Microsoft and open source patents

Microsoft believes that Linux and open source software violates 235 of its patents and it wants violators to pay up. The company for years has been bashing the open source community and this latest move may well be the bloodiest battle yet.

By John Fontana

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Which patents have allegedly been violated?

Microsoft's legal general Brad Smith gave a broad breakdown of the alleged violations during an interview with Fortune magazine,

but has not detailed specific patents that have been violated. Smith said the Linux kernel violates 42 patents and the operating system's user interface violates 65. The Open Office application suite violates 45 patents and open source e-mail applications infringe on 15. Other open source software applications infringe on 68 patents.

What is the official word from Microsoft?

Microsoft's Intellectual Property team is handling this issue and it isn't saying anything beyond a statement released to the press by Horacio Gutierrez, vice president of intellectual property and licensing: "Even the founder of the Free Software Foundation, Richard Stallman, noted last year that Linux infringes well over 200 patents from multiple companies. [Gutierrez cited this passage.]

The real question is not whether there exist substantial patent infringement issues, but what to do about them. Microsoft and Novell developed a solution that meets the needs of customers, furthers interoperability and advances the interests of the industry as a whole. Any customer that is concerned about Linux IP issues needs only to obtain their open source subscriptions from Novell."

How does this relate to Microsoft's partnership with Novell last year?

As part of the deal, the two agreed not to sue each other's customers over patent and intellectual property infringements. Dell joined the pair earlier this month. The Covenant to Customers ruffled major feathers in the Linux and open source community for its many loopholes and missing details and led to accusations that Novell was bamboozled again by Microsoft.

How did the open source community react?

Richard Stallman, the leader of the Free Software Foundation, says the next version of the GNU General Public License, GPL 3.0, which is nearing final draft, will be crafted to block the type of patent/IP deal Novell and Microsoft cut.

What is at stake for users?

Users found to be using software that infringes on patents could be held liable, but first Microsoft will have to reveal the specific patents it is talking about. Until then, Microsoft is turning up the heat but nobody is about to get burned. Users should check their contracts from vendors that supply open source products. Vendors such as Red Hat and Sun offer limited forms of protection.

How much will Microsoft want vendors/users to pay?

Unknown - it is likely Microsoft would target a few key vendors and distributors whose software has trickled down into many other open source packages. Red Hat and Ubuntu Linux are two very popular Linux distributions that could come under the microscope.

Why is Microsoft doing this now?

Linux/open source is getting its tentacles deep into many companies and Microsoft wants to control this as much as it can in order to maximize its own profits. Also, the open source desktop operating system and applications are starting to chip at Microsoft's revenue foundation -- Office and Windows.

"Microsoft is being pushed on a lot of sides and they are showing that they are going to respond," says Laura DiDio, an analyst with the Yankee Group who has been following software indemnity issues for years. "This is very interesting. Another question is will you see other companies like Apple, which is based on Unix, will they say Linux and open source infringes on our side."

Is this a new tactic from Microsoft?

No. Microsoft has been threatening to use this weapon for some time, but this is the most concrete step it has taken. The company started building up to this crescendo for many years by protecting its own users over patent and other infringement cases. In 2003, it signed a licensing deal with the SCO Group to insulate Microsoft customers from copyright infringement issues.

In a move similar to what Microsoft could now do after having alleged patent infringement, SCO sued IBM and sent letters to 1,500 Linux users warning them of potential copyright infringement and other legal issues. Also in 2003, Microsoft moved to clear up indemnity issues with its users by lifting a cap on what it would pay to protect volume licensing customers from infringement suits over Microsoft products.

In 2004, the program was expanded again to include almost all customers. At the time, critics said it was mostly a marketing move, but in the light of this week's infringement allegations it may have been setting a defence before going on offence.

What can Microsoft do if vendors do not voluntarily comply?

Microsoft could take them to court, but smaller open source and Linux vendors without the financial means to fight would likely cave in long before that happens.

Does this mean the end of some open source products?

