Bonum Certa Men Certa

More "Mass Layoffs" at Microsoft and a Strategic Pivot to Trashing the Reputation of GNU/Linux, Instead

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Dec 22, 2023

Broken Windows.

Bullet Holes in Window

OUR LATEST BUT NOT LAST article about Microsoft layoffs ("Microsoft Dismantled Before Christmas: Layoffs and Even Wholesale Shutdowns") struck a nerve. It seems like many people at Microsoft read our articles about Microsoft layoffs - a subject long suppressed or massively downplayed by Microsoft-sponsored media.

This week there are reports of "mass layoffs" (see below; here's more context) at Microsoft, which was grifting with "defence" contracts (bailouts) under the guise of "HoloLens" years after it had already fired all the staff (of the company bought for 'hype factor').

Here's the latest. From today's news:

  1. Microsoft is nixing its Windows mixed reality platform

    Additionally, Microsoft has made sweeping cuts throughout its VR division, leading to layoffs and the discontinuation of the AltspaceVR app.

  2. Microsoft deprecates its own VR platform, what will happen to the headsets?

    The future of the Hololens AR headset is uncertain after mass layoffs...

  3. Microsoft’s End to AR: Which other Products would be Affected?

    The shutdown involves discontinuing the Mixed Reality Portal app along with Windows Mixed Reality for SteamVR and Steam VR Beta. The exact date for these changes to take effect is unclear. The Deprecated Features page on Microsoft’s Learn website mentions that they will “be removed in a future release of Windows,” but no specific timeline is provided. The end of Windows Mixed Reality doesn’t come as a surprise, as Microsoft has been gradually reducing its focus on virtual reality (VR), as noted by TheVerge in their coverage.

We expect more to come, but maybe some of it will be Microsoft-sponsored face-saving slant/spin. Remember they count on these buzzwords for bailouts - we've covered this very subject for years already! They keep advancing to more (or newer) buzzwords to seem innovative ("market leader!") and spread puff pieces referring to such buzzwords as an "arms race" to lure the Pentagon into more insane contracts. The US Army contractors can make trillion of dollars - money created out of soaring debt, shouldered by American taxpayers (or offspring of theirs).

So what will happen to the Microsofters who lose their job? How many lost their job or contract (the latter term lets them hide the true scale of corporate layoffs; the media caught up with that)? 30,000+ Microsoft layoffs this year? Definitely well over 20,000, at least by our tally....

Earlier today we mentioned "The Microsoft Effect", a mindset floating the idea (FUD) that nothing works but that's ok because it's expected and normal for "tech" and therefore since it all sucks there is no point in exploring other options and one should just stay with Microsoft. It's a kind of enforced apathy or defeatism and yet very prevalent. "I also think that it's part of the various campaigns like the one still running which is distorting log4j's relevance," one person said to us.

Right now Microsoft (or Microsofters) is trying to sell this illusion that GNU/Linux is extremely unsafe [1, 2]. They've definitely ramped up the ridiculous attack pieces. We see it every this month. They attribute to "Linux" things that aren't Linux or blame breaches on "Linux" for systems not updated for over half a decade! The exploits aren't even targeting Linux. Sometimes the administrators install malware themselves!

Come on, who are you folks kidding?

Consider this new example ("Krasue RAT Malware: A New Threat to Linux Systems"). It's not new and it impacts not Linux but Apache, userspace etc. (we rebutted this before)

How would readers react of the media blamed "Windows" for Adobe Photoshop-caused breaches, taking advantage of Photoshop installations that have not been updated for 5 years despite critical (and known) flaws? And yes, Photoshop runs outside Windows too, adding to the ridiculousness of such an assertion.

Focus on Microsoft's collapse and be wary of "Linux" stigmatisation attempts. Companies and governments should not stay with Windows (legacy, burning platform); it's objectively dangerous and "Linux" is not "equally unsafe".

'We recommend that we *informally* plant the bug of FUD in their ears. "Have you heard about problems with DR DOS?"'

--Internal Microsoft communication [PDF]

Other Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft Market Share Falling to New Lows in Aruba
Being below 20% in America is the exception, not the norm
Streaming in a Few Minutes: Julian Assange Press Conference
They test the microphone now.
Debian Project Still Has a Lot of Explaining to Do...
Assange was actually a Debian Developer
Sheriff of Cork & Debian Edward Brocklesby or Brockelsby Street confusion
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
"Conviction for a Crime he Did Not Commit," Said Jennifer Robinson
Robinson is the kind of woman accomplisher we should look up to
An Extended Statement on Julian Assange
Assange's release was not important enough to "make the cut" for News, only "tweets" and other Social Control Media nonsense.
 
