SCO vs Novell

[oz]

Well, here we are 6 years later and they are just now making it to the courthouse.

The long awaited trial begins on Monday:

Six years later, SCO-Novell lawsuit finally going to trial - Salt Lake Tribune

[MikeTbob]

Quick question but it's a biggie....what happens if Novell gets sold to Elliott Associates?
Novell for Sale: Another SCO Moment Coming? | Blogs | ITBusinessEdge.com
I think a lot of this depends on Elliott Associates, are they going to repackage/flip Novell like they have been known to do in the past with other software companies or will they try their luck in the courts.........in order to make a boat load of money.

[oz]

Quick question but it's a biggie....what happens if Novell gets sold to Elliott Associates?

I don't know... and the fact that this will be a jury trial means that anything could happen because you can never tell what a jury might do.

[MikeTbob]

I don't know... and the fact that this will be a jury trial means that anything could happen because you can never tell what a jury might do.

That's one thing that worries me the most about jury trials, most people in a courtroom jury have no understanding of computers, much less Linux and F/OSS. I was always under the impression that a judge would rule on this and that would be the end of it.
I have read an article that says the Linux community at large has nothing to worry about, even if SCO wins the case.
(I'm looking for the link)
EDIT: It was the link I posted above, and it doesn't quiet say what I thought it did.

However, neither open source nor Linux is in any significant near-term danger; long-term all depends on who the eventual buyer is and what they intend to do with the property.

[Rubberman]

It's been awhile since I was on a jury. Last time was about 4-5 years ago, and I was the jury foreperson. FWIW, we found the defendent not guilty. Anyway, I think that how knowledgable the jury is will depend alot on where the trial is held. Just one or two people on the jury who know about this stuff can help "guide" the others into a reasonable understanding of what's what. At least we can hope! Anyway, that's why there is an appeals process, in case the jury was clueless. Also, the judge can overrule a jury if they are totally out of touch with reality.