07.03.08
Novell Breeds Notion of “Non-certified” GNU/Linux Distributions
t is difficult to forget the “cheeky tricks” and “dirty tricks” that Novell pulled against Red Hat in its own (Red Hat’s) recent event. It’s evident that Microsoft and Novell fight against Red Hat together, but they are very smug about it. Watch this new publicity stunt and mind the banner/screenshot.
Microsoft ‘endorses’ Linux?
Come on, Novell, I can see touting SAP’s seal of approval on SUSE Linux, but Microsoft? I found this banner on Novell’s page today (while looking for a logo for an earlier post), and I laughed as I read, “A quick and easy way to certify…” and then this…
Watch the image. █
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.