Bonum Certa Men Certa

Apparent Staffing Problems at the Linux Foundation

Nothing to say since April 25th? What happened?

Linux Foundation quiet



Summary: There are signs that something has changed inside the Linux Foundation, whose chief and main site have not said a thing since April 25th while advertising 'Microsoft positions' inside the Foundation

EVER since we started investigating the Linux Foundation we've had very positive responses (no negative ones so far). Some readers decided to help us research the Linux Foundation a bit. We now have quite a lot of eyes on the Foundation and we can sense that the Foundation's leadership is very much aware of it. Through various connections we also have eyes and ears inside. They're quite secretive at the Foundation, but people occasionally see or hear things they can't just ignore. Principal Foundation staff started acting rather unusually. They became eerily quiet recently. Is it one of those "I know what you did last summer" moments? It's very hard to simply dismiss this as a mere chain of coincidences, as we shall explain below.



"We now have quite a lot of eyes on the Foundation and we can sense that the Foundation's leadership is very much aware of it."The Linux Foundation and Jim Zemlin have published nothing since April in Linux.com. First time in over a decade or its entire existence? It was never this quiet. Not even news picks! Nothing! "It's a potentially worrisome development," one reader told us, "given the recent Microsoft entryism."

In the Fediverse someone told me he has "been wondering about that also (?) Any updates on this?"

That needs researching. We're looking carefully at recent publications from the Linux Foundation as opposed to Linux.com, which has been dormant and stale since April. Did the editor resign? Did someone get fired? Help us find out. The Foundation isn't responding to any of that debate (it wouldn't have hurt to say a few words of (re)assurance). It's public and the Foundation was pinged about it.

Mr. Zemlin himself has been quiet (his last tweet was on April 25th, the same day Linux.com went silent; the last post is a link to what seems like the Foundation's media partner). He not only blocked me in Twitter; it turned out he had also blocked Tux Machines, to which the Linux Foundation gave an exclusive interview some years back. We often wonder if Mr. Zemlin can be excused for still not using GNU/Linux, even after a decade and a half (almost) as chief of the "Linux" Foundation. He was its only chief ever. The Foundation could put someone like Bdale Garbee in charge instead; at least people respect him. At least he actually uses "Linux", not just as a brand to be sold, licensed and 'monetised'.

"Sometimes it feels like companies such as Microsoft have more influence in this Foundation than Torvalds himself."I am frankly becoming concerned that the Foundation is nowadays promoting surveillance rather than freedom, marketing rather than advocacy and proprietary software instead of Free software (or "Open Source" as they prefer to call it).

Months ago we wrote about how the Foundation together with Microsoft/GitHub (the funding source) launched CommunityBridge, which is proprietary software that competes against existing things which are Free software. And here’s the more curious thing. The Foundation now looks for a leader -- someone to run this 'Community'Bridge thing. Days ago the Foundation published a job advertisement for this proprietary software it had launched for Microsoft (i.e. the usual). I found this ad in its Twitter feed, which is also barely active, with less than one tweet per day on average (over the past decade they posted about 7 tweets a day, on average, including weekends). I tested to see how to apply for the job; out of curiosity of course, not genuine interest. It was soon that I got greeted by... yes! LinkedIn! They push people to join Microsoft (LinkedIn) and give Microsoft personal information, employment history etc. So what the Foundation was reduced to in 2019 is rather upsetting. Open an account with Microsoft and give them all your very personal details to apply for a job at the "Linux" Foundation. True story. Wish I was joking...

Did something happen? Transparency would help. Months ago I became more vocal in my criticism of the Foundation and now I'm genuinely worried about its very future. Remember that this is the employer of Linus Torvalds which could, in principle, even fire him. Sometimes it feels like companies such as Microsoft have more influence in this Foundation than Torvalds himself.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Linux is Already Dominant (Android), Let's Make GNU/Linux Dominant in Desktops/Laptops as Well
"Dr. Stallman recently warned everybody about Microsoft."
 
