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Don't Believe the Lies; Microsoft Hates Linux and Merely Pulls E.E.E. Tactics Against It, Including .NET Promotion

Making GNU/Linux work the 'Microsoft way' so as to give Microsoft greater control

'We had some painful experiences with C and C++, and when Microsoft came out with .NET, we said, "Yes! That is what we want."'

--Miguel de Icaza, now Microsoft employee



Summary: A warning about lots of prepared (in advance) Microsoft brainwash, or intentionally misleading material that strives to portray Microsoft as a friend of GNU/Linux even though the company actively attacks GNU/Linux and tries to bring the competitor under its own control

WHILE we prefer to focus on the EPO and the US patent system's software patents (the USPTO still grants them, but courts barely tolerate these), something happened today which we cannot simply brush off and ignore.



"It's all about proprietary software. There's nothing to celebrate here."If one believes the lie, Microsoft now "loves Linux" and has officially joined the Linux Foundation. I have already responded to that over at Tux Machines where I also included many dozens of links to today's nonsense (reproduced below), which was virtually everywhere. Remember these were quietly prepared in coordination with Microsoft/Linux Foundation before the announcements were actually made. It's a well-orchestrated PR blitz that came out within an hour or two, reaching a lot of news channels simultaneously and drowning out opposition/scepticism. Almost all the links are there, except newer ones that we've found since, e.g. [1, 2] (it is a multi-faceted E.E.E. move that serves to also impose .NET and proprietary SQL Server on more users). There are reactions on the Web from pro-GNU/Linux people who are not so easily fooled or mesmorised by the torrent of Microsoft propaganda, delivered primarily by Microsoft-friendly writers who got groomed and prepared for it at least a day in advance (one writer accidentally published his article half a day too early and quickly took it down, he told us). There is relevance to patents, as one Red Hat employee put it: "I do wonder what #Microsoft joining #Linux foundation means wrt to those 250+ patents #Microsoft licenses to #Android OEMs."

Compare that to optimism from those who got paid to write Microsoft-friendly puff pieces in a Windows site lately. No doubt there will be a lot more puff pieces about it in the coming days, maybe also some editorials critical of the move (I got approached for comments).

It is not a “love affair” but an attack on GNU/Linux, a classic E.E.E. move. It is imposing .NET on us, too. It's all about proprietary software. There's nothing to celebrate here. It's not a victory for the Linux Foundation but a defeat; they finally sold out as Microsoft bought them off for just half a million dollars (slush funds to Microsoft).

Related/contextual items from the news:



  1. Microsoft Steps Up Its Commitment to Open Source
    Today The Linux Foundation is announcing that we’ve welcomed Microsoft as a Platinum member. I’m honored to join Scott Guthrie, executive VP of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise Group, at the Connect(); developer event in New York and expect to be able to talk more in the coming months about how we’ll intensify our work together for the benefit of the open source community at large.


  2. Microsoft Joins The Linux Foundation As A Platinum Member


  3. Microsoft's Linux love affair leads it to join The Linux Foundation
    No, this isn't The Onion and it's not April Fool's Day. Microsoft has joined The Linux Foundation.

    Microsoft announced that it was joining forces with The Linux Foundation at the Microsoft Connect developer event in New York.


  4. Microsoft announces the next version SQL Server for Windows and Linux
  5. Microsoft joins The Linux Foundation as a Platinum member
  6. Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation
  7. Microsoft—yes, Microsoft—joins the Linux Foundation
  8. THE END TIMES ARE HERE: Microsoft embraces Google, Apple, Samsung and even Linux in one go
  9. Microsoft's open source love fest continues as it joins Linux Foundation
  10. Microsoft Goes Linux Platinum, Welcomes Google To .NET Foundation
  11. Microsoft joins Linux Foundation in another nod to open-source code
  12. Microsoft Is Joining the Linux Foundation
  13. Microsoft Joins Linux Foundation
  14. Microsoft joins Linux Foundation in another step toward greater openness
  15. Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation, 15 years after Ballmer called it 'cancer'
  16. Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation as a Platinum member, Google joins .Net community
  17. Microsoft is now a Linux Foundation Platinum Member
  18. That's an expensive Linux install! Microsoft gives the Linux foundation $550000
  19. Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation because 2016 isn't weird enough already
  20. Microsoft just got its Linux Foundation platinum card, becomes top level member
  21. 4 no-bull takeaways from Microsoft joining the Linux Foundation
  22. Microsoft announces the public preview of the next release of SQL Server on Linux and Windows
  23. Microsoft Joins Linux Foundation, Google Joins .NET Community
  24. Microsoft just joined the Linux Foundation as a Platinum member
  25. Linux has won, Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation
  26. Microsoft is joining the Linux foundation as a platinum member
  27. Microsoft joins Linux Foundation, Google added to .NET community
  28. Microsoft seeks to grow Azure platform with products, partnerships
  29. Microsoft Joins Linux Foundation As Platinum Member
  30. Microsoft Fortifies Commitment to Open Source, Becomes Linux Foundation Platinum Member
  31. Microsoft contributes to open ecosystem by joining Linux Foundation and welcoming Google to the .NET community
  32. Linux Academy Partners with Microsoft Visual Studio Dev Essentials Program
  33. Microsoft Joins the Linux Foundation as the World Remains the Right Side Up
  34. Hell freezes over as Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation
  35. Microsoft Joins Linux Foundation as a Platinum Member
  36. Microsoft Connect: Visual Studio 2017, SQL Server v.Next for Windows and Linux and More
  37. SQL Server joins the Linux party, new preview comes to Linux and Docker
  38. Microsoft joins The Linux Foundation
  39. Google joins .Net Foundation
  40. Microsoft and Google bury the hatchet in one small way
  41. Google joins Microsoft's .NET Foundation
  42. Microsoft announces Visual Studio for Mac, preview of the next SQL Server with Linux and Docker support
  43. Microsoft's SQL Server Next for Linux, Windows hit public preview [Ed: Proprietary software with surveillance is not a gift]


  44. Google signs on to the .NET Foundation as Samsung brings .NET support to Tizen
    Microsoft is hosting its annual Connect(); developer event in New York today. With .NET being at the core of many of its efforts, including on the open-source side, it's no surprise that the event also featured a few .NET-centric announcements...


  45. Samsung launches Visual Studio Tools for Tizen preview, lets developers build apps with .NET
  46. Microsoft joins the Linux Foundation, welcomes Google to .NET community
  47. Microsoft releases SQL Server Preview for Ubuntu and Red Hat Enterprise Linux
  48. Microsoft says Linux is no longer 'cancer,' joining Foundation


  49. Samsung Joins Microsoft .NET, C# Developers to Build Apps for Tizen Devices


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