MICROSOFT isn't the ENEMY of Linux and FOSS anymore, but it's no friend either...

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#linux #microsoft #foss

00:00 Intro
00:42 Sponsor: 100$ free credit for your Linux or Gaming server!
01:41 Microsoft: the arch-enemy of Linux and FOSS
04:24 Microsoft now loves FOSS and Linux?
07:45 Shady Stuff: Github Copilot
09:48 More Shady Stuff: Secure Core and Linux Boot
11:28 Windows Store policy against FOSS app sales
12:50 Microsoft: friend or foe?
14:08 Sponsor: get a device that runs Linux perfectly!
15:10 Support the channel

Since the 90s, Microsoft hasn't demonstrated the best approach to Linux and open source. The most famous quote here is Steve Ballmer, former CEO of Microsoft, saying "Linux is a cancer that attaches itself in an intellectual property sense to everything it touches".

There was also the still remembered "embrace extend extinguish", terms used by Microsoft internally to describe their strategy when they were trying to enter a market dominated by open standards.

Other notable instances of Microsoft being hostile to open source and Linux include their faux open Microsoft Office OpenXML formats, or Microsoft doing extorting Android phone manufacturers for each phone sold because the Linux kernel supposedly infringed on one of their patents.

Nowadays, though, Microsoft has completely changed their stance. First, Microsoft's president, Brad Smith said "Microsoft was on the wrong side of history when open source exploded at the beginning of the century, and I can say that about me personally"

Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella, went on stage with a "Microsoft Loves Linux" slide. Microsoft, nowadays, uses Linux in Azure, their could offering. They ship a Linux kernel in every WIndows install, for use with the Windows Subsystem for Linux.

On top of that, Microsoft has open sourced a bunch of stuff, including .NET Core, Visual Studio Code, Powershell, the original Edge Javascript engine, their own Fluid UI framework and SDK. Microsoft is also a contributor to the Linux kernel. Microsoft also has a FOSS Fund, which attributes money to FOSS projects.

But then, there's Github copilot. Microsoft acquired Github a while back, and they quickly started using all that open source code to good use. They implemented Copilot, some AI tool that helps developers write code by auto generating methods and functions, auto filling code, and more.

Since it's been proven to actually copy entire patterns, it means that Copilot is just a copyright laundering machine: it takes open source code from open repos, and it copies that code into any other repo, without any license attached to it.

Then there's the requirements for some computers, that microsoft has added. For enterprise PCs, Windows has something they call Secure Core, which means that out of the box, these PCs can't boot Linux at all, you'll have to enter the BIOS and disable that feature.

Last, there are still some issues that illustrate that Microsoft does NOT understand how the open source community works and reacts, which leads to a few problems. The latest one was their new app store policy on Windows. It all started from a good place: they didn't want users to have 20 clones of GIMP or LibreOFFICE that were paid for, probably insecure, and generally were just copyright ripoffs of the originals.

So they added some clauses to their policy that said open source apps can't be monetized on our store. And they pushed these changes as is, without talking it over, and announcing it beforehand.

[MaxSpec]

Still ain't trusting Microsoft over whatever they do for Linux.

[johannes.hoellwerth]

I love Microsoft. They‘re forcing people to switch to linux by making shit operating systems.

[theskyblockman]

Little fix: VSCode is technically not open source, there is an closed-source layer to add microsoft accounts, telemetry and all that kind of stuff, so if you want an open source vscode use by example vscodium

[webxorcist]

As an IT guy since 1997, I will never trust m$ or spend a dime on them. The way they screwed over companies and people is bizarre. Them being nice now is just the same plan but in a different shape. End goal is the same. Look at their influence on motherboard builders to try and make it hard to install Linux on your hardware.

[duffelo]

You are more and more becoming my absolute favorite (Linux) Youtuber!!

