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The Linux distillery An update on the war against Microsoft's war against Linux
The Linux distillery An update on the war against Microsoft's war against Linux | An update on the war against Microsoft's war against Linux |
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| by David M Williams | |
| Monday, 05 May 2008 | |
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First, let’s get the facts on Microsoft's "Get the facts" campaign. Some readers have correctly pointed out this was something Microsoft promoted heavily a couple of years ago. While most all feedback has been very kind and positive some did question just what relevance this old campaign is to modern readers. However, the truth is Microsoft’s campaign still exists. Now, Microsoft did report on August 23rd 2007 that they had killed this site, as reported by well known Microsoft watcher Mary Jo Foley. Yet, this just did not happen. Perhaps Microsoft ceased posting print advertisements with "Get the facts" splashed across them but that’s about it. “Get the facts” came back to my mind last month when I Googled something fairly innocent like “What’s hot in Linux” and the top sponsored result was clearly and brazenly “Get the facts.” I tried this again just now and couldn’t reproduce it but I will say with absolutely sincerity that Microsoft’s “Get the facts” came up as a sponsored link on a simple Google search in April 2008. (UPDATE: This article has been Slashdotted; in the comments some Slashdot readers express that even as of today "Get the facts" showed up as a sponsored ad for them.) Make no mistake, the URL www.getthefacts.com still exists and works. It directs readers to www.microsoft.com/windowsserver/compare which belongs to Microsoft’s Windows Server sub-site. What do we see here but titles like “See how Windows Server 2008 stacks up versus Linux” and “Find out how Windows Server compares to Linux.” Sure, the bold headline may now say “Windowsserver/compare” instead of “Get the facts” but make no mistake, it’s the same campaign even if Microsoft PR skirt around the term “facts” by offering instead “the real story” on things like security and reliability. You’ll also note it’s not just archived content but is a current and maintained site. New case studies are coming on periodically and Windows Server 2008 is being referred to. Last week I told readers I was asking Microsoft to explain how it can, in good conscience and with integrity, put forth case studies like the ones I had highlighted. I won’t go over them again here but you can read my take on a Video Ezy case study, a HiChina case study and some others. In essence, the case studies have no bearing on the Windows vs Linux argument. They were abysmal and the headlines and stories had such a remarkable divide that you could park the Grand Canyon within it and still have room for the cast of The Biggest Loser. I wasn’t critical for the sake of being a critic: indeed, I stated the HiChina case study brought about a good result for that company. They’ve increased their reliability and decreased their administrative burden. But what the case study showed was that Windows Server 2008 was a better product than Windows Server 2003. It didn’t involve a Linux comparison whatsoever. There was no “fact.” CONTINUED |
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