Also, take into account the fact that more computers will come with Windows 7 pre-installed over Linux and you find that VERY few people actually need to search for drivers.

I think you guys should spend less time complaining/bashing/etc on Windows and Microsoft and spend more time doing something useful for the Linux community.

Look at the trouble they have been going through to get OOXML standardized and adopted. Look at how much negative PR they have endured for that cause. They need their standards to displace the investments of others. Huge loss for others. Meanwhile, Microsoft comes in to save the customers’ day with the only implementation with interoperable components. By definition (ie, because they are closed source, because in practice all open standards allow for extensions, and because interop-breaking “bugs” are unavoidable), undocumented and broken API secrets and special privileges to MS apps will aways exist for any “open” standard running on an MS platform.

Microsoft will suffer a real setback if SCOTUS does not hand them the software patent monopolies. OTOH, there is __much__ to be gained over “freebie” FOSS if they get to keep their patents. FOSS won’t be freebie any longer. They will have a powerful weapon over FOSS besides the lead and control of the standard + their monopolies.

If you can’t keep customers away from FOSS, they can certainly embrace FOSS (over platforms they control). On Windows, they have the upper hand over all software that runs on top. All the easier to manage winFOSS because FOSS is open. They take ideas and make sure those apps that don’t pay Microsoft for information eventually get the shoddy treatment (API). Of course, all third parties (even from “partners”) run an uphill battle against Microsoft apps on Windows. As a bonus, FOSS devs working on winFOSS use up their time contributing to make Windows interesting and sufficient to customers rather than spend that time improving open platform competitors like Linux.

No one should be surprised Microsoft wanted their customers’ “mixed environments” to have Windows virtualizing Linux instead of the other way around. This combination only happens when Linux has driver code to make it possible to run on top of Windows (as an “app” controllable by Windows).

Microsoft continues to leverage their position in the market to elbow Linux out as much as possible (through implied business-ruining threats to Microsoft hw and sw partners). They dump their platform software as much as is necessary.

The comments ahead of this one covered much ground, including the pdf link.

The rule of thumb with Microsoft, and for good reasons (based on their market position and past and present deeds) is to refuse doing business with them on account of their untrustworthiness. Get in bed with a viper and you take real chances. FOSS devs focusing on open platforms like Linux is sufficient. We don’t need to get distracted with a viper.

… Alright. I got that off my shoulder before going to bed.

zzzzzzz

Then MS tried to dump support on the open source world. They have had to provide two coders to take care of those 20000 lines of code in the Linux kernel.

Yes Open Source is not dump code and leave it.