Bonum Certa Men Certa

How Mono Helps Microsoft DirectX, With Contribution From VMB_ware


Paul Maritz (VMB_ware CEO, formerly Microsoft)
Photo by Robert Scoble



Summary: Several Microsoft executives who run VMB_ware continue to work on projects which, along with Novell's projects help empower and spread Microsoft APIs

ACCORDING to this new article from IDG, VMB_ware and Novell are currently negotiating the price which VMB_ware will pay for SUSE (along with Mono and Moonlight based on some other reports). VMB_ware is run by executives who used to work for Microsoft and it may soon have power over Microsoft APIs inside GNU/Linux, including Gallium3D which appears to promote DirectX at OpenGL's expense.



IDG makes it sound as though the sale to VMB_ware is almost a done deal. To quote:

The Wall Street Journal is reporting rumors that VMware may buy Novell's SUSE Linux OS business, though Atachmate is competing for the est of the company's assets.

VMware and Novell have agreed on everything but price, according to the WSJ, which cites unnamed analysts as saying the tools built to help Linux administrators manage virtualized OSes will strengthen VMware's own VM management apps.


We are beginning to wonder what VMB_ware may plan to do with Microsoft-taxed SUSE, Mono, and Gallium3D. These assets can help VMB_ware help Microsoft. To quote a conversation from yesterday, there is evidence to suggest Mono is now linking/embedding some Gallium3D.

Very informal discussion ought to be assumed (it is an IRC discussion, thus nothing polished):

