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[News] GNU/Linux Stifled Only by External Factors

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Why isn't Ubuntu the number 1 operating system?

,----[ Quote ]
| Linux, in my opinion, will continue to rise slowly and only within the few 
| who are passionate about their computers until at least two of these 
| deterring factors are eliminated, which may not come soon.  
`----

http://blogs.howtogeek.com/tuxgeek/2008/09/10/whos-to-blame-for-ubuntu-not-being-the-number-1-operating-system/
http://tinyurl.com/4bcm79


Related:

Sun exec accuses Microsoft of 'patent terrorism'

,----[ Quote ]
| The efforts of Microsoft to pressure the Linux community over alleged and 
| unspecified patents is akin to "patent terrorism", according to a local 
| executive for Sun Microsystems.  
`----

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Sun-exec-accuses-Microsoft-of-patent-terrorism-/0,130061733,339280437,00.htm


Microsoft, the art of Corporate Terrorism.

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft, no longer the technological leader in the Computer Desktop
| market, is taking on a terrorist role in its attempt remain in power
| at all costs. (see the link to the CNN story below)
| 
| The tactic is intended to frighten current, and would be, free 
| software users away from products that Microsoft just can't compete
| with. It's not a new tactic, but for the first time desperation is
| beginning to show.
`----

http://sweetcomputing.com/index.php?wiki=Microsoft_Terrorism


Convicted Monopolist Terrorizes Software Industry

,----[ Quote ]
| That headline is designed to grab your attention. Sensationalistic as
| it may be, it also happens to be true, if what you mean by 'terrorize'
| is to provoke fear.
| 
| If you've been following the presidential race in the United States,
| you know the present crop of candidates have been exploiting the fear
| of the American people as they never have before in the history of
| the country.
`----

http://www.linux.org/news/opinion/ms_threats.html


Microsoft's American Proxy Patent War Continues

,----[ Quote ]
| PJ & Company astutely make the connection that behind "IP Innovation LLC" is 
| a group called Acacia which is staffed by senior Microsoft agents, including 
| Jonathan Taub, a Microsoft Hero & Key Achiever.  
`----

http://fussnotes.typepad.com/plexnex/2007/10/microsofts-prox.html


Search for embedded Linux patents

,----[ Quote
| As an electrical engineer with an automotive background, when I think of 
| Linux, I think of servers, PCs, supercomputers, and so forth. Embedded 
| applications don't really come to mind when I consider Linux. However, Linux 
| is used as an operating system for many phones, games, and other devices with 
| embedded software.    
| 
| [...]
| 
| You can search for patents by looking in the appropriate classes and 
| subclasses if you can determine them. However, embedded Linux applications 
| could be located in many different classes because they can be classified by 
| the end system's application.   
| 
| [...]
| 
| In summary, most of the patent documents related to embedded Linux located in 
| this search were filed between 2002 and 2005. No one company dominates the 
| list of assignees but, rather, several companies from across the world. The 
| number of U.S. patent applications filed related to the subject has seen as 
| generally upward trend over the last few years, indicating increased 
| popularity. Finally, even though Linux is a free-software operating system, 
| it would be wise to search the U.S. patent database before commercially using 
| Linux in an embedded application. Of course, refer to a licensed patent 
| attorney if there is any doubt.        
`----

http://www.embedded.com/columns/guest/204300438


Is Microsoft Claiming Ownership Of Embedded Linux?

