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How Microsoft Can Embrace Linux | |
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| Time: 11:27 EST/16:27 GMT | News Source: Business Week Online | Posted By: Todd Richardson | ||
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When Microsoft announced earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter on July 22, the after-hours markets sent its stock down by 5%. Investors clearly had already finished celebrating the Colossus of Redmond's bold announcement two days earlier that it would issue a $3-per-share one-time dividend, part of a total $75 billion stock-buyback and dividend plan over the coming four years. | ||
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| #1 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 7/24/2004 6:41:48 PM |
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Interesting observations. Sometimes I wonder how well it is recongnized how large our corporations [as a people and its businesses], are involved in developing markets.
I do not subscribe that OSS is any better at servicing these markets than commercial software is. What I do see, even amongst the very largest US companies is an increase in how granular they are becoming and how frequently they turn to small companies to collaborate on projects of all kinds - especially within developing countries. As tiny as we are, we have done work with and for many companies, or company divisions all over the world - Turkey, China, Sweden, etc... Not one company, or client, regardless of country, has selected one platform over another. Everything has been requirements driven, and governed by what the partnering company's policies for security and business continuity are, or they would like to have. If anything is true [at least from what I see], is a movement away from the Linuces toward either W2K3 and .NET, or back toward commercial Unices [albeit in far fewer cases]. Contrary to what people assume, "cost" and flexibility are driving this. Really big companies that once had specifically stated policies against IIS 5, now prefer IIS 6.0 over Apache, or Zeus. After many response documents and Requirments Analysis Documents [RAD's], I must share that what we see is a large-scale movement towards .NET - not away from it and this is especially true amongst Chinese, Slavic, and the Scandinavian companies we are doing work for. That said, Microsoft can embrace OSS, and does in many ways. We use its services for Unix all the time, or commercial products that benefit from it. That's one level. We've also set up systems on W2K3 running Tom Cat 4.4, because even big clients like to save on the costs of BEA - though I disagree that it actually saves any money - owing to how poorly TC and garbage collection are, or are not and the increased time to develop for its use. However, even those distributing the Linuces have commercial models and can hardly be regarded as free, or even less costly. Businesses have expressed deep concerns about using any distribution that is not supported by a commercial house. What I see is a broader mix of the two camps - working more closely together in tools that are more open - this is what we see in our own shop - an increase in mutual respect and cooperativness - but certainly entirely commercial. This post was edited by lketchum on Saturday, July 24, 2004 at 18:51. |
| #2 By 21203 (4.5.32.137) at 7/25/2004 4:48:50 AM |
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Whether or not OSS is successful at serving commercial markets, companies can use OSS tools to develop commercial products, which is Microsoft's problem.
That's not a Microsoft problem, that's an OSS problem. Maybe there are two sides to this, but I see it as an OSS tool being used for a paid product, as you say. As long as said commercial product is written for Microsoft-based OS's I don't see how it's a problem for Microsoft. If it is written for multiple operating systems, it still isn't a problem. Microsoft needs developers to use Microsoft tools to create software otherwise these huge software companies don't need Microsoft. I fail to see the direct correlation. Microsoft doesn't care if you use visual studio to make applications. As long as the application runs on the OS, the need for the OS exists. It's like saying Redhat Linux needs the C++ compiler in order for redhat to stay in business. That's not true. They just need applications, and they don't care fundamentally where they come from. Suddenly the applications are portable and users don't need Windows either. This is a non-sequitur... It's like saying that if Sendmail were suddenly written for unix AND windows, that unix would no longer be needed. People will continue to use the OS that is most compelling to them for any reasons beyond shelf price point. |
| #3 By 135 (208.186.90.168) at 7/25/2004 10:23:44 AM |
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jcvortex - Interesting observation... More support online than in real life is true.
#2 - "They are having trouble arguing why developing markets should use .NET over Mono, Windows over Linux, IIS over Apache, Office over OpenOffice, they don't have as much influence anymore. " Actually Microsoft is not having problems making that argument. You just wish they were, and keep repeating this tripe. |
| #4 By 21203 (4.5.32.137) at 7/25/2004 9:14:02 PM |
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Halcyon, I'm not even going to respond to your half-ass "swiss cheese logic" if you can't have an opinion. Your news references are baloney. We're not asking you to data mine the internet here. I can show you an article where Linus Torvalds says that Windows is better, but I'm sure that wouldn't make you happy .... or prove any points.
People don't look for unsupported alternatives like OSS or Linux. Get over it. |
| #5 By 21203 (4.5.32.137) at 7/25/2004 11:27:05 PM |
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This whole topic is about opinion. You have an opinion, I think. It isn't how much you can google supporting topics and wasting screen space, it's about stating that opinion. Don't tell me that I have to listen to you just cause you can find something that supports your opinion, because it's still an opinion. That's not validation either. Look it up (the definition of "opinion" or "validation") if you have to. This post was edited by mram on Monday, July 26, 2004 at 01:33. |
| #6 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 7/26/2004 1:24:56 AM |
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#29, come on down, sign a standard NDA and I'll give you a tour.
You can see, and hear for yourself as both sides of this argument work through some pretty interesting challenges and as company after company is migrated away from the Unices/Linuces and on to .NET - happens every day...all day. Requirements and Analysis drive the direction. There are a lot of very serious men here...doing a lot of very good work to the benefit of many millions of regular people. Some 247 million people now have access to dental crowns and other devices, because of this effort and a lot of open minds. Those same 247 million people could not afford that before we started to work together. Most are in developing countries, and it saved more than 18 billion in reaching them in seven languages. Be careful, because down here, men still get offended and still act like men when they do! |
| #7 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 7/26/2004 1:39:24 AM |
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Halcyon-X12 has one very valid point - many people are comfortable with the software they have. That has nothing to do with cost, or alternatives, but more to do with the "comfort" he spoke to. Adding any measure of reference, opinion or otherwise, is a good thing - it at least demonstrates a more thoughtful response.
Alternatives are good - passion for them is also good. Al least Halcyon-X12 takes a side; steps up and swings away. Whether they know it or not, a lot of guys on my side of the argument wait and allow others to carry it forward for them. More than half of our crew are former x-nix and unices guys - believe me, it was tough to even think differently, much less embrace Windows. Science, curiosity and practical considerations drove our movement toward .NET - practical as in costs! .NET and W2K3/XP[SP2] are just more mature and evolved, and we would know - especially opposite use of the public networks. We all remember [sometimes fondly] the days before some of us voted to release these technologies; how we used them and where. It's amazing what the private sector has done with them. ??Common or at least compatible tools?? That is where it is headed [I hope], and arguments like this thread will seem pretty silly. We'll wonder what it was about. Halcyon-X12 and his side will see this, probably for the same reasons a lot of us began to open up to Windows and associated tools. It was and never is, about the technology - it was and should be about what we do with it and seeing if we can do it on any platform we "choose" - it will have to be commercial unless we can get #29 to share some of his mining interests with us. |
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