Over the course of past two years, we’ve been telling you how Microsoft is trying hard to earn the appreciation of open source developers by either contributing to open source software or sharing its own code on GitHub. These moves have faced skepticism from us as well. Just yesterday, at its Ignite conference, Microsoft launched SQL Server 2017 for Linux as well.
When open source enthusiasts come across headlines like “Windows Subsystem For Linux (WSL) will let you run Linux distros as well,” their doubts don’t remain baseless. In the past, Microsoft’s ex-CEO Steve Ballmer had slammed Linux as a “cancer.” So, is Microsoft totally changed? Are its efforts like WSL helping open source software?
Well, open source boss and software freedom activist Richard Stallman doesn’t have any doubts; he’s certain that Microsoft’s decision to create a Windows Subsystem for Linux is an attempt to extinguish free software.
“It certainly looks that way. But it won’t be so easy to extinguish us, because our reasons for using and advancing free software are not limited to practical convenience,” he said in an interview with TechRepublic.
He further added that the aim of free software movement is freedom, and Windows is a non-starter when it comes to using computers in freedom.
Source:
https://fossbytes.com/richard-stallman-microsoft-linux-love-will-hurt-free-open-source-software/
Submitted by: Arnfried Walbrecht
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