Microsoft Contributes To Linux Kernel

Microsoft... has announced that they will be submitting some 20,000 lines of code to the Linux kernel. Here is what Linus Torvalds has to say about it: (You should know who Linus is)

Oh, I’m a big believer in “technology over politics”. I don’t care who it comes from, as long as there are solid reasons for the code, and as long as we don’t have to worry about licensing etc issues.

In fact, to some degree, I’d be more likely to include it because it’s from a new member of the community rather than less (again, I’d like to point out that drivers are special. They don’t impact other things, so they get merged much more easily than some core changes).

I may make jokes about Microsoft at times, but at the same time, I think the Microsoft hatred is a disease. I believe in open development, and that very much involves not just making the source open, but also not shutting other
people and companies out.

There are ‘extremists’ in the free software world, but that’s one major reason why I don’t call what I do ‘free software’ any more. I don’t want to be associated with the people for whom it’s about exclusion and hatred...

I agree that it’s driven by selfish reasons, but that’s how all open source code gets written! We all “scratch our own itches”. It’s why I started Linux, it’s why I started git, and it’s why I am still involved. It’s the reason for everybody to end up in open source, to some degree.

So complaining about the fact that Microsoft picked a selfish area to work on is just silly. Of course they picked an area that helps them. That’s the point of open source - the ability to make the code better for your particular needs, whoever the ‘your’ in question happens to be.

Does anybody complain when hardware companies write drivers for the hardware they produce? No. That would be crazy. Does anybody complain when IBM funds all the POWER development, and works on enterprise features because they sell into the enterprise? No. That would be insane.

So the people who complain about Microsoft writing drivers for their own virtualization model should take a long look in the mirror and ask themselves why they are being so hypocritical.

New Computers and Old Methods

Recently (yesterday) I got a new laptop. It is an HP and I actually got a pretty good deal on it. Unfortunately it is an HP and it didn't come with the option to downgrade (upgrade) to XP. So at the moment it is running Vista (don't worry I will make it a dual boot and put Linux on it, I need it for research). As part of connecting to the UNC network you have to register the MAC address of the Ethernet car and wireless card. This is fairly standard for a secured network so you would think that finding the MAC address would be a fairly standard and easy process.

Most of you know that the only way you can get XP to tell you a MAC address is to open a command prompt and type in ipconfig /all to get the networking information. So when I started up Vista I assumed that they would have done something about this and would have made finding the MAC address easier (say putting it in the control panel, under internet and networking options, for example, like they do in Mac OSX), you know, making it possible to find it through the GUI like everything else they do. Well I checked the internet and the only way to get Vista to tell you the MAC address is, you guessed it, ipconfig /all.

They have just about everything else that can be accessed through the GUI you would think they would include the MAC address, but that would be too logical. Maybe Windows 7....(maniacal laughter).

Microsoft of 2019: Surface

I know you may think this is an anti-Microsoft post, but it isn't. I want to share with you this video of what Microsoft thinks the world will be like in 2019:

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-GB&playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:a517b260-bb6b-48b9-87ac-8e2743a28ec5&showPlaylist=true&from=shared" target="_new" title="Future Vision Montage">Video: Future Vision Montage</a>

I'll tell you what I like about the video:

1. It really does show what the world could be like.
   
2. It shows Microsoft's commitment to building products that make day to day life easier.

Remember the world 10 years ago? We have progressed a lot. However, we didn't go from 1999 to the Jetsons in 10 years. Technology progresses quickly, but not that quick. Major advances, currently being worked on, can easily take 10 years to mature. So the major projects starting to day is a good idea of what to expect in a decade.

It looks like the major technology they are going to push in the next decade is their Surface technology. I have to hand it to them, there are a lot of practical applications they have in mind to make lives better with this technology.

I honestly hope they pull it off. I also hope they open up the code to allow the rest of us to improve it as well.

Slashdot Is Just Telling It Like It Is

The headlines from Slashdot these last two days couldn't be more accurate in taking the software pulse:

1. Microsoft Sees Linux As Bigger Competitor Than Apple

And they absolutely should. This is not a smear of Apple. This is just a statement of an obvious fact: Only open source can offer value that could ever take out Microsoft. Open source opens the way to lower costs and the ability to customise for your needs. You can't do this with Apple. With Apple it is proprietary vs. proprietary, Microsoft vs. Apple, a game Apple can never win. Open source becomes a team, where you are included, vs. one company. That makes a big difference.

Ultimately, this is why Microsoft is toying with open source themselves. It will be their only life raft in the future.

2. 1 of 3 Dell Inspiron Mini Netbooks Sold With Linux

Because of the customizability mentioned above, any company, HP, Dell, Google, you name it can quickly get Linux working on state of the art, new architectures for very low cost. They have, and are giving Microsoft a run for their money in the netbooks world.

3. Red Hat Returns To the Linux Desktop

This is big news. Red Hat has way more money then Ubuntu could dream of. In fact, they are now worth as much as Sun! Ubuntu still has the desktop command, but with Red Hat back in the desktop game, things mat get really interesting. Which leads to #4 below:

4. Microsoft and Red Hat Team Up On Virtualization

Why this partnership? Because Red Hat is pulling the rug out from under Windows in the Enterprise world. Read the Slashdot entry. What is happening is companies want to switch to Red Hat, but keep a couple Windows computers around for people who need them. This deal will make companies be able to make the Windows->Red Hat + A few Windows machines possible in an official way.

