Hilf Claims Free Software Movement Dead

moe1975 writes to mention that Bill Hilf has taken a rather aggressive stance with regard to the status of the Free Software movement. With claims like; "The Free Software movement is dead. Linux doesn't exist in 2007. Even Linus has got a job today" it would certainly seem that the next offensive is going to be sponsored by denial. "For the desktop, Hilf sees a new frontier in terms of rich client programming. With more and more services by Amazon, Google, Yahoo and, of course, Microsoft being run as services rather than as software installed locally, it will be up to the desktop to provide richer functionality."

Will someone please clarify "free" for him?

[catbutt]

Thank you.

Anonymous Coward Claims Hilf is Braindead

[Anonymous Coward]

Who the hell is Bill Hilf, and what kind of drugs is he smoking? He's obviously so far out of touch with reality that he must certainly be braindead.

Correction: free software development is funded

[iamacat]

TFA claims that just because IBM and Redhat are involved in free software development, the code is somehow less free. The fact is that anyone can fork off Redhat and give away or sell support for their own distribution. In fact, this is commonly done.

Japan migrates to Non-existant Software

[alucinor]

Wow! And aren't the Japanese getting ready to migrate to this non-existant software ecosystem? How very philosophically Eastern of them! It's like some sort of crazy Zen thing!

Yawn. More FUD

[rohar]

FUD confusing open source with free software by unpaid programmers, making up windows server base numbers and referring to _AMP as "Visual Basic of open source" that pulled Linux along and what the programmers really want is to run their apps on Vista. Interoperability should only happen after a decade or so, because no one wants it anyway. A guy develops a 3d interface but can't figure out how that would work with Linux. Just FUD, nothing happening here folks, keep moving along.

Re:Will someone please clarify "free" for him?

[Anonymous Coward]

"People do not want ODF (Open Document Format), but they want a way to control the information they create, he claimed."
DUH!!! Thats the point of free software.

Only one way to respond to this...

[CanSpice]

LOL

Someone missed a memo

[Hobbs0]

If Free Software and Linux is dead then why is Microsoft claiming that it violates 235 of their patents.

It's still free!

[LoudMusic]

"For the desktop, Hilf sees a new frontier in terms of rich client programming. With more and more services by Amazon, Google, Yahoo and, of course, Microsoft being run as services rather than as software installed locally, it will be up to the desktop to provide richer functionality."

The online services provided by Google and Yahoo are ... wait for it ... free software!

People aren't moving to online services. They're still moving to "free". Just happens it's online instead of locally installed. Woop-de-fucking-do.

Re:Correction: free software development is funded

[nine-times]

That is what he's saying, but it's really hard to see how this could make sense to anyone. Bill Hilf quote from the article:

They are full-time employees, with 401K stock options. Some work for IBM or Oracle. What does that mean? It means that Linux doesn't exist any more in 2007.

What does that even mean? Linux is well funded, and therefore doesn't exist?

Re:Huh?

[/ASCII]

His statements are an amazing mix of half-truths, selective reinterpretations and marketing drivel. I don't think he says anything that is a flat out lie, but every single word is on the edge. Congratulations to Microsoft for hiring the best spin doctor in the industry?

Apps as services means desktop freedom

[dalutong]

His logic is absurd. Assuming these web apps are standards compliant, they are the death knell of Windows hegemony. The only question is whether Microsoft can somehow manage to make their apps only work (or at least only work fully) on IE/Windows.

Commercial web services benefit GNU/Linux

[dircha]

These same commercial web services will benefit GNU/Linux.

At present I am an OS X user because I am willing to pay for the high quality, hassle-free user experience Apple provides.

But already 90%+ of my computer use outside of work is of web-based. So long as GNU/Linux continues to be - and continues to improve as - a viable platform for this content, I suspect a great number of users will continue to inch nearer to being able to use GNU/Linux as their primary (and sole) system.

I'd really like to see usage statistics for the general populace: percentage breakdowns of non-business related usage categories.

My guess: email, web browsing, multimedia, games, taxes.

Re:Huh?

[Bent Mind]

I didn't recognize the name at first. Bill Hilf did a Slashdot interview [slashdot.org] a while back. He is currently Director of Platform Technology Strategy at Microsoft. Before that he was Senior Enterprise Architect at IBM.

He talks about being hired [microsoft.com] by Microsoft as an expert in Linux-based systems. Near as I can tell, he is a glorified network administrator.

As for his comments, stating that the Free Software movement is dead because Linus has a job speaks volumes about his ignorance on the topic.

Re:Once again..

[MightyMartian]

I hope the next time some Microsoft shill comes around Slashdot telling us how MS is open source friendly, and wants us to supply some questions for him not to answer, we all ask the same one; Have you stopped beating your wife?

