[kwlug-disc] free MS software for 3 years

[Insurance Squared Inc.]

I'm curious what the OS makeup looks like in other places around the 
world, like Africa or South America or the old Russian provinces or 
Asia.  Everyone running MS locally like here?  Or are there other things 
going on.

Khalid Baheyeldin wrote:
> On Thu, Sep 24, 2009 at 10:45 AM, Raul Suarez <rarsa at yahoo.com 
> <mailto:rarsa at yahoo.com>> wrote:
>
>     Savvy business decision.
>
>     I've always been of the idea that all the Word sharing (some may
>     call it pirating) of the 90's helped solidify Microsoft's
>     dominance in this area.
>
>
> That is exactly what happened in the 90s. My brother, a small business 
> owner, manufacturing, not tech, switched way before me to Linux 
> because of the pressure of Microsoft. After the initial "sharing" 
> phase, Microsoft (and others) got the government in Egypt to have a 
> special branch for intellectual property, and they were authorized to 
> go to businesses and inspect licenses, or original CDs. They did this 
> for Windows, AutoCAD, Oracle, and Novell.
>
> So, he switched to Linux rather than buy thousands of pounds worth of 
> licenses.
>
> Bill Gates is quoted saying "If they were to pirate software, then it 
> better be our software". Because after a while, they came and said : 
> "you have to legalize it" and that meant revenue for Microsoft.
>
>
>     Now, instead of leaving it to chance they do the same as the drug
>     dealers. Give it for free to hook up the client.
>
>     Whoever has built an application knows how difficult it is to
>     change platforms, both technical and business inertia.
>
>
> The irony here is that the market has changed, with Linux maturing on 
> the desktop more than it was in the 90s. So Microsoft is offering free 
> to compete against "Free", not against other commercial providers.
>
> So in a way, Free software has forced them to change their tactics.
>
> Let us see if it gains them market share ...
> -- 
> Khalid M. Baheyeldin
> 2bits.com <http://2bits.com>, Inc.
> http://2bits.com
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