Microsoft to reveal their source code ...your thoughts.

[XiZiT]

I just stumbled across this article and found it insane that Microsoft has to actually reveal its source code. Yes, I am a Windows user so I don't despise "M$" but even if I did have some hatred towards them, I still think its unfair that a company has to release sensitive information just because companies want it. Whatever happend to property rights?

 

[n0cmonkey]

They still have the copyrights, what's the problem? Hell, if they're licensing it out they have a lot more control over it than if they were open sourcing parts of it.

Maybe they should have documented things better. 😛

Speaking of documentation:

Microsoft's legal chief, Brad Smith insisted "the source code is the ultimate documentation.

ewwwww. :laugh: What a crock.

 

[Hyperblaze]

When you are a convicted monopoly, you tend to be under orders to do things by the law.

 

[spyordie007]

Governments and large organizations have had agreements to access Microsoft's source code for a long time, that is nothing new. The article you posted just means that there are new groups that will have access to it.

Microsoft's legal chief, Brad Smith insisted "the source code is the ultimate documentation.

ewwwww. What a crock.

No kidding...

I suppose it would be one thing if he called it the "ultimate blueprint" or something; but documentation is something else alltogether. Than again what does he know, if he's on the legal side he's probably never even seen the Windows source (not that he would know what to do if he did)...

:roll:

 

[stash]

It's stupid, because it will do absolutely nothing to increase competition. Apparently 12,000 pages of documentation, which is much more useful than the source, is not enough for the EU. They're just pissed that nobody cares about their stupid Windows XP N SKU that they thought would be a huge win against Microsoft.

 

[P0ldy]

Your title isn't what they're REALLY doing. They're licensing the "parts" of the source code for a price.

From the AP article:

Software developers still will have to pay for the code, which open source advocates will not be allowed to "publish for free," Smith cautioned.

http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/ap/2006/01/25/ap2475344.html

 

[drag]

Originally posted by: STaSh
It's stupid, because it will do absolutely nothing to increase competition. Apparently 12,000 pages of documentation, which is much more useful than the source, is not enough for the EU. They're just pissed that nobody cares about their stupid Windows XP N SKU that they thought would be a huge win against Microsoft.

The problem, as I understand it, is that the EU's possition is that the docs released by MS are 12000 of nothing but technical gibberish. They say that it's completely worthless to any software developer. They told MS to take it back and try again and make something actually usefull.


And Microsoft's closest competator's are going to be corporations and developers working with open source software and I expect that not only the licensing on the source code would forbid people from releasing the code themselves as OSS stuff, but also nobody would want to touch that stuff with a hundred mile pole. It's poison and nobody in their right mind will use it unless they are a closed source-only shop or Microsoft releases it under a BSD or GPL style license themselves.

All anybody wants is the proper documentation. Screw the source code stuff, nobody wants that.

The whole thing is just kinda stupid.

 

[stash]

The problem, as I understand it, is that the EU's possition is that the docs released by MS are 12000 of nothing but technical gibberish. They say that it's completely worthless to any software developer.

Which is absolute bullshit, and they know it. Like I said, they thought they had scored when they got the XP N concession, which nobody else cared about. It was embarassing to them, and now they're just being a bunch of babies.

 

[stash]

And of course Microsoft knows the source is useless for competitors trying to implement their own versions of Windows protocols. But they have given the EU all the documentation they have, and the EU is still whining. Microsoft has other things that they would like to focus on, and the EU just won't let this go.

In a sense, Microsoft is calling EU's bluff. If they are going to whine and say the 12,000 pages doesn't have what they are looking for, then they can trawl through 100 million lines of code to find it. Or the EU can just admit they're being assholes and move on.

 

[xtknight]

I myself find the MSDN library quite helpful.

 

[RebateMonger]

I wouldn't mind having the Product Activation source code. THAT would be useful. 🙂

 

[Nothinman]

I wouldn't mind having the Product Activation source code. THAT would be useful.

Why? It's most likely just a hashing algorithm and some HTTP requests.

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: Nothinman

I wouldn't mind having the Product Activation source code. THAT would be useful.

Why? It's most likely just a hashing algorithm and some HTTP requests.

Well, since Microsoft said they "may eventually issue an XP update that would disable Product Activation", I figure that having the Activation source code might give some hint about how that would work.