08.17.10

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ZDNet and IDG ‘Open Source’ Blogs Use Oracle for FUD

Posted in FUD, GNU/Linux, Google, Java, Oracle at 8:40 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

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. █

ZDNet

“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

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15 Comments

  1. Florian Mueller said,

    August 17, 2010 at 8:46 am

    Gravatar

    I don’t agree with you that those are “fauxpen source blogs”. But anyway, in terms of FOSS bloggers who are worried about FOSS being under attack, Dana Blankenhorn just published this an hour or so ago:
    http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/oracle-aims-to-destroy-open-source-software-industry/7172?tag=content;blog-prespectives-roto
    “Oracle aims to destroy open source software industry”

    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 Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 8:49 am

    I don’t agree with you that those are “fauxpen source blogs”.

    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 Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 9:16 am

    the rest ignore your repeated mails to them.
    That’s not true. You can see my quotes on Oracle-Google in plenty of media. Here’s a list (“non-exhaustive” like IBM’s patent list):
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/16/google_oracle_android_lawsuit/
    http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/oracle-sues-google-over-androids-java-8984
    http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/oracle-google-suit-challenges-open-source-establishment/7142
    http://www.zdnet.co.uk/news/mobile-devices/2010/08/13/oracle-sues-google-over-androids-use-of-java-40089818/
    http://gigaom.com/2010/08/13/oracle-vs-google-what-the-web-is-saying/
    http://www.channelweb.co.uk/v3/news/2268113/oracle-sues-google-android
    http://reddevnews.com/articles/2010/08/13/oracle-sues-google.aspx
    http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/203277/oracle_signals_an_end_to_opensolaris.html <= IDG News, so this one got published on a number of websites around the globe
    http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/Google-calls-Oracle-s-lawsuit-an-attack-on-open-source-Java-1059454.html <= this author may be the most knowledgeable full-time IT journalist in terms of actual programming expertise
    http://gcn.com/Articles/2010/08/16/ECG-Oracle-Sues-Google.aspx?Page=2
    http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2268229/google-hits-back-baseless

    Florian Mueller Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 9:22 am

    I tried to use the HTML quote tag for the sentence at the start, which is a quote from you. Didn’t work. Next time I’ll try blockquote then.
    Anyway, have fun reading those articles ;-)

    Dr. Roy Schestowitz Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:29 am

    I’ve just increased the links limit to 20.

    Florian Mueller Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 9:25 am

    I just posted a list of roughly a dozen links to articles that quoted me on Oracle-Google, but the comment is now “awaiting moderation”. Maybe that’s due to that quantity of links.

    Dr. Roy Schestowitz Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:02 am

    I’m sure Microsoft is pleased with your “campaigning”.

    Florian Mueller Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:20 am

    It would be nice if you could activate the posting that’s awaiting moderation because the list of links proves that you didn’t rightly claim that only a couple of blogs quote me. At any rate, please look at what I told the media and I’d be interested to hear if there’s even one Microsoft talking point in my comments. If you find anything that you consider to be a Microsoft talking point, I’m sure you can also provide examples of where Microsoft or undoubtedly Microsoft-aligned people say those kinds of things. You follow them a lot more than I do.

    Dr. Roy Schestowitz Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:28 am

    You’re right. The number of links had it trapped for moderation.

    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 Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:35 am

    You didn’t ask whether there’s a Microsoft talking point. You simply allege campaigning on Microsoft’s behalf and I’d like to see a factual basis for the assumption. James Gosling says Microsoft has the moral high ground now in the industry; I didn’t even praise Microsoft like that, I just said others use their patents in a fundamentally worse way. So ask James Gosling before you ask me, especially since I had answered.

    Dr. Roy Schestowitz Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:37 am

    You didn’t, you evaded the question.

    Florian Mueller Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 10:46 am

    What you call evading the question I call the most efficient way to deal with all of those inquiries from everyone. I promise to notify you the moment I have something to announce regarding whatever company.

    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 Reply:
    August 17th, 2010 at 11:17 am

    That’s an entirely separate topic.

  2. twitter said,

    August 17, 2010 at 10:22 pm

    Gravatar

    Ha! Florian adds links to his FUD and noise to an article about Fauxpen Source noise and FUD. Way to go!

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