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Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Back then I read an article about how M$ is crippling the ability of other office packets to read their docx and xslx formats which are supposed to be open formats, but in reality are written in a way never to be fully integrated by competing products. More information about their pseudo open standard: https://fsfe.org/activities/msooxml/msooxml.en.html
Munich in the past have used Linux PCs for quite some time until eventually switching back to windows. Back then they were citing the same incompatibilities to open and read and display M$ office files correctly. So Microsoft is definitely abusing their position as a market leader and trying to cripple competition as much as they can.
So fine them and require all governemtn documents and legal documents of anybkind to be in a true open format. Its only a compatibility problem if people continue to use their format.
In the past, some people have expressed dissatisfaction when I've sent them files in .odt format. However, it's the superior format in terms of support and functionality, so I always make them aware of that and of the fact that I will never use some shitty ms product....
That's unlikely to happen in every country where they're popular. Microsoft can just be like "oh you're gonna fine us? We'll pull out and you guys will be completely fucked. Have fun!"
They got into the enterprise sector so early that most offices wouldn't function without Microsoft products/support.
They don't need to fine them in every country. Just in Germany. If they pull our of Germany, they need to pull out of the EU. They are not doing that. They will make their document open, for real.
We'll pull out and you guys will be completely fucked. Have fun!"
Don't threaten me with a good time! /s :)
If they retreated from the German market out of spite I could see the government voiding their rights and patents. Can't have rights to things you dont offer here. Then they'd end up with sanctioned piracy of their stuff. I dont think Microsoft would be that idiotic.
Iso allowing itself to be coopted into fast tracking standarizing ooxml in 2008 continues to be horrible. Ms can point and say: see ooxml is a true open format.
There was criticism at the time, but the people who had to work with it every day. welcomed it after a very short time. The end of the Limux project happened all by itself, because Munich's mayor is an MS fan boy and said so openly at the time. It was not because of technical problems or anything else. It was just a huge kindergarten child.
It didn't end
They actually flip flop a lot.
2006: Migration to LiMux begins
2008: 1200 out of 14,000 have migrated to the LiMux environment
2013: Over 15,000 LiMux PC-workstations (of about 18,000 workstations)
2016: Microsoft moves german HQ to Münich
2017: Dumping Linux https://www.linuxinsider.com/story/munich-city-government-to-dump-linux-desktop-84307.html
2020: Going back to Linux https://www.zdnet.com/article/linux-not-windows-why-munich-is-shifting-back-from-microsoft-to-open-source-again/
2023: Microsoft opens new Experience Center in Münich https://www.munich-business.eu/meldungen/neues-microsoft-experience-center-emea.html
2023: Analysing what needs to be done to switch to Win10 before new vote https://www.tweaksforgeeks.com/ditching-linux-for-windows-after-wannacry-is-too-risky-for-munich-green-party-warns/
https://lemmy.world/comment/7251741
Notice the "Microsft does X" bits and the reactions.
Totally not quid pro quo.
If they abuse their monopoly it sounds like the DMA should be applied.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't think documents require a lot of new features.
What I predict will happen is that Microsoft will offer them Windows for free or bribe the relevant decision makers with free Surface Pro laptops (for "evaluation") or other Microsoft paraphernalia.
Or with creating Microsoft offices in their cities, like they did with Munich.
So this is what the companies do with their money...
They use it to expand their influence!
(always has been meme)
I have a text replacement ahb to 🌎👨🚀🔫👨🚀 for scenarios like this.
That's not how they do it, of only because it would tank Windows PR image as "free stuff".
What you do is arrange it with the government to alocate huge budget sums to purchasing Windows and other stuff from Microsoft at normal market value, then return half the money to the government officials under the desk in whatever form you care or can get away with, straight up bribes if you can swing it.
Microsoft gets to remain dominant, Windows appears to have been purchased at normal value and gets to keep its clout as fancy expensive stuff, and the decision makers get mad money out of it. Everybody wins.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_licensing_corruption_scandal
Offices have way more power to convert the world to Linux than even gaming does.
And ofc, Microsoft is well aware and is not interested in letting that happen.
Correct. Bavaria once tried the same thing, but then MS went to the local politicians, sucked their dicks a bit and boom, back to MS products it is! Hopefully the north doesn't fall for that kind of shit, and they likely won't because Bavaria is a backwards piece of shit of a Bundesland while Schleswig Holstein is kinda cool.
Bavaria isn't even Germany. I also hope, that our country isn't falling for this MS bullshit.
Hopefully this at least forces Microsoft to rethink riddling their bullshit with ads. I feel sorry for people who are still stuck with that trash for whatever reason.
