Microsoft Software Patents and Profit

Dr. Roy Schestowitz

2010-07-25 08:07:43 UTC
Modified: 2010-07-25 08:07:43 UTC

Summary: A few remarks about Centrify and Likewise -- the Microsoft-esque companies which pretend to serve open source

Centrify is an interesting case [1, 2, 3] of software patents and Microsoft promotion disguised as "free". Centrify is a subject we covered here many times before (even days ago) and it makes some more headlines at the moment due to this press release that helped produce some articles [1, 2, 3]. They use the term "Express" -- just like Microsoft does -- in order to introduce a gateway to software patents and pricey proprietary software that strengthens Microsoft's monopoly.

Centrify Express is a set of free software applications and tools, content resources and community forums designed to help organizations improve security and compliance of data center and desktop systems.

Another new article that's related to it helps remind us of the bad side of Active Directory, which Microsoft controls and Centrify promotes. We have already explained the Centrify-Microsoft connection (including staff commonalities), which reminded us of Likewise (created by Microsoft folks and currently stepping on Samba with 'open' core and with Microsoft patents). "Likewise Software has Record First Half," says this new press release. Apparently it pays off to pretend to be "open source" (Likewise is not open source) and to promote Microsoft in open source circles. Likewise -- unlike Samba -- helps put a software patents tax on SMB/Samba functionality. It's just something to watch out for. Likewise is what Microsoft wants Samba to be. ⬆

Lies Need to be Corrected: the Court never invited us
EPO Staff Representation Lacks Social Dialogue With Relevant Management, Controversial and Sometimes Illegal Policies Implemented Without Necessary Input: "In this open letter, the CSC requests that the President submits an agenda item in the next available General Consultative Committee (GCC) meeting on setting up regular meetings between the CSC and the higher management of DG1."
Links 16/10/2025: Political Leftovers and Gemini Protocol Links: Links for the day
Slopwatch: Guardian Digital (linuxsecurity.com), Slashdot, Google News, and More: Maybe one day, once the bubble pops completely, Google News will just outright delist all slopfarms
Lufthansa Modern Slavery, Joerg Jaspert (ganneff) & Debian NSB Softwareentwicklung charade: Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 16/10/2025: US Starting More Trade Wars With China, CIA War on Venezuela: Links for the day
SUSE Blog is Still LLM Slop, Marketing Manager at SUSE Cannot Write: Would you buy from a company or seek support from a company that cannot even write (or fakes writing)?
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Links 16/10/2025: Red Lines and Feeding of Microsoft Trolls: Links for the day
MIT as a Propaganda Mill of GAFAM, Paid by GAFAM: "the news" today
Links 16/10/2025: Lies Euphemised as ‘Dueling Versions of Reality’ and Microsoft "Open" "Hey Hi" Resorts to Porn as No Business Model Was Found: Links for the day
The Local Staff Committee Munich (Representation of the EPO's Staff) Explains When Cluster of Pregnancies May Result in Reduced Pay: "...even one week of part-time working is sufficient to reduce the salary you perceive during the entirety of your maternity leave."
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Slopwatch: UbuntuPIT, linuxsecurity.com, and Various Slopfarms in Google News Attacking "Linux": A new survey of the Web said that the majority of the Web is now slop (that's being said in the news this week)
Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, October 15, 2025: IRC logs for Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Links 16/10/2025: Increased Use of Social Control Media Surveillance in US, French Rage Over Pensions: Links for the day
Links 15/10/2025: Qantas Airways Loses Control of Sensitive Data and Software Patents Are Being Thrown Out: Links for the day
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The EPO's Staff Engagement Survey 2025 is Already Tainted by Intimidation by EPO Management (Trying to Influence Outcomes by Scaring Genuine, Honest Critics): "[W]e have received reports that, following the previous survey, teams with negative responses were reproached or questioned about their answers..."
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Microsoft Scanning Faces in Photos People Upload to Microsoft (Even Unconsciously), Slashdot Turns Report About It Into "Microsoft Sez" (Says): Or "let's repeat the lies from a PR person/Microsoft's publicist"
[Teaser] Angel Aledo Lopez the Manipulator (Nepotism, Poll Rigging, and Other EPO Corruption): We'll discuss this later today or tomorrow, based on internal EPO material
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Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, October 14, 2025: IRC logs for Tuesday, October 14, 2025
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Transparency: FSFE financial reports exclude speaker fees and expenses: Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Many Developers Have Many Political Views, They'll Never Agree on Everything: It's an effort to divide and destroy, not build
Gemini Links 14/10/2025: An Opportunity to Consider GNU/Linux and Another Simple IRC Client: Links for the day
Slopwatch: UbuntuPIT, LinuxSecurity, Google News, and the Serial Slopper Brian Fagioli: Nothing of merit here, just more slop
Links 14/10/2025: Lack of Trust in Slop and "Retirement Challenges": Links for the day
EPO Staff Can Go Listen to Richard Stallman Next Week in Munich (Technical University of Munich, Rudolf-Diesel Hörsaal (MW2001) on Campus Garching at 18:00): "The talk is open to the public and attendance is free. Registration is not required."
Rhonda D'Vine, Gerfried Fuchs, Pronouns & Debian pregnancy cluster: Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
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Over at Tux Machines...: GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, October 13, 2025: IRC logs for Monday, October 13, 2025
Gemini Links 14/10/2025: Ada Lovelace Day, Sony CLIE PEG-TG50 Review, Why to Avoid Network Solutions: Links for the day
Richard Stallman (RMS) Announced His Talk Less Than 24 Hours Before It Took Place and Still Filled Up the Auditorium at Sapienza Università di Roma: Photos from yesterday evening [...] It looks like it was a very successful event

Microsoft Software Patents and Profit

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