,----[ Quote ]
| The question, of course, is why Kyocera Mita would need a patent from 
| Microsoft to enhance products built on embedded Linux. Is it adding 
| proprietary Microsoft technology on top of embedded Linux?  
| 
| Could be…
| 
| Or is this a case of Kyocera Mita accepting a claim by Microsoft that 
| embedded Linux is among the 235 open source technologies Microsoft insists it 
| owns.  
| 
| Microsoft says the deal "delivers on our promise to continue to build a 
| bridge between open source and proprietary software and technologies." 
`----

http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/11/is_microsoft_cl.html


Competition by Proxy

,----[ Quote ]
| Google's pending acquisition of doubleclick "will be bad for consumers" 
| because it threatens competition and privacy. So said Microsoft's general 
| counsel during a recent Senate subcommittee hearing ( Click here for more). 
| Nice of the software giant to take up the cudgel for the little guy. But 
| Microsoft has a big stake in blocking the deal--considering that it's losing 
| the war to Google over billions of dollars in Internet advertising.     
`----

http://www.forbes.com/free_forbes/2007/1029/034.html?partner=yahoomag


Opinion: behind the Acacia suit

,----[ Quote ]
| It's a neat structure. Pump money into Acacia so it can attack Red Hat, and 
| at the same time prove to the world how strong the Microsoft patent shield 
| really is against those naughty, naughty trolls.  
| 
| If this works with Acacia, perhaps we can expect a scaled-up attack by 
| Intellectual Ventures on Linux users like Google and IBM. 
`----

http://www.digitalmajority.org/forum/t-24106/opinion:behind-the-acacia-suit


Is Acacia link with Microsoft just smoke?

,----[ Quote ]
| Is all this smoke just coincidence? It may well be. But the smoke gets 
| thicker by the day.  
`----

http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1587


Playing Microsoft Patent Poker 

,----[ Quote ]
| This time though, while Ballmer slinks away to try to con … convince people 
| that Microsoft Unified Communications somehow offers people more than what 
| Cisco's VOIP (voice over IP) been offering customers for years, a patent 
| attack finally launches at Linux. Specifically, IP Innovation, a subsidiary 
| of Acacia Technologies Group, has filed a patent infringement claim against 
| Linux distributors Novell and Red Hat.     
| 
| So was it just timing, or was it something more? Let's take a look at the 
| players.  
`----

http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2201579,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03129TX1K0000616


The Goldfarb Declaration - Updated: MS Statement

,----[ Quote ]
| According to the Declaration, Richard Emerson was not the only
| Microsoft employee Goldfarb was dealing with in connection with the
| BayStar investment in SCO. He mentions by name two others, from two
| other departments.
`----

http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20061009152706664


,----[ Quote ]
| "There you have it. At least a third of SCO's entire market
| capitalization, and their entire current cash reserves, is payoffs
| funnelled from Microsoft. Their 10Qs reveal that every other line of
| cash inflow is statistical noise by comparison. The brave new
| SCO source business model is now clear: sue your customers, shill
| for Microsoft, kite your stock, and pray you stay out of jail."
`----

http://www.catb.org/~esr/halloween/halloween10.html


Clubbing baby Linux penguins

,----[ Quote ]
| So when Microsoft says it respects other people's intellectual 
| property, what everyone is thinking is, That's not true. Microsoft
| doesn't respect the GPL, and that's other people's property. 
| Microsoft is just trying to kill off a competitor. Again.
| 
| Even Sys-con even got it right this time, or at least the 
| headline: Microsoft Spits in GPL Creator Richard Stallman's Eye.
`----

http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20070611082734557


Doing the Microsoft patent dance

,----[ Quote ]
| And please, Novell and Xandros, don't whine that Microsoft pulled a 
| fast one on you, and reiterate that open source is clean. No one 
| needed you to tell them that. Innocent until proven guilty in 
| this country. And especially in light of all the evidence that 
| points against such claims.
`----

http://weblog.infoworld.com/openresource/archives/2007/06/doing_the_micro.html


A Patent Lie

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft sang a very different tune in 1991. In a memo to his 
| senior executives, Bill Gates wrote, "If people had understood how 
| patents would be granted when most of today's ideas were invented, 
| and had taken out patents, the industry would be at a complete 
| standstill today." Mr. Gates worried that "some large company will 
| patent some obvious thing" and use the patent to "take as much of 
| our profits as they want."
`----

