Bonum Certa Men Certa

Openwashing Report: Microsoft Controlling Linux Means That Open Source Wins, Apparently

"Open Source Wins," declares one headline when "Open source champion Microsoft" (another headline) imposes its specifications on Linux!

Weekly openwashing report



Summary: The Linux Foundation is out of control; it's revealing that it's little more than a propaganda operation of proprietary software giants (something it certainly wasn't at inception back in 2007) and the Foundation's links to media sites amplify this propaganda

TRUTH no longer matters. Apparently. There's "no money" in truth as opposed to distortion thereof.



We were sadly reminded of this a few days ago when we saw this lengthy new article entitled "History of Microsoft: Timeline and Facts" (wow! Facts! Sounds promising!).

Obviously, as one might expect, it's a bundle of Microsoft lies. This perhaps is the publisher's business model (revisionism as a service). You know you’re lied to when Microsoft, in 1994, is called “little company”. It wasn't an underdog back then and it isn't an underdog now. The Street is just doing a bunch of Microsoft revisionism, which we'd rather not quote without a detailed rebuttal (this can take a long time when the lies are long). We want to remind readers that Microsoft in 2019 still commits a lot of serious crimes. The company depends on that. Microsoft has, since its genesis, depended on breaking laws. If there's animosity, distrust and even hostility towards Microsoft, it's very much deserved; Microsoft earned that. Its very own actions are to blame.

We are saddened (but won't regret) to say that the Linux Foundation (LF) is now in the business of reputation laundering/whitewashing of businesses that break the law. It happens almost every day. We'll give an example that is only hours old.

"If there's animosity, distrust and even hostility towards Microsoft, it's very much deserved; Microsoft earned that.""How VMware is becoming a good open source citizen" is an actual headline published yesterday afternoon. It's VMware-sponsored crap, but this time it comes from an LF associate, Swapnil, who received LF money for this propaganda (for a serial GPL violator). We don't find this amusing. Something called LF (where the "L" stands for Linux) is the culprit, not some corruptible media like The Street. There's more of the same, just far too shallow...

What this whole thing boils down to is VMware PR. Hohndel again does revisionism for his employer, aided by (and sponsored by) the Linux Foundation... those associates help relay the Big Lie. The Linux Foundation is an unstoppable propaganda machine that defends GPL violators and attacks GPL enforcers. Why? Because it receives bribes from GPL violators. That's how corrupt that foundation is. A foundation of lies.

The headline of the next piece too is a lie: "VMware Didn’t Violate The GNU/GPL License" (yes, that's an actual headline, which is not even supported by the body).

The piece is about mere belief by a new hire of the company (about something that happened before the hiring). The Linux Foundation's team, or Team Zemlin or whatever, became so obsessed with money that it's willing to intentionally lie for large corporations. Club Linux Foundation is a propaganda operation; an "Infringers' Club" is what Bruce Perens called it.

"Club Linux Foundation is a propaganda operation; an "Infringers' Club" is what Bruce Perens called it."This isn't just about VMware. Swapnil has just eagerly pushed Microsoft proprietary software 'ads' into the site called LINUX.COM, which the LF lets him edit all on his own. This is the LF in 2019: SQL Server promotion.

If we said a decade ago that this would happen...? People would probably laugh at us. So the LF defends GPL violations, proprietary software etc. Not a word about software patents or anything like that...

Who (or what) is this Foundation useful to?

"So the LF defends GPL violations, proprietary software etc. Not a word about software patents or anything like that..."The Linux Foundation in 2019 is the "environmentalist" who tells greens that they're 'too harsh' on oil companies (while taking fossil fuel money) or the "atheist" who says to atheists that they're extremists and that agnostics aren't...

A former Microsoft employee, Jake Hamby, told me this about the Linux Foundation a few hours ago: "Yes, but who else is going to fund them? Of course they're propaganda for Microsoft and friends: those are the guys with the money who need their reputations laundered. Everyone else just uses GNU/Linux for free and doesn't pay anyone or think about it."

So the Linux Foundation is little but a service for "guys with the money who need their reputations laundered..."

Sounds about right. That's Hohndel's job at VMware.

And let's not go into the fact that Hohndel's previous employer had put NSA back doors in every chip and committed loads of crimes while he was openwashing them. The money ('business') is in lying, in whitewashing. Facts don't 'pay the bills'...

Speaking of bills, the latest twist in the Foundation's nonsense? Accusing me of being paid to attack them. Evidence? Nothing. Because it's false. OK, so defaming their critics is the last resort.

"And let's not go into the fact that Hohndel's previous employer had put NSA back doors in every chip and committed loads of crimes while he was openwashing them."Now they try to insinuate -- falsely and without evidence -- that I'm paid to criticise them.

Amazing!

But wait, it gets worse!

A certain ill-minded Foundation staffer/associate has compared me about 6 times to Donald Trump (whom I object to) with no factual basis. Why? Because he has no argument with which to justify their Microsoft lies...

I don't even respond to him, but he seems to be bombarding me with tweets (maybe 8 in a row now; I don't even reply).

