Microsoft cannot compete against Linux, so it is trying to destroy Linux instead. Microsoft Florian helps 'pull a SCO' using lies right now [1, 2, 3] and somebody helps show a connection between him, Microsoft, and Darl McBride's lawyer brother, who some months ago also helped 'pull a SCO' by making false claims [1, 2]. Anyway, here is the comment of relevance:
Mueller: what is your relationship with M. McLoughlin
Direct question for F. Mueller, will you describe your relationship with MSFT's M. McLoughlin:
I did a screen cap in Feb. 2010 of twitter friends of Kevin McBride (the lawyer brother of SCO's Darl McBride).
He had 2 friends: you (Florian Mueller) and Microsoft's McLoughlin.
McLoughlin's bio is:
Michael McLoughlin. McLoughlin is
* Director, Enterprise Markets, Office of Strategic Relations at Microsoft
* Board Member atOpen Computing Alliance
So is it not at least possible that a Microsoft operative deliberately tried to poison the well?
If I were Florian, I'd put out an over the top article about it, but being me, thank heaven, I'll just note that we should be alert for such tricks.
Incidentally, I see Florian has posted a request for info from the community on any infringement they notice in their projects, promising them anonymity. First of all, NOBODY from the community will respond to his request, I'm sure. I suspect he knows that too, just from reading the comments on Slashdot and here. So, I have a suspicion that this is just a cover for future "revelations" by Florian, and he will refuse to identify by source with the excuse that he is protecting them. But in reality, would that not be a perfect cover to feed the media insider info actually handed him by proprietary parties who wish to kill Android?
Just asking. I noticed that he claimed it was some guy on Twitter who told him about the German filing showing who make up CPTN. But the person disappeared that very day from Twitter. But on the internet, you leave breadcrumbs. So I followed them. The person who allegedly handed him the information had an online persona as a guy who wrote about only one topic online that I could find, a particular football team in Florida.
Now, you tell me. How likely is it that this is the guy who found an esoteric legal filing in Germany and then told Florian about it?
I find that story impossible to accept, particularly because I tried to track the guy in real space, and it was impossible.
So here's my working theory: someone thought it would be a great idea, since parties to lawsuits can't normally safely discuss litigation in public, to have a "son of Groklaw" -- an imitation of what we did, but for the proprietary side, and just as those dudes assumed, incorrectly, that Groklaw was paid to be a public mouthpiece, they hired Florian to pretend to be just some blogger who just happens to be interested in these topics.
It's a funny theory, if true. And if true, it will eventually become known as to whether or not it's true.
But Florian, as we see in this recent event, is in over his head. Plus, as the song says, ain't nothing like the real thing. And he doesn't have the benefit of a community of coders to help him, as we do. Even the media won't find his oeuvre helpful over time, if any of them still believe a word he says, because he will make mistakes over and over. He won't be able to help it. And his malice shines through everything he writes. He clearly is no expert on US law, for starters. And if he suddenly seems to understand it, we'll all know he has a lawyer advising him behind the scenes. This mistake he made will have lasting effects, in other words. The community had him pegged already. Now the media is learning. He should, in my view, tell who he is working for, because he's ruining his reputation this way. And it can only get worse. Look at what happened to Enderle and MOG and Lyons.