That is to be determined, but if Microsoft pushes the issue it could throw open source software into chaos. The company for years has been labelled by critics as the master of fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD). The FUD aspect alone could cause enough ripples with the buying public that Microsoft would never have to put any teeth behind the threat of legal action.

How unpopular is this going to be?

If you like reading blogs and discussion threads then crank up your browser because the acid tongues are already wagging. Microsoft is well within its legal rights to protect what it has invested billions to create, but that doesn't mean the process won't have a pungent odour.

Now read: Microsoft: We won't sue over Linux, for now….

How to backup your Mysql database with phpMyAdmin

Introduction
It is very important to do backup of your MySql database, you will probably realize it when it is too late.
A lot of web applications use MySql for storing the content. This can be blogs, and a lot of other things. When you have all your content as html files on your web server it is very easy to keep them safe from crashes, you just have a copy of them on your own PC and then upload them again after the web server is restored after the crash. All the content in the MySql database must also be backed up. A lot of web service providers say they do backup of all the files, but you should never blindly trust them. If you have spent a lot of time making the content and it is only stored in the Mysql server, you will feel very bad if it gets lost for ever. Backing it up once every month or so makes sure you never loose too much of your work in case of a server crash, and it will make you sleep better at night. It is easy and fast, so there is no reason for not doing it.

Backup of Mysql database
It is assumed that you have phpMyAdmin installed since a lot of web service providers use it.

0. Open phpMyAdmin.
1. Click Export in the Menu to get to where you can backup you MySql database. Image showing the export menu.
2. Make sure that you have selected to export your entire database, and not just one table. There should be as many tables in the export list as showing under the database name.
3. Select"SQL"-> for output format, Check "Structure" and "Add AUTO_INCREMENT" value. Check "Enclose table and field name with backquotes". Check "DATA", check use "hexadecimal for binary field". Export type set to "INSERT".
4. Check "Save as file", do not change the file name, use compression if you want. Then click "GO" to download the backup file.
Image showing step 2-4.

Restoring a backup of a MySql database
1. To restore a database, you click the SQL tab.
2. On the "SQL"-page , unclick the show query here again.
3. Browse to your backup of the database.
4. Click Go.
Image showing step 1-4.

Without phpMyAdmin
phpMyAdmin has some file size limits so if you have large databases it may no be possible to backup using phpMyAdmin. Then you have to use the command line tools that comes with Mysql. Please note that this method is untested.

Mysql backup without phpMyAdmin
PHPMyAdmin can't handle large databases. In that case straight mysql code will help.

1. Change your directory to the directory you want to dump things to:

user@linux:~> cd files/blog

2. Use mysqldump (man mysqldump is available):

user@linux:~/files/blog> mysqldump --add-drop-table -h mysqlhostserver  -u mysqlusername -p databasename (tablename tablename tablename) | bzip2  -c > blog.bak.sql.bz2  Enter password: (enter your mysql password) user@linux~/files/blog>

Example: mysqldump --add-drop-table -h db01.example.net -u dbocodex -p dbwp | bzip2 -c > blog.bak.sql.bz2  Enter password: my-password user@linux~/files/blog> 

The bzip2 -c after the pipe | means the backup is compressed on the fly.

Mysql restore without phpMyAdmin

The restore process consists of unarchiving your archived database dump, and importing it into your Mysql database.

Assuming your backup is a .bz2 file, creating using instructions similar to those given for Backing up your database using Mysql commands, the following steps will guide you through restoring your database :

1. Unzip your .bz2 file:

user@linux:~/files/blog> bzip2 -d blog.bak.sql.bz2

Note: If your database backup was a .tar.gz called blog.bak.sql.tar.gz file, then,

tar zxvf blog.bak.sql.tar.gz

is the command that should be used instead of the above.

