Remember ThinkFree? There are many situations where Microsoft approaches or acquires projects to ensure it can successfully exclude competitors and make third-party software developers (including their end users) more Microsoft-dependent. Watch what Microsoft is up to with Bldender at the moment. Blender is a FOSS poster child.
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aboutblank
16 years 20 weeks 5 days 12 hours ago
Educate the People About Freedom
If people accept only the philosophy of Open Source then all this warning about Microsoft is useless. The Open Source rhetoric says that programs developed in the open become better (more relible, convenient or powerful) programs than would be possible if they weren't developed in the open. Open source rhetoric does not consider freedom or the ethical implications of proprietary software. If Microsoft cooperated with various open source projects in order to ensure that the projects work better on their blessed platforms, then this move by Microsoft would be good for those that advocate Open Source. This move would result in better programs which is the intended purpose of Open Source.
People need to learn about freedom so that they reject the trap that is proprietary software. This news about MS courting various Open Source projects isn't very useful to us as its purpose is to encourage users to accept proprietary software.
kiba
16 years 20 weeks 4 days 20 hours ago
Better Development Methodology Meaningless without Ownership
Indeed, better development methods are meaningless without being able to own the software.
Without the ownership of the software, you will continue to be at the developers/corporate overlord's mercy.
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*Copyright creates monopolies. Copyleft creates private properties.
*"Monopoly corrupts. Absolute monopoly corrupts absolutely"-- http://againstmonopoly.org