IBM Linux Video

[Henry Spencer]

On Thu, 20 Nov 2003, JoeHill wrote:
> ...I think they are making a smart business move,
> supporting Linux as a means to an end, not because they are all converts of
> Richard Stallman.

This is actually good.  People who are supporting Linux out of intelligent
self-interest are *more* reliable, not less, than people who support it
because they've suddenly got religion. 

Someone who suddenly gets religion once can get it again, and there is no
predicting what they'll do.  One day they're singing the Internationale
under the red flag, the next they're leading the Fascists to seize power. 
(In 1914, the world's most famous brick-throwing flag-waving ultra-radical 
Marxist was a young Italian named Benito Mussolini...)

When the motive is intelligent self-interest, you can generally understand
what they're up to and how they're likely to react to new developments. 
Their thought patterns may be subtle but they aren't incomprehensible. 

> If it benefits the Linux "community", then great, but in the
> end it's just business, and it's never a smart move to expect a 
> company like IBM to always act in the best interests of that community.

The best way to ensure the long-term health of the Linux community is to
maximize the number of people and companies who see its continued health
as being in their own best interests. 

                                                          Henry Spencer
                                                       henry-lqW1N6Cllo0sV2N9l4h3zg at public.gmane.org

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