12.10.08

Is Microsoft Embracing Open Source? Like a Python Embraces a Gazelle

Posted in Deception, Free/Libre Software, Microsoft, Videos at 6:35 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Python and gazella
Credit: Python Pictures

“Open source is an intellectual-property destroyer [...] I can’t imagine something that could be worse than this for the software business and the intellectual-property business. I’m an American; I believe in the American way, I worry if the government encourages open source, and I don’t think we’ve done enough education of policymakers to understand the threat.”

–Jim Allchin, President of Platforms & Services Division at Microsoft

A lot of gullible journalists (e.g. this one) are falling for Microsoft’s latest PR move called “Oxite”, which is an attempt to grab control of open source using its own Web sites, its own proprietary stack, and its own software licences. We wrote about this Microsoft strategy many times before (links at the bottom), so here is just a recent video from a short-sighted, yet intelligent, individual. He explains EEE, which stands for embrace, extend, and extinguish. █

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15 Comments

twitter said,

December 10, 2008 at 8:33 pm

Oxite n. 1. an oxygen depriving excitement. 2. an echo chamber that doubles as a place of asphyxiation by induced euphoria in a confined space. 3. a toxic crowd controll agent. 4. a padded cell for lunatics (obsolete and offensive) example of use:

Internal Microsoft documents show that Gates was at the centre of a deliberate move to “cut off the oxygen supply” to Netscape. This failed so oxite was invented.

Oxite use has been banned by the treaty of Boston as a cruel and unpredictable weapon of mass destruction.
AlexH said,

December 11, 2008 at 3:22 am

Difficult to see how Microsoft could “Embrace, extend, extinguish” their own product – that’s like cutting your nose off to spite your face.
Jo Shields said,

December 11, 2008 at 3:42 am

I’ve taken a look at Oxite. There are licensing problems (a folder marked bin/ containing assemblies of indeterminate origin and license, possibly taken from blog examples)
Roy Schestowitz said,

December 11, 2008 at 4:14 am

AlexH, not EEEing a product here but a mode of development (that’s how they want the world to see it).
cosplayfan said,

December 11, 2008 at 4:26 am

Roy, M$ has bought Beranger, now!
Roy Schestowitz said,

December 11, 2008 at 4:35 am

He’s not bought. He’s playing attention games again. Like “sad state of open source” and a migration to BSD…
cosplayfan said,

December 11, 2008 at 4:38 am

Well, I’ll know what to think when the first Vista-adds turn up on his blog…
AlexH said,

December 11, 2008 at 5:08 am

@Roy: I’m not really sure what the mode of development has to do with anything, since they’re basically developing this in private?

@cosplayfan: at least Beranger’s tripe is off the menu here, for now at least.
Roy Schestowitz said,

December 11, 2008 at 5:10 am

Yes, that’s the upside of it.
aeshna23 said,

December 11, 2008 at 2:14 pm

The video reminded me of
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/youtube_contest_challenges_users

It was an utter waste. Please do a little quality control.
jo Shields said,

December 11, 2008 at 2:16 pm

It was an utter waste. Please do a little quality control.

Next you’ll suggest proof-reading. Silly child!
Roy Schestowitz said,

December 11, 2008 at 4:10 pm

aeshna23,

I’m OK with the choice. I put up one of this chap’s videos before.
G. Michaels said,

December 11, 2008 at 9:07 pm

sockpuppet n. 1. A a puppet made from a sock (or similar garment) which is placed over the hand of a puppeteer. 2. An online identity used for purposes of deception within an online community. In its earliest usage, a sockpuppet was a false identity through which a member of an Internet community speaks with or about oneself, pretending to be a different person, like a ventriloquist manipulating a hand puppet. example of use

Note: writer of this comment adds absolutely nothing but stalking and personal attacks against readers, as documented here.
Lord AGNUcius said,

December 12, 2008 at 6:54 pm

If only the photo were of a GNU instead of a Gazelle…
Roy Schestowitz said,

December 12, 2008 at 7:03 pm

I found one rather disturbing photo of a Python with a pregnant sheep in it. I wouldn’t want to see innocent gnus harmed.