01.04.16
Microsoft Tries to Conquer Asia’s Largest Populations (India, China) But Still Fails and Should be Stubbornly Rejected
“They’ll get sort of addicted, and then we’ll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade.”
Summary: As India and China, whose combined population is now approaching 3 billion people, turn to Free/libre software there are efforts by Microsoft to put an end to all that and interject Microsoft (with very strong NSA links) into their national infrastructure and ICT systems
TECHRIGHTS does not write much about Microsoft anymore because Microsoft is frail compared to one decade ago. Nadella is now hinting at the possibility of ending Windows on phones altogether because of the massive losses. Android (and by generalisation Linux) won the war — a point made by Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols earlier today.
“How stupid does Microsoft think the Chinese are?”Days ago we saw some disturbing articles which suggest Microsoft is trying to interfere with China’s migration to its distributions of GNU/Linux (see Microsoft influence in Asia). Microsoft — and occasionally Bill Gates personally — try to get Chinese people to put malware (most insecure ever) on their PCs. Despite the NSA “elephant in the room”, despite the cost, and so on. Vista 10 is not an operating system but malware calling itself an operating system. How stupid does Microsoft think the Chinese are? Every person with a clue knows that Vista 10 has been more or less designed to suck up data and dominate over the users. Microsoft Windows is going the way of the dodo and enters the territories of nagware, covert (forced) installs, and Microsoft boosters are at the moment trying to pretend that there is a way to opt out (that’s the themes of several articles from Microsoft’s messengers in the media). But as Empty Wheel pointed out earlier today, “Microsoft spreads FUD” to pressure people to move to Vista 10.
“If you’re an oldster IT person like me,” wrote the author at Empty Wheel, “you recall the Halloween memo scandal of 1998, documenting Microsoft’s practice of promulgating fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) about competing operating systems in order to gain and control Windows market share. For more than a decade, Microsoft relied on FUD to ensure near-ubiquity of Windows and Word software products. Now Microsoft is using FUD not to prevent customers from using other products, but to encourage migration from Windows 7 to Windows 10, to reduce possible state-sponsored attacks on Win 7 systems.
“Microsoft is now lobbying China, however, based on various articles about its efforts to derail GNU/Linux in China’s public sector — as if they’ll foolishly take the bait.”“Personally, I think Microsoft has already been ridiculously ham-handed in its push for Win 10 upgrades before this latest FUD. If you are a Win 7 or Win 8 user, you’ve already seen attempts to migrate users embedded in recent security patches (read: crapware). I’ve had enough FUD for a lifetime — I’m already running open source operating systems Linux and Android on most of my devices. I would kill for an Android desktop or laptop…”
Empty Wheel is a good Web site that usually explores issues such as mass surveillance, espionage, and covert operations. It can definitely give the Chinese government very compelling reasons to tell Microsoft to go away and leave China alone. Microsoft is now lobbying China, however, based on various articles about its efforts to derail GNU/Linux in China’s public sector — as if they’ll foolishly take the bait. Let’s see how long it takes for the Gates Foundation to flex its lobbying muscles there.
“As Modi has been visiting Microsoft executives we sure hope he has the strength and the integrity to say “No” to Nadella.”Meanwhile, further south in Asia, Microsoft shamelessly attacks India’s technology policy, for merely ‘daring’ to not be kind enough to Microsoft. Recall these recent stories (especially from 2015) about Microsoft’s attacks on Free software in India. Microsoft India hates Free software and it constantly shows it. Remember what Microsoft did in India with EDGI. Also remember that Microsoft is trying to bring to India software patents, despite Indians not wanting these. Microsoft is lobbying in so-called conferences, with its CEO present (and supposedly his Indian roots are somehow supposed to compel Indian politicians to trust such a villainous company). To quote this new article, “Pramanik said that at a recent Microsoft conference which was attended by its global chief Satya Nadella, both communications and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and IT secretary JS Deepak had strongly emphasized the need for a policy that leverages the use of public cloud infrastructure.”
“Cloud” is just a nonsensical term that has become almost synonymous with or a byword for mass surveillance. To let Microsoft anywhere in India’s public sector would be worse than irresponsible. It’s a serious degradation of India’s autonomy, privacy, national interests, and national security. The same goes for China, and this is why China has been moving away from Microsoft and banning Windows, Office, etc. (especially the more recent versions with “cloud” — meaning surveillance — in them).
As Modi has been visiting Microsoft executives we sure hope he has the strength and the integrity to say “No” to Nadella. He should host everything locally, by Indian companies, using Free software, and without software patents (which in themselves are a huge threat to Free software). India has all the talent and the resources that it takes to be technologically independent in the realm of software. The same goes for China, especially so in the realm of hardware. █
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