Re: GPL'ing Solaris won't save SUN

[Richard L. Hamilton]

In article <2p58l4Ffh581U1@uni-berlin.de>,
        Christopher Browne <cbbrowne@acm.org> writes:
> Centuries ago, Nostradamus foresaw when groenvel@cse.psu.edu (John D 
> Groenveld) would write:
>> In article <m3d61fr187.fsf@magma.savecore.net>,
>> Frank Cusack  <fcusack@fcusack.com> wrote:
>>>It's already happening (lxrun, and now Janus).  How is more compatibility
>>>bad?
>>
>> Win-OS/2 became an excuse for ISVs to not provide native OS/2 ports.
>>
>> If its Sun's intention to capitalize on Solaris x86/Opteron to
>> expand the entire Solaris ecosystem, then Janus should be seen by
>> Sun as a good hack in the short term; a bad hack with prolonged use.
> 
> Sun's in the market to sell hardware, not OSes.
> 
> Their proper goal is to seek to get people to buy their hardware.  If
> it gives enough "warm fuzzies" to people to have the Sun name on the
> front and Linux on the login, this is not a "bad hack."

Oh, in the short term it could pay off.

But in the long term, catering to stupid people has its limits, not
to mention nontrivial adverse consequences (more stupid people, if nothing
else).

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