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/09/opinion/09lee.html


,----[ Quote ]
| ...Thanks to Mr. Gates, we now know that an open Internet with protocols 
| anyone can implement is communism...
|  
| ...Mr. Gates' secret is out now--he too was a "communist;" he, too,
| recognized that software patents were harmful-until Microsoft 
| became one of these giants...
`----

http://news.com.com/Bill+Gates+and+other+communists/2010-1071_3-5576230.html?part=rss&tag=5575731&subj=news.1071.20


Microsoft hopes to patent 'automatic goodbye messages'

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft is trying to patent automatic goodbye messages, including "Have a 
| great afternoon!" and "Ciao, Harry!" 
`----

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/11/07/microsoft_tries_to_patent_automatic_goodbye_messages/


Microsoft Deems Emotiflags Patent-Worthy

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft said you could count on them to improve patent quality.
| For an example of how they're raising the bar on innovation, check
| out this just-published patent application for Emotiflags, which
| Microsoft explains solves the problem of indicating an emotion 
| associated with an email message. At the risk of infringing on the
| patent, this one Makes Me Mad!"
`----

http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/12/16/038207&from=rss


Microsoft patent hints at pay-as-you-go OS

,----[ Quote ]
| A Microsoft patent application from June 2005, published only today,
| titled "System and method for delivery of a modular operating system"
| may signal a fundamental change for what an operating systems stands
| for and how it is sold.
`----

http://www.istartedsomething.com.nyud.net:8080/20061215/pay-as-you-go-os-patent/


In Microsoft Patent App, TV Watches You

,----[ Quote ]
| In a just-published patent application for delivering Advertising that is 
| relevant to a person, nine Microsoft inventors spell out plans for using 
| cameras, remote controls and biometric sensors...  
`----

http://techdirt.com/articles/20070730/162255.shtml


Advertising that is relevant to a person - classic case of patent trolling

,----[ Quote ]
| Patent application Advertising that is relevant to a person just filed by 
| Microsoft is a splendid example of patent abuse or patent trolling.  
`----

http://www.ventureitch.com/?p=372


Big businesses boast of patent benefits, for small businesses

,----[ Quote ]
| A report published by an EU task force on intellectual property claims
| that small businesses benefit from a patent system, despite lacking
| almost any participation by the small business community.
|
| Instead, the report, titled IPR (intellectual property rights) for
| competitiveness and innovation, was written up almost entirely by
| large corporations and the patent industry.
|
| [...]
|
| The report does note objections from the likes of patentfrei.de and
| Sun Microsystems, which were recorded at some length in the report.
| But this does not appear to have impacted the conclusion of the
| report in any way
|
| [...]
|
| Jean-Pierre Laisne, of ObjectWeb, an open source software community,
| said that he found the report useless: participants were told that
| all their contributions would be recorded but at the end only
| those of Business Software Alliance and Microsoft were used.
`---- 

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/99155/big-businesses-boast-of-patent-benefits-for-small-businesses.html


MS Seeks Patent On Virtual Fuzzy Dice

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft just published a patent application for an adaptive heads-up user 
| interface for automobiles. It covers, among other things, virtual fuzzy dice 
| that appear to move with automobile movements.  
`----

http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/08/23/1310253&from=rss


Will Microsoft Put The Colonel in the Kernel?

,----[ Quote ]
| "The kernel meets The Colonel in a just-published Microsoft patent 
| application for an Advertising Services Architecture, which delivers targeted 
| advertising as 'part of the OS.'   
`----

http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/14/043200


Microsoft patents the mother of all adware systems

,----[ Quote ]
| The adware framework would leave almost no data untouched in its quest to 
| sell you stuff. It would inspect "user document files, user e-mail files, 
| user music files, downloaded podcasts, computer settings, computer status 
| messages (e.g., a low memory status or low printer ink)," and more. How could 
| we have been so blind as to not see the marketing value in computer status 
| messages?     
`----

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070717-microsoft-patents-the-mother-of-all-adware-systems.html


Microsoft stole KittenAuth, renamed it and claimed it as their own.

