[arachne] Re: [OT] Microsoft and Novell Announce Broad Collaboration

Arachne at FreeLists---The Arachne Fan Club!

On Sat, 2008-06-21 at 00:03 -0400, Brian C. Murphy wrote:
> Arachne at FreeLists---The Arachne Fan Club!
> 
> Re Microsoft sucking up to the open source community:
> Maybe, but when is microsoft going to write the DOS device drivers for add
> on peripherals, such as CDRW'S so that Dos users can effectively use the
> many peripherals that have entered the computer world since Microsoft did
> its damndest to kill DOS.
> Brian Murphy
> BCMURPHY@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The peripheral device manufacturers are supposed to write the device
drivers.  If they want their device drivers to be included in a Window$
distro, or in a Window$ update, they have to send their device drivers
to Micro$oft and pay a big pile of money to have their device drivers
signed and approved by Micro$oft.  If you begin to install a Window$
device driver that is not signed by Micro$oft, the Window$ operating
system will display a false warning message telling you about how
foolish you would be to to install any drivers not signed by Micro$oft,
and about how your system will crash if you do that, and advising you
that you should cancel out and not continue with the installation.
If you trust the peripheral device manufacturer which wrote the drivers
more than you trust Micro$oft, then, in almost all cases, you can go
ahead and continue installing the drivers without suffering any bad 
consequences.  Unfortunately, most Window$ users have been brainwashed
into believing that they should heed such false warning messages.  The
peripheral device manufacturers are afraid to write or to openly provide
any device drivers for DOS and linux and other non-Windows operating
systems.  They know that if they get caught doing things like that, then
neither their devices nor the Window$ drivers they write for them will
ever be approved by Micro$oft.  I have heard that as a condition to
having a Window$ device driver signed by Micro$oft, the device
manufacturer must agree to a contract promising that he will not write
any device drivers for any non-Window$ operating systems.  Many of the
Micro$oft methods of doing business seem quite unlawful and unethical to
me.  I don't know why Micro$oft is allowed to get away with doing things
like that.  I do know that the law punishes severely other corporations
that engage in the same or similar business practices.

Sam Heywood


                  Arachne at FreeLists                  
-- Arachne, The Premier GPL Web Browser/Suite for DOS --

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