I'm pretty sure the enterprise version of Windows does not and will never have ads. So not super relavent when talking about a transition to Linux in an office setting.
Edge "new tab" default is hellishly full of ads and "news", the Taskbar has stock price information alongside weather and sports, and search in the start menu still shows internet searches. Even on enterprise.
and never will
Dude have you been in a coma this past decade?
And ofc, Microsoft is well aware and is not interested in letting that happen.
This is true, but there are only so many times that they can pull off what they did in Munich. If enough cities keep trying at this, there's no way they're going to be able to hold the floodgates back forever.
I'm usually a pessimist, but stories like this actually do get my hopes up
Since the huge push to SaaS I've seen plenty of companies that essentially run thin clients.
The local workstations are just thier access to login to X website that host thier apps and data.
Zero reason for them to switch to win11 or buy new hardware due to "incompatibility".
These end users can be trained to use mint or Ubuntu and be just as productive at work.
When web apps took off a decade ago, I was secretly rooting for this.
OSes shouldnt matter anymore. Everything should funnel through a browser. WASM is already bringing traditional desktop apps to the web. Microsoft and Apple can die in a fire.
But with the migration, now the fight is to stop Google from owning browsers.
I believe Lula and his government appreciates anything that reduces the influence of the US.
Incredibly based.
Damn alot of good things happening for Linux adoption recently huh
Hurry up before the next right-wing government fires everyone involved and orders a total rollback.
I keep seeing people say they will they move to Linux instead of Windows 11. I wonder what will happen to the market share.
Worse case we could see developers becoming harassed by people demanding features
History tells us that 85% of these people will move to Windows 11 despite what they say.
There is a real opportunity here for companies though.
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Move employees to Office 365 online today ( see how many truly need the desktop apps )
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Start moving early adopters to Linux ( still using Office 365 online )
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Work to identify and replace any other software that is Windows only
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When Windows 10 goes end-of-support, move everybody else to Linux
The few that really need Excel desktop could probably run it in a VM or via a virtual desktop ( thin client ).
You could probably stop there. Honestly, I doubt it would even bother Microsoft that much. Office and Azure is the business now.
From there, you could try to advance further if you want.
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Move early adopters off Office 365
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Drop Office 365
Honestly though, for many companies, you could almost get Office 365 for free just be combining it with your Azure spend and getting a discount.
Companies that use Windows and Azure are locked into it by their use of things like AD, Intune, Exchange, OneCloud, SharePoint, Hello etc., on the infrastructure and ops administrative side, not necessarily by Office365. It's almost impossible to make a clean break from all that for any company past a certain size.
If its just one app it could just ran by something like kasm and remotely controlled by the end users.
Fuck yeah. Biggest employer in Europe NHS England needs to wake up and do this too. In one single licensing agreement they handed Microsoft £163.1 million. Imagine what that could do if spent on linux development instead, or heaven forbid on actual healthcare. It actually boggles my mind that the NHS doesn't have it's own distro and do its own development.
I hope they succeed!
When I was at university (also in Brazil) all the computers from my institute used Mandriva.
Interesting (and poorly paraphrased) story about a successful Linux migration:
spoiler
Several years ago someone made a post or cross-posted on r/sysadmin where OP (lead sysadmin) was in meeting with management and they complained about windows and the licensing costs.
OP jokingly passed a comment about switching to Linux and management actually thought he was throwing out a real idea.
Upon explaining the much lower cost due to FOSS and maybe only requiring a small contract for consulting/support, management actually agreed to his idea.
He successfully transitioned the entire company to OpenSUSE which he determined was the best enterprise distro for desktop use.
The other important part was how he handled the transition. iirc he got it going by first offering it to tech savvy departments who were ecstatic to get new stuff, so he lined it up with a hardware upgrade.
Naturally the rest of the departments heard about it and also wanted the new stuff which locked them into using Linux.
There were several holdouts clinging to Windows, but with the majority showing success, management forced them to change as well.
For his use case, most of the employees were using web apps, so almost no additional desktop apps were required.
Nothing like paying your consulting friends to move everything to Linux to then pay them again to move back to Windows later one. Just like someone is Germany did at some point. :)
The LiMux project in Germany had some shady stuff going on in the background. Microsoft almost certainly bribed the new conservative government to switch everything back to Windows. There was a great documentary about it from DW that interviewed some whistleblowers, but I can no longer find it. However, Quidsup on Youtube did a good video encapsulating the course of events.
EDIT: I was able to find the documentary by searching the old title in German, which brought up the original German version, and from there found the English translation!
Thank you. DW is such an amazing resource. I really like their podcasts and videos.