to show what is going on in “the dark side” of computing, in that case they were pulling out features from Linux because they apparently violate Microsoft’s patents.
Thanks for linking it, since it further sinks your laughable claim Linux couldn’t possibly infringe Microsoft’s patents LOL.
Ziggy instantly falls for antiRepublican’s linkless claim about firmware LOL. Reminds me of the time ziggy claimed you couldn’t run Vista at all without an internet connection, then when busted on it tried to trot out a section of the license regarding virtualization. LMAO at the comedy we get from these guys, an apparently endless supply!
Are your search abilities that poor? Go to Microsoft, search it, and then you'll have to go through a couple pages agreeing to the license to download it. I could be wrong, but that was what I got by a quick skimming a while back.
If Linux is not covered (as we've seen with SCO, things can be interpreted all over the place), it's still a bad patent. Yes, it was invalidated, I've read the reexamination, the patents shouldn't have been issued. They were obvious an non-novel. Then an unfair reexamination process let Microsoft railroad through the appeal without rebuttal from those requesting the reexamination.
And aside from that, reverse engineering formats is about as old as PCs themselves. I guess you'll start screaming at Compaq for reverse-engineering the IBM PC BIOS, or maybe Microsoft for implementing Kerberos (Microsoft copies free software!).
Next you’ll be pulling out “the 180 day rule for criminal prosecution” like you did on behalf of those criminal Russian hackers
I cited federal law. You mocked it.
So it's okay for you to link to Slashdot, but not for others to do so. Hypocrite.
Oh I’m pretty sure one third of US home computer sales would be in Linux if Microsoft let the free market function. Without bullying PC makers into buying Windows licenses or else. Linux is just fine, just good enough for computer users world wide. They get along just fine without Microsoft
Even if Vista or XP is superior to Linux the world hungers for cheap laptops and desktops and one without Windows is cheaper and functions good enough for them. They don’t need a Cadillac Escalade- that is if one wants to pretend Vista and XP are superior.
Thus OS are commodity. You don’t need the Redmond boys to have a good OS on your desktop
Once again the facts escape you, FYI Dell started trying to sell Ubuntu Linux today. Too bad it doesn't even include a DVD driver with it though, since that would be illegal.
It’s ok to cite Slashdot so long as you keep it in the context of this is what liberals are doing/thinking, no different than referencing DU. Since you’re not a conservative the plainness of it obviously escapes you.
Is Microsoft collecting any tariff on those Ubuntu computers?
And how come this wasn't done for years?
You know why. The scummy monopolists at MS. Perhaps the dam is breaking.
Do you have any guess what Dell pays for each Vista Home Premium license?
Quit trying to weasel. The expectation of such weaseling is why I posted the link to not only your post, but to both of the sources, in order to give the complete context of you relying on the information in a Slashdot story to support your argument contrary to a Microsoft statement.
You weren't saying "Look at what crazy stuff the libs are doing," you were saying "OpenSuse is even pulling out features that may be infrining on Microsoft's patents" to counter the Microsoft statement that was posted. BTW, the "liberals" in this case is Novell, which sponsors openSUSE.
Of course that patent shouldn't have been issued either. Sub-pixel font rendering had been in use long before Microsoft's late 1998 patent application date. Scroll down on the page to the Steve Wozniak [inventor of the Apple II] quote:
"Back in 1976, my design of the Apple II's high resolution graphics system utilized a characteristic of the NTSC color video signal (called the 'color subcarrier') that creates a left to right horizontal distribution of available colors. By coincidence, this is exactly analogous to the R-G-B distribution of colored sub-pixels used by modern LCD display panels. So more than twenty years ago, Apple II graphics programmers were using this 'sub-pixel' technology to effectively increase the horizontal resolution of their Apple II displays."I remember doing this personally on my old Atari in the early 80s. Using the black/white high-resolution mode was essentially displaying all of the sub-pixels from the lower-resolution color graphics modes. In the reverse, it was a way to get pseudo-color in the high-resolution graphics mode through selective pixel placement.
Interesting. Microsoft got rich in large part because hardware became the commodity. Now the OS is the commodity. My, how things change.
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