Readers sound off on SCO Linux issue

The issue of SCO’s $1 billion lawsuit against IBM, alleging that IBM violated Unix contracts with SCO when it augmented Linux, has drawn several lively responses from readers of this newsletter.

To refresh, SCO is suing IBM for breach of contract and unfair competition, charging that IBM added to Linux some Unix code that SCO has the rights to. SCO is also warning all Linux users that they may be liable for intellectual property violations just by using Linux in their networks. Microsoft has also apparently teamed up with SCO, as it recently made a licensing agreement with the Unix vendor and made statements in support of intellectual property rights.

Here’s what some readers think on these matters:

“To me, this is infantile posturing,” wrote one database admin. “SCO entertains Microsoft in their backyard and mouths ‘NANANANA’ to IBM and the others it is bringing suits against. I still maintain they are advertising that they are no longer interested in developing and marketing software. Instead, they are much more focused on becoming ‘professional litigants.’”

A few readers also took issue with Microsoft taking such a sudden shining to SCO. As a reader said, “SCO stagnated for 10 years and no one improved on it; now all of a sudden it needs to be incorporated in Windows?”

“What do you want to bet that Microsoft actually paid off SCO under the table to file this lawsuit?” said another.

But I think the entire sordid situation was best summed up by the reader who sent me this link (a true masterpiece of HTML): https://www.arie.org/doh/

Keep your comments coming.