September 2, 2005 4:40 PM PDT
MySQL enters Unix pact with SCO
By
Stephen Shankland
Staff Writer, CNET News
The SCO Group, which launched a high-profile attack against Linux, has signed a partnership with
open-source database seller MySQL, the companies said Friday. SCO and MySQL will work on joint certification, marketing, sales, training and business development work for a version of the database for SCO's new OpenServer 6 version of Unix. The version will be available by the end of the year.
SCO, whose lawyers once derided the General Public License (GPL) as unconstitutional in the company's legal attack on Linux, has nonetheless distributed several open-source programs covered by the GPL. MySQL is released as an open-source project under that license.
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Perhaps you forgot that SCO Unix was once called Xenix and Microsoft made it, and then sold the IP and source code to SCO? SCO then bought, what it thought was the IP and source code to Unix from Novell, but forgot to read the fine-print of the contract and Novell kept the patent rights, etc.
Microsoft makes sure that SCO does not go under, and that it continues its legal assault on Linux, Linux companies, Linux users, etc. After all, hardly anyone is buying SCO products, if Microsoft didn't pump money into them, they'd be out of business faster than a Dotcom company. Apparently their business plan is to earn billions in revenue via lawsuits against Linux companies and Linux users being forced to pay those high fees.
Someone at SCO finally decided that GPL is not that bad, so they made a deal with MySQL, to actually offer a product that people might actually buy. They only did this, because the Linux lawsuit idea was not paying off, and they have to keep the shareholders happy.
The moral of the story is: If you become a SCO customer, then you may be sued if you jump over to Linux later on.
The wise thing is to just keep away from them in the first place. They haven't tried to sue anyone who started with Linux. SCO is undemocratic because they use fear to try and keep you away from Linux and free choice. So why go with SCO in the first place? There is not one good reason to do so, unless of course you like living dangerously.
You are safer with Linux to begin with and you have free choice which no one can take away.
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