Bonum Certa Men Certa

Microsoft Still Tries to Invade the Open Solutions Alliance

Camel comes 'knocking' on your tent

Several months ago we began to more systematically track Microsoft's invasion into anything "open" and anything "nix". A year ago we wrote to mention that the Open Solutions Alliance had rejected Microsoft's attempt to join. Microsoft, as you already know, sticks its finger in any *NIX and OSS pie out there, hoping to become an integral part of it and then pull developers until they get entrapped inside the Microsoft stack, which is of course proprietary.

The Open Solutions Alliance has been struggling for a while for a variety of reasons, but those reasons are not the point worth focusing on. What's worth looking at are Microsoft's continued, relentless and seemingly never-ending intrusion attempts. it's almost like a spoiled 5-year-old at the back seat yelling "are we THERE yet"?

Politics of a familiar sort has reared its head as well, according to Sartorio. While many companies want to integrate open-source elements with the Microsoft stack, that reality has clashed somewhat within the OSA's ranks, he said. "They say, 'Look, be careful what you do with Microsoft. ... I don't want to be part of an open-source movement that is working closely with Microsoft.'"

"The challenge at Microsoft is the old guard is trying to keep Wall Street happy and their revenues flowing in a predictable way," he said, but the company is on the whole "not monolithic" in its thinking regarding open source.

"There aren't any specific plans between OSA and Microsoft," he added. "It's a matter of ongoing dialogue."


"Ongoing dialogue," eh? You can read on by viewing the article as a whole. The article is about the OSA's need for a momentum boost, which brings back worrisome memories of Microsoft's attempts to 'buy' those who are frail, such as Novell and even OLPC (prepare for ugly news later this month, which follows Microsoft's systematic sabotage of the project, along with Intel).

“Microsoft rarely explains its goals, but those who listen carefully know the truth about Microsoft viewing FOSS as its to-be ISV.”Microsoft just loves to approach those who are feeble. Remember OSBC? If not, then you are strongly encouraged to look back at many posts that include [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. I seem to have finally opened up Matt Asay's eyes a little bit because he has recently been more vocal with criticism about Microsoft's real intent. He is no longer on the OSI's board either, but this probably has nothing to do with Microsoft becoming part of it and more a question of time management (he publishes and communicates at a high pace). He sort of explained this himself last week. His relevance to this debate lies in the fact that he is the motor behind the birth of the Open Solutions Alliance.

There is a bunch of nonesense in the news at the moment about Ozzie uttering the term "open-source", which foolishly enough, too many journalists and bloggers have fallen for. Microsoft rarely explains its goals, but those who listen carefully know the truth about Microsoft viewing FOSS as its to-be ISV.

"I would love to see all open source innovation happen on top of Windows"

--Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft (2007)



"[If I ask you who is Microsoft's biggest competitor now, who would it be?] Open...Linux. I don't want to say open source. Linux, certainly have to go with that."

--Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft (February 28th, 2008)

Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft's 'Lawsuit Diplomacy' (SLAPPs Riding UK Libel Law and Piggybacking UK GDPR, Inapplicable!) Will Only Give a Worse Image to Microsofters (and Microsoft), Give Exposure to Even More Suppressed Facts and Scandals
Microsoft came to dominate some sectors because of (or owing to) crimes; Microsoft won't just go away without some more crimes.
Five (or Three) Years Without Social Control Media
Glyn Moody quit X (Twitter)
Why GNU/Linux is Growing
There's growing interest in GNU/Linux right now because people do not fancy buying a new PC just to 'upgrade' (more spying) Windows
 
Links 20/04/2025: Bleeding Constitution and ChatGPT Infuriates Users Some More
Links for the day
Deja vu: Hitler's Birthday, Andreas Tille elected Debian Project Leader again
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Chinese OEMs (and World's Largest) Pave a Path Out of Microsoft Windows
So Microsoft now values (or prices) Vista 11 at just $140?
Gemini Links 20/04/2025: Contradictions of Mark Carney and Blog Questions Challenge
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, April 19, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, April 19, 2025
Electronics in People's Bedrooms
Modern technology not only blurred the gap between "functions" of rooms
Gemini Links 19/04/2025: Contingencies, GTD, and Old Computers
Links for the day
Links 19/04/2025: Economic Races, Charm Offensives, and USB-C Rants
Links for the day
Links 19/04/2025: "Infantilization at Big Tech" and LLM Slop Abused in Defiance of Workplace Rules/Policies
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/04/2025: Palm Addiction and Real Experts
Links for the day
Egypt is Controlled by Google, Not Microsoft
Moving from Microsoft to Google is not the answer
Microsofters Say They Cannot Find a Job (That They Want) Because of Techrights, But Techrights Merely Reported on Their Behaviour
Quit pointing the finger at people who are recipients of abuse or merely mention the abuse
Free Software and Standards - Not Marketing Blitz - Needed Amid Growing Severity of Dependency on Hostile Suppliers (or Another Country's Sovereignty)
ZenDiS can be described as the "Center for Digital Sovereignty of Public Administration"
When It Comes to the Web, Google is Evil and It Destroys the Web's Integrity With LLM Slop
Even academia, which is meant to keep standards high, is being lured into LLM slop
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, April 18, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, April 18, 2025
Links 18/04/2025: "Fentanylware (TikTok) Exodus Continues", Chinese Weapons Allegedly in Russia Already
Links for the day
Gemini Links 18/04/2025: Price of Games and State of Tinylog
Links for the day
Sounds Like IBM is Preparing for Mass Layoffs/Redundancies in Red Hat, Albeit in "PIP" (Performance Improvement Plan) or "Relocation" Clothing
This isn't the "old" IBM; they're applying pressure by confusion and humiliation
Gemini Links 17/04/2025: Role of Language and Back to Mutt for E-mail
Links for the day
"Sayonara" (さよなら), Microsoft
Windows had fallen below iOS in some countries
Links 18/04/2025: Layoffs at Microsoft Infosys and Qt Becoming Increasingly Proprietary (Plus Slop)
Links for the day
Google News is Dying
treating MElon's algorithmic/biased site as a source of verified news
Microsoft's Attack Dogs Have Failed. Now What?
It would be utterly foolish to assume that Microsoft has any intention of changing
All Your "Github Projects" Will be Gone One Day (Just Like Skype)
If you have code you wish to share and keep, then start learning how to do so on your own
To Understand Who's Truly Controlling You Follow the Trail of Censorship (or Self-Censorship)
Do not let media steal and steer the narrative; CoCs are not about "social justice", they're about corporate domination
Fedora Already Lost Its Soul Under IBM
Fedora used to be very strict compared to many other distros and it had attracted very bright volunteers
Microsoft is Still Attacking GNU/Linux and the Net
Microsoft bribed the government using money that did not even exist
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, April 17, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, April 17, 2025
Gemini Links 18/04/2025: Pinephone Pro and Linux is too Easy
Links for the day