Chinese no OS ban may open way for Linux
In comp.os.linux.advocacy, Au79 wrote on Tue, 18 Apr 2006 09:04:18 -0700
It might. It might also be a sop to Microsoft or even a far more general requirement: a ban on all machines that don't respect DRM conventions.
This is an excerpt from a newsbit I posted earlier: L4L: Who is funding your effort? If no one, how can people help you financially? Are...
Remember that the Chinese government doesn't like dissidence.
(found using Yahoo! news search)
John A. Bailo In UNIX world before Linux was taken seriously, we had quite a few advanced terminals. The likes of the Genisco's where much of the processing...
in particular mentions
The announcement came days before Chinese President Hu Jintao leaves for the United States, which is pressing the Chinese government to crack down on rampant illegal copying of software, music and other goods.
and
Its deputy director, Wang Yefei, said "all domestically made and imported computers are required to be sold with legitimate software pre-installed," the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
Is Linux "legitimate" in this context? Or....??
This sort of thing makes me nervous -- and I wonder how enforceable it is anyway; even were China to start selling Red Flag Linux desktops like crazy, how long before someone slaps on a pirated copy of Windows, and how well can Microsoft, the US government, or the common 'Murkan see that happening in a country that prides itself in "not allowing others to meddle"?
We shall see.
-- Windows Vista. Because everyone wants a really slick-looking 8-sided wheel.