The Code of Conduct (CoC) at the Linux Foundation is worthless. Their staff is calling me "fucking idiot" (3 times this week) and I didn't curse or anything remotely like that. Six times or so I've been compared to Trump. Six times. That's how many times these people ('Linux' Foundation) compared me to Donald Trump.

I can take an insult or two (or three, like "fucking idiot", thrice), but comparing me to Trump is basically comparing me to a criminal.

See the logic?

"A certain ill-minded Foundation staffer/associate has compared me about 6 times to Donald Trump (whom I object to) with no factual basis."People who expose the LF's bad behaviour are now the "liars" and the "criminals"; welcome to the LF Logic. Is there a group called "LF Logic" (yet)?

This very much echoes the rhetoric of Microsoft as a company. It pretends to stand for "ethics" while it does illegal things (like unlawfully banning and imprisoning people).

As for VMware?

If VMware still chooses to weakly deny GPL violations, then it's choosing to bribe people to spread lies instead of apologising and seeking to correct what was done. That would only make VMware more of a villain and stain anyone who spreads the lies. Swapnil is just angry because he agrees to spread lies and he doesn't like the consequences of these lies. So now he's flinging insults at me all day long.

As an aside, I guess that to LF folks anyone whom they don't agree with is "Trump" (even Trump opposers).

I also got called "fucking idiot" thrice. CoC anyone? Turns out the Linux Foundation is nowhere as polite as it claims it wants others (e.g. actual Linux developers) to be. Try to concentrate on promoting Linux, dear Linux Foundation, instead of insulting actual Linux advocates, OK? You spend too much energy promoting Microsoft, GitHub etc.

"I also got called "fucking idiot" thrice. CoC anyone? Turns out the Linux Foundation is nowhere as polite as it claims it wants others (e.g. actual Linux developers) to be."It's time to rename perhaps. It's time to recognise that the LF isn't at all dedicated to Linux (its staff certainly isn't!).

"Dear Linux Foundation," I sarcastically wrote yesterday. "Let me tell you about this thing called "WINDOWS"

"Did you hear about it?

"WIN-DOWS.

"It's an operating system

"Microsoft makes it

"Microsoft bribes people to use it

"It competes against Linux."

Linux Foundation staff uses Windows. These people tell us that we're "winning" because Microsoft gave us some patented code, such as exFAT. Fossbytes, in last week's article, went even further. It thinks Microsoft imposing a trap on Linux is "Open Source Wins" (that's right there in their headline).

"Microsoft which has recently become a big Linux fanboy," says Fossbytes in the opening part of the article. Maybe the next sentence will say Trump loves black people because he 'hollers' at Kanye West.

What on Earth? Who writes such nonsense?

"As an aside, I guess that to LF folks anyone whom they don't agree with is "Trump" (even Trump opposers)."Here's another new example: "Microsoft is bringing its exFAT patents to Linux and open source"

Words like "bringing its exFAT patents to Linux" show that TechRadar's authors understand neither patent law nor Linux. The headline alone makes no sense at all. What lunacy. What nonsense.

Here's what happens when your sole "Source" for an article about Linux is... Microsoft, which considers Linux to be something to wage "Jihad" against (Bill Gates' word). They ended up adding the cocky "Microsoft loves Linux" image to the article!

Thom Holwerda (OS News) said: "Microsoft ♥ Linux – we say that a lot, and we mean it!"

He repeats a lie and means it. Great. Reminds me why I boycotted all his articles and blocked them at mail client (Thunderbird) level 10+ years ago.

This is PR at work. A lot of these people know they're lying, but they do so anyway. It's like reverse writ of libel (saying something positive which they know to be untrue).

"This is PR at work. A lot of these people know they're lying, but they do so anyway. It's like reverse writ of libel (saying something positive which they know to be untrue).""Open source champion Microsoft," says the headline of Brian Fagioli (who calls GNU/Linux users, collectively, "cheapskates").

The company that attacks Open Source the mostatent aspec is "Open source champion"... right? Like Ken Livingstone calling Hitler "Zionist" (a real scandal at the time).

Other tabloids did more of the same after the exFAT news, which we covered in [1, 2]. Patent aspects were mentioned as far back as July.

Recent Techrights' Posts

10 Out of 10: RMS Attracts Massive Audience in Göteborg, Sweden (All Seats Occupied, Some People Standing)
a 55-second clip of his talk
The Lawsuit by Clients of Brett Wilson LLP Against Brett Wilson LLP is Officially On, It is Progressing, The 'Experts' Pick Outside Law Firms (RPC and Mills & Reeve) to Spare Them From Litigants in Person
So it is probably quite potent
Slopwatch: Plagiarism and "Linux" Articles by Bots
Sites that do this won't survive; many of them rely on slop services (suppliers) that will cease to exist after the bubble bursts
 
