Microsoft attempts Linux Boot Lockout!!!

[GJones]

IMO what matters isn't the impact on Linux users, so much as the fact that this is totally anti-competitive. The only reason they can get away with it is that they already have an effective monopoly - if they didn't, other companies would be screaming for their blood.

This isn't about creating a monopoly; this is about securing a monopoly against future competition in the x86 PC market.

P.S. Why does anyone trust the OEMs not to leave end users in the cold? Seriously, when have they ever not done that? Remember the capacitor plague?

[Oracle911]

Do you remember that fuss about Win95 and IE, which almost cost Microsofts existence? I`m talking about when they put a code into Win, which locked out other browsers.

It may cause similar fuss, but i hope it will end up with end of Microsoft, other thing is they will go into bankrupt like GM.

[Oracle911]

No comment:
http://www.lehsys.com/2011/05/windows-8-dont-buy-it/

[DavidMcCann]

As I understand it, this is nothing to do with Microsoft 8. They are going to replace BIOS by UEFI and this feature has been proposed by Microsoft for inclusion. But UEFI is being drafted by Microsoft, Apple, the companies that make firmware chips, and a few hardware manufacturers. To lock out Linux, Microsoft has to get the others to agree. Will companies like Dell want to produce computers that can't run Linux when that would mean that they couldn't sell to a range of big corporate and government buyers? And will governments allow them to do it? Remember the prosecution of Microsoft by the European Commission? And then there was the decision by the US Justice Department to break up Microsoft, a fate they only averted by paying GWB's election expenses; they might not be so lucky next time.