Say the Truth, the Rest Will Follow
There's no guarantee that writing the truth will result in an audience (or readership), but over time - in the long run - people generally gravitate towards what they know or feel to be crude truth, not just what's comforting (albeit false or self-deluding, usually groupthink dictated from above)
How to Expose High-Level Corruption Without Getting in (Too Much) Trouble
Democracy depends on free press and freedom of the press depends on being able to safely publish (and keep available) material that bad people don't want to be known to anybody
In-Depth EPO Coverage at Techrights Turns Eleven
11 years is a very long time
Windows Measured Below 10% in Afghanistan, GNU/Linux Gaining a Lot
about 80% are Android (Linux) users, compared to only about 10% for Windows
Poland's Political Predicament and Social Control Media
Democracy and fake "tech" don't mix well; the latter tends to interfere with the former and that's why we get more "Putins" out there
EPO: Taking Away From the Staff to Give More to the Rich
The Central Staff Committee (CSC) wrote to EPO staff earlier this week
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 03, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, June 03, 2025
Abuse Inside the Polish Patent Office (UPRP) - Part I: It's a Lot Like the EPO
we can commence a series soon
Gemini Links 04/06/2025: Inescapable Questions and Quitting All "Oligarch Tech"
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Linux FUD From Slopfarms, Blaming Linux for Microsoft Issues; Even WebProNews Has Become a Slopfarm (Googlebombing "Linux" With Slop Images and Fake/Plagiarised Text)
The Web is really getting bad; it's also overwhelmed by fake material or plagiarised material, wherein the plagiarism gets disguised/hidden by LLM sausage factories
Links 03/06/2025: Tiananmen Square Massacre Censorship and Growing Military Activities Around Taiwan
Links for the day
The Loyalty to Microsoft and the Salaries From Microsoft (Funding SLAPPs Against Techrights and Tux Machines)
Garrett always knows better. He knows everything best.
Windows Falls in Italy as GNU/Linux Jumps to 5%
Italy knows a thing or two about digital autonomy
Nigeria is All Android and Google
Windows down to almost nothing in Africa's largest population
Mass Layoffs at Microsoft (Second Wave) Not Limited to Redmond
"More layoffs at Microsoft as axe falls in Washington and California"
Gemini Links 03/06/2025: Forth System and "Common Lisp is a Dumpster"
Links for the day
The Leaks Were Right: Mass Layoffs at Microsoft in May, Then Another Wave in June
Just as we've been saying for over a month
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, June 02, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, June 02, 2025
Last Article From Australia's Sam Varghese Was a Year Ago and It Covered the Release of Julian Assange, Who Will Apparently Come Back as 'Politician'
It'll soon be exactly 12 months
Hungary Seems Hungry for Linux
Windows down by a lot
Like in Europe, Bad News for Microsoft in US and Canada
If it loses those "regions", then what's left?
About 8 Waves of Mass Layoffs at Microsoft in 2025 (in Less Than 5 Months), Now Vista 11 "Market Share" Decreases
Really bad news for shareholders of Microsoft
statCounter Sees Bing "Share" Falling Over 0.5% in One Month, Now Lower Than Before the ChatGPT/Bing Chat Hype
Bing has been part of the mass layoffs for quite some time
After Microsoft's Bankruptcy in Russia Android (Linux) Will Dominate Asia Completely
Windows probably peaked in "XP" or "2000"
Microsoft's Demise is a Global Phenomenon
mass layoffs justified using mindless buzzwords
All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux in EU and the UK, All-Time Lows for Microsoft
Combining ChromeOS and GNU/Linux, it adds up to and almost reaches 6%
India: Windows Falls to 50% in Desktops/Laptops and 8% Overall
laptops/desktops fell to 16% of the whole
statCounter: GNU/Linux Up to 4.7% "Market Share" This Month
30,000 Microsoft jobs may be eliminated by year's end
Microsoft is in Trouble and Microsofters Know It
"I've been happy on Win 3.11 for years."
[Video] New Introduction to Richard Stallman's Contributions Including GNU Emacs, GNU/Linux, and Software Freedom
from the channel previously bullied for supporting RMS
Links 02/06/2025: South Korea to Vote, Russia Blitzed From Within
Links for the day
Links 02/06/2025: Political Leftovers, DRM, and Patents
Links for the day
Links 02/06/2025: Microsoft Spins Layoffs as "Slop", Frontier Settles Lawsuit
Links for the day
When You Publicly Boast About Wanting to Violently Attack People (Even Colleagues) Finding a Job Will Prove Difficult
there's a lesson to be learned here
The Web We Lost, the Information Lost Due to Microsoft's Attacks on Companies Like Yahoo! (Before the LLM Slop Frenzy)
When it comes to news sites, what can we say?
Covering Corruption in Poland, Including a War on Science (Due to Bad Politicians)
What we're about to show is that skilled and experienced scientists in Poland are besieged by bureaucrats
Gemini Links 02/06/2025: "Star Wars Day" and "Security Day"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, June 01, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, June 01, 2025