04.22.07
Another Novell Betrayal Story Returns from the Past
When Novell entered Microsoft’s bedroom, many were surprised because of the two companies’ past. There was a fierce and unethical history in their relationship, as many Comes vs. Microsoft court exhibits show us. Novell was the abused party. Here is one E-mail (among a series) which is very telling [PDF].
[Brad Silverberg, Microsoft:] the way to shut out novell in the base is to either ship a full client or make it so there is no network connectivity.
Essentially, this is part of a pattern. Microsoft sought strategies to cut off Novell’s air supply. Let’s not forget the (in)famous quote from James Allchin:
[Jim Allchin, Microsoft:] We need to slaughter Novell before they get stronger… If you’re going to kill someone, there isn’t much reason to get all worked up about it and angry. You just pull the trigger. Any discussions beforehand are a waste of time. We need to smile at Novell while we pull the trigger.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend, or the remainder of the week if you read this later. Days to come will probably bring some juicy stories as Microsoft’s report is due and Novell’s might face scrutiny over financial irregularities.
Highlight: Novell was the first to acknowledge that Microsoft FUD tactics had substance. Novell then used anti-Linux FUD to market itself. 
Highlight: Xandros let Microsoft make patent claims and brag about (paid-for) OOXML support. 
Highlight: Linspire's CEO not only fell into Microsoft arms, but he also assisted the company's attack on GNU/Linux. 
Highlight: Microsoft craves pseudo (proprietary) standards and gets its way using proxies and influence which it buys. 
Highlight: The invasion into the open source world is intended to leave Linux companies neglected, due to financial incentives from Microsoft. 
Analysis: Xen, an open source hypervisor, possibly fell victim to Microsoft's aggressive (and stealthy) acquisition-by-proxy strategy.
RynnZ said,
April 23, 2007 at 1:31 pm
I found this via the Linux Personas site while it was still up:
https://partner.microsoft.com/download/global/40022056
On page 17 it says:
Novell has released a Ximian desktop solution (with Exchange connector integration) and Open Enterprise Server (OES) supporting both Linux and NetWare platforms. In terms of current offerings, Novell’s acquisition of SUSE Enterprise Server makes it the second largest commercial distribution after Red Hat. This fundamental shift to Linux may complicate long-term planning for existing NetWare customers who have concerns about the predictability and reliability of the Novell’s product road map. This acquisition could confuse enterprise customers who are concerned about Novell’s ability to effectively support both the Linux and NetWare platforms across all of their product offerings. Microsoft is targeting current NetWare customers for micration to Windows Server: there is a near-term opportunity to address the pains of these customers before Novell has a fully articulated and ready-for-primetime solution for them.
Strange that they put up the Linux Personas site shortly after their partnership with Novell, especially since it linked to this document. That might have something to do with why the site vanished so fast…
Roy Schestowitz said,
April 23, 2007 at 6:20 pm
I quite like the following modified screenshot of Linux Personas.