I'm serious. After Microsoft's positioning over the last few days, I don't think there's anything more to talk about. They are THE enemy of open source. They are THE enemy of free software. There are THE enemy of choice. They are THE enemy of competition.

So what this Hilf weirdo is really saying is...

[SadGeekHermit]

* Linux doesn't exist because it's actually everywhere, distributed by gigantic companies which make zillions of dollars off it.

* The Open Source Movement doesn't exist because it's been adopted by companies both large and small, which are all merrily making a profit from it.

* Because Open Source is mostly commercial and very successful, making lots of money for the large and small companies that are involved in it, the only way to "grow the ecosystem" is to switch to the Microsoft products nobody wants to buy anymore.

* Linux is only popular because it's the foundation for the LAMP web-development stack, which has been trouncing .Net in the market (this makes me wonder if Hilf, back in high school, used to grumble that "the only reason Randy the Quarterback gets laid is because he has a Mustang...").

* Because Open Source Software runs on Windows too, all those Apache guys are probably running Windows.

* Standards are a communist plot started by those hippies at IBM because darnit, they just don't like Microsoft. It's not fair (hilf makes pouty face).

* WPF-E needs a better name so everybody will want to program in it. If WPF-E gets a cool name like Flash, everybody will use it immediately.

* Because Programming is Hard and that's Just Not Cool, Microsoft wants to make it like "turning a knob" so that developers don't have to work in high-paying jobs anymore, and can go find something new to do for minimum wage that'll probably be funner.

Did I miss anything? I swear reading his comments is like being hit with one Zen Koan after another, machine gun style. What is the sound of one hand clapping?

Phew. Too much, too much. I've gotta go do something fun for a while. Hmm...

Warhammer 40K! Death to the False Emperor! C'mere, you Eldar hussy, you...

What did Ghadi say?

[onkelonkel]

First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win. -- Mahatma Gandhi.

We have now moved from the ignore phase to the ridicule phase. Fasten your seatbelts kids, its going to get bumpy.

Re:Huh?

[SpaceLifeForm]

FUD. He's paid to lie. This is just another attack on GNU/Linux, nothing more.

Microsoft is desperate, really desperate. They see the writing on the wall, and they know their empire is about to collapse.

Re:What did Ghadi say?

[OmegaBlac]

We are already passed the ridicule stage. We are now in the fight stage, hence the multiple threats made by Ballmer over the past year about FOSS violating MS's IP, the Forbes article--posted here yesterday--where Microsoft's Mr. Gutierrez and Brad Smith are looking to extort money out of companies that use FOSS, the Novell deal, funding of SCO, the attempts to derail ODF, and so on. Time to hunker down folks as Microsoft's opening barrage has only just begun.

Hilf must think "free" means "free as in beer"

[Anonymous Coward]

"The Free Software movement is dead. Linux doesn't exist in 2007. Even Linus has got a job today"

This seemed like a strange non-sequitur to me, until I figured it out:

Hilf thinks that the "Free" in "Free Software" means zero price.

He must have figured that since Linus wasn't getting any income from "free (as in beer) software", he was forced to go out and get a job to make money.

That's the only possible way to make any sense out of his "job" comment.

His misunderstanding of what "Free" means clearly demonstrates that he doesn't even possess a rudimentary understanding of the FOSS community.

Re:Huh?

[hdparm]

They really used to be kings of FUD but this is laughable, at best. If it wasn't Microsoft, one could almost feel sorry.

They actually prove the point that MS never, ever invented anything and that huge ecconomical success was just due to a ride on top of monopoly wave. That doesn't cut it anymore - Apple and Free Software community are making supperior products already. Windows is in such a mess that MS is not able to make any real improvements without breaking everything and basically starting from scratch. This is the reason to sing 'software as a service' song - Windows is dead and their desktop market share will start shrinking soon. It is 90%+, so yes - wiles, l take some time but they are in trouble.

Oh, Hilf - yes, we still exist. We are here! [redhat.com]

Re:Huh?

[Miseph]

I doubt "ignorant" is actually accurate. The guy came from IBM, and he probably knows his shit.

His job, however, is to make MSFT look good and everyone else look bad. He is very well paid for this service. he's probably also not terribly concerned about some /. reader stating the obvious, since he probably doesn't care what most of us say even if it isn't obvious.

Re:More "software as a service" crap

[stony3k]

While I agree with you in that OSes aren't going any place, I think many slashdotters (and CIOs) are getting the whole Software as a Service phenomenon wrong. SaaS allows companies to outsource things which are not their core competency (like accounts, payroll, taxes, etc.) and focus on their strengths. This is especially true for small and mid-sized businesses, but I'm seeing even large corporations following suit.

You also have to remember that Google (for example) has "enterprise" versions that don't require you to store your data on their servers.