06.04.08
Novell Slams Free (Gratis) GNU/Linux
Yesterday we wrote about [cerf 3635 some semi-blind promotion of Novell] and warned about the impact of this, especially when one considers the fact that Novell uses GNU/Linux FUD and OpenSolaris FUD (rarely Windows FUD) to market itself. The item below sheds light on something that Novell did in China not so long ago; Susan Hauser chimed in as well (just days ago) to add to her wood to this fire of GNU effigies.
According to the following new item, “Novell joins Microsoft in Anti-Linux FUD.” This would not be exactly news, but the detailed proof of this seems rather compelling.
The Novell “partnership” with Microsoft has been a hot topic in Linux circles since it was announced a few years ago. Recently, Novell and Microsoft introduced a joint-marketing site to promote their collaboration.
A few years ago, I had really high hope’s for Novell’s forays in to Linux. However; bad move after bad move has left me with no confidence in Novell or their Linux products. I can’t say I was shocked to find this work of misinformation touting the “benefits” of Novell over Redhat and “unpaid” Linux.
Novell has this lovely chart to highlight the benefits of SUSE over “unpaid” Linux. “Unpaid” is a complete spin word, sounding like something Karl Rove cooked up in a focus group.
Watch this good comment about Novell’s marketing attempts as of late.
I see Novell, Hovsepian and Mat Asay are making pitiful comments about the ‘desktop market’ again.
For starters, there is no real desktop market. All the Linux desktop deployments today are done by people who’ve just decided to go out and do it at a grassroots level. There is no ‘corporate’ deployment of desktop Linux in the way that Novell desperately wants to pretend, and there’s certainly no money there for them. I suggest they concentrate on where they’re losing money now, and then they might have a crack at it.
We last wrote about Novell’s financial issues just days ago. █
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.