There are many guys nowadays, but no one does combine this level of information, high quality of editing, regularity of output, sympathic personality and last but not least fundamental love for FOSS and the community.

The only thing one could see critical (I personally do not!), that you monetize your videos with sponsors and not just donations, is done very smart and most of the time focused on companies, that do support Linux or FOSS in any kind of way, so should absolutely be forgiven. The money has to come from anywhere.

Please keep up the good work! You are very far ahead in what you are doing!

[miguelguthridge]

People say that WSL prevents people from switching to Linux since they can enjoy Bash comfortably within Windows, but for me it was the opposite - as I became more comfortable with Linux through WSL, I became more and more capable of switching to Linux entirely. I made the jump almost a year ago now, and I'm really glad I did, and to be honest, that wouldn't have happened if I didn't have the training wheels that WSL provides.

[XanTheXanadul]

Let's not forget, Microsoft is a gigantic company with many divisions, each having their own leadership and their own stance on FOSS. The people who open sourced VSCodium are most likely not the same people who wrote copilot and are not the same as those who care about azures cloud infrastructure.
We can currently see an example of this complexity with intel, with their Accelerated Graphics Division pretty much going rouge regarding the alchemist GPUs.

[elnicatuani]

In my opinion, the Linux community and FOSS communities should take advantage of Microsoft as long as possible and be prepared so when the time comes, the stabbing in the back doesn't hurt that much. Also, I agree to updating all FOSS licenses so these are protected against A.I. assisted source code generators. Nice observation there, Nick!

[guss]

Regarding "Fluid UI" - I believe this is the correct logo for the Fluid UI product - which is not a Microsoft product and is not open source. The Microsoft *Fluent UI* product is open source (MIT) and has a different logo.

[jhonyortiz]

They've made vscode almost unusable in it's Foss form.
For example, if you want to do python development on vscode, there is no real second choice other than Microsoft's extension. They made it so that other community driven extensions didn't get enough downloads to keep them going. So now, their extension is the only up to date extension. And guess what? You can't use their repos on the open source version of vscode. So you really have to use vscode, the one that Microsoft has modified and is not Foss. Their extensions are also not Foss I think.

[GlitchedVision]

We're seeing Google do the same thing now.

[MateuLeGrillepain]

Me, a Linux user, trying to become an opera singer (so that my voice can shatter Windows)

[MrSlm]

M$... Can't trust them when it comes to Linux... I use both, but I would trust M$ intentions like I would trust google to not collect and sell my data.

[blendingsentinel]

Until they can help us get any Windows application running in WINE and stop making it harder to use Linux next to Windows, I will continue to be suspicious.

[yiannisspanos]

If co-pilot is a license laundering machine, and laws are written to allow it, then we should make an "AI" like co-pilot and train it with all the NVIDIA/ Microsoft code leaks.

[sumnerd]

IMO, you cannot tell me with a straight face that copypasting a well known FOSS application and selling it in an online marketplace for your own profit is ok because "it's allowed by the license" and expect me to take you seriously. it's scummy, unless the devs explicitly say they're fine with it. I think that's what MS is trying to prevent

[jd]

This will always be a love / hate relationship. You have a company trying to make money and an ecosystem that is 100% against that. There is no world in which that doesn't cause friction at many levels. Thanks for the excellent video, Nick!

[guySchuleman]

Microsoft hasn't changed. They are still implementing the same 3 step process you mentioned in the begining of the video. They are farming Linux for what they need and then will restrict its usage via secureboot and other methods until Linux is wiped out when they have what they want.

[mystixa]

For now. "embrace, extend, extinguish" is always their base motto. We're in the first phase where it seems all happy. With their purchase of github we could even be entering into the 2nd phase.

[mrbladestone]

Secure boot is enabled by default on every damn laptop out there. All my computers failed to install Ubuntu in the first try because of Secure Boot and Proprietary SSD strorage controller that windows uses (on intel CPUs at least) instead of the common AHCI controller.