2. Put the backed-up sql back into mysql:

user@linux:~/files/blog> mysql -h mysqlhostserver -u mysqlusername  -p databasename < blog.bak.sql  Enter password: (enter your mysql password) user@linux~/files/blog:>

Re: a query

On 6/5/07, Md. Boshirul Islam <boshirul@gmail.com> wrote:

hi,
i'm not sure you continue replying to those questions once you did for magazine computer tomorrow. but if you reply my mail with any sort of suggestions then it would be really helpful for me.

problem 1: my dvd burn time (in 4x, 8x, 16x) took much time than past; about 3 or 5 minutes more. is there any way to bury this time demon ??

problem 2: i feel my hard disk slowed. as i observed it took more time in copying than it did in the past. have i have to format the whole partitions or is there any way different.

sorry to load these questions on you. but i hope i hear some hopeful reply from you.

thank you
--
Md. Boshirul Islam

Well, yes I still answer questions asked to me... I have some plans for it to continue more... I'll need your helps and suggestions regarding this... Plz visit www.doctortomorrow.com & http://doc2morrow.blogspot.com & www.doctortomorrow.com/forum have your say...

There's also another option users can have look for that on www.doctortomorrow.com/talkdirect.htm 

Now, ans to your probs:

1. You didn't mention how old the DVD writer has become. We are now in the era of one-timers and those DVD-writers or Combo writers now-a-days dont last long. Aging slows it down and tends to become useless. You can at best take good cares as directed at your DVD writers manual. Like, cleaning the lenses, Not using the highest speed to write. Not using CDs, DVDs which have scratches. Try not to use the writer as reader etc... Well, if you leave the drive unused it will go useless also. So, extra caring will help to keep it alive more days.

2. You can speed up harddisk by doing a defragmentation when lots of transaction of data is done on a drive. You know before Microsoft bought the defrag program from Norton it was named SpeedDisk. While the machine is on sometimes try to sense the heating of your PC's components such as the harddisk. If its excessively heated you should try to cool it down and find out why its becoming so. Check if your harddisk's data cable would need a replacement. Periodically clean the inside of your PC.

ps. the answers are posted to the http://doc2morrow.blogspot.com for everyone to see. the Forum will be active for the users to participate for actively answering other's problems.

Know the truth about 9/11

9-11, London  staged Terror

The new pretext for all imperial wars, torture, and erosion of civil rights.

Fire did not collapse the World Trade Center twin towers.
It was not so hot, for the survivors and the firefighters.

A  planes and terrorists smoke screen obscured the explosive destruction of the towers.

Webster Griffin Tarpley, 9/11 Synthetic Terror: Made in USA, Progressive Press , 2nd edition, 2006, 510 pages.


Global Outlook, The Magazine of the 9/11 Truth Movement


Barrie Zwicker, The Great Conspiracy: The 9/11 News Special You Never Saw, DVD, 2004.


John Kaminski, The Perfect Enemy, 2004, 322 pages.


Glenn Yeadon, The Nazi Hydra In America, currently online. Expose the roots of American fascism, from robber baron days to Reichstag fire to the WTC atrocity and 'Homeland Security'.

10 Great things NOT to do with Google AdSense

There is no question that you can make some good money with Google AdSense, but you're setting yourself up for disaster if you make any of these Top 10 mistakes!

1. Do not use fake information when opening your Google AdSense account.

Google says that's a no-no and they will cut your account off and keep all the money you may have earned. Besides, trying to hide your true identity can cause serious problems with the I.R.S. or whoever your tax authority is.

2. Do not hack or modify Google AdSense code other than to change the parameters that Google authorizes you to change.

Any attempt to bypass Google's built-in algorithms not only poses a danger to the integrity of the network, but it threatens the financial modle that Google operates under. You're not dealing with some Mom-and-Pop company here, and Google has the legal muscle and deep enough pockets to drag you through every court in the land if you damage their business with your hacking antics.

3. Keep AdSense ads off of your registration, confirmation, and all "thank you" pages.

Don't ask me why you can't put your ads there. It makes sense to me that those would be wonderful locations. Google thinks otherwise, however, and doing so is a hanging offense according to their Terms of Service.