Links 26/06/2024: More on Hey Hi (AI) Bubble Fading, RIAA Steps in
Links for the day
Gemini Links 26/06/2024: UAF Botanical Garden and YouTube Workarounds
Links for the day
[Video] Julian Assange Arrives Safely in Australia
even the person on the air cried
[Meme] When Ian (of Debian) Was Still Alive
I wasn't always a Debian Developer...
"Julian Assange is Free"
Published ~34 minutes ago
GNU/Linux Userbase Surging in Iceland
Maybe there's something big going on, like people deleting Vista 11 in droves and installing GNU/Linux instead
Jennifer Robinson: "After 14 years of legal battles, Julian Assange can go home a free man”
She explains the implications for the general freedom of the press
Judge: Assange Leaves Court 'A Free Man'
on his way to Australia now
Julian Assange verdict: guilty, not guilty or blackmailed
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
12 Months Ago the FSF Said It Would Issue a Statement on IBM Taking RHEL Proprietary
Statement never happened
Microsoft's Bing Fall From 2.6% Before LLM Hype to Just 0.79% Right Now in Russia
statCounter's data
[Meme] Speaking Truth to Power (Still Easier in the West Than in Russia/BRIC)
Different people, different outcomes
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 25, 2024
IRC logs for Tuesday, June 25, 2024
The Plot to Silence (or Deplatform) Techrights
This past month I've been spending time working on the text of an online publication
[Meme] Julian Assange's Lawyers Need to Ensure Assange Maintains Freedom to Publish
Let's ensure he can continue to publish
Trying to Make Blogs (Independent and Mostly Decentralised Platforms) What Comes After Social Control Media
Social Control Networks 'stole the thunder' of blogs, but can we get back to blogs?
Julian Assange Has Landed
There will probably be some press interviews some time this month or next month
L is for Linux and Lao
Lao should really have something called LaOS
[Meme] Need More Sites Like Wikileaks, Not Less
On US government vs Wikileaks
We Know Who Stands to Gain From the Demise of the Press
the Assange release was a win for his family, but likely a dire loss for press freedom
[Meme] Think Twice Before Exposing or 'Embarrassing' Powerful People and Interests
The United States government has basically won the Assange case
The Open Source Initiative (OSI) is Openwashing, Ben Cotton (Fedora) Acknowledges It, Fails to See How Bribes Led to That
As if... it "just happened"
Links 25/06/2024: RAM Stress, COVID Graft
Links for the day
Gemini Links 25/06/2024: Hey Hi Punditry and Right to Repair
Links for the day
Links 25/06/2024: Julian Assange Freed From Prison, "AI" Bubble Imploding Some More
Links for the day
Three Points About Julian Assange Plea Deal
There is still a secret problem
[Meme] EFF Became a 'Bunch of Pussies' Working for GAFAM (and Sponsored by GAFAM)
It won't protect people, except very rich people's interests
IBM Does Not Care for the Blind (Wayland Harms Accessibility)
What a punch in the gut
Who Is This Backup FOR, the NSA?
As Admfubar put it, "backups for everyone..."
Tux Machines Past 20: Still Thriving
Now 20 years and 2 weeks old
[Meme] Microsoft is Coming /Home
"LOL, REAL SORRY!!!"
Microsoft's Siege of Libya Coming to an End
One might be tempted to guess the users deleted Windows and installed something else
Gemini Links 25/06/2024: Old Computer Challenge; An Opinionated GNU/Linux Guide
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, June 24, 2024
IRC logs for Monday, June 24, 2024
IEEE Computer Society on Andrew Tanenbaum, Winner of ACM Award, Who Also Inspired Linux Development
10 years ago
New Talk by Dr. Richard Stallman Published Two Days Ago By CeSIUM - Centro de Estudantes de Engenharia Informática da Universidade do Minho (Portugal)
The FSF no longer mentions Richard Stallman's talks, but we will
FSF Looking to Raise Money by Adding 200 New Members by July 19
The FSF is in good shape, according to Alexandre Oliva
Not Only Does It Not Add Security... (UEFI as a 'Bug Door')
SecureCore?
Data From Monaco Should Alarm Microsoft
Just how many people are deleting Windows and installing something else this year?
Name the Threats and Threat Actors
Looking back to 2006, there was Novell and gregkh (partly salaried by Microsoft), so these are familiar territories
Linux in Central Sahel (Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger)
Vast area, vast number of "Linux users" (if one counts Android as such)
[Meme] Gagging One's Own Staff as a Signal of Corporate Distress
Censorship at Microsoft
The "Other" SPLC
You know you're winning the debate when censorship is explored
Staying the Course
censorship isn't easy against sites that understand ways to resist it
