Even Microsoft Chooses Red Hat Over Novell's SUSE

Dr. Roy Schestowitz

2008-11-17 15:07:38 UTC
Modified: 2008-11-17 15:11:03 UTC

Bad decision

AS we pointed out before, part of microsoft.com uses (or used) a Fedora spinner and quite a few Microsoft-owned Web sites go with the de facto server distribution which is Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The following post from Planète Béranger caught our attention because it shows a certain Microsoft preference for Red Hat. Microsoft is shy to admit this, but it's using a lot of GNU/Linux and Free software because it's better suited for the task. So why not SUSE?

But my final question arises from the initial choice of this Microsoft guy: "I chose to use Winbind on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 (RHEL5) for my Linux-to-Active Directory integration project. RHEL5 is the current version of the commercial Red Hat Linux distribution, and it is fairly popular in enterprise datacenters."

Say, wasn't Novell the big friend of Microsoft, committed to interoperability and the like? Maybe its YaST configuration tools handle better the Active Directory authentication. Why wasn't SLED, SLES or openSUSE the primary choice of Gil Kirkpatrick?

It might be the case that licking Microsoft's asses doesn't pay, not even when your name is Novell.

Yesterday we wrote about the protest in Kerala. Here is an explanation of why Novell is to be avoided.

A free software activist and former student at CUSAT, Anivar Aravind was manhandled today (16/11/2008) by the “National free software conference organizers” @ CUSAT with assistance from the states police forces, for his peaceful protest against the “Novell Sponsorship”. The free software conference is backed by CPI(M), the ruling left party in Kerala.

[...]

Q2. What is the problem with NOVELL?

Novell doesn’t respect the free software philosophy and works against the interest of the community. In short we are against Novell because of the following.

1. Novell helps Microsoft more than it helps GNU/Linux. 2. Novell still insults competing GNU/Linux distributions and Sun’s Openoffice.org. (Read more) 3. Novell & Microsoft’s software patent agreement betrays rest of free software community, including the very people who wrote the Novell’s own system, for Novell’s sole financial profit. (Read more) 4. Novell helps Microsoft’s fight against Ajax, web standards, SVG by supporting Silverlight & implementing its GNU/Linux version. (Read more) 5. Novell supports Microsofts proprietary standard OOXML. 6. Novell is pushing Microsofts patents to GNU/Linux and cheating Free Software Community. 7. Novell is the biggest promoter of MONO in Free Software Development.

Except for the links from yesterday, this was also covered in:

Here is another important piece of information.

All hell broke lose when novell guys saw the 'Bycott Novell' handouts pasted right across their booth and said they won't pay up any sponsers money they owe to the event organisers. They took their ire by kicking out the activists and tearing up the posters.

So, as suresh pointed out yesterday, "Novell had threatened that they won’t give the sponsorship money when they saw the anti-Novell posters in the stall.So the blame on Novell is not totally out of place." ⬆

Comments

twitter

2008-11-17 16:04:47

According to the Swathanthra Malayalam Computing(SMC) statment this was all Novell's doing. Conference organizers kept Novell sponsorship secret from the participants and then called in the police when protesters showed up. It's funny to hear that Novell won't pay the bills now. Note to whores everywhere, get your money up front.
Mathew

2008-11-17 17:25:16

There is much lie in the whole way this issue has been briefed up. I am also a viewer of the entire scenario. The freedom activists has posted notorious novell posters in the Novell corp owned standing flex banner and obviously they complained to the organisers. This pro gramme has happened in CUSAT where already there is police force since the chief ministers visit was confirmed within 3 hours. The organizing committee asked the protesters to showcase the protest in their stall if they have where in they have told that they will repeat the same if the posters will be removed from novells property. Watch closely, in the picture you are seeing the security incharge of cusat, not the police. check the uniform . others in white dress is the private security forces deputed by university. Freedom activists should show the dispute not through muscle power. They can showcase such difference of opinions in many other ways. making a problem , more over the event is also not coordinated mainly by these guys . This is not justifiable. attacking the private properties and standing , talking for freedom is not acceptable. This is a problem planned by few who want to promote their name in an illegal route and this is damaging the values real freedom workers. Check with those who have directly saw the problems. Truth and the news is having much difference.

