Munich to Go Ahead with Linux After All

Saeed al-Sahaf writes "According to Groklaw and the German publication Heise (it's in German, of course) Munich's mayor Christian Ude has held a press conference, in which he said that the bidding process for the switch from Windows to Linux will go forward as originally planned, despite patent issues. InfoWorld (in English), quotes Bernd Plank, a spokesman for Munich town hall, saying that he expected that the administration would take a maximum of 'two to three weeks' to decide whether the EU's Directive on software patents could affect the city's plan to switch to Linux, and that would be no 'dramatic setback.'" We reported this earlier as well, but now that it's making the rounds again in English, more of us can read it without resorting to Babelfish.

No fish?

[general_re]

...now that it's making the rounds again in English, more of us can read it without resorting to Babelfish.

What the hell fun is that?

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City Munich continues Linux migration

Despite legal ambiguity and continuous fears of a patent war approximately around open SOURCE of Munich wants to start mayor Christian Ude the bidding procedure for the re-equipment of the Desktops in the city administration on free software. This announced the SPD politician on today's Wednesday on a press conference in the city hall. The Prozedere is brought to the active migration phase of the LiMux project after a "pause for thought by few days" in course, gave to Ude with well one week delay green light for the introduction . An appraisal and the participant competition should be final up to the autumn. If a conversion to Linux appears then harmless, can be begun immediately with the Bieterverfahren. In any case one however wants to remain the city with its confession to Linux: "it remains with the fact that the city Munich decided for open SOURCE."

Ude announced that the city will give a legal opinion for clarifying to the question in order, which effects the disputed European Union guideline to the patenting barness of "computer-implemented inventions" in its present version of the Council of Ministers have could. Of the Federal Government Ude information required, why she had votiert in Brussels at all for a change before good of the version of the directive which was called by the European parliament. If one wants to promote to Berlin of far open SOURCE projects, how from the Federal Department of Justice week passed stresses again , one must create right security for the public and private expenditures also. Furthermore Ude requested other cities, municipalities and authorities, which work on Linux migrations, to the shoulder conclusion with Munich -- the argumentation residents of Munich of the city head and the demands on the Federal Government submitted the city equivalent again in writing therefore .

With the temporary stop of the LiMux advertisement the residents of Munich city administration at the beginning of of August had fed the continuous debate over software patents and the lining up Brussels legislation on an expanded summer high floated -- in addition, doubts about the feasibility of the Linux re-equipment. Also the camp of the proponents of free software was in disagreement itself in the estimate of the concrete danger for the residents of Munich of migration plans. In a pointed reaction to the interruption of the project the Free warned software Foundation Europe ( FSFE ) and the LinuxTag e.V. Beginning of the week again together before the abuse of software patents "for psychological war guidance" in the economy.

"at present mechanisms from the cold war are adapted for the keeping by interests of enterprise", echauffierte themselves olive Zendel, chairman of the LinuxTags. The principle of the atomic deterrence is replaced by armament by Patentportfolios, while other companies nonaggression treaties would lock by a Kreuzlizenzierung of the own patents. Wrong-basic are thereby "programmers, small and medium-size enterprises and thus the economic situation Europe." Disturbingly to it above all, supplemented FSFE president is George Greve that do not even need to be prozessiert: "a confused rumor is completely sufficient, in order to bring a complex and complex project for days from the trace. It would be interesting to compute the economical damage."

The residents of Munich city administration does not see so far under any circumstances eliminated the fears of the open SOURCE scene despite the appeasement attempts from the Ministry of Justice. It has a number of open questions listed, approximately after long-term investment security for LiMux estimated approximately 30 million euro, after appearing a patent flood in the software range, itself the complaint waves and its consequences for the innovation strength of the economy,

Die microsoft die

[marika]

It's german.

Die Linuxboxen runnen sofwaressen mit du lieber!

[Anonymous Coward]

Offen runnenboxen ach du lieber Augestien. Heil Torvalds. Fingerpoken offen mousenkeyboarden unixen blitzkreik der vindows. Uber Alles!

Der fingerpoken filterin Unix tochen English softranslaten Deutch offen. Sour kraut.

Re:Discounts?

[Rude Turnip]

I think it's because Ballmer blurted out at the meeting, "of course you did, you invaded Poland!"

Re:Show respect

[Wudbaer]

I just expressed my respect to those people a minute ago. It takes a lot of courage to do this, having Microsoft Germany in your city and all that...

What do you expect Microsoft to do ? Break their legs ? "Mr Ballmer is very unhappy about all of this..." Move ? Even if this might be a foreign thought for some people here: MS is not the Mafia, it is not the Spanish Inquisition and it is not someone's secret police. They are just a (albeit very big) corporation. Munich is still free to do what they like. Courage, my ass.

Re:Die microsoft die

[Anonymous Coward]

That's like saying "the microsoft the"...

Obligatory Family Guy Reference

[Psymunn]

'Ve vere invited. Punch vas served. Check vit Poland.'

Re:Why

[Anonymous Coward]

And if you bought a bag of high quality cocaine only to discover that it was just powdered sugar, you'd demand a refund as well?

The people who filed for the patents knew they were unenforceable at the time, and no garantee was ever made that they would ever be made enforceable.

Caveat Emptor, suckers.

Re:Discounts?

[Anonymous Coward]

"of course you did, you invaded Poland!"

Sure we did! And it would have worked if it hadn't been for those stupied allies...

Obvious arm twisting.

[Anonymous Coward]

What a transparent attempt to get cheaper GPL licensing terms from Stallman and the FSF!

Germany probably demanded something extreme, like perpetual access to source code.

Re:Die Linuxboxen runnen sofwaressen mit du lieber

[Ethelred Unraed]

Excuse my being personal, though, but does your wife like to be called Kraut and reminded of Blitzkrieg (or however he spelt it)?

Well, to give you a hint: she calls me Hunnybun. I call her Bunny-Hun.

Get the picture? ;-)

Sure, some Germans (mostly northern Germans) have had their sense of humor surgically removed. But most that I know have a pretty black sense of humor, too.

Cheers,

Ethelred

Re:Discounts?

[FuzzyBad-Mofo]

one would almost be convinced these weren't bureaucrats, but aliens who have taken the place of the bureaucrats.

In related news, Munich government reps have been asking about something called a "Continuum Transfunctioner". News at 11.