| Microsoft Linux-bashing hits a nerve |
Sep. 10, 2009
 The controversy continues to heat up around Microsoft's misleading anti-Linux training materials designed for Best Buy salespeople. Meanwhile, the Linux Foundation's Jim Zemlin has alleged that Microsoft tried to spread anti-Linux FUD by dumping 22 Linux-related patents in the hopes they'd be purchased by "patent trolls."
First reported on Overclock.net, training materials allegedly produced by Microsoft appear to help Best Buy salespeople steer netbook and laptop buyers away from Linux. Along the way, they also manage to assert numerous exaggerations and inaccuracies about Linux.
Disclosed in a screenshot-laden post by "GodofGrunts" on Overclock.net several days ago, the anti-Linux training campaign has raised the hackles of the Linux faithful, although for many, the response has been more like, "So what else is new?" According to Electronista, Microsoft has "neither confirmed nor denied" the legitimacy of the authentic-looking training slides (see below).
Screen from Microsoft's "Linux vs Windows 7" training module for Best Buy (Source: Overclock.net)
(Click to enlarge)
In the Overclock.net post, GodofGrunts claims to be a Best Buy employee who signed up for Microsoft ExpertZone training when he heard that he could get a $10 retail copy of Windows 7 after completing the courses. The module in question, called "Linux vs Windows 7," appears to offer a combination of true statements about Windows 7's benefits compared to Linux, along with many more questionable assertions and exaggerations -- plus a number of outright inaccuracies.
Inaccurate statements include the assertion that Linux vendors offer no authorized support, and that iPod or video chat support is not available on Linux. One particularly laughable statement is that Linux is not as secure as Windows 7.
In fact, security continues to be a problem for Windows, as reported by our sister site, eWEEK, yesterday. Redmond is now trying to assure nervous customers that the serious bug that recently hit the Windows 7 Release Candidate will be fixed by the time of next month's product release, says the story.
Other statements might be charitably called exaggerations, such as the claim that Linux device support is limited to a "few" devices. In truth, device support in Linux has soared in recent years to the point where it is rarely an issue. Microsoft's familiar claims about Windows having better software support are more in line with reality, although they do not take into account all the programs, including games, that are supported using WINE emulation.
As Electronista notes, the materials also include contradictions. For example, they state at one point that Linux distros don't offer regular updates, and yet they also argue that Linux is plagued by the need to make "hundreds of updates" per month.
Linux is the devil
Clearly, Microsoft has increasingly been spreading fear, uncertainty, or doubt (FUD) about Linux, as it has about Apple's Mac OS X in its recent "Laptop Hunters" TV ads. Last month, Dell Computer took it upon itself to stand up and refute Microsoft statements about high Linux netbook returns, saying that Dell's Linux returns were roughly equivalent to those for Windows-based netbooks. Canonical has also questioned Microsoft's statements about netbook returns. Meanwhile, anecdotal evidence suggests that Microsoft has been increasing its pressures on both PC vendors and retailers to steer clear of Linux netbooks.
Microsoft appears to be taking Linux seriously, despite the fact that by some counts Linux represents only a single percentage of the overall PC market (others place it higher, but not by much). In an SEC filing posted this summer, Microsoft added Linux distro vendors Canonical and Red Hat to its list of perceived competitors for Microsoft's Client division.
Dust-up over ex-Microsoft patents
Meanwhile, Microsoft has been lashing out in court, winning numerous settlements from Linux vendors over alleged patents, including a major settlement against TomTom regarding the use of the FAT file-system in its embedded Linux navigation devices.
This week, the Open Invention Network (OIN) announced that as part of its "Linux Defenders" program, it has acquired 22 Linux-focused patents that had previously been owned by Microsoft. OIN purchased the 3D graphics-related patents from a trust called Allied Security Trust (AST), in an effort to protect them from "patent trolls" intending to assert them against Linux firms.
According to OIN, Microsoft may have sold the patents to AST with the hopes that they would once again be released and available for purchase by "troll" entities looking to collect patent settlements from Linux firms. (According to its bylaws, AST is forced to release its patents after a certain period.)
Yesterday, Linux Foundation executive director Jim Zemlin was more forthright in making this allegation. In a blog entry, Zemlin writes, "Thus, by selling patents that target Linux, Microsoft could help generate fear, uncertainty, and doubt about Linux, without needing to attack the Linux community directly in their own name." He goes on to write, "It’s time for Microsoft to stop secretly attacking Linux while publicly claiming to want interoperability."
Availability
The Overclock.net post on the Best Buy training materials may be found here. The Electronista story on the training materials may be found here here.
-- Eric Brown
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