It's Christmas!

Here's Wishing one and all:

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays !

Peace on Earth - Goodwill to men.

WGA locks out a beta tester

Ever wonder why I keep calling Microsoft evil? Here's a classic example. Warning: The blog has some salty language since the man is obviously upset.

Rob was a beta tester for Microsoft and was an ardent supporter. WGA killed his Vista activation. When he griped about it they called him a thief and deleted his comments from the boards. Then they completely cut him off from all the boards. His passport account has been blocked. Classic Microsoft.

Here's a quote from his blog:

I’m really frustrated by this, and I can’t believe MS is doing it. But this isn’t a life quest for me - at least not until after the Cowboys game is over. Am I disappointed, disgusted, frustrated and even appalled? Yes I am. MS has really done more then let me down today. They’ve embarrassed me for supporting them. They’ve lost some trust I don’t think they can ever regain. They have been evil. They have censored me. They have cut my voice off - ignored my opinions, and basically disposed of me. I won’t forget that anytime soon. Mostly I am sorry for the time and energy I have spend over the last year supporting Vista. I am heart-broken that I spent that time fruitlessly for a company that obviously doesn’t care, doesn’t get it, and could care less if I was a happy customer. I am dismayed that they cut me off without consultation. I am freaked out that they delete my posts. Best one word description for my experience with MS today: disgust.

Look for this to be repeated over and over again when Vista gets to the masses. When WGA decides you are a THIEF, you will be locked out of your machine and you will have no recourse. Another great scam brought to you by the disgusting despicable morally and ethically bankrupt monopoly.

The Begining of the End

After years of enduring Microsoft sponsored FUD, the Linux community and IBM have finally got the first glimpse of vindication when U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball upheld federal Magistrate Brooke Wells' June decision to strike down two-thirds of SCO's allegations.

Here is Judge Kimball's ruling. The original ruling by Judge Brooke Wells can be found here.

I know no one wants to read lengthy legal documents so here's the meat of the matter.

Having thoroughly reviewed and considered the briefing related to IBM’s Motion to Limit SCO’s Claims, the briefing related to SCO’s objections, the underlying previous discovery orders, and the arguments made at the October 24 hearing, the court finds that, even under a de novo standard of review, the Magistrate Judge’s June 28, 2006 Order is correct. The court finds that SCO failed to comply with the court’s previous discovery-related Orders and Rule 26(e), that SCO acted willfully, that SCO’s conduct has resulted in prejudice to IBM, and that this result–the inability of SCO to use the evidence at issue to prove its claims– should come as no surprise to SCO. In addition, the court finds that neither particularized findings on an item-by- item basis nor an evidentiary hearing is required to make these determinations. The court, therefore, affirms and adopts the Magistrate Judge’s June 28, 2006 Order in its entirety.

Hey Darl, maybe you need to call up your buddy Mike Anderer and get Steve Ballmer to buy some more Unix licences. Now that SCO's stock is dropping like a rock and all its investors are essentially abandoning it. Ruthless world ain't it bud? That's what you get for LYING.

I especially liked the fact that SCO's #1 Fan and media champion - Rob Enderle was quoted in the Salt Lake Tribune as saying "We're waiting for the proverbial fat lady to sing". Analysts change their tune quickly don't they? More like rats deserting a sinking ship.

There is another important lesson in this. If you do Microsoft's dirty work for them, don't expect them to come to you rescue when crap hits the fan.

I feel sorry for the hard working shlubs at SCO. They have families to feed and mortgages to pay. The logical end to this is a bankrupt company that was once famous for writing really good UNIX software. The grunts will soon be looking for a job while Darl McBride floats off on his golden parachute to a much deserved vacation in the Bahamas. Such is life.

I wonder now if SCO as a company will last till the trial set for mid next year. And the Novell trial is first.