[NTLUG:Discuss] SCO History article -- no Project Monterey mention?

[Bryan J. Smith]

From: Chris Cox <cjcox at acm.org>
> I know... Wired... the Michael Moore of IT mags... but
> still, I think there's some factual info in this:
> http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.07/linux.html

Not.  Any article on IBM v. SCO that doesn't at least mention Project
Monterey is ignoring why SCO sued IBM in the first place.

Project Monterey is _the_cornerstone_ in why the March 2003 filing was
made.  The latter May 2003 addendeums to the lawsuit were a result of
IBM not settling like SCO expected.

The _best_ history lesson I've seen is from Caldera co-founder Ransom
Love, who has since publicly denounced what his former company is
doing.  It was in eWeek back in 2003 Sep 23:  
  http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1492264,00.asp  

It was a _huge_ _vindication_ for me in what I've been saying all along.

SCO _does_ have a case against IBM, not Linux, but IBM.
And if SCO wins against IBM, because of the tie-in, people will
_ass-u-me_ that SCO has won against Linux.

The SCO v. IBM lawsuit has _nothing_ to do with Linux and IP.
It has to do with contract violation.
SCO's original wordage in the March 2003 filing was not to show IBM
transfer of IP to Linux, but to show IBM violated their non-compete as
part of Project Monterey by working on it.

Project Monterey was a two-fold agreement:  
- Unifed 64-bit UNIX:  Power/UNIX64 for IBM, IA-64/UNIX64 for SCO
- Non-compete, Power and IA-64 were designed to address difference
market segments.

Instead, IBM did:  
- Withheld the IA-64/UNIX64 port from SCO
- Started to help develop Linux/IA-64 (clear non-compete violation)

This was IBM "being a bully" to SCO, because they could do it.
There is no more proof than that now than IBM forcing its licenses _not_
to deploy Linux where it competes with Power/UNIX64 (AIX 5L).

The business world is _never_ about friends, it's about marketshare.

-- Bryan

P.S.  Yes, even if SCO had its IA-64/UNIX64 port, they wouldn't be the
dominate player they once were.  But SCO still wanted it to "stay alive"
with limited, but high-end, high-profit margin sales.   With no
IA-64/UNIX64 product to be seen, they are dead in the water, and Linux
wasn't cutting it for them.

-- 
Bryan J. Smith, E.I. -- b.j.smith at ieee.org