5. $100 Linux Wall-Wart Now Available

This was semi-successful in the past. Wal-Mart is making another Linux push. Once Wal-Mart finds an effective way to sell Linux computers, this will be a big deal.

So the moral of the story is:

A.) How to make open source profitable is in its infancy.
B.) Now that it has shown to be profitable, and a better value for end users, propriety beware.
C.) This will end in an open source world. The only question is whether Microsoft will develop an open source strategy to deal with Linux in the future.

Major Microsoft/Open Source News

The day after I said I will change my blogging style, major news struck. (I said I would cover major news.)

Microsoft just made several huge announcements:

1. They are going to know open up all their API's for their major software. This means no more reversed-engineered second rate Linux software to work with Microsoft products! The API's tell developers exactly how to work with a program. This was all secret before. Microsoft is releasing 30,000 pages of online documentation now and will release more over the next several months.
   
2. There will be an initiative to get formats, like document formats to work with open source software.
   
3. They are setting up labs and technical communities to help open source companies make open source software work with Microsoft products and formats.
4. They have finally said they will not sue open source developers who incorporate these "Microsoft secrets" into the open source code as long as they do it for non-commercial purposes.

In short, finally things in the open source world should gradually start working correctly with things from the Microsoft world, with Microsoft supporting it. :)

I guess the European Union is skeptical, but I will give Microsoft the benefit of the doubt.

Read about it in the Washington Post, New York Times, or Cnet.

Is Microsoft Planning Some Open Source Breakthrough?

February 27, 2007. Mark your calendars. It's the date supposedly Microsoft will unleash something on their open source website, so remarkable it will "change your world and the world of your children." (A paraphrase take from here.)

So what is it? Well, this website tells you that you have to wait until Febuary 27. So it's a secret that is so amazing, the above author said when he saw it, it made him cry.

I'll I can say is this: I applaud Microsoft making their next breakthrough open source. (That's why it's on the open source website right?)

I should say however the same author updated his blog to say people are taking his excitement to far. Still, I'm interested to see what it is.

Beat This Microsoft Bug: I kid You Not!!!

From Microsoft's Help and Support pages:

Computer Randomly Plays Classical Music

SUMMARY

During normal operation or in Safe mode, your computer may play "Fur Elise" or "It's a Small, Small World" seemingly at random. This is an indication sent to the PC speaker from the computer's BIOS that the CPU fan is failing or has failed, or that the power supply voltages have drifted out of tolerance. This is a design feature of a detection circuit and system BIOSes developed by Award/Unicore from 1997 on.

Somewhere Might Have Just Frozen Over. (Though I knew it had to happen.)

Microsoft is well, doing the inevitable, officially releasing an open source strategy. See for yourself on their own webpage.

Apple=Unix, Microsoft Open Sourced, Free Google Phone!

I have a grab bag of interesting technology updates:

1. Apple has now certified Leopard, their new OS X , as an official version of UNIX. Before it was "based on UNIX," and now it can say it is a version of UNIX. (See here)

2. Microsoft is more and more opening up to open source. They have developed three new licenses that they have shipped to be approved by the Open Source Initiative Whatever products they license under these licenses will by bona fide "Microsoft open source software." (See here)

3. Google is developing an "iPhone killer" which people are calling the GPhone. It looks like Google wants to offer the device to the public for free through advertising just as all Google services are free. From the Washington Post:

Google has developed a prototype cell phone that could reach markets within a year, and plans to offer consumers free subscriptions by bundling advertisements... But Google's product would draw its revenue from a sharply different source, relying on commercial advertising dollars instead of the sticker price of at least $499 for an iPhone and $60 per month for the AT&T service plan.

Could Microsoft Be Going Open Source: Through Linux?

For a long time now I have been convinced that open source is the future. In the past, through things like FUD, Microsoft has actively tried to prevent this from being the case. Could it be that Microsoft is finally facing the reality that: the future is one of open source and if they act now, through deals, they can painlessly become a part of it?

If Microsoft wanted to get involved in the open source game they would have a couple options: First they could just open source Windows, Office, etc... I have a feeling this would be a major disruption to their business model.

Alternatively, they could take a much easier route: adopt Linux as their own. If Microsoft can continue to make deals with Linux distributions they would have an open source platform that is mature and well established throughout the world. If Microsoft could adopt Linux in such a way that the community support for it remains strong, the deal would work to Microsoft's benefit.

I'll give an example. What if Microsoft could extend the olive branch to a distribution like Ubuntu in such a way that the community, for the most part, would still support it? Microsoft probably sees that a well maintained community Linux distribution is fairly cheap to run. (I believe Mark has invested ~$10 Million). That's pennies for Microsoft. Furthermore, not only is Ubuntu a very solid community distribution, it has deals with major players like Sun and Dell and therefore has the potential of standing on its own two feet and making a profit in a commercial way.

Now, in reality, Ubuntu has not announced any deals with Microsoft. However, I believe the same logic applies to the distributions they have cut deals with. They are established open source platforms, cheap to maintain because of community support, and have proven they can make it in the commercial world. Furthermore, If Microsoft could could find a way to get all these Linux distributions to collaborate and work together, Linux would be a much more standard platform across the various distributions. This might actually be good for Linux and open source as well.

This would give Microsoft an open source future in a very painless way: adopt the already established Linux platforms as your own. Extend the olive branch, give them their new GPL 3 and reap the benefits of Linux in the commercial market, the future commercial market based on open source.