Bonum Certa Men Certa

The History of 'Paul Murphy' Defaming Linux

ZDNet



Summary: A look back (8 years ago) at what "Paul Murphy" was doing to GNU/Linux, leading to the thread "Rudy de Haas' Defamation"

Our previous post dealt with pseudonym "Paul Murphy", whose fake nickname must have indicated an escape from some past or some shame (sincere people needn't hide their identity), even predating the SCO case. A reader has sent us a pointer to this old message which refers to IDG (LinuxWorld):







-----Original Message----- From: John Alvord [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2002 5:17 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Rudy de Haas' Defamation

On Mon, 27 May 2002 19:33:01 -0400, "Post, Mark K" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

>I thought quite a while before deciding to write this note. I finally >decided that it was worth the trouble and risk of being ignored. > >Rudy de Haas' (aka Paul Murphy) latest and final article in his series on >Linux/390 was really too much to have to deal with in what should be a >reputable publication such as LinuxWorld. Inferring that the subscribers of >the Linux-390 mailing list are the same as gullible members of a religious >cult is crossing the line of responsible journalism into territory that I >don't even know how to categorize. > >In his zeal to criticize IBM and the Linux/390 platform, he seems to be >unaware of one possible explanation for all the things he can't understand >about the platform and its supporters: they might be right and he might be >wrong. In his last column he makes the comment "The list members know >what's going on, most of them have daily access to Linux on the mainframe >and can see its costs and limitations far more clearly than outsiders can." >Which is true. In his mind, though, that just makes them deluded cult >members, as opposed to intelligent professionals who know a good thing when >they see it. > >If Mr. de Haas had actually listened to the responses he got, instead of >taking them as further evidence of a collective delusion, he might have >avoided libeling thousands of honest, hardworking IT professionals. >Instead, he chose to drape himself in the mantel of self-righteousness and >proceed in his own delusion. > >To use a British turn of phrase, bad show, both on his part, and yours as >well. > >Mark Post

Maybe some people here should author a rebuttal and see if LinuxWorld would publish it.

john





The SCO case is practically over, but the usual suspects -- Rud^H^H^H^Hrphy included -- keep flogging a dead horse. It's important that people don't pay attention to them.

"Maureen O'Gara said she was going to call them so it looks better coming from her."

Microsoft's "smoking guns"

Recent Techrights' Posts

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
Links 17/04/2025: Calling Whistleblowers at Microsoft, Slop Doing More Harm Everywhere
Links for the day
Links 17/04/2025: Russian Bot Farms Infect TikTok (Which US Government and SCOTUS Decided to Block January 19), US Hardware Stocks Crash Due to Tariffs
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/04/2025: Sticking to Free Software, Smolnet, and Counting the Reals
Links for the day
Open Source Initiative (OSI) Privacy Fiasco in Detail: In Conclusion and Enforcement Action Proceeds Against OSI at the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA)
There's too much to cover in one single part
When You Fail to Filter Your Clients You End Up SLAPPing Reporters on Behalf of Bad People From Microsoft in Another Continent
“American Psycho”
Links 17/04/2025: LayoffBot and Tesla Cheats Buyers
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, April 16, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, April 16, 2025