Is Microsoft cozying up to the OSDL?

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: DAVE KEARNS ON WINDOWS NETWORKING TIPS
07/20/05
Today's focus: Is Microsoft cozying up to the OSDL?

Dear networking.world@gmail.com,

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* Microsoft porting to Linux rumor
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Today's focus: Is Microsoft cozying up to the OSDL?

By Dave Kearns

The craziest rumor I've heard in a long time was circulating
last week: Microsoft was going to cooperate with the Open Source
Development Lab to port Microsoft services, utilities, and
applications to the Linux platform.

It's true that, as we reported a couple of weeks ago, Microsoft
no longer considers Linux and open source to be enemy No. 1
(that "honor" goes to you, the user, according to Steve Ballmer)
but it's a far cry from "no longer top-enemy" to "bosom buddy."

The rumor evidently started when OSDL head Stuart Cohen
addressed the Commonwealth Technology Forum in London last week.
"I would not be surprised to see them [Microsoft] participate in
software that runs on top of Linux in the future," he said, in
remarks that were widely quoted in the British technology press
( <http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,39020381,39208632,00.htm>
).

Microsoft's general manager of platform strategy, Martin Taylor,
was quick to deny (to any and all who would listen) that
Microsoft will pursue any collaboration with the OSDL.

Microsoft won't even supply the drivers to allow Linux users to
authenticate against Active Directory. As we noted last issue,
Redmond relies on its partners Centrify and Vintela to handle
that chore so that Microsoft wouldn't have to associate with the
penguin lovers. So it would really be unthinkable, at this time,
for Gates & Co. to port their product to an open source
operating system.

I could see, though, how a rumor such as this might get started.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was cited having lunch with Red
Hat's CEO Mathew Szulick recently. And Redmond has long ported
its applications to the Macintosh OS. And the latest Mac OS
versions are Unix based. And Linux is Unix based. So put it all
together and you get - the silly season, I think.

There's not much chance you'll be running SQL Server, Exchange,
IIS or any other Microsoft server application on a Linux host
any time soon. And you can quote me on that.

RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS

Test: QCD's InterStructures plug-ins mind the OS gap
Network World, 07/18/05
http://www.networkworld.com/nlwnt3460
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To contact: Dave Kearns

Dave Kearns is a writer and consultant in Silicon Valley. He's
written a number of books including the (sadly) now out of print
"Peter Norton's Complete Guide to Networks." His musings can be
found at Virtual Quill <http://www.vquill.com/>.

Kearns is the author of three Network World Newsletters: Windows
Networking Tips, Novell NetWare Tips, and Identity Management.
Comments about these newsletters should be sent to him at these

respective addresses: <mailto:windows@vquill.com>,
<mailto:netware@vquill.com>, <mailto:identity@vquill.com>.

Kearns provides content services to network vendors: books,
manuals, white papers, lectures and seminars, marketing,
technical marketing and support documents. Virtual Quill
provides "words to sell by..." Find out more by e-mail at
<mailto:info@vquill.com>
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This newsletter is sponsored by Fluke Networks
Special Report: Understanding the Changing Nature of Branch
Office Networks

Significant revenue is generated at the branch office. Business
needs to be seamless between locations. This special report
provides an approach to a resourceful way of using new tools and
analysis for branch offices. Learn about the analysis and
tools used to run a seamless branch business, click here to
download the report now,
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=108619
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