November 10th, 2008
End the open source obsession with Microsoft
Whenever I write the word Microsoft on this blog I can be pretty certain of big traffic and big talkbacks.
It’s a measure of just how much open source advocates loathe and fear Microsoft, and perhaps how Microsoft advocates return the compliment.
The latest is Matt Asay’s report of Microsoft refusing to sponsor a conference unless tiny Zimbra was denied a big booth.
My guess is that this is not a decision which goes up to the top of Redmond’s chain of command.
“Mr. Ballmer, sir, we are being asked to sponsor Conference X but Lilliputian Open Source has a big booth there.”
“Thumbs down unless the Lilliputians are turned away.”
That scene did not happen. More likely some mid-level bureaucrat dealing with this particular show decided to show off his (or her) power.
It’s silly. Not just because it won’t make a single deal happen or not-happen. But because word will inevitably get out, and both sides — Microsoft and open source — will go back to their old obsessions with one another.
It reminds me of how our politics worked until last Tuesday. Republicans bullied Democrats, Democrats complained, and nothing got done because both sides were locked in an abusive relationship.
Which means there is a warning here for both open source and for Democrats. When bottom rail is on top it’s petty to return the abuse. Tit for tat is childish, it accomplishes nothing.
When Microsoft acts abusively toward you, in other words, do what Marc Benioff John Roberts of SugarCRM did when Salesforce did it to him. Wear it as a badge of honor. Don’t advertise it, but be the bigger man (or woman).
Don’t be like Microsoft, in other words. Be better. That’s how progress happens.
Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist for 30 years, a tech freelancer since 1983. You can follow Dana on Twitter. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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| 11/10/08