Karen Melchior Fought the Good Fight: stay tuned for Part 29
The Rumour Said That a Second Wave of Microsoft Layoffs Would Come This Week (Ahead of Fake 'Results'), Maybe Tomorrow: Let's wait and see how "MSM" unfold
To Wikipedia, "Notability" is Just an Excuse to Hail People Who Serve Billionaires While Marginalising or Defaming the Rest: Wikipedia is an advertising space
Our Series About Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and SLAPPs Will Resume Soon: Originally, in 2025, we gave ourselves 6 years (until 2031) to cover these issues, but we've seen since extended that to 10 years (until 2036) because of the amount of material we have
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: The EPO Transparency Gap: Despite the "European" tag in the organisation's name, the European Union has no jurisdiction over the European Patent Organisation
Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, July 20, 2026: IRC logs for Monday, July 20, 2026
Links 20/07/2026: Lashes for Songs in Iran, Kurdish Language at Risk: Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/07/2026: The Boss Baby (2017) and 2026 Old Computer Challenge Epilogue: Links for the day
Canonical Staff Acting Like They Aim to Receive Job Offers From Microsoft: There are moreover allegations that Debian will do the same, in the same way Mono boosters infected both distros in tandem or in turn.
Worsening Staff Affairs at Microsoft: Microsoft is managing to piss off many of its own workers
Czech Mate for GNU/Linux on the Way: Czechoslovakia is having none of that "peace for our time" with Microsoft
Nobody Will be Left Who Trusts IBM Anymore: The common theme is, the management must be completely replaced as soon as possible and truth needs to come out
Wall Street is a Bubble and No Company is Worth 5 Trillion Dollars: It's not hard to see which stocks will crash the hardest (or fastest)
The Corrupt Have Historically Tried to Paint Their Exposers as the Real Problem: As usual, there are efforts to shoot or muzzle the messenger
Search Engine Market Share in Italy: Microsoft Falls to Third in Many Countries Including Italy: Expect more layoffs in Bing
Links 20/07/2026: Spotify Drowning in Slop, Expiry of Software Patents in MPEG-4: Links for the day
Gemini Links 20/07/2026: Another Step Towards Owning Personal Data and Gemtext2 Envisioned: Links for the day
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: Public Missions and Private Ambitions: Despite the French government's strong formal pushback, the lobbying momentum generated by Campinos and Negrão proved unstoppable
"DOOM" and "Bloodbath": the State of Microsoft and XBox: Way to piss off fans
Links 20/07/2026: Notes on E-mail Encryption, Torvalds and His Employer Paid a Lot to Promote Slop (Pyramid Scheme): Links for the day
What a Difference Six Years Make...: We are also beta-testing a new feature for the site; we plan to announce it some time soon
When It Comes to Slop, Richard Stallman is Opposite of Linus Torvalds: When it comes to computing, Dr. Stallman has long been a voice of reason
Daniel Pocock is in Mainstream Media This Week: Pocock's haters will absolutely hate this
In His Departure Post, Poul-Henning Kamp (phk) Explains Why Linus Torvalds is Full of "Hot Air" and Slop Bubbles: Having lived through previous bubbles as a UNIX geek, phk cannot be ignored
Whistleblowers Keep Flowing: Later today a police investigator should phone us regarding death threats we've received
We Need Less Gadgets, More Humanity: If people are being honest with themselves, many of the gadgets they claim they "cannot live without" are just excesses and distractions they could definitely leave behind
Technology and Gadgets Got Obese, Just Like Their Users: They now sell us so-called 'phones' for slop
Daniel Pocock in The Guardian This Morning: There is an opportunity here to spread a message, even if Pocock won't win a seat
"Samsung Recently Projected a 19-fold Surge in Second-Quarter Operating Profit", Now There Are Mass Layoffs: In a 9-month period Samsung's debt rose by about 80%
Gemini Links 20/07/2026: Dungeon Meshi/Undertale Crossover, "The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Dark Web and Beyond": Links for the day
IBM's Control of the Media "Just Showed What Taking Accountability Does Not Look Like": It is no secret that IBM pays the media
Microsoft Loses XBox Lawsuit, But There Are More: The collapse of studios continues
GNU/Linux Approaching International Average in Djibouti: One can envisage further gains for GNU/Linux, seeing Microsoft is in such a bad shape
Daniel Pocock "[t]he Australian Taking on Nigel Farage — from Down Under": This can help raise awareness of some issues
Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, July 19, 2026: IRC logs for Sunday, July 19, 2026
Misleading Coverage in Slashdot Promotes and Openwashes Slop: Piggybacking RMS for the headline seems like a PR stunt of sorts
As Envisioned, a Rebellion and Many Whistleblowers at Microsoft: Whistleblowers ensure Microsoft has totally lost control of the "narrative" (face-saving PR)
Microsoft is a Right-Wing Company: Just remember that when people call Microsoft "woke"
GNU/Linux "Market Share" Rises to About a Quarter in Sudan: Can anyone explain to us why?
Gemini Links 19/07/2026: Visiting Ethiopia, Two Dreams, and Price of Skinnerboxes: Links for the day
Tears in IBM, Company Falls Apart While Management Fakes "Performance" to Take Bonuses: Wall Street is a naked emperor
Telling Our Story: In the coming years we'll have some high-impact stories to share and generally tell without fear of reprisal
Microsoft XBox Studio Leaders Upset at What the New CEO Did: From what we can gather, in 2024 XBox was already entering what's known as a "death spiral". Now it's literally moving down the drain/pipe.
IRC Started in Finland, GNU/Linux Did Not: History is like that
GNU/Linux Rises to 8% in Bhutan, Same as the International Average: Taking note of estimated GNU/Linux share in that country, we see it hovering around the international median/average this month
Links 19/07/2026: "The Voice of Google" and "Chinese Surveillance Tech a Threat to Privacy": Links for the day
Keep Both Eyes on the Ball: At the moment we have six series running in parallel; two of them concern the EPO
'Journalists' Who Help IBM Cover Up Fraud: Journalistic malpractice
The "Modern Linux" Song: Join us now, make the kernel
XBox Layoffs Vastly Bigger Than Microsoft Told the Press, Microsoft Keeps Trying to Change the Subject: Many so-called "XBox fans" are no more
Microsoft Lost 1,200 Billion Dollars in "Market Value", Take a Look at What Happened to Windows: while Windows continues to fall unstoppably GNU/Linux is surging
Links 19/07/2026: People in China Are Buying Feelings and 404 Media Has Third Anniversary: Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/07/2026: Camping, Health, and Hardware: Links for the day
The State of Slopfarms: Slopfarms or LLM slopfarms are a menace and a problem on the Web
GNU/Linux Rising to 6% in Brunei: seventh in the world for GDP (PPP) per capita
Free Software is Like an 'Activist Movement': People who argue strongly in favour of something (even very good things) will attract the wrath of those whom they oppose
Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, July 18, 2026: IRC logs for Saturday, July 18, 2026

Even Microsoft Chooses Red Hat Over Novell's SUSE

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts