Bonum Certa Men Certa

Mono and Moblin as the Microsoft-approved “Open Source Solution”

Handshake communication



Summary: Is "Open Source" simply where Free software meets Microsoft's software patents and other "compromises"? In some cases, it sure seems like a terminological fit

Recent attacks on Richard Stallman [1, 2, 3] are a direct outcome of remarks that he made about Mono and the person behind Mono, with whom there is this unofficial interview.



On the one hand, there is good output coming from Mono, but on the other hand there is obvious advantage to Microsoft if this route is taken. GreyGeek has responded to this issue of attacks on "Free software", noting that:

Diluting the meaning of Open Source and HIDING the GPL in a forest of several dozen pseudo GPL licenses which do NOT offer the FOUR FREEDOMS of the GPL has been the total business of the OSI, of which Microsoft is now a member. The OSI's "compromise" to "go mainstream" was to allow the corporate member to monitor THEIR OWN COMPLIANCE with the "Open Source" requirements defined by the OSI, as weak as the OSI requirements are. It is ALL about MONEY, and the OSI is handing out Tux Suits for cash to proprietary software houses as they try to decieve the consumer about the meaning of the GPL and the Four Freedoms.


Assuming that Moblin, for example, is encumbered by Microsoft patent tax [1, 2] (evidence does suggest so [1, 2]), then the following new analysis of "why Microsoft won't fight moblin" makes a lot of sense. It only seems to be missing the point about software patents and it concludes with:

Moblin is the solution to the problem of Intel: providing a free, lightweight and powerful OS to sell cheaper netbooks and devices. This allows Microsoft to get out of the "bargain basement OS" market and to focus on a more expensive, higher end market with Windows 7. The differentiation between both OS is large enough to ensure that most people won't buy a Moblin device to replace their computer but to complement it. It suits Microsoft better if consumer purchase a Windows 7 desktop AND a Moblin netbook than if their purchase only a cheap Windows XP netbook.


It is worth noting that Microsoft broke competition laws to exclude GNU/Linux from many sub-notebooks (elimination of choice) only to then complain that it was losing money by doing so. It is akin to a burglar breaking into shop, emptying the register, only to complain to the shopkeeper that there is not "enough" money at the shop and the refrigerator has no soda. ⬆

Related posts:



Recent Techrights' Posts

Network Plumbing
We hope it'll help speed things up
"My Hands Are Shaking While Writing" About IBM's Mass Layoffs at Red Hat (Bluewashing)
Shame, shame, shame on the corporate media for not covering Red Hat's layoffs this year
Taking a Look at the Last Articles of Bob Cringely at Forbes, They Were All About IBM and Its Collapse
It's all about IBM
What is "Computer Science"? It is What Broligarchs Reject.
Nowadays some people call themselves informal terms or made-up titles (with terms like "AI" or "big data" or "data" tossed into the mix)
 
When Computers "Expire" Because Certificates Expire
People who promote Restricted Boot are liars. They lie for a living.
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, October 12, 2026
IRC logs for Monday, October 12, 2026
Gemini Links 13/10/2026: Modern Science, Joplin, Luddites, and Lots More
Links for the day
Mass Layoffs at Microsoft Again (October 2026), So-Called 'AI' Units Impacted Because Slop ('AI') Has No Real Future
So much for the future of Microsoft being "hey hi" (AI)
European Readers, Please Contact Representatives (in One's Nation) Attending the Administrative Council Meeting
Normalising cocaine in in Europe's largest institutions (the people running these) is a slippery slope
For Half a Year the European Patent Office (EPO), Europe's Second-Largest Institution, Has Had Water Problems in the Toilets
And it's not being fixed
Intercontinental Brigading - Part I - The Failed Attempt to 'Swat' Our Series About the Attacks and Crimes Committed Against Us
This coincided with threats to our lives
Links 12/10/2026: Strike on Riyadh and GOP Pays Voters ("Surprise $90 Social Security Payments")
Links for the day
Microsoft's XBox CEO Spoke of a "Return to Growth" Last Week, But XBox Sales Lowest in XBox History (Quarter of a Century)
Microsoft's XBox is dying. It's a countdown to nothingness.
Links 12/10/2026: Shopify (Slop Booster) Has Security Issues, "Russia’s Yandex Says Data Center in Vladimir Shut Down After Drone Attack"
Links for the day
Microsoft Windows Causes Problems (and Delays) to LibreOffice and The Document Foundation
Nothing would please Microsoft more than Windows curtailing the development of LibreOffice and adoption of ODF
So Far This Year Microsoft Windows Lost a Lot of Ground in China, GNU/Linux Gaining at Its Expense
GNU/Linux will soon exceed 10%
Lessons of Margaret Hamilton (Software Engineer)
Stop abetting men who attack women in the sciences
RIP, Bob Cringely
He was too young to leave us, his articles were still brilliant and his mind as lucid as ever
Linus Torvalds Has a Conflict of Interest Regarding Slop
Linus Torvalds is paid by the slop pushers
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, October 11, 2026
IRC logs for Sunday, October 11, 2026
Africa Sees GNU/Linux Exceeding 5% "Market Share"
It wasn't always like this. It used to be measured at 1 or 2 percent.
Brigading Against Women - Part XXVII - Americans and Public Executions
"People who work for Facebook / Xitter / Bytedance's Tiktok / Microsoft / Oracle / IBM / Apple / Uber / Lyft / Wolt / DoorDash / AirBnB / Bolt / and so on are doing some world-class projection when they have the audacity to call others Bad People(tm)"
Gemini Links 12/10/2026: Westminster Quarters, Civilization, Luddites, and More
Links for the day
Slop-ware Is Not Newsworthy
LLMs are exceptionally loquacious and create large code bases
Links 11/10/2026: US Sides With Vladimir Putin, Convicted Felon Dubbed "Agent of a Foreign Power"
Links for the day
IRC Tracker Back in Order, Number of Known IRC Networks Continues to Increase
We don't know if our article helped trigger a resolution
Links 11/10/2026: "Execution TV" (Iran Aped by US) and ‘Digital Oblivion’ Caused by Slop Frenzy Online
Links for the day
Voice for the Impoverished
the country's leaders attack the country's own press
Gemini Links 11/10/2026: Adults Dressing Up as Animals, 44th Birthday, and More
Links for the day
Running a Country's Economy by Borrowing Over $400,000,000,000 Per Month
This is the hallmark of an economy in irreversible decline
Brigading Against Women - Part XXVI - Trying to Deplatform Critics of Microsoft's Restricted Boot
Like James Bottomley, Matthew Garrett served Microsoft's agenda while employed and salaried by other companies
Anderon Is Not a Real Company, It's an IBM Bailout Dressed Up or Wrapped Up In Buzzwords
It certainly does seem like they receive money from taxpayers for nothing, or for IBM to do mass layoffs/closure at Albany under the guise of "making a new spinoff"...
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, October 10, 2026
IRC logs for Saturday, October 10, 2026