4. Do not display AdSense ads and a competitor's ads (like Overture's) on the same page at the same time.

That just makes plain good sense. Google doesn't demand 100% SITE loyalty from you, but they do insist that their own ads not be cluttered up by offerings from their competitors.

5. Don't "beg for clicks" or provide any incentive for clicking on your Google AdSense ads.

This is a biggie and you see this rule violated all the time. Any of the "get paid to do stuff" sites that put Google ads in the member's control panels are walking the plank and they don't even realize it. Even those sites with the polite little messages asking you to "help keep my site running by clicking on our sponsor's ads" are asking to be cut off if those happen to be Google ads.

6. Never click on the ads running on your own site, even if you are genuinely interested in the product or service and are thinking of buying it!

Nothing screams FRAUD louder than a webmaster running up his or her own click counts by happily clicking on ads fromtheir own site. The Google Gods can track this activity and it won't be long until you find yourself getting a goodbye note from their fraud team.

7. No misleading labeling

Google is very specific about what text can be placed around their ads. Their Terms of Service state: "Publishers may not label the ads with text other than 'sponsored links' or 'advertisements.' This includes any text directly above our ads that could be confused with, or attempt to be associated with Google ads."

This is to keep visitors from becoming confused and barking up Google's tree when they clicked on an ad that led to a porn site instead of the recipe site they were expecting to visit.

8. Avoid keyword spamming and other divisive tricks

You may be tempted to buy one of those "generates thousands of key-word rich pages in seconds" programs that are so popular these days but I'll tell you this: Their days are numbered. Google is wise to such shenanigans and they will be hot on your trail. Other prohibited gimmicks include:

• "Sneaky" page redirects that send a visitor off to a different site then they were expecting to visit.

• Multiple sites, domains, pages, etc. which have substantially duplicate content.

• Hidden text or links of any type.

• Excessive outbound links on any page. Google recommends no more than 100. I'd keep it way below that.

• And here is a nugget of wisdom straight from Google's mouth: "Do not participate in link schemes designed to increase your site's ranking or PageRank. In particular, avoid links to web spammers or "bad neighborhoods" on the web as your website may be affected adversely by those links.

9. Don't advertise anything on Google's prohibited items list.

It's a lot shorter lists than PayPal's or eBay's, but it includes a lot of the same stuff like hacking/cracking content, porn, illegal drugs, gambling sites, beer or hard alcohol (I guess wine is OK), weapons, and the other usual stuff.

10. And the 10th dumbest thing NOT to do with Google AdSense is to let the other nine things stop you from running an honest site that's designed to make the most out of this very profitable opportunity that Google offers!

Re: about LCD

Well, LCD has much better resolution than CRT's...

If you are not short of budget go for good brands such as.. LG, Samsung, Philips, HP, Sony(most preferrable) etc.

You'll need to do a good care for your LCD as it can be damaged by like a hit by a football etc(accidents happen even CRT is fragile)

Now consider advantages... LCD is:

Lightweight, Low Power Consumption, better image, crisp, Low radiation, low heat...

And think of it... is TV picture better than DVD quality? LCD is capable of displaying better quality than CRT ... so conclusion is simple...

LCD is kind of a luxury item.. so I'll suggest you to go to a Good shop... watch a lot with varied brands... make ur choice.. compare specs.. buy the best(dont compromise for cost becuz quality comes with price)

Previously there had been LCDs of 65k colors only capable of producing colors in 8bit or 16bits.. but now most LCDs have 32bit or more capable Color Display.. dont go below that.. ask the sellers for better qualities and ask the differences between quality...

Regards..

On 29 May 2007 19:05:58 -0000, Zaman <visitderby@rediffmail.com> wrote:

Hi,
I have a CRT Monitor. now I want to buy an LCD Monitor.how is quality of LCD monitor?
I mean is it long lasting than CRT ? what about picture quality?
I watch TV through monitor.does LCD monitor give better TV picture
than CRT monitor.what size & brand would be better.I prefer 17".
what should I look to buy a good LCD monitor?
waiting for your advice.

Thank you.

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