MS Word exploit generator circulating? by ZDNet's Ryan Naraine -- MessageLabs is reporting a surge in targeted malware attacks against a known Microsoft Word code-execution vulnerability, suggesting that an exploit generator kit may be circulating online.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Microsoft: No plans to sue over Linux patents
In an official statement emailed to ZDNet UK, Microsoft confirmed that it would not litigate for now.
"If we wanted to go down that road we could have done that three years ago," said a Microsoft spokesperson. "Rather than litigate, Microsoft has spent the last three years building an intellectual property bridge that works for all parties--including open source--and the customer response has been tremendously positive. Our focus is on continuing to build bridges."
The infringement allegations, made by Microsoft in a Fortune magazine article, were that free and open-source software violated more than 230 of its patents.
In the Fortune interview, Microsoft counsel Brad Smith alleged that the Linux kernel violated 42 Microsoft patents, while its user interface and other design elements infringed on a further 65. OpenOffice.org was accused of infringing 45 patents, along with 83 more in other free and open-source programs, according to Fortune.
Microsoft has so far refused to specify which patents are allegedly being infringed by open-source vendors, leading some experts to assert that its threats are empty.
According to John McCreesh, OpenOffice.org marketing project lead, the open-source world is convinced that Microsoft would not substantiate its allegations. "[Patent litigation] is not an issue, but the Microsoft statements turn a non-issue into an issue in the minds of some corporate buyers," said McCreesh.
McCreesh added that while Microsoft may not have plans to sue, it could be using the threat of litigation to try to encourage corporate customers to move to those open-source product vendors with whom it had signed licensing agreements, such as Novell.
"Microsoft has spent time and money accumulating patents. Maybe it has started using that armory to move corporate customers to open-source software that Microsoft approves of," McCreesh told ZDNet UK. "The patent covenant with Novell covers OpenOffice.org, and guarantees corporate customers will not be pursued by Microsoft."
McCreesh said that he suspected Microsoft was also trying to encourage more open-source vendors to enter into a commercial agreement such as the one with Novell.
Nick McGrath, Microsoft's UK director of platform strategy, told ZDNet UK on Thursday that some customers were worried about the possibility of patent litigation. "We conducted research into the best way to give customers peace of mind," said McGrath. "For patent violation we give unlimited indemnification to customers [using Novell]."
Senior analysts said that while the threat of patent litigation might have caused a furor in the open-source community, actual litigation could cause damage to Microsoft similar to the damage suffered by SCO. "I hope it doesn't turn into another SCO," said Jon Collins, service director of Freeform Dynamics. "Microsoft is trying to play nice with the open-source community, but it has to do the Republican stance for its shareholders. There's a massive tension between the two positions."
"The danger is that it makes its stance too strong. SCO came away with egg on its face and damaged share price. The danger is Microsoft might respond to a situation to try to make an example, and that action could damage the brand," Collins added.
"If we wanted to go down that road we could have done that three years ago," said a Microsoft spokesperson. "Rather than litigate, Microsoft has spent the last three years building an intellectual property bridge that works for all parties--including open source--and the customer response has been tremendously positive. Our focus is on continuing to build bridges."
The infringement allegations, made by Microsoft in a Fortune magazine article, were that free and open-source software violated more than 230 of its patents.
In the Fortune interview, Microsoft counsel Brad Smith alleged that the Linux kernel violated 42 Microsoft patents, while its user interface and other design elements infringed on a further 65. OpenOffice.org was accused of infringing 45 patents, along with 83 more in other free and open-source programs, according to Fortune.
Microsoft has so far refused to specify which patents are allegedly being infringed by open-source vendors, leading some experts to assert that its threats are empty.
According to John McCreesh, OpenOffice.org marketing project lead, the open-source world is convinced that Microsoft would not substantiate its allegations. "[Patent litigation] is not an issue, but the Microsoft statements turn a non-issue into an issue in the minds of some corporate buyers," said McCreesh.
McCreesh added that while Microsoft may not have plans to sue, it could be using the threat of litigation to try to encourage corporate customers to move to those open-source product vendors with whom it had signed licensing agreements, such as Novell.