,----[ Quote ]
| The Microsoft Asirra project sites Oli as a source yet the Yahoo news story 
| did not. I can only imagine that the more and more the Asirra project is 
| pushed into the public domain, the less Oli will be cited as having the 
| original idea. This isn't actually fair and I'd be very very upset if I was 
| him. The idea is excellent yet the credit certainly won't be passed in his 
| direction anymore. Any financial gain from the project won't pay royalties to 
| him either and it's not like he could patent the idea originally.      
`----

http://www.seopher.com/articles/microsoft_stole_kittenauth_renamed_it_and_claimed_it_as_their_own_


Microsoft files further adware patent

,----[ Quote ]
| An example is given of a user browsing to a folder full of MP3 media files - 
| such browsing would alert the adware monitor that the user may need MP3 
| playing software, decoders, soundcards or other related items, and the 
| appropriate advertising could then be displayed in a popup.   
`----

http://www.virusbtn.com/news/2007/09_14a.xml


,----[ Quote ]
| 'MS are key sponsors of "Voices For Innovation" aimed at MS customers
| and designed to put a positive spin on software patents and enlist people
| to lobby on their behalf.'
`----

http://aralbalkan.com/939


Patent creators say Microsoft lied to get better deal on DVR patents

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft is facing a patent lawsuit over its failed Ultimate TV DVR 
| system. The lawsuit, filed by joint venture company Intellivision 
| (no relation to the Mattel console), accuses the company of making 
| fraudulent and misleading claims in order to acquire intellectual 
| property without having to make royalty payments. 
`----

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070604-patent-creators-say-microsoft-lied-to-get-better-deal-on-dvr-patents.html
http://tinyurl.com/2bpmv7


Fun with Google Patent Search: Why does the maker of Windows hold a patent on
a door hinge?

,----[ Quote ]
| The patent was granted in 1998 and received a dribble of publicity
| in 1999, but I'm hard pressed to find any meaningful explanation for
| a door hinge being in the control of the company that made Windows famous.
`----

http://www.networkworld.com/community/?q=node/9721


Commerce Secretary names Schramm to innovation panel

,----[ Quote ]
| He will be part of a lineup that includes the Microsoft Corp. CEO
| Steve Ballmer, 3M CEO George Buckley, UPS Chairman and CEO Michael Eskew,
| IBM CEO Samuel Palmisano and Wal-Mart Stores Vice Chairman John
| Menzer.
`----

http://biz.yahoo.com/bizj/061206/1386414.html?.v=2


Did Microsoft just patent sudo?

,----[ Quote ]
| 1985, huh? And when did this Microsoft patent happen? It was filed in
| 2000. Well gee, that doesn't make sense. How'd they get the patent?
| It certainly falls under the category of "obvious" if there's prior
| art such as sudo.
| 
| What makes this whole thing funny, though, is something I saw a couple
| days ago. Head over to Builder-AU and listen to Peter Watson from
| Microsoft. He says,
| 
|   "User Account Control is a great idea and strategically
|   a direction that sort of all operating systems and all technology
|   should be heading down"
| 
| Excuse me? Does he really believe this is all Microsoft's great new
| idea?
| 
| In the end, this seems like a patent that Microsoft will hold up and
| say "we have a patent and Linux is violating it!" They won't ever
| sue on it though (just leave the threat hanging to scare away
| potential users), because then they could have the patent revoked.
| It's better for them to just wave it around.
`----

http://ubuntulinuxtipstricks.blogspot.com/2007/05/did-microsoft-just-patent-sudo.html


