Putting the Microsoft Cart before the Lotus Horse

Ed Brill and Thomas Duff have already commented about Microsoft's suggestion of 'discarding' applications that aren't completely supported by Windows 7 or, as Microsoft's Norm Judah puts it...

“There’s also the question as to whether customers really need an (incompatible) application,”

IMHO any Operating System is only useful insofar as it facilitates a users interactions with their chosen software applications which drive their business. If Windows 7 is incapable of supporting those existing applications for a business then it is Windows 7 that is incompatible and should be discarded. After all, a computer with a shiny new operating system which won't run your chosen applications is like the proverbial chocolate teapot.

I probably wouldn't have blogged on this issue except this example of Microsoft's approach to marketing their shiny new technology bought the phrase 'Big Lie' to mind, and while googling that term I came across the following description of ... well, you can guess who (the underlining is mine):

"His primary rules were: never allow the public to cool off; never admit a fault or wrong; never concede that there may be some good in your enemy; never leave room for alternatives; never accept blame; concentrate on one enemy at a time and blame him for everything that goes wrong; people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it".

If Bleeding Yellow meant I had to behave like that then I'd want a blood transfusion ... I guess the standards are different in Redmond.
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Microsoft eliminates Blue Screen of Death!

Prevx reported today that the dreaded Blue Screen of Death has finally been eliminated from Windows. For Windows 7 (and future releases) the "Blue" screen has been upgraded to a "Black" screen of Death. A spokesman for Microsoft said:

"Customers have been complaining for years about the Blue Screen of Death so we finally acted to remove the problem while still retaining backward compatibility with the BSOD acronym. Note that this new feature will not decrease the frequency of the problem but it will bring comfort to millions of users who can see that we are in control of the situation."

Unconfirmed reports suggest that Microsoft has already made this feature available as a free upgrade for Vista and XP and slipstreamed it into an automatic update that ran in the last week of October.
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Will Domino R8.51 run on Windows Server 2008 R2?

A customer wants to run Domino R8.51 on Windows Server 2008 R2 but that version of Windows Server isn't listed as a supported OS. I'm sure the answer is that it runs OK, but can someone point out an IBM document that approves of that configuration?

A customer wants to know...
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Foundations can be so boring at times...

I was hoping to get a really meaty post out of my upgrading my server to Foundations 1.1 and Domino 8.5 (plus installing VMWare) but it all went according to the manual. Less than an hours work of copying files and rebooting the server when instructed.

Boring.
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OT: Bill Gates proving that MS doesn't have a 'Chinese Wall'

In the Age of Napoleon the British navy was under threat from woodworm. In the Age of Obama (TM) there is a different kind of worm threatening to scuttle Her Majesty's fleet. When the RN standardized on 'Windows for Warships' as the operating system to run the computer systems on their ships there were a number of voices raised in warning about the unsuitability of that OS to perform as required. If you follow through some of those links in that article you will eventually wind up with the statement of Bill Gates given in 2002 when the State of New York and others took on Microsoft Corporation. That's where our story starts...

Have a read of the following sections of Bill's statement from 2002:

216. In a purely theoretical world, one could imagine developing modest software programs in such a way that any module could be swapped out in favor of a similar module developed by a third party. The replacement module would need to conform identically to the interfaces expected by all of the modules with which it interacts. In the commercial world, it is hard to see what value such replace-ability would provide even if it could be achieved. [Apart from allowing other companies to compete with Microsoft - GD] For Netscape Navigator to suffice as a replacement for Internet Explorer, for example, developers at Netscape would have to devote enormous effort to matching the functions of Internet Explorer and enabling those functions to perform in precisely the same way as Internet Explorer. When they were done, they would have software that is nearly identical to Internet Explorer (a “clone”), providing little or nothing in the way of new value.

217. In addition, if Microsoft were obligated to allow ISVs to clone all the functions of all the “Microsoft Middleware Products” in Windows, Microsoft’s ability to improve Windows would be hampered because the interfaces between modules would necessarily be “frozen” so that third parties could write to them. Given the large number of “Microsoft Middleware Products” in Windows under Section 22.x, the effect would be to freeze large parts of Windows.

The sentence I underlined could have been taken from any book on good programming practice. Was Bill really suggesting that Microsoft doesn't document and adhere to the specified APIs when passing off code requests between Windows and other Microsoft applications? Surely the two development teams don't have access to each others internal documentation? If so, it makes it difficult to continue to claim the existence of the legendary 'Chinese Wall' between Microsoft's OS developers and their application developers. I don't think anyone every took that claim seriously but it's interesting to read Bill testifying to the fact that it technically can't exist.
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In the “Had to Happen” Department

My google scans picked up a website offering a ‘crack’ for Foundations to let you enter a serial number and get the software working without needing to contact IBM/Lotus. I won’t bother listing the site because the serial number they provide is useless. Even if the serial number they provide was once accurate it will only last until your server phones home to Canada to check for any upgrades. Of course you could disable internet access for your server but then you can’t send or receive external emails. Kind of like stealing an expensive sports car but being unable to drive it on public streets because you know you’ll be caught.

If you want to try out Foundations then go to link where you can download a free evaluation copy of Foundations.
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Please read This then kill yourself...

