MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Technocrat

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

zogger

Tue Feb 19 07:36:51 -0800 2008

Computers.

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That's my take on it. They announced that they will be giving away quite a lot of their software to students with their new "DreamSpark" project.

.."Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said the company's past efforts to arrange educational discounts for these programs limited the number of students who ultimately could use them. DreamSpark, as Microsoft is calling the free software offering, opens up access to many more students."....more, always their last holecard, give it away free...for awhile..there

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Sean Diggity

Tue Feb 19 09:49:52 -0800 2008
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"Gates said students will want to try Microsoft's tools because they're more powerful than the open-source combination of Linux-based operating systems, the Apache Web server, the MySQL database and the PHP scripting language used to make complex Web sites."

...sounds like someone's in denial.

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Philip Hunt

Tue Feb 19 11:10:09 -0800 2008
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"sounds like someone's in denial"

Indeed. I'm currently setting up a website, running Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP, and MediaWiki. The thought of running it on Microsoft's software never seriously occurred to me, it's irrelevant whether they're giving it away because I wouldn't use it even if they were paying me to.

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Sean Diggity

Tue Feb 19 11:48:51 -0800 2008
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I've also done a few MediaWiki installations. Just set up http://financialaid.uconn.edu as one, although it took some hacking to make it "un-wiki-like" enough for that purpose.

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Sean Diggity

Tue Feb 19 12:50:28 -0800 2008
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Oh, and the idea here of course is to hook kids on M$ products so they continue to use them as they get older and start working in IT. I think it will have some sort of residual effect, especially if school systems are teaching around those products.

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Altacus

Tue Feb 19 17:20:20 -0800 2008
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I work at a MS shop, yet use Linux at home. It's interesting the support people give for MS and the rationale behind it. It's rational, but not logical. However, I would love to see the day that linux breaches the desktop market.

Just recently got burnt by Microsoft !

penang

Tue Feb 19 23:26:39 -0800 2008
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I have a PC at home running XP. Came with it when I bought that PC in 2003.

Recently the hard disk conked.

Changed HD, formatted the HD, installed XP, activate it, something wasn't right.

So, re-formatted the HD, re-installed XP, and when I went online again to re-activate the XP, the MS activation server refused to let me activate my XP.

Post a message on MS forum about the matter. One MS personality responded by accusing me of being a software pirate, and challenged me that if I'm not a software pirate, like they accused me to be, I would call their toll-free hotline, politely tell them the whole story, politely answer all the questions, politely beg them for mercy, and then, perhaps, be rewarded with another chance to use XP on my PC.

I am deeply troubled with attitude like that.

Have they forgotten the golden "Respect thy customer" rule?

I still have that genuine XP disc from Microsoft with me, but I've installed Linux on that machine. End of story.

Just recently got burnt by Microsoft !

Thornton

Wed Feb 20 06:02:21 -0800 2008
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Have they forgotten the golden "Respect thy customer" rule?

For the individual customer, yes, but OEMs and corporations are Microsoft's primary customers. Based on what have seen in IT, Microsoft gives them respect (most of the time). From Microsoft's perspective (IMHO), you did not buy XP from them; an OEM did, and you bought it from the OEM.

You did the right thing and used your power as a consumer not to buy Microsoft's products. When I get around to upgrading my laptop (still running Win XP), I will go with OS X or Linux.

Just recently got burnt by Microsoft !

Altacus

Wed Feb 20 07:04:50 -0800 2008
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Sounds like the typical experience of people who want to become more than end users of their machine.

Their DRM stuff really has me scared. That's my main motivation for moving 100% to linux at home.

Interesting how the above actions show (at least to me) that Microsoft can no longer innovate.

Just recently got burnt by Microsoft !

penang

Wed Feb 20 08:39:48 -0800 2008
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Just in case anyone wants to read the correspondence between me and that personality from Microsoft, it's archived at googlegroups at http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.setup_deployment/browse_thread/thread/d50d0c6ab2d1ac61/1f498466d97d17d1?lnk=st&q=#1f498466d97d17d1

It's a public record, as far as I'm concerned.

Oh well .....

Just recently got burnt by Microsoft !

zotz

Wed Feb 20 10:50:43 -0800 2008
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"Have they forgotten the golden "Respect thy customer" rule?"

Long ago. And not only them by a long shot.

drew

www.rpmchallenge.com/component/option,com_comprofiler/task,userProfile/user,2958/Itemid,1/

MS Feeling the Heat with FOSS

Roy Schestowitz

Tue Feb 19 22:29:37 -0800 2008
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See this:
"Microsoft is looking to get a whole lot back from its program. DreamSpark isn't charity. It's business--protecting Microsoft's entrenched desktop-and-server software business model from competing products, and, most importantly, from the Web 2.0 platform."