Bonum Certa Men Certa

Best of 'The Source': Outercurve, LibreOffice, Mono, and Novell's Sale

The Source



Summary: New FUD-busting posts about threats to software freedom, courtesy of The Source (Web site)

AT TECHRIGHTS we like the site called The Source because -- much like Groklaw -- it covers many of the issues that we focus on, especially the opposition to Free software which opposes it by proactive attacks or infiltrations. Today we go through 4 of the latest new posts from The Source, posted over the past week or so (there were 5 in total).



Microsoft, the company which lays off and outsources people who are 'too expensive', has been trying an entryism charm manoeuvre for quite some time; it did not get so far with that in the Free software world, certainly not with the remarks its managers occasionally make (e.g. Hernán Rincón last month [1, 2, 3, 4]).

CodePlex has failed to be dissociated mentally from Microsoft (it is certainly technically associated with it), so Microsoft has it nymshift to "Outercurve" and The Source explains why this is a rubbish attempt to distance oneself from Microsoft, without making any real changes other than the name:

Case in point – Microsoft OuterCurve

By extension, then, independent foundations and non-profic organizations represent the most attractive attack vector for those hostile to Free Software. See, for example Microsoft CodePlex Microsoft OuterCurve, where you can get spin from Executive Director Paula Hunter like:

What distinguishes us from Eclipse and Apache is that we’re license agnostic and platform agnostic

“Platform agnostic”? Let’s look at the 6 Microsoft CodePlex Microsoft OuterCurve approved “galleries”:



  • Orchard – ASP.Net (Microsoft Windows)
  • MVC Contrib – ASP.Net (Microsoft Windows)
  • ASP.Net Ajax Library – ASP.Net (Microsoft Windows)
  • Web Forms MVP Project – ASP.Net (Microsoft Windows)
  • CoApp Project – Microsoft Windows
  • Network Monitor Parsers – Microsoft Network Monitor (Microsoft Windows)

Yes, indeed: real platform agnosticism there.



I also love how Ms Hunter says:

And to be direct, no, we are not distancing ourselves from Microsoft; we are very pleased with our relationship with them and their continued support of the foundation.

Of course you aren’t distancing yourselves from Microsoft –  you don’t have anywhere to distance yourselves to - every single project you have is based on a Microsoft platform!  Your relationship with Microsoft is your entire and sole reason for existing.

There is one bit of truth on the Microsoft CodePlex Microsoft Outercurve site:



We have changed our name, but not our mission.

Believe that.





The Source then compares Outercurve to some other so-called 'foundations' and deals separately with LibreOffice [1, 2, 3], which is also attached to a foundation that's rather diverse. The Source explains why Novell's limited role in this foundation makes LibreOffice nothing like Go-OO, at least in the long run (we have already addressed this typical trolls' argument and so does The Source).

Allowing Mr. Schulz a bit of satirical lee-way in his representation of those who are concerned with Novell’s behavior, this is a very solid and reassuring response.

It not only recognizes Novell has severe perception issues in the larger community, but it clearly addresses the main concern (Mono) in the context of LibreOffice. I also appreciate the acknowledgement of acceptable and non-acceptable patches from Novell.


Further on this subject of Novell and Mono, the latest Miguel de Icaza interview which we covered here is now being tackled by The Source, which addresses both Mono and Moonlight. To quote one part of this detailed response to the 'Microsoft press' promoting Mono:

I’m not sure that anyone ever was looking to Team Apologista to be convinced to move to the iPhone, Android or Mac platforms. Perhaps the meaning is “using-our-.NET-knock-off-instead-of-the-native-developent-platform”?

Also, I’m confused. I was told that bringing software to Linux was not really the point of Mono? But here, it seems like Mr. de Icaza is asserting that Team Apologista was out there “begging” for Mono to be used to bring software to Linux?


Lastly, argues The Source, Novell is worth more dead than alive:

The Gentle Reader may note that Your Distinguished Author has noted time and time again that Novell has very little product of value outside of SuSE Linux (and directly related products), which Novell promptly and idiotically hobbled with secretive deals with Linux Public Enemy #1.

The diplomatic way of phrasing it you’ll see? “[P]rivate equity buyers were balking over the price the company was asking for the [non SuSE Linux] assets” – this has been noted in many financial articles analyzing the difficulty Novell is having throwing itself at potential buyers.


Confer or revisit some of the latest posts about Novell's sale [1, 2].

Recent Techrights' Posts

Twitter as X-Rated Hatred: Criticising Microsoft is Not OK, Calling for Beheadings (With Bounties on People's Heads) is OK
Twitter automation missed 'hit job' advertising
Balancing Activism Against (or With) Basic Necessities and Daniel Cantarín on Our Collective Battle for Software Freedom Around the World
"I'm VERY angry about lots of stuff happening here in Argentina, all of it shielded behind the word "freedom"."
 
