Summary: Highlighting of some FUD from blogs that claim to be covering "Open Source"
EARLIER today we said we would watch out for FUD emerging from the Oracle-Google case [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]. We have already covered and refuted the FUD pattern which says that Oracle will 'kill' Android. That's the party line which seems to be most beneficial to Apple.
Several fear-mongering bloggers have said that the whole of Android is at risk and now Linux too. Despite the fact that Oracle depends on GNU/Linux, develops a little for Linux, and even releases
new software for GNU/Linux, there is ZDNet spin from Paula Rooney, who argues that
Oracle is ready to "take Linux to court". [
via Sam Dean]
Now, armed with the recent Bilski decision, Ellison is ready to do what Microsoft has not done : take Linux to court.
This is not true. Microsoft has actually taken Linux to court when
it sued TomTom. For Oracle it would make no sense to do this. Oracle targets not Linux but Java -- or more precisely -- copies of it. The whole "Android is dead" or "Oracle is attacking Linux" noise is pure FUD. Julie Bort, IDG's editor of the Microsoft Subnet and fauxopen source blog resorts to a different form of FUD by legitimising Microsoft MVP de Icaza and
defending Oracle's action in some ways. Her colleague Shimel, who
works for a Microsoft partner, uses
another form of FUD. That's why we've been warning about the "Open Source" blogs in IDG and ZDNet. They are run by people who are somewhat hostile towards Open Source. Why is Google News even syndicating those blogs as though they are "news" authorities? It only creates a pool of disinformation.
⬆
"The author of the email, posted on ZDNet in a Talkback forum on the Microsoft antitrust trial, claimed her name was Michelle Bradley and that she had "retired" from Microsoft last week.
""A verbal memo [no email allowed] was passed around the MS campus encouraging MS employee's to post to ZDNet articles like this one," the email said.
""The theme is 'Microsoft is responsible for all good things in computerdom.' The government has no right to prevent MS from doing anything. Period. The 'memo' suggests we use fictional names and state and to identify ourselves as students," the author claimed."
--Wired Magazine
Comments
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2010-08-18 03:22:18
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 13:46:31
Meanwhile the OIN announced a university initiative to add to the mobile technology patent thicket. Just a few days after failing to protect Android.
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 13:49:14
That's because these are the blogs that talk to you (Julie and Dana for starters), the rest ignore your repeated mails to them.
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 14:16:41
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 14:22:41
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 15:29:48
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 14:25:08
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 14:29:56
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 15:02:24
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 15:20:02
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 15:28:19
Anyway, I was asking not whether there is a "Microsoft talking point in [your] comments", I asked who is funding your current campaigning, like Monty and Real Madrid for example funded you to do so. I asked even something simpler: does Microsoft (or a partner) compensate you?
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 15:35:50
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 15:37:59
Florian Mueller
2010-08-17 15:46:50
I have areas in which I agree with Microsoft and areas in which I disagree with them. Just because you believe one must disagree with them 100% of the time doesn't mean that's really the right approach, nor that it's the best one to defend FOSS interests.
I actually think your website, too, would benefit from recognizing that sometimes they are on the right side, maybe not even for the same reasons as others on the right side, but that's secondary as long as FOSS, innovation and competition are defended the way they should be. When IBM commits monopoly abuse, we can't let them get away with it just because Microsoft says it wants to open up the mainframe market, especially if the most important complaint in the whole context comes from a FOSS company whose stuff is available for GNU/Linux, too.
Dr. Roy Schestowitz
2010-08-17 16:17:07