Rich Kulawiec (Web consultants list):
> On Wed, Nov 25, 1998 at 07:31:47PM -0800, Javilk wrote:
> > BINGO! I suspect that MS is fronting AwOL to buy and destroy
> > Netscape. And with that, Linux!
>
> Maybe. But:
>
> 1) Mozilla's source code is already out there
> 2) Several competing freeware browsers (e.g. Opera) are well
> into their development cycle -- not that they'll
> necessarily be better than Mozilla, but they'll
> push it by competing with it
The great beauty of open software, is that the occasional genius does
not need approval to insert something no matter how buggy it is. And
then, if it is an appealing feature, someone or some other group will leap
on it, fix it, and make it work.
> 3) a browser is only one piece of the OSS puzzle; to be sure,
> it's a key piece, but it's not the whole thing
In this internet age, it is a vital piece. I may browse most of the
time in text-mode Lynx, mostly while doing searches and running two or
three versions at the same time so as to multiplex over the waits; but I
do find Netscape to be wonderful once I find the content that I am looking
for. I have, at times, even run that woodnose operating system to do so.
> 4) You don't think Netscape's top technical people are going
> to want to work for a crummy company like AOL,
> do you? I'll bet even money that a group of them
> form a startup to create...a web browser. Or maybe
> some of them will work on a freeware browser.
It will depend upon what AOL does with them, and how their contracts
are worded. Many contracts have a no competition clause with some time
limit.
> > And by cutting off Netscape, MS-AwOL cuts off Linux! Brilliant
> > strategy!!! Who will use Linux, when there is no decent web browser? Who
> > will oppose MS, when Netscape is gone???
> Relax. The OSS movement -- of which Linux is one part, FreeBSD is
> another, KDE and GNOME and Mozilla and Apache and sendmail and BIND
> are others, and there are a hundred other pieces, is far too big
> already to be stopped by traditional corporate power plays and litigation.
The effectiveness of litigation remains to be seen. The nice thing is
that the open source movement does seem to have some number of irrational
and fanatical people in it. It tends to take such people to breach the
wall, whereupon the more staid and stalwart begin to notice the
possibilities. As some psychologist said, the reason there are
schizophrenics across all the populations, is that under some
circumstances, a few crazies in society actually make the difference
between the society failing, and the society overcoming impossible odds
and flourishing. And open software folk are nowhere as ineffective as
real schizoids tend to be. In fact, they tend to be more effective, at
least in the software areas, than mere mortals.
> The avalanche has already started.
> It is too late for the pebbles to vote.
> - Kosh
One hopes so. The lack of basements in modern housing is forcing
inventors to use smaller workshops, such as laptop computers. It would be
a shame to have those too, removed from their control.
There is nothing as destructive to burro-cracy, as a piece of truly
powerful software in the hands of people who care.
(Someone should steal that line and stick it in their sig file.)
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