Winners and losers in the New Linux World
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| First, here are the winners. Commercial Linux has taken one giant step
| forward. Microsoft, Microsoft of all companies, is finally admitting that
| Linux is good for something. Oracle, by jumping into the Linux distribution
| business, has also given Linux an enormous endorsement.
|
| It's no longer Linux supporters who are saying that Linux should be taken
| seriously in business, now everyone is saying that Linux is a real
| enterprise-worthy operating system.
|
| [...]
|
| Certainly, Microsoft could launch a patent suit against a Linux
| company. After thinking it over, though, I don't see how Microsoft
| could win. From a PR viewpoint, it would be a complete disaster. Even
| if Microsoft gets a court win, so what? Linux, and the other Linux
| vendors, would still be out there.
|
| No, it would be far better for Microsoft, if it just kept the FUD
| kettle boiling. The company's good at that, and it's a lot cheaper
| in every way than trying to stomp Linux out in court.
|
| To sum up, I think all the recent changes will end up benefiting
| Linux, and in particular commercial Linux and its vendors. It's
| another story, though, for both proprietary software vendors and,
| oddly enough, the more extreme free-software advocates.
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http://www.linux-watch.com/news/NS3571706028.html
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