Microsoft opens up to open-source community

Dan (the_technocrat) Microsoft has announced today that it will make available over 30,000 pages of its software trade secrets, offer wide patent licenses on a wide range of MS patents, work to ensure open connections between its software and others, promote data portability, enhance support for industry standards, and more fully engage in relationships with the open source community.

February 21, 2008 12:43 PM ET in News, , , , , ,

Microsoft has announced today that it will:

* make available over 30,000 pages of its software trade secrets
* offer wide patent licenses on a wide range of MS patents
* work to ensure open connections between its software and others
* promote data portability
* enhance support for industry standards
* more fully engage in relationships with the open source community.

Pandering to the masses, or legitimate effort? This is actually smelling legit…?

7 Comments:

  1. the_technocrat
    21 Feb '08, 5:49 pm

    Here's a list of all the Microsoft technologies that they won't sue you over any more. Some good ones in there! 3rd party apps can now develop some cool stuff without having to worry about using a proprietary MS specs.

  2. primesuspect
    21 Feb '08, 5:52 pm

    Office binary formats? I never thought I'd see that day...

  3. the_technocrat
    21 Feb '08, 6:07 pm

    I'm thinking we'll see the day soon when your options are print, PDF, and now 'MS Word' or something. Kinda throws a huge "F U" to Google's online docs initiative, too. Why operate online when you can easily import into Word/Excel/etc? (I'll still use it as an online docs folder, but not everyone does that)

  4. GooD
    21 Feb '08, 6:27 pm

    It was about time if you ask me !

    Good decision

  5. Leonardo
    21 Feb '08, 10:02 pm

    Wow! OK next, I'd like to see Adobe Crapobat open up, too.

  6. Lincoln
    21 Feb '08, 11:10 pm
    Quoting Leonardo

    Wow! OK next, I'd like to see Adobe Crapobat open up, too.

    Adobe PDFs are already an ISO, and they have an XML-compatible plugin for them, too.

    //edit: The MS binaries are so complicated that no one could ever implement it anyway.

  7. Leonardo
    21 Feb '08, 11:25 pm

    I'm still surprised about Microsoft. Maybe they really are attune to reality? Hmm. I'm just waiting for the Microsoft release of Linux for PC. Seriously, why not! Everyone else and their dog has a release. Microsoft might be the ticket to finally make Linux for ordinary users a success? Am I crazy? If any one entity could produce a Linux for the widest common denominator, it would be Microsoft. If anyone could even hope to keep up with Linux (dare I say MS-Linux Certified) drivers, it could only be Microsoft.

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