From: Andre Noll Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2023 22:05:36 +0000 (+0200) Subject: uc: Add a summary of the SCO lawsuit to the history section. X-Git-Url: http://git.tue.mpg.de/?a=commitdiff_plain;h=c03deda9d239c1ade70406414855b34808b2d3a4;p=aple.git uc: Add a summary of the SCO lawsuit to the history section. The new text summarizes the cited LWN article. --- diff --git a/Unix_Concepts.m4 b/Unix_Concepts.m4 index c2968ac..be51cc9 100644 --- a/Unix_Concepts.m4 +++ b/Unix_Concepts.m4 @@ -145,18 +145,34 @@ interface based on the X window system facilitated cheap workstations which ran a complete open source software stack.

The success of Linux, or GNU/Linux as some prefer to -call it for reasons that should now be clear, has only increased -over time, to the point where commercial Unix systems are mostly -irrelevant. Today Linux runs on a wide variety of machines ranging -from supercomputers to workstations, smart phones and IOT (internet -of things) devices with very limited resources.

- -

The same companies which almost killed Unix by commercializing it -in order to maximize their profit make money with Linux today. However, -they had to adjust their business model in order to comply with the -GPL. Rather than selling proprietary software, they bundle open source -software and sell support to paying customers. Some companies also -sell hardware with Linux pre-installed.

+call it for reasons that should now be clear, steadily increased over +time. In 2003 the SCO group, a company which sold a proprietary Unix +system, was unhappy about this progress and sued IBM, which offered +various Linux products. SCO claimed to be the owner of Unix, and that +Linux contained "millions of lines" of code copied from Unix. SCO's +lawyers argued that the success of Linux originated from this theft +of intellectual property and asked for $5 billion as compensation +for the resulting losses. The company also tried to collect taxes +from other Linux users. Microsoft funded SCO in these efforts.

+ +

In the end SCO lost the lawsuit since it was evident that all that +copied code never existed. In fact, the court ruled that SCO did not +even own the Unix copyrights to begin with. Another fun fact is that +the large number of bugs in the early Linux code actually helped to +prove that Linux was original work. The long term effects of this +lawsuit, an improved position of Linux and its ecosystem, last until +the presence. Commercial Unix systems have become irrelevant as Linux +runs on a wide variety of machines ranging from supercomputers to +workstations, smart phones and IOT (internet of things) devices with +very limited resources.

+ +

While SCO went bankrupt eventually, some of the companies which +almost killed Unix by maximizing their own profit still exist, and +make money with Linux today. However, they had to adjust their +business model in order to comply with the GPL. Rather than selling +proprietary software, they bundle open source software and sell +support to paying customers. Some companies also sell hardware with +Linux pre-installed.

SUBSECTION(«Linux Distributions») @@ -2510,6 +2526,9 @@ SECTION(«Further Reading») href="https://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-gnu-manifesto-turns-thirty"> The GNU Manifesto Turns Thirty, by Maria Bustillos. +
  • The SCO lawsuit, + 20 years later
    • +
  • The Koan of Master Foo and the End User.