05.28.07
If You Lack Good Software, Then Produce “Scareware”
ComputerWorld has an article which coins an interesting new term — “scareware”. It explains why vapourware tactics are ineffective, so they are being replaced by something more aggressive, which can possibly compensate for lack of innovation. Have a look at this new fragment of text.
Microsoft talks a lot about innovation. It innovated the Xbox, several years after everyone else; it innovated the Zune, several years after everyone else; it innovated the GUI, several years after Apple (okay, and Xerox); it innovated Hotmail … oh, alright, it bought Hotmail. Bill Gates famously missed the internet revolution and then innovated the web browser, several years after Netscape.
[…]
In the meantime, though, the company that brought us vapourware has innovated yet another new product: scareware (oh, okay, a couple of years after SCO).
In another new interview, the man at the top of the Linux Foundation confirms this.
Question: How do you respond to the theory that it’s all part of Microsoft’s plan to pull the rug out from under Red Hat?
Zemlin: I don’t think they’re really targeting anyone here. It’s just really about the FUD.
Remember that Novell is a passive part — a cogwheel if you like — in the use of intimidation. You may also wish to see his BusinessWeek rebuttal, which Shane covered last week.
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.