Links 16/08/2024: YouTube Bans and Surveillance Expanded
Links for the day
We Were Right All Along and the Collaborators of Microsoft Helped Competition Crimes of Microsoft
Once again vindicated regarding UEFI "secure boot"
[Meme] The New Windows Slogan
stat me up
Addendum: Associate's Notes on Free Software as a Labour Issue and the Connectivity Swindles
these are related issues/causes
Microsofters Infiltrating Roles of Authority and Government Positions to Protect Microsoft and to FUD Microsoft's Competition
friends of Microsofters who bully me and my wife
Links 16/08/2024: UK Skills Deficit and Kim Dotcom to be Extradited to the US (for Doing the Same Stuff GAFAM Does)
Links for the day
Gemini Links 16/08/2024: Overgeneralisation and Games
Links for the day
Russia's Yandex 5 Times Bigger Than Microsoft... in Ukraine
They'd rather rely on the Kremlin than on Microsoft
[Meme] Gemini is Different, So What?
different, not worse
Now It's "Official": Over 4,000 Known Gemini Capsules in Lupa
For the first time ever
Clown Computing
Reprinted with permission from Dr. Andy Farnell
[Meme] What Freedom Means to IBM
Free labou
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, August 15, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, August 15, 2024
From 99% in 2012 to 27% in 2024: How Microsoft Lost Georgia
What we're seeing is a migration from Windows to other platforms, notably GNU/Linux
To Understand Cisco's Mass Layoffs Look at the Company's Soaring Debt (Same at Microsoft)
Look what's happening to Intel - down almost 60% since the start of the year, 57% to be precise
Windows Flying Low at 25%
It's another all-time low
[Meme] Long Texts You Never Bother Reading (Because Life is Too Short, Unlike Those Texts)
The devil is in the terms of service
Links 15/08/2024: Monkeypox Hysteria and Modern Homesteaders Living Off the Grid
Links for the day
Gemini Links 15/08/2024: Confession of a Convention Game Master and Some Release nostalgia
Links for the day
Congratulations to Romania, Where Windows is Now "Minority Market Share" Platform
Time will tell if GNU/Linux can pass 5% on the desktop/laptop "form factor" there
Why It Matters That 4,000 Gemini Capsules Are Known to Lupa and Why Gemini Protocol Matters to Us
I have no doubt Gemini Protocol will continue to expand because it solves a real problem
Links 15/08/2024: Avast Surveillance Scandal Unsolved and Facebook Still Censors Terror Sympathisers
Links for the day
Daniel Cantarín's Response to Alexandre Oliva's Talk on Achieving Software Freedom in the Age of Platform Decay
Soylent News caught up with the series
4,000 Gemini Capsules
it's basically one capsule short of 4,000
"Microsoft is a Sponsor of The New Stack."
Many articles turn out to be just ads
New Highs for Android in Russia, But It's Reportedly Working on Its Own Linux-Based Operating Systems (GAFAM-Free)
statCounter isn't equipped to properly parse user agents or to keep up
Upcoming Series: Terms of Service (TOS) Under the Microscope, FSF Party, GitHub Scandals, Clowns, and More
Right now we have way more material than we have time to cover. But that's a good thing.
Gemini Links 15/08/2024: Lies of Therapy and Web Applications
Links for the day
Software Freedom in Perspective - Part 5 - When Richard Stallman Came to Argentina
It might seem a bit harsh, but a discussion at the end of this series will tie things together and explain why those things were said
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, August 14, 2024
IRC logs for Wednesday, August 14, 2024
Russia develops an alternative to Android and iOS | News.az
Russia already has several of its own operating systems
Links 14/08/2024: Ecology and War Inside Russia
Links for the day
Daniel Pocock - Use of Technology in European Parliament Election Campaign (Public Talk)
It starts in 4 hours
Android About to Fly Past Windows in Portugal
Perhaps by month's end or next month Portugal will be orange (Android majority)
How OpenAI Will Decrease the Losses
You have no losses when you have no users left
Giving Control to Microsoft is Always a Dire, Huge Mistake
Microsoft is known for buying things and sabotaging things, not for creating things
Founders That Sell Their Company to Microsoft Speak Out
"Microsoft's closure of Arkane Austin in May was one of the more shocking events of the past couple of years"
In Chile, Microsoft's Web Browser (a Chrome Copycat) Fell to 3.6%, About the Same as Firefox and Opera and Less Than Safari, Yandex Browser, Google Chrome
It does not look like Chileans fancy Microsoft's browser. They go out of their way to use something else, even on Windows.
Software Freedom in Perspective - Part 4 - Daniel on Linux-based Mobile Platforms in LATAM (Latin America)
GNU, Linux, and mobile
Almost Nothing of Invidious Left Online (YouTube is Attacking Gateways)
what it looks like at this very moment
Gemini Links 14/08/2024: Funeral for an E-reader and a Mother Wants a Laptop
Links for the day
Links 14/08/2024: 8 Years of GDPR and Ridicule of "Hey Hi" (AI) Hype
Links for the day
This is How You Give Microsoft More Control Over LibreOffice Both as Software and as a Project
Didn't the Document Foundation learn from prior Microsoft Store scandals connected to LibreOffice?
"Heroes of Fedora" Are Just Salaried Employees of IBM (But "Community" is Just Sounding a Lot Nicer)
A real community would not allow IBM a majority
YouTube Has Thrown Free Software Users Into a Crisis
For many Free software users, who rely on Invidious, YouTube is nearly dead already
[Meme] "New Chapter in the FSF."
We expect to have some coverage from this week's event
There is No I in "GAFAM" and Soon There Won't be I At All (Like Novell Vanished, Not Overnight, as It Took Over a Decade)
Intel is going through the biggest crisis in its entire history
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, August 13, 2024
IRC logs for Tuesday, August 13, 2024
It's a "sm0l" World and It Won't Outsource to the Pentagon Anymore
As many people aren't interested in a new PC - or simply cannot afford one - we can expect leaner operating systems to gain further
Software Freedom in Perspective - Part 3 - GNU/Linux in Argentinian Desktops/Laptops
Daniel explains why many years ago many PCs shipped with GNU/Linux and that there was an economic reason for it. At least in Argentina.
Tivoisation and Decommodification in Clown Computing
Some firms or organisations lost sight of what "servers" or "hosting" even mean
The News Vacuum
The problem is worse than just an absence of reporting
x86 Lowered the Standards of Hardware Products
A lot of it is just hacks and cheats that help fake performance