Under the restrictions of IBM's beta program I'm probably not allowed to tell you that I'm now enrolled in the IBM Lotus Foundations Start 1.1 beta program with support for Microsoft® Windows® applications through the use of the VMWare® Server technology. However if you kill yourself before you pass on that information to anyone else then IBM will probably be just as happy :)

What I can tell you is that I've already identified two of my four Windows-based work machines which I'll be retiring when I get VMWare up and running.
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Microsoft = Jack of all Trades and Master of Marketing

Ever driven past one of those ramshackle ancient mechanical workshops with a sign out the front saying "We specialize in everything"? Not really the kind of place that you go to if you have a choice.

The same marketing philosophy seems apparent in a recent job posting for a Marketing Manager at Microsoft which gives one of the responsibilities of the position as "Communicate and generate Partner excitement for Windows Vista Business, Windows 7 for Small Business (future)..."

Windows 7 for Small Business? An operating system specifically designed for Small Business? I've got to keep my eyes on this one.

That's Microsoft for you - they specialize in everything.
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Will Diablo III run on VMWare in Foundations?

At home I have:

• a nearly-new XBox running Lotus Foundations server;
• a permanently moored laptop (dead screen) which I use as an XP workstation;
• a desktop running as a Linux SUSE testbed, and
  
• a KVM joining them all together.

(plus a PC for my lovely wife and a laptop for use when traveling to/from work on the train).

I must admit my homemade server rack is kinda crowded.

While coming home today I started thinking about getting rid of my semi-dead laptop and my desktop and running those environments as VMWare sessions on my Foundations server. I'd probably have to beef up the servers ram from 2GB to 4GB but if it worked then I can clear a lot of the clutter from around my desk.

The big question is whether Diablo III will run in that environment.
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So what the heck is a Hypervisor?

Wikipedia's description of a Hypervisor as " ... a virtualization platform that allows multiple operating systems to run on a host computer at the same time" is a pretty good answer. Putting it at its most basic level, you can minimise your maximum exposure to Windows Server failures without losing any Windows functionality. Here's an example:

1. You run up a Lotus Foundations Server which can create VMWare sessions as required.
   
   
2. You want to run Active Directory on a Windows Server? No problem - kick off a VMWare session, load Windows Server and start Active Directory.
   
   
3. You want your Lotus Foundations server to be a member of that Active Directory Domain? No problem - register your Lotus Foundations Server on the Active Directory running on the Windows server which only exists in the VMWare session running on the Lotus Foundations Server which you are joining to the Domain.
   
   (Yeah, my head is starting to hurt too)
   

So now we are running an encapsulated MS Server with Active Directory where it can't hurt anybody. If that Windows server pulls a BSOD then you can close that VMWare session and restart your Windows server with Active Directory in a new session. Lotus Foundations won't mind and your users probably won't even notice. You can run other MS server tasks in their own VMWare session - even MS Exchange Server if you are so inclined. Suddenly you have the option to pick and choose which Windows servers you let out of the sandbox. Maybe after a few months you'll notice that the Emperor Has No Clothes and you don't actually need Windows server at all.

My completely unauthorized uninformed SWAG (Scientific Wild-Assed Guess) is that we'll see the Hypervisor slipstreamed into Foundations in Q1/2009. If you are an existing Foundations customer or Lotus Business Partner then you can request to sign up for the beta code.

I'd say the addition of VMWare to Lotus Foundations Server is potentially one of the most significant threats to face the Microsoft Windows Server quasi-monopoly since Linux first started poking its nose into the corporate market. Be afraid Microsoft... be very afraid.
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All the Linux training I can eat... for free!

I'm spending this entire week at IBM's Innovation Center in St. Leonards in Sydney having my brain overloaded with 13 days of Linux training crammed into five 12-hour days. Today was day 1 during which we covered the entire 3 day 3071 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Course. Tomorrow should be easier since we only have to cover 2.5 days of training (the first half of the 3072 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Administration Course). Then on Thursday and Friday we do the five day 3073 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Advanced Administration Course.

Total cash cost = $0

Thank you IBM.

BTW... anyone out there done the SUSE Linux certification exams and want to share some pointers on what are the hot topics?
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Lotus Foundations as a Desktop operating system?

Ever had a piece of sticky tape stuck to your fingers and nothing you do will get rid of it?

• You roll it up into a ball and it stays stuck to the palm of your hand.
• You pick it off with your other hand and it's now stuck to that hand.
• You wrap it up in a tissue and throw the bundle in the bin but the tissue tears and it's still stuck to your fingers.

I think Microsoft must feel that way with Windows XP. Every time they try to wrap it up and throw it away they are forced to extend its service life for another six months. Anyway, that's the story if you read Mary-Jo Foley's blog. On the other hand, if you believe what Joe Wilcox is typing there has been no extension of XP service life since Microsoft is just providing additional access to the XP media.

Either way, Windows XP is going to be hanging around as a mainstream OS a lot longer than Microsoft would like. I don't have much love for Microsoft as an organization (although I know some really great people who work there) but I am starting to feel a bit sorry for the Vista marketing team. Vista's replacement (Windows 7) will probably be available sometime in late 2009/early 10 at which point it might be going head-to-head with a Foundations OS for the desktop.

No, I don't have any inside information. Certainly IBM haven't made any noise about a Foundations-based desktop OS. Foundations is a server OS and while it could be redeveloped for the desktop, it would be a lot of work. I mean IBM could certainly package up a Foundations OS for the desktop and Lotus Symphony and make the whole thing available as a free download (or preload on new computers), but IBM has never announced such a strategy. Why would they want to cripple both of Microsoft's cash cows? Have they no shame?
:)