Microsoft Wins in Supreme Court; AT&T Ruling Overturned

,----[ Quote ]
| In a stunning 7-1 decision with extremely broad implications in
| the field of patents and patentability, the US Supreme Court has 
| overturned a Federal Circuit ruling that was in favor of AT&T,
| and has apparently affirmed Microsoft's arguments that software
| coupled with the device on which the software is installed
| cannot be considered patentable.
`----

http://www.betanews.com/article/Microsoft_Wins_in_Supreme_Court_ATT_Ruling_Overturned/1177944397


Half A Loaf

,----[ Quote ]
| Yes, open source will have access to the interoperability information 
| on "reasonable" terms (ask independent open source developers how many can 
| afford to cough up the $15,000 such access will cost), but nothing in this 
| statement indicates the Commission has overcome Microsoft's "refusa[al] to  
| make the [patent] licence compatible with the open source business model." In 
| fact, we can expect that nothing about that patent license will be compatible 
| with the most widely used open source license, the GNU General Public 
| License.      
`----

http://walkingwithelephants.blogspot.com/2007/10/half-loaf.html


EU tells open source to start paying MS patent tax

,----[ Quote ]
| EU Commissioner Kroes' deal with Microsoft creates real dangers to Europe's 
| growing open source economy, warns the FFII. Using patent licenses that 
| exclude businesses, the software monopolist has turned the EU competition 
| ruling into a victory, and now gets implicit support from the Commission to 
| proceed aggressively against its competitors.    
`----

http://press.ffii.org/Press_releases/EU_tells_open_source_to_start_paying_MS_patent_tax


Late night baseball games, Microsoft concessions evoke big yawns at open source
water cooler

,----[ Quote ]
| It will benefit purveyors of proprietary software but not open source 
| developers, agreed Michael Goulde, analyst of open source strategy at 
| Forrester Research, Cambridge, Mass. “Some open source developers believe 
| that Microsoft should make its protocols available for use royalty free. In 
| some cases, there are open source license restrictions that make it not 
| possible for the software to include Microsoft licensed code – because you 
| can’t downstream the license. So, unless Microsoft goes way beyond what it 
| has agreed with the EU to do, only a subset of open source developers will 
| have much interest. They’ll continue reverse engineering Microsoft protocols 
| and doing the best they can."         
`----

http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1582


Let's Make a Deal - The MS-EU Settlement

,----[ Quote ]
| The patent part is terrible. Worse than terrible. They are not blocked from 
| offering patent deals, only constrained as to how much to charge for a 
| license, which is not and never was the issue. So they'll beef up those 
| initiatives, I'm sure. However, the good part is that they were compelled to 
| separate the patent license offer out and make it optional. Thanks, but no 
| thanks.     
| 
| [...]
| 
| I'm guessing Microsoft lawyers are high fiving each other, having snatched an 
| important victory from utter and total defeat. The rest is excellent, of 
| course, and in no way do I mean to detract from the hard work and persistence 
| that the EU Commission has shown. However, I don't think they understand how 
| seriously broken the US patent system is currently, and how easy it is to  
| abuse it, or they don't feel it's their job to fix the US problems, or how 
| central patents are to Microsoft's current strategy against FOSS.     
`----

http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20071022114731199


EU and Microsoft gang up on the GPL

,----[ Quote
| The future of open source and free software will look like this: first, 
| Microsoft will pump money into its franchiseware economy and get very little 
| back. Second, IBM will do the same with its own franchiseware economy (the 
| Apache Foundation) and get a lot more back, because IBM actually understand 
| how this works. Last, all remaining projects will move to the GPL, with a few 
| exceptions. And it's that economy, the one based on formal copyleft licenses, 
| and backed by increasing determination to litigate and defend against 
| litigation, that will prevail.       
| 
| Like every actor that thinks it's conducting the orchestra, Microsoft is as 
| much a puppet of circumstance as any one of us. 
`----

http://www.digitalmajority.org/forum/t-24101/opinion:eu-and-microsoft-gang-up-on-the-gpl
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