Microsoft has quietly hired Tom Hanrahan, formerly the Linux Foundation's director of engineering, to become its Director of Linux Interoperability. As part of his responsibilities, Hanrahan will manage the Microsoft/Novell Interoperability Lab that Microsoft began staffing up earlier this year.

Thursday, June 07, 2007: Microsoft Corp. and LG Electronics have entered into a patent cross-licence agreement to further the development of the companies ’ current and future product lines. Through the agreement, LGE will be able to use Microsoft-patented innovations in its products, including Linux-based embedded devices.

Doesn't it bother you, at least on some level, that Microsoft has found a way to profit from Linux? And profit greatly I might add. The idea of that is personally repulsive. Let me tell you what is not only repulsive, it's obscene.

"Companies should not fall for the temptations of purchasing a licence for Microsoft's intellectual property with their open source applications because it allows the software giant to "divide and conquer" the software market."

So, when Adrian refers to users not being "all that dissatisfied," I can only assume that he is referring to the limited number of Windows power users who understand how to dodge Windows XP bullets with spyware, viruses and worms?

Overall, my productivity and the scope of things I can do with Ubuntu far exceed what I could do with Windows and just as importantly Ubuntu (like any Linux would) lets me easily create my own productivity shortcuts of a variety of sorts.

One by one, free and open source software providers are signing agreements with “the dark side”, the poster child for proprietary software, and (many say) the antithesis of open source: Microsoft.

But what if your company is so high-profile in the PC industry that every internal move is noted by MS? What if MS is permanently on-site? What if MS pays your company (in one form or another) to keep their desktop standard internally? What if MS coerces your business...