The following new article tells us that the sky is not falling and that Microsoft's attack on Linux was actually a marvelous endorsement. It shows viability. It reveals Microsoft's fear of desktop Linux, which a new filing confirms. Publicity and emotion may have brought several contracts with major OEMs.

After Microsoft’s announcement that their patents are being infringed by free/open source software, Linux and FOSS are getting more attention than ever from the mainstream media, and that can only be a good thing.

We am left somewhat worried because some businesses take a very Microsoft-oriented approach in their migration to GNU/Linux.

Using the .NET-Java interoperability software from Mainsoft, UZ Gent’s .NET development team will use the Visual Studio 2005 development environment to integrate its existing .NET application framework, 15 strategic .NET applications, more than five terabytes of data stored in an Oracle database, and an LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) repository into a highly secure, role-based WebSphere Portal environment running under Linux.

Businesses might wish to know more about their choices and the problems which Novell has introduced. For instance, if GNOME was ever to evolve and become GNOMONO or GNOME.NET, then we would be buried deeper in the quicksand. We fear that Linux might be getting 'contaminated' not by Linux companies, but by Linux companies that are controlled by Microsoft (see these two cartoons again).