Teaser: To Compensate for the Fact Our Clients Are Terrible Human Beings Who Strangle Women (While on Microsoft's Payroll) and We Get Paid by Mystery Parties We Bombard You and Your Wife With Almost 10 Kilograms of Legal Papers
If you can't win an argument, then drown the other side with papers?
Another Wave of Microsoft Layoffs, This Time During National Day Holiday
This time it's China again
Staying Happy in Times of Crackdowns on Civil Society
Optimism in this sort of "new reality" or "new normal" seems like something for the irrational person
"Nobel" Exploited Posthumously for "AI" Hype, Now They Do the Same With "Quantum"
ere have been many jokes about "Nobel" for peace (often granted to pro-war people) and a fake one for "Economics" (establishment propaganda)
Distinguished Lecture by Richard Stallman This Coming Monday in Rome
After "Free software, Crucial for Freedom in a Digital World"
Links 10/10/2025: Putin Admits Russia Downed Azerbaijan Airlines Jet, More New Heat Records
Links for the day
Noteworthy Claim That IBM is Firing a Lot of Lawyers This Week (RAs in the Legal Department)
A lot of what they do is patent 'trolling' or lawyering up against their own staff (e.g. HR disputes)
Links 10/10/2025: US Judge Bars Attacks by ICE On Journalists and Protesters; “We Took The Freedom of Speech Away” Says the President
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Serial Sloppers, Google News Gifting Slopfarms, and Fake News/Plagiarism About "Linux"
Google itself is a slop pusher these days
Qualcomm, the New Owner of Arduino, Blasted for Its Software Patents Tax on 'Smartphones'
A lot of Qualcomm's patents are on software. We wrote about this in prior years.
XBox Layoffs Rumours, Downtime, and Criticism From XBox Co-Founder
"everyone is ditching the xbox."
Links 10/10/2025: Honoring The Legacy Of Robert Murray-Smith, Many Articles on the Hey Hi (AI) Bubble
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: October Gothic and Reading Middle Earth Role Playing; C and Ada
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, October 09, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, October 09, 2025
Links 09/10/2025: Farewell to Jane Goodall, California Bans Algorithmic Price-Fixing
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: Lost Wages and a Saga Of Continuing To Use Palm PDAs
Links for the day
Richard Stallman's Talk in Helsinki is Done. Tomorrow Göteborg.
There are scarce details in Finnish about Dr. Stallman's talk
New XBox Leaks Probably Serve to Confirm XBox's Collapse (Many More Layoffs)
It's very much consistent with what many other sites have reported lately
The Slop Song
The train wreck marches on
LLM Slop/Advanced Plagiarism Flooding the Zone With Capital That Does Not Exist
Many publishers out there still participate in this bubble instead of calling it what it is
Links 09/10/2025: Sacked Microsoft Workers Make "Sackbird", IBM Taps CockroachDB for PostgreSQL
Links for the day
"Happy Hacking Day" Richard Stallman Talk This Afternoon (From 14:00 to 16:00) at Haaga-Helia University in Pasila
Richard Stallman in Helsinki, Finland
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, October 08, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, October 08, 2025
Links 09/10/2025: Impact of Microsoft Layoffs, More Data Breaches
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: Autumn Blues and C IRC Bot
Links for the day
Slopwatch Appreciated by Real Authors of GNU/Linux Articles
We do try to keep on top of those things
Upgraded R.R.R.R.R.R. Today
The Web of 2025 is full of garbage, not limited to slopfarms
Freedom From Proprietary Prisons
Forking always an option
IBM's Watson Died in 1956, Now Watson Dies Again
IBM is becoming just a reseller of GAFAM and other stuff
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, UbuntuPIT, and Google News
We've also just noticed more slop from UbuntuPIT
Microsoft Says That Constant Mass Layoffs Are Success, the Media Isn't Buying This Microsoft Narrative Anymore
If people in the media feel an obligation to repeat whatever lies Microsoft tells, what point will there be to the media?
Links 08/10/2025: "Mali Puts Free Speech on Trial" And Apple Enforces Dictatorship
Links for the day
Links 08/10/2025: ‘Death to Spotify’ and Law to Ban Loud Commercials on Streaming (Dis)Services
Links for the day
Links 08/10/2025: Real Innovation and Nina.chat is Dead
Links for the day
Links 08/10/2025: Y2K38 Bug is a Vulnerability, Chat Control in Europe a Threat
Links for the day
Microsoft Windows is No Longer an Operating System, It's Surveillance Project
Why is this even legal to preload on PCs outside the US?
How and Why Once-Legitimate Sites Turn Into Slopfarms
Many sites will go offline and many social control networks will shut down once they realise or even openly admit they spend money and time gardening a bunch of bots and slop
UbuntuPIT Became a Slopfarm and Gnoppix Tarnishes Its Own Brand With Slop
It fits all the characteristics of mildly-edited (if at all) slop
Slopwatch: Linux Journal and Other Slopfarms
GAFAM needs to go the way of the dodo
Gemini Links 08/10/2025: "Seek Seek Revolution" and Gradient Backgrounds
Links for the day
Qualcomm Arduino Takes Aim at Raspberry Pi
Qualcomm is a Microsoft partner
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, October 07, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, October 07, 2025
Stagnation of the Economy and What Free Software Can (or Could) Do For It
If your economic model is based on a pyramid of lies, it won't last very long
Social Control Media is Sinking
it would rightly seem like the era of centralised "social" sites (they're not social, they're about controlling the users) is ending, not overnight but gradually