Stop the Windows Bashing!

[Galraedia]

I'm tired of all the bashing of Microsoft's Windows and I'm sure a few others are as well. So, instead I suggest everyone take out their aggression on something that really sucks, like Mac OSX.
Question, how much coding do you think they got by using unpaid open source developers to build OSX? Sure they made promises but in return all the OpenDarwin team got was peanuts. I for one refuse to help, "little Microsoft" (aka apple) use the Unix/Linux community to bash big Microsoft, because as far as I'm concerned my games apparently only work on one and I'll give you a clue: it isn't Apple.

[Galraedia]

This is a reply to an article titled "Four Reasons Why Apple is not Criticized by Linux / Open Source proponents" by someone named Drew.

"Apple uses software created by the Open Source community, such as the HTML rendering engine for Safari, and returns its enhancements to the community."

"uses software created by the Open Source community"

Doesn't say much about going the other way. Wouldn't this master of marketing also tout the open source projects and contributions as well?

I wish I had some reference to point to, but I seem to remember when Apple worked with KDE on the Webkit and KHTML, there was a backlash afterwards that they took the work from the KDE group and left without providing anything back to the community.

Apple took from BSD, but did they give anything back to BSD? Is there anything that BSD can say "apple gave it to them"?

Apple's position is more because from people going anti-Microsoft than Apple giving back to the community.

Apple will use the Webkit and KHTML in Safari, but where is Safari for Linux?

Apple is only including non-DRM music through iTunes because of business reasons. Otherwise your choices for playing DRM music is via iTunes which is already mentioned to be Mac and Windows only.

Apple Quicktime is proprietary and cannot be played on a Linux system legally without using something like Fluendo, illegal codecs or while living in a country that doesn't recognize USA Patent laws.

Apple has never released any drivers or anything that would allow Linux users to use even older iPod/iPhones, they have had to be reverse-engineered every time a new version comes out.

Microsoft provides a greater choice in hardware and software. While Apple slaps lawsuits on anybody that wants to run Apple on anything other than an overpriced box they sold.

Microsoft applied the Community Promise patent licensing to the ECMA C# and ECMA CLI standards. This allows the use of C# in Mono (an open source project) which provides the ability to run .NET code on Windows, Linux AND Macs.

So which open source Apple projects are you using right now and is there a version available for my platform?

Apple is popular with open source primarily because they are not Microsoft OR because of the quality of their hardware, not because of their contributions.

[Lazydog]

I'm tired of all the bashing of Microsoft's Windows and I'm sure a few others are as well.

Well I am sorry you fell that way.......
Well...... not really.

[reed9]

Are you talking about MS basing on these forums or in the open source community in general? Because there's very little bashing that happens here.

Microsoft has a near monopoly in the OS market. Whatever their practices now, and I haven't kept up with it, they got that way through some shady practices. There are many criticisms one can level at Microsoft, both towards their technology and business practices. If it servers a purpose, such as helping people be aware that they have options, I say rip 'em a new one.

I also absolute agree that Apple should get more criticism from the free software community for how closed they are. I for one boycott Apple products. But they are much much smaller than Microsoft, which makes them less of a target. As far as taking BSD code and not contributing back, well, they are operating within the terms of the BSD license, so I don't have a problem with that.

[GNU-Fan]

Are you talking about MS basing on these forums or in the open source community in general? Because there's very little bashing that happens here.

Indeed. When I read the title of the post, my first thought was 'whom is [s]he talking to?'

Question, how much coding do you think they got by using unpaid open source developers to build OSX?

I am not angry with Apple about that. The "unpaid open source developers" made a conscious choice to not employ a copyleft license for their projects. So, in a way, they asked for their work to be taken away by companies which don't contribute back much. By the way, MS incorporated large parts of the BSD network stack as well.

[elija]

I have an Apple iPhone 3G. It's fantastic and I feel dirty!

[arinlares]

I don't pay much attention to who does what about which licenses (the only license I know much about is GPL v2, and v3, which I don't like much, to far to the left). I'll gladly bash Microsoft and Apple's use of DRM (I have an iPod, but have recently bought a Sansa Clip for use with my linux laptop), which chokes the honest user, and results in piracy to replace that musical collection or that game you can't transfer to the new computer you just bought. In a large part, I think the haters of Microsoft are just bandwagoning, unless they have a genuine problem. But, these people represent a small fraction of the open-source community as merely a more vocal minority.

I was reading something on the Ubuntu forum, a writeup about Apple's open-source ties, and apparently, they have given back to the BSD/Darwin project, and I think Webkit updated, as well.

[reed9]

As I said, I think there are valid reasons to criticize Microsoft, but I totally admit that sometimes I do it from pure unreasoning emotions.

It's as though for all these years I've been locked in a dark closet, and someone says to me, "Hey, here's this amazing product, you'll feel like you're prancing in an open field with the bright sun on your back. Only will cost you a couple hundred dollars" And in exchange I get a little running wheel and a 40 watt light bulb. Some field. Some sun. And then some other folks come along and open the door, saying, "Hey kid, go outside. There's a real field and a real sun, and a whole bunch of cool people playing out there, and it's all free."

So naturally I'm a little pissed at the guys who sold me a crappy option, and tried to keep me from being free.

Ok, admittedly, that's probably a slightly extreme way to talk about software, but what the heck, I feel that way some days.

[techieMoe]

I have an Apple iPhone 3G. It's fantastic and I feel dirty!

I quite enjoy my 3G as well, however my conscience is clear. It's a cool device.

[rokytnji]

I'm tired of all the bashing of Microsoft's Windows

First of all, Howdy and Welcome Galraedia.

and I'm sure a few others are as well

Personally. I have bigger problems in my life in the real world to give a hoot about any bashing in particular. I figure Micro Soft Has Big shoulders and can shrug it off. Just Like Apple. They could give a hoot about what any single user has to say about their business practises.

I have an Apple iPhone 3G. It's fantastic and I feel dirty!

I quite enjoy my 3G as well, however my conscience is clear. It's a cool device.

I love it when you guys make me grin. Tracphone suits me on my motorcycle in case I break down. What ever floats a persons boat is fine by me. Just don't preach to me how great the ride is. I'll be the judge of that, thank you.