The 'All-Seeing' Microsoft Eye
Microsofters are observing us closely
Links 24/06/2024: Long COVID and "How I Write Blogs"
Links for the day
Microsoft: By Default, Destroy Linux
Here is what the very "polite" Microsoft Boccassi had to say
Allegations That Microsoft is Covering Up Employee Dissatisfaction and Using a Survey to Catch 'Risk' to the Cult Mentality
This favours or gradually socially-engineers a company for sociopathy
'Linux Hint' Inactive for Nearly a Month (It Used to be Very Active)
Their Twitter account hasn't been active for a long time and it's not too clear what's going on
An Unexpected GNU/Linux Trend
Burkina Faso is changing and not just politically
Android (Linux) at New Highs in Burkina Faso, Now Measured at 72% (Windows Was Measured at 98% 15 Years Ago)
based on this month's estimates
With 0.76% for ChromeOS and 3.7% for GNU/Linux (4.5% Total) Burkina Faso Approaches 5% for 'Linux'
More if one counts Android as "Linux"
Gemini Links 24/06/2024: Being Dull and OpenSSH Autoban
Links for the day
EPO Issues in The Hague
a report dated 4 days ago about a meeting that took place 12 days ago
[Meme] Garbage in, Garbage Out (EPO Patent Quality)
"Get back to work"
When the Employer Makes You Too Sick to Go to Work (New EPO Document)
"registering when you are sick"
Perens on a Stick
Remember what Novell did and how few (barely anyone) sided with Novell
Andrew Tanenbaum Gets an Award for His Work on MINIX
ACM one week ago
Twitter's Fall to Irrelevancy in Europe
Musk bought a dud
[Meme] 'Useless' Kids of EPO Examiners
malnourished?
Granting Loads of Monopolies in Europe (to Foreign Corporations of Epic Size and Far Too Much Power Inside Europe) is Vastly More Important Than Raising European Kids Properly?
"Efficiency" first? Whose? Corporations or families? No wonder so many young families are hesitant to have any kids these days; that's particularly true in east Asia and also in north America, not just Europe
[Meme] Putin's Red Flags
Firefox ESR or Firefox USSR
The Corporate/Mainstream Media and Even Social Control Media is Distorting the Record About What Mozilla Actually Did (It Originally Surrendered to Vladimir Putin)
Mozilla being avoided for purely technical reasons (sites not being compatible with it) is one thing. Foolishly, Mozilla is giving people more political reasons to also shun Mozilla. This is suicide.
GNU/Linux Up Some More This Morning, Windows Down Sharply Even in Rich Countries
Microsoft is in trouble in the Muslim world
United Arab Emirates (UAE) Rising... Towards 5% for ChromeOS and GNU/Linux
the latest numbers show it growing from about 0.1% to around 2.4% for GNU/Linux, plus 2.01% for Chromebooks (ChromeOS), i.e. about 5% in total.
Techrights in the Coming Decade: The Free Speech (Online) Angle
Free speech is a fundamental tenet of a free society
Links 24/06/2024: New Research, New Attacks on Justices Sceptical of Patent Maximalists, European Commission for Copyright Maximalists
Links for the day
[Meme] 12 Years a Fedora Volunteer
IBM gives me a 'free' Fedora badge as recognition
IBM Slavery: Not a New Problem
When IBM got rid of Ben Cotton it showed the world how much it valued Fedora
Why They Want to Abolish Master/Slave Terminology (Because This is What They're Turned Free Software Into)
It used to be about community; GAFAM turned that into exploitation and worse
Roy and Rianne's Righteously Royalty-free RSS Reader (R.R.R.R.R.R.) Version 0.2 is Released
They say summer "officially" started some days ago
Torvalds' Number Two Quit Linux a Decade Ago and Has Since Then Earned an Honorary Doctorate
Revisiting Fuzix and Alan Cox
GNU/Linux Reaches All-Time High in Tunisia
Based on statCounter
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, June 23, 2024
IRC logs for Sunday, June 23, 2024
Edward Brocklesby (ejb) & Debian: Hacking expulsion cover-up in proximity to Oxford and GCHQ
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
You Know the Microsoft Products Really Suck When...
"Qualcomm and Microsoft go 'beyond the call of duty' to stop independent Copilot+ PC reviews"
IBM and "Regime Change"
Change of regime is not the same as freedom
Microsoft Windows in Nicaragua: From 98% to Less Than 25%
Operating System Market Share Nicaragua
Techrights in the Coming Decade: The Community Angle
Somebody needs to call them out on their BS
Techrights in the Coming Decade: The Software Angle
Gemini Protocol has just turned 5 - i.e. roughly the same age as our Git repositories
Techrights in the Coming Decade: The Patent Angle
Next month marks 10 years since we began covering EPO leaks
Wookey, Intrigeri, Cryptie & Debian pseudonyms beyond Edward Brocklesby
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock