[LUAU] this just in - "Linux adopted by heathen Cuban Communists, ditching US Microsoft Windows!" -- FOX News (grin)

[Jim Thompson]

Angela Kahealani wrote:

>On Tue, 2005-05-17 13:58, Jim Thompson wrote:
>  
>
>>Linux was developed by Finnish computer scientist Linus Torvalds
>>based on the Unix operating system.
>>    
>>
>
>No, the vast majority of the GNU system was developed by Richard 
>Stallman and company, and Linus only delivered a kernel to replace the 
>behind schedule Hurd kernel PORTION of the GNU free replacement of 
>UNIX.
>  
>
The statement "linux was developed by Linus" isn't even true.  Oh sure, 
he leads the effort,
but there are a lot of people involved.

BTW, I was *quoting*.    I know all about (and mostly agree with rms on) 
the politics of "GNU/linux" .vs "linux", and have even argued that 
"TPOSSCON" should be "TPFOSSCON" (Trans Pacific Free & Open Source 
Software CONference), pronounced Tee-Foz-Con.  :-)

Cuba & linux:
http://www.linux.cu/

But back to the story.   I think this transition will start happening 
more and more, especially in the (so called) third world.  Microsoft no 
longer loves its users:

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2005/jan05/01-26GenuineAdvantagePR.asp
http://www.betanews.com/article/The_Truth_About_Windows_Genuine_Advantage/1116005058
http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/os/windows/story/0,10801,100756,00.html

And don't forget the new Microsoft "licensing model", where you almost 
literally "rent" Windows:
http://www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/sample/DOMIS/update/2004/04apr/0404saacd.htm

Or the pain (and expense) of "staying legal" when running Microsoft 
products:
http://www.sensiblesoftware.com/articles/a/Microsoft-s-Licensing-Model-sigh.html

Back when I was in the corporate world, I used to *love* getting some 
pro-Microsoft CFO/CEO to public commit to purchasing all the licenses 
required for "compliance", and then submitting the paperwork showing how 
much it was going to cost.   Man, do they do the "OMG"/"this can't be 
true" dance.

Microsoft is the ultimate virus.   For years they've allowed themselves 
to infect the world with buggy, dangerous products.  Now that they're 
*literally* everywhere, they want you to pay (and keep paying) for them 
to fix their broken stuff.

Likely they would have executed the master plan by now, except for 
linux, and FOSS.

Jim
(who still thinks that freebsd is better for some things.)