Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link?

Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link? 227

Posted by timothy on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:34PM from the sometimes-they-really-are-out-to-get-you dept.

ansak writes "In the latest scoop from Groklaw, Groklaw user talks_to_birds pointed out an error in SCO's version of the famous Levenez Unix Timeline. The important error is the green dotted line which shows Minix to be a derivative of Unix. If this were accepted, and if Linux was shown to be a derivative of Minix, then SCO's lawsuits would be more likely to have merit. As it turned out, even MS called Samizdat unhelpful, but at least now there may be a plausible reason why someone would try to make the link between Minix and Linux in the first place."

Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link?

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Re:Long live geeks (Score:4, Funny)

by vijaya_chandra ( 618284 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:40PM (#9480000)

Forget unix. I am younger even than DOS
(Disk Operating System not /.s Denial Of Service)

(Karma be damned; I am no better than an AC anyway)

Re:Not plausible (Score:4, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:45PM (#9480022)

...that Linux was *not* derived from Linux.

That would have made writing it a lot easier, I'm sure...

Re:Linux a derivitive of Minix? (Score:4, Funny)

by Ford Prefect ( 8777 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:46PM (#9480031) Homepage

Linus made Linux to learn 386 assembly code.

Do you think he succeeded?

Now, since Ken Brown... (Score:3, Funny)

by JamesP ( 688957 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:51PM (#9480043)

... made Linus admit that Santa Claus wrote Linux, everything is settled...

Linux cames from North Pole