Microsoft/Novell Partnership

[Ian Petersen]

> What if you buy SuSe and pass it on to some one else? or is SuSe licenced
> per copy as M$ Windows and you can not pass it on to some one else? Can the
> person you gave SuSe to use those technologies that you are able to use
> (specially those that are bundled with the CD, which I assume will include
> the useful ones)?

Well, I _think_ the main point was about patents.  I think Microsoft
is asserting that "Linux" (which probably means more than just the
kernel) contains code that infringes upon Microsoft's patents.  If
that's true, then barring special circumstances, nobody's allowed to
use it anyway (at least the patented bits).  My understanding is that
this new deal with SuSe is a "special circumstance" that allows paying
customers of SuSe to use the patented bits without risk from
Microsoft.  If that's true, these new rights to use Microsoft's
patents are probably not transferrable.

> I didn't understand that SuSe customers can use windows software without
> buying them or any other software in windows per se. I understood him as
> saying that if you are a Novell customer then you can run perl on windows or
> use mount vista file system on Linux, play window media player files with
> DRMs, stuff like that. Stuff which are technically possible to do but MS
> licencing prohibit you.

I must have been unclear in my previous post because I fully agree
with this paragraph of yours.

Ian

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