07.07.19
Microsoft’s Brand Dilution Tactics: When ‘Linux’ Means Windows
“Coca-Cola was named back in 1885 for its two “medicinal” ingredients: extract of coca leaves and kola nuts. Just how much cocaine was originally in the Cocaine molecule formulation is hard to determine, but the drink undeniably contained some cocaine in its early days.”
Summary: The power of brands and some ‘Kool-Aid’ is well understood by Microsoft, which is actively working to undermine the identity of “Linux” (associating it with itself, with Microsoft)
MICROSOFT may be technically weak, but it makes up for lack of technical merit in other ‘departments’. You know something is wrong when you search for “Linux” news (for example in Google News) and about half the search results are actually Microsoft news, along with feature images like “Microsoft loves Linux” (and those come from Microsoft and Windows sites, not GNU/Linux sites). There’s a longstanding PR campaign; one of the tactics is known as “googlebombing” and is designed for revisionism and brand dilution, two of Microsoft’s most dangerous weapons, which both target the minds. As we explained before and as recently as yesterday, a lot of people will ultimately struggle to understand the difference between “Windows” and “Linux”.
Here’s another new example from the weekend’s news. A reader of ours sent it it over, dubbing it revisionism. “GEM was the only GUI ever seen back then, aside from Mac, mostly GUIs were super rare and it was plain MS-DOS or CP/M which was used instead in the x86 PC category of machine, or Apple DOS on the Apple II was a common combination,” he explained.
“There’s a longstanding PR campaign; one of the tactics is known as “googlebombing” and is designed for revisionism and brand dilution, two of Microsoft’s most dangerous weapons, which both target the minds.”Microsoft used to promote the false idea of Word being the ‘first’ word processor and Windows the ‘first’ operating system with windows in it (hence all other word processors and windowed interfaces are presumably just ‘copies’ or ‘ripoffs’ or ‘knockoffs’ of what Microsoft did). Last week it was reported that Microsoft hasd’t abandoned such vain rhetorics (see ReactOS ‘a ripoff of the Windows Research Kernel’ claims Microsoft kernel engineer). “Reitschin does add he is no lawyer,” said a commentator, “but these claims do raise a number of serious concerns and questions about the ReactOS project. These claims alone will probably ensure no serious commercial entity will ever want to associate itself with ReactOS, and it will be interesting to see if these claims will ever lead to something more serious than mere words.”
The cited article comes from Microsoft Tim, a longtime booster of the company and its lies. █
“Mind Control: To control mental output you have to control mental input. Take control of the channels by which developers receive information, then they can only think about the things you tell them. Thus, you control mindshare!”
–Microsoft, internal document [PDF]
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