jimbo_I read a week or 2 ago about VMB_Ware pushing DirectXOct 20 19:33
schestowitzAny news on that?Oct 20 19:34
schestowitzgnufreex and Diablo-D3 raised the issueOct 20 19:34
jimbo_you might find it interesting to note that Moonlie is using itOct 20 19:34
schestowitzI just published the logsOct 20 19:34
jimbo_the gallium3d thingOct 20 19:34
Diablo-D3Im completely fine with itOct 20 19:34
jimbo_so team appologista is also pushing itOct 20 19:35
Diablo-D3the tracker is only for dx10/11, which is an almost carbon copy of gl3+future.Oct 20 19:35
gnufreexIt looks like there is no patent danger. I checked. But there is still API control danger.Oct 20 19:35
Diablo-D3and, the tracker itself is almost a carbon copy of how you'd write a future-only gl3 tracker.Oct 20 19:35
jimbo_diablo3d just like .not is a clone of java? ;)Oct 20 19:35
schestowitzvmware gallium3d?Oct 20 19:35
Diablo-D3jimbo_: -D3, and yes, basically how c# copies javaOct 20 19:35
Diablo-D3jimbo_: except its c++ and LOOKs like d3d9, it just isntOct 20 19:36
jimbo_diablo: m$ has patents all over the place on .netOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3anyone trying d3d10/11 with a 9 mindset will write shitOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3sun has patents all over the placeOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3also, this is an APIOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3the patents being held will be held by companies like AMD and NvidiaOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3remember, gl and d3d both are high level wrappers for vendor-specific HALsOct 20 19:36
jimbo_JoseX a while back wrote a very interesting piece about how you can patent APIsOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3they dont _do_ anythingOct 20 19:36
schestowitzAPIs can have patent trapsOct 20 19:36
Diablo-D3schestowitz: not without having the patent invalidatedOct 20 19:37
schestowitzjimbo_: yes, beat me to itOct 20 19:37
jimbo_schestowitz :)Oct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3like, I can write an API that uploads s3tc to a video cardOct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3they cant sue meOct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3Im not decoding itOct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3the video card isOct 20 19:37
gnufreexMicrosoft has one OpenGL patent they bought from failing SGIOct 20 19:37
gnufreexRest are expired.Oct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3gnufreex: except it applies to _running_ GLOct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3as in, what happens on the video cardOct 20 19:37
Diablo-D3there is nothing being done usefully in software, for performance reasonsOct 20 19:37
jimbo_anyways, about to head out with friendsOct 20 19:38
jimbo_just thought I'd pass along the info about moonli and gallium3dOct 20 19:38
schestowitzDiablo-D3: APis alone are not the infringement, but writing for them may beOct 20 19:38
jimbo_moonlieOct 20 19:38
schestowitzlink/Oct 20 19:38
schestowitz?Oct 20 19:38
schestowitzSVN/GIT?Oct 20 19:38
jimbo_hold on, gotta re-search for itOct 20 19:38
Diablo-D3schestowitz: but we're not writing for themOct 20 19:38
jimbo_yea, it'll be in git in the configure.inOct 20 19:38
Diablo-D3AMD and Nvidia and Intel didOct 20 19:39
schestowitzMaybe VMB_ware will just buy MonoOct 20 19:39
Diablo-D3remember, all this shit runs on the cardOct 20 19:39
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[gotunandan/@gotunandan] RT @cassidyjames So, OS X Lion App Store = !Ubuntu Software Center, Mission Control = Gnome Shell, Multitouch Gestures = UTouch... what ...Oct 20 19:39
jimbo_http://github.com/mono/moon/blob/master/m4/gallium.m4Oct 20 19:40
TechrightsBot-trTitle: m4/gallium.m4 at master from mono's moon - GitHub .::. Size~: 38.95 KBOct 20 19:40
jimbo_that's the gallium3d detection codeOct 20 19:41
jimbo_configure script codeOct 20 19:41
jimbo_http://github.com/mono/moon/blob/master/configure.acOct 20 19:41
TechrightsBot-trTitle: configure.ac at master from mono's moon - GitHub .::. Size~: 72.32 KBOct 20 19:41
jimbo_that's their configure.ac which uses itOct 20 19:42
jimbo_phoronix also talked about itOct 20 19:42
jimbo_iircOct 20 19:42
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[flameeyes/@flameeyes] Did #Canonical not trademark #Launchpad? Now we're going to get confusion between theirs and Apple's :/Oct 20 19:42
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[tekk/@tekk] okay !rmsgnulinux, I know you've been waiting forever for 1.2.5 kde but right now I'm working in a kde 3.5.12(trinity) package for ya \o/Oct 20 19:42
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[schestowitz/@schestowitz] Open source moves into the enterprise at NZ organisations http://ur1.ca/24rip Not just NZ, but this is NZ-based siteOct 20 19:42
TechrightsBot-trTitle: Open source moves into the enterprise at NZ organisations | Computerworld NZ .::. Size~: 44.47 KBOct 20 19:42
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[eff/@eff] Geotag, You're It! https://eff.org/r.2tv Android and iOS respect your geolocation settings. Check them!Oct 20 19:44
TechrightsBot-trTitle: Geotag, You're It! What Your Smartphone Might Be Saying Behind Your Back | Privacy Rights Clearinghouse .::. Size~: 26.49 KBOct 20 19:44
*scientes (~scientes@c-76-28-168-154.hsd1.wa.comcast.net) has joined #techrightsOct 20 19:45
jimbo_http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2010/Jan-07.htmlOct 20 19:47
TechrightsBot-trTitle: Pixel Shaders for Moonlight - Miguel de Icaza .::. Size~: 14.13 KBOct 20 19:47
jimbo_that shows they are indeed using itOct 20 19:47
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[tekk/@tekk] !rmsgnulinux if anyone doesn't know, trinity is the kde3 continuation project. Hopefully we may become a go-to distro for kde3 lovers =3Oct 20 19:47
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[schestowitz/@schestowitz] #HP announces #Palm Pre 2 with WebOS 2.0 http://ur1.ca/24rl9 "1GHz Palm Pre 2, as well as a major WebOS 2.0 update" !llinuxOct 20 19:47
TechrightsBot-trTitle: HP announces Palm Pre 2 with WebOS 2.0 - News - Linux for Devices .::. Size~: 55.63 KBOct 20 19:47
jimbo_vm_bware might be buying mono/moonlie as an injection vectorOct 20 19:48
jimbo_for gallium3dOct 20 19:48
jimbo_piggyback on other patent trojansOct 20 19:48
jimbo_you can probably find more info about thisOct 20 19:49
jimbo_this is only a startOct 20 19:49
jimbo_but I find it highly suspectOct 20 19:49
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[nhi/@nhi] â™» @eff: Geotag, You're It! https://eff.org/r.2tv Android and iOS respect your geolocation settings. Check them!Oct 20 19:49
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[nhi/@nhi] â™» @schestowitz: #HP announces #Palm Pre 2 with WebOS 2.0 http://ur1.ca/24rl9 "1GHz Palm Pre 2, as well as a major WebOS 2.0 update"Oct 20 19:49
-TRIdentica/#techrights-[schestowitz/@schestowitz] Sheesh! When Will Folks Acknowledge GNU/Linux Has Arrived? http://ur1.ca/24rlo Linux dead? 2000 called, wants headline back...Oct 20 19:49
TechrightsBot-trTitle: Geotag, You're It! What Your Smartphone Might Be Saying Behind Your Back | Privacy Rights Clearinghouse .::. Size~: 26.47 KBOct 20 19:49
jimbo_too much of a coincidenceOct 20 19:49
TechrightsBot-trTitle: HP announces Palm Pre 2 with WebOS 2.0 - News - Linux for Devices .::. Size~: 55.63 KBOct 20 19:49
TechrightsBot-trTitle: ur1 Generator .::. Size~: 1.93 KBOct 20 19:49
jimbo_good nightOct 20 19:49
*jimbo_ has quit (Quit: Page closed)Oct 20 19:50


