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So, the OpenOffice.org Community has announced the public beta release of OpenOffice.org 3.0, a new version...- Microsoft Subnet
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Microsoft believes that Linux and open source software violates 235 of its patents and it wants violators to pay up. The company for years has been bashing the open source community and this latest move may well be the bloodiest battle yet.
Which patents have allegedly been violated?
Microsoft’s legal general Brad Smith gave a broad breakdown of the alleged violations during an interview with Fortune magazine, but has not detailed specific patents that have been violated. Smith said the Linux kernel violates 42 patents and the operating system’s user interface violates 65. The Open Office application suite violates 45 patents and open source e-mail applications infringe on 15. Other open source software applications infringe on 68 patents.
What is the official word from Microsoft?
Microsoft’s Intellectual Property team is handling this issue and it isn’t saying anything beyond a statement released to the press by Horacio Gutierrez, vice president of intellectual property and licensing: “Even the founder of the Free Software Foundation, Richard Stallman, noted last year that Linux infringes well over 200 patents from multiple companies. [Gutierrez cited this passage.] The real question is not whether there exist substantial patent infringement issues, but what to do about them. Microsoft and Novell developed a solution that meets the needs of customers, furthers interoperability and advances the interests of the industry as a whole. Any customer that is concerned about Linux IP issues needs only to obtain their open source subscriptions from Novell.”
How does this relate to Microsoft’s partnership with Novell last year?
As part of the deal, the two agreed not to sue each other’s customers over patent and intellectual property infringements. Dell joined the pair a few weeks ago. The Covenant to Customers ruffled major feathers in the Linux and open source community for its many loopholes and missing details and led to accusations that Novell was bamboozled again by Microsoft.
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Some irresponsible ClaimsBy anonymous on February 5, 2008, 9:11 amLets forget the FACT that microsoft has failed to say WHAT patents have been violated even after being asked! 99% if not all of the patents M$ claims can be...
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MICROSOFT THIEVES & CHEATSBy David on July 19, 2007, 4:07 pmSadly 80% of home users are stuck with microsoft. Microsoft original stole the OS From? Think people Dont let them win. I See in no way how LInux could have violated...
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Some unresponsible openBy observer on June 11, 2007, 3:40 amSome unresponsible open source developers are definitely making Microsoft very angry. So very angry that make Microsoft forget that it is not Linux nor open source...
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Some unresponsible openBy observer on June 11, 2007, 3:39 amSome unresponsible open source developers are definitely making Microsoft very angry. So very angry that make Microsoft forget that it is not Linux nor open source...
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How Microsoft innovatesBy Anonymous on June 6, 2007, 1:40 pmInnovative software, from Microsoft? Heh! Yeah, right. They "innovate" the old fashioned way... They steal it.
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