The Halloween Documents: Microsoft's Anti-Linux Strategy 15 Years Later

 It's almost Halloween—which marks 15 years since Eric S. Raymond published the first leaked "Halloween Documents" documenting Microsoft's (MSFT) secret strategy to compete with Linux and open source...

They were the first to reveal the particularly nasty "tricks" Microsoft planned in its effort to contain the open source movement, and to prevent Linux in particular from cutting too deeply into its revenue. One key strategy for the company was implementing proprietary protocols to lock customers into Microsoft software. Another was touting Microsoft software as offering lower total cost of ownership (TCO) than Linux, even though the documents showed that Microsoft itself found Linux to be the cheaper overall solution in many cases.

...Today, the flashpoints between Microsoft and open source have shifted in many ways, and Redmond has few reasons to worry about Linux replacing its flagship software for desktop computers. But in the mobile world, Linux-based Android, alongside iOS, constitutes a major challenge for Microsoft's vision of dominating tablets and smartphones...