Assuming there is intent to just promote Microsoft APIs, OpenSUSE ought to escape Novell/VMB_ware by forking and breaking away from Novell trademarks (VMB_ware has no real development communities). There is an OpenSUSE Conference (OSC) these days [1, 2], but apart from that, almost nothing is going on at OpenSUSE anymore. Andreas Jaeger has just announced a new release of OSB, but that's about it:

The openSUSE Build Service – OBS – is now officially at release 2.1. We’re delighted with the improvements in this release, including an enhanced web interface, integration with online code management systems and better access controls.


More here:

Tomorrow the openSUSE Conference is beginning in the always-wonderful Germany for a three-day event about the openSUSE project and free software in general with a variety of hacking sessions, birds of a feather sessions, and surely some Nürnberg beer along the way. Sadly due to some last minute scheduling changes and only getting back from San Diego yesterday, I on the behalf of Phoronix will not be in attendance at the German conference, but there is openSUSE news to report today: version 2.1 of the openSUSE Build Service has just been released.


In order for OpenSUSE to secure a GNU/Linux direction, its developers may have to get dissociated from Novell before it's sold to the Microsoft executives who run VMB_ware. It seems as though they are quite interested in the Mono part, which is Novell's crown jewel (in its own eyes at least).

Recent Techrights' Posts

UKIP TV (GBNoise) Covers Challengers to UKIP Nigel, Daniel Pocock Mentioned
Way to get noticed
 
