>> YAG (hitherto a guy who has in the past kept reasonably in touch with the community) isn't
talking to us anymore. Assuming he isn't a total **** who has been b*******ting lots of us over the
years, it probably means he has pressure from above. He's at (I am lead to believe) middle
management level. So, it's a reasonable bet that the pressure on him is from a beancounter or
marketing droid. Do they, (all but the best, anyways) grok concepts such as 'long term' and
'goodwill' ? I doubt it. What they understand - viscerally - is 'fear and greed'. The only way to
put pressure on them is to appeal to that.<<
YAG is not a "fear and greed" kinda guy, so I can only assume when you say 'they' you mean Microsoft
in general and not YAG, or any of the Fox Team for that matter. Alan definitely understands 'long
term' and 'goodwill'. He is a brilliant business man, a genius technical guy, and a decent overall
human being. And yes, he is a Microsoftie.
Your reasons are very general (evil Microsoft has somehow placed a gag on YAG) and you make great
assumptions like the Fox Team drinks the Microsoft kool-aid. The Fox Team is more of a rogue group
inside the Microsoft machine, and bucked trends for years. Interestingly enough, the other
development teams envied the relationship the team has with the community, and thought they could
replicate it with other development communities, not understanding it has to come from the community
and not forced/developed by Microsoft. Yet now, the community thinks Microsoft and the specifically
the Fox Team don't give a rip about the community. Far, far from the truth.
I have not talked to Alan about this so I am not sure his reasoning for the alleged silence. Maybe
he is just busy in his job. Maybe he is working on the next big thing. Maybe he is transitioning to
something new. Who knows? I think you are also missing the possibility that he is tired of defending
Microsoft and the Fox Team to everyone who slammed him (and several others on the team) personally
and called his integrity on the carpet numerous times throughout the year since the announcement in
March and again after SP2. Believe me, there is no one on the Fox Team who intentionally delivered a
broken SP. No one. He also got up in front of an entire crowd in Germany to discuss the SP and has
personally talked about "the decision" at numerous conferences. He is not afraid to explain this
decision to the community.
I know that moaning and groaning will not get us a new SP. I know calling out the integrity of the
Fox Team will not get us a new SP. I am not even sure bringing a solid business case will get us a
new SP. I just know taking a more positive approach is the best one.
>>Why do you think MS is getting more open to Open Source these days? Fear.<<
One word - Google. Fear is a powerful motivator. I think they see the competition of this and
naturally adjust their business model to meet the challenge. What company wouldn't? Microsoft has a
history of redoing itself to be successful in the marketplace. Smart companies are changing to meet
the competition all the time. I also think they are giving more to open source these days because it
builds goodwill with developers and their customers. I applaud this.
Rick
White Light Computing, Inc.
www.whitelightcomputing.com
www.swfox.net
www.rickschummer.com
-----Original Message-----
From: profoxtech-bounces .AT. leafe D.O.T com [mailto:profoxtech-bounces@leafe.com] On Behalf Of Brian Abbott
Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 03:58 PM
To: profoxtech .AT. leafe D.O.T com
Subject: Re: Sedna Released ("with this the last Microsoft release ofVisualFoxPro")
Rick
Rick Schummer wrote:
>
> No, this would be presenting Microsoft with a threat model.
Que?
YAG (hitherto a guy who has in the past kept reasonably in touch with
the community) isn't talking to us any more. Assuming he isn't a total
**** who has been b*******ting lots of us over the years, it probably
means he has pressure from above. He's at (I am lead to believe) middle
management level. So, it's a reasonable bet that the pressure on him is
from a beancounter or marketing droid. Do they, (all but the best,
anyways) grok concepts such as 'long term' and 'goodwill' ? I doubt it.
What they understand - viscerally - is 'fear and greed'. The only way
to put pressure on them is to appeal to that.
Why do you think MS is getting more open to Open Source these days? Fear.
I don't disagree at all with your tactics (show the limited list of
bugs, the reasons why VFP developers can't use the product ... etc) I
just think they'll not be enough on their own.
--
Cheers
============
Brian Abbott
============
[excessive quoting removed by server]
©2008 Rick Schummer |