"Microsoft has spent time and money accumulating patents. Maybe it has started using that armory to move corporate customers to open-source software that Microsoft approves of," McCreesh told ZDNet UK. "The patent covenant with Novell covers OpenOffice.org, and guarantees corporate customers will not be pursued by Microsoft."
McCreesh said that he suspected Microsoft was also trying to encourage more open-source vendors to enter into a commercial agreement such as the one with Novell.
Nick McGrath, Microsoft's UK director of platform strategy, told ZDNet UK on Thursday that some customers were worried about the possibility of patent litigation. "We conducted research into the best way to give customers peace of mind," said McGrath. "For patent violation we give unlimited indemnification to customers [using Novell]."
Senior analysts said that while the threat of patent litigation might have caused a furor in the open-source community, actual litigation could cause damage to Microsoft similar to the damage suffered by SCO. "I hope it doesn't turn into another SCO," said Jon Collins, service director of Freeform Dynamics. "Microsoft is trying to play nice with the open-source community, but it has to do the Republican stance for its shareholders. There's a massive tension between the two positions."
"The danger is that it makes its stance too strong. SCO came away with egg on its face and damaged share price. The danger is Microsoft might respond to a situation to try to make an example, and that action could damage the brand," Collins added.
RAM to avoid: hot, expensive and slow
RAM to avoid: hot, expensive and slow by ZDNet's Robin Harris -- Has Intel ever met a technology they couldn’t make hotter, costlier and slower? The latest victim: DRAM. Here’s what you need to know. Intel is pushing something called Fully Buffered DIMMs (FB-DIMM). You see them on some servers and high-end PCs like the Dell 690 and the Apple Mac Pro that use the Intel 5000 series [...]
Dell announces support plans for Linux machines
Dell announces support plans for Linux machines by ZDNet's Christopher Dawson -- While the exact details concerning timing and availability of Dell’s Ubuntu-based hardware offerings are still emerging, an entry yesterday on their Direct2Dell blog outlined plans for support of the new OS. In particular, Dell will be launching a new wiki for users on their linux.dell.com website “that gives technical details of the supported systems, information on [...]
Interop ‘07: First, Sun’s datacenter in a trailer. Now? Armarac’s wall-mounted datacenter
Interop ‘07: First, Sun’s datacenter in a trailer. Now? Armarac’s wall-mounted datacenter by ZDNet's David Berlind -- Datacenters are showing up in the strangest places. Two weeks ago, while in San Francisco, I took you for a video walkthrough of Sun’s Project Blackbox. Project Blackbox is basically a shell of datacenter in a shipping container (the kind hauled around by tractor trailers). It’s got everything that’s needed (power, cooling, networking, tons of [...]
Three more things that the Linux community doesn’t get
Three more things that the Linux community doesn’t get by ZDNet's Adrian Kingsley-Hughes -- Anyway, after wading through some of the comments (I don't know how some of you managed to keep up with the conversation in real time ... you deserve some kind of award too) I've realized that I missed three more points about regular PC users that some in the Linux community (the more vocal members perhaps?) just don't get.
Five crucial things the Linux community doesn’t understand about the average computer user
Five crucial things the Linux community doesn’t understand about the average computer user by ZDNet's Adrian Kingsley-Hughes -- Question: Why is it that the average computer user still chooses to spend hundreds of dollars on Windows or Mac when there are countless Linux alternatives that they could download, install and make use of completely free of charge?
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Analyst: IT departments are sabotaging SOA
Analyst: IT departments are sabotaging SOA by ZDNet's Joe McKendrick -- Here's a switch: businesspeople get SOA, but IT fails to see its full potential
The re-colonization of the Web
The re-colonization of the Web by ZDNet's Dan Farber -- On May 14, 1607, explorers from the Virginia Company set foot on Jamestown Island, establishing a colony in the new world. The first North American colonies began the great and sometimes tragic transformation of the landscape. Nearly 400 years later, explorers with browsers instead of masted ships, led by Tim Berners-Lee, landed in the cyberspace [...]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