Misleading Coverage in Slashdot Promotes and Openwashes Slop
Piggybacking RMS for the headline seems like a PR stunt of sorts
As Envisioned, a Rebellion and Many Whistleblowers at Microsoft
Whistleblowers ensure Microsoft has totally lost control of the "narrative" (face-saving PR)
Microsoft is a Right-Wing Company
Just remember that when people call Microsoft "woke"
GNU/Linux "Market Share" Rises to About a Quarter in Sudan
Can anyone explain to us why?
Gemini Links 19/07/2026: Visiting Ethiopia, Two Dreams, and Price of Skinnerboxes
Links for the day
Tears in IBM, Company Falls Apart While Management Fakes "Performance" to Take Bonuses
Wall Street is a naked emperor
Telling Our Story
In the coming years we'll have some high-impact stories to share and generally tell without fear of reprisal
Microsoft XBox Studio Leaders Upset at What the New CEO Did
From what we can gather, in 2024 XBox was already entering what's known as a "death spiral". Now it's literally moving down the drain/pipe.
IRC Started in Finland, GNU/Linux Did Not
History is like that
GNU/Linux Rises to 8% in Bhutan, Same as the International Average
Taking note of estimated GNU/Linux share in that country, we see it hovering around the international median/average this month
Links 19/07/2026: "The Voice of Google" and "Chinese Surveillance Tech a Threat to Privacy"
Links for the day
Keep Both Eyes on the Ball
At the moment we have six series running in parallel; two of them concern the EPO
'Journalists' Who Help IBM Cover Up Fraud
Journalistic malpractice
The "Modern Linux" Song
Join us now, make the kernel
XBox Layoffs Vastly Bigger Than Microsoft Told the Press, Microsoft Keeps Trying to Change the Subject
Many so-called "XBox fans" are no more
Microsoft Lost 1,200 Billion Dollars in "Market Value", Take a Look at What Happened to Windows
while Windows continues to fall unstoppably GNU/Linux is surging
Links 19/07/2026: People in China Are Buying Feelings and 404 Media Has Third Anniversary
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/07/2026: Camping, Health, and Hardware
Links for the day
The State of Slopfarms
Slopfarms or LLM slopfarms are a menace and a problem on the Web
GNU/Linux Rising to 6% in Brunei
seventh in the world for GDP (PPP) per capita
Free Software is Like an 'Activist Movement'
People who argue strongly in favour of something (even very good things) will attract the wrath of those whom they oppose
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, July 18, 2026
IRC logs for Saturday, July 18, 2026
Links 18/07/2026: Chinese State Media Depicting Neighbours as Monkeys, US "Stocks Sink on Anxiety About Tech and Hey Hi (AI) Spending"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 18/07/2026: "Business Idiots Everywhere", "The Siren Song of DePIN", and Entering Geminispace
Links for the day
GNU/Linux in Lithuanian Desktops/Laptops Climbs to 8%, the Global Average
For its own national security it would be wise to abandon Windows
This Bubble is Bursting, Piecewise
It's nice to see Wall Street getting some reality checks
It's Not About XBox, Microsoft is Already Firing Hundreds of People Who Do "Security [sic] Engineering" [sic]
The official reason/excuse/lie told is something about slop, but no sane person would buy it (not even insiders who are impacted)
Can We Finally All Agree That UEFI 'Secure Boot' is a Sham That Harms Security and Gives Microsoft Remote Control Over All PCs and Servers (Even Those That Don't Run Any Microsoft Software)?
Cui bono?
Bolivian People Adopt GNU/Linux (They Have a Domestic Distro Too, PluriOS)
Notice Windows falling to an all-time low
No Technical People Write About UK Parliamentary Elections
Almost none of them work in the media, which seems to favour parrots, slop, or parrots that use slop
"But Stallman is Scaring Away Women..."
Such dishonest projections (projection tactics) needs to be called out and refuted
First Female Debian Project Leader (DPL) Affirms Low Profile and Inferior Status of Women in GAFAM
3 months ago Sruthi Chandran was elected as Debian Project Leader (DPL) for a period of 12 months
After 5 Years Vista 11 Still Adopted Less Than Its Predecessor (Orphaned, End of Life Since Last Year)
Notice Windows going down to 40%
We Don't Depend on Google (or Search Engines in General)
there's a lesson here and it extends beyond sites
Only "Torvaldos" (Linus Torvalds) Can Use the F-Word, CoC Does Not Apply to the Enforcer, and Richard Stallman Punished for Using the Other F-Word ("Freedom")
"Linus Torvalds tells AI haters to fork off"
Explaining the Culture of Bulletin Board-Style Chat
Only desperate detractors would try to present something (cherry-picked) from IRC as some sort of official statement for Techrights
Independent, But Not Fringe
"Daniel Pocock is an Independent Candidate."
In Free Software, Nobody Gets Fired
Way to own one's code and project
PIP-Styled Mass Layoffs Allegedly Coming to Microsoft by 12 August 2026
Microsoft has been doing "silent layoffs" (PIPs and more) for quite some time
Daniel Pocock's Candidacy (Election of Member of Parliament) Mentioned in BBC and Over a Dozen News Sites Since Yesterday
Funnily enough, albeit not surprisingly, the same people who attack Pocock also attack us
Links 18/07/2026: Spotify Uses Slop Song Descriptions, "San Francisco Demands Removal of Nudify Apps"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, July 17, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, July 17, 2026
Gemini Links 18/07/2026: A Manifesto by The Dissident, Shokz Headphones, and Gemini Tinylog Reader (GTL)
Links for the day
IBM Already Tentatively Down for Next Week (Monday) After Its Worst-Ever Week
What a week for IBM!
Daniel Pocock as Independent Candidate, Now in The London Standard
"Daniel Pocock is an independent candidate."
Links 17/07/2026: Protests Erupt Throughout Ukraine and Anthropic Caught Secretly Spying on Users
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/07/2026: "Silence Doesn't Mean Abandoned", Revisiting PalmOS in 2026
Links for the day
Andy Burnham as National Leader Would be Excellent for Techrights
Burnham has envisioned a British "centre of power" (or gravity) that moves northwards, isn't concentrated in the southeast anymore
Farage Out, Daniel Pocock in?
Can Pocock beat his previous voting record?
Layoffs at Microsoft Are Massive, Go Under the Radar for the Most Part
Microsoft is in a really bad shape
One Heck of a Week for IBM, the 'Grandpa' of 'High-Tech', International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) Under Investigation by Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC
If IBM gets busted or might be busted, will the CEO jump, get pushed, or be arrested?
In Defence of Courts' Privacy Policies
If you want friends, go offline. Meet real people and share real experiences.
Why I Quit Academic Career (or Academia) Nearly 15 Years Ago
I am told by people who stayed that it has only gotten worse
“Why Open Source Misses the Point of Free Software”
As Dr. Richard Stallman once put it
GNU/Linux Grows at the Expense of Microsoft Windows in Croatia, Now Close to 8%
Croatia has been mentioned a lot lately in relation to EPO "lobbying" (vote-rigging)
27-Year IBM Veteran on IBM: "Worse than the Titanic and Perhaps Just Like Madoff, Enron, etc."
several comments we saw today envisioned the CEO of IBM in an orange suit (in US prison)
EPO "Cocaine Communication Manager" - Part XV - Nazi-Like Thinking at the European Patent Office (EPO) Not a Thing of the Past
antisemitism inside the EPO
Daniel Pocock Running for Office Again, Clacton-on-Sea By-election
By-election - code name "Pocock-on-Sea"
ServiceNow/ServiceLine and Slop at the EPO is Becoming a Health Risk to Staff
PD44 has historically been the oppressor at the EPO
IBM Can Burn Pensioners to Appease Wall Street and Protect the Billionaire CEO With His Humongous Bonuses
Its stock it set to open 2.82% in the red
IBM SHAREHOLDER INVESTIGATION: Potential Securities Claims Involving International Business Machines (IBM)
there's a risk of criminal action against executives
Tux Machines Moving Onwards and Upwards
"...tasks expand to fill the time available"
The Register MS is Publishing Spam for Gartner Group to Spread Hype About "AI", Mentioned 30 Times in the Paid (Fake) Article
One sure thing is, the so-called 'tech media' is profoundly compromised by American corporations
"Market Share" of GNU/Linux Nearly Trebled in Cambodia This Month
GNU/Linux is still measured at 8% by statCounter
GitHub is Dying (Traffic Down Despite Bots and Slop), Microsoft Will Eventually Cull it - Just Like XBox - to Limit the Losses
Do not stay on GitHub (Microsoft) under the false assumption that it is "free hosting" or will always be around
Teaser: Daniel Pocock is About to Go Mainstream Again
Stay tuned, Pocock has something in store
Microsoft Has Just Been Sued Over Layoffs
If the rumours are true, there is yet another wave of layoffs at Microsoft
Richard Stallman Always Cautioned, Upfront, That His Political Views Were Wholly Separate From His Scientific Work or GNU
Notice that he already spoke a lot about politics
Links 17/07/2026: Microsoft is Cutting OneDrive Coverage, Larry Ellison Sued by Paramount Investor
Links for the day
Nichirei and Asahi Beer Need to Take Cyberattacks as Hint of Opportunity to Move to Free Software
Windows TCO
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 16, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, July 16, 2026
Gemini Links 17/07/2026: Sunlight in the Clouds, Techno-Therapy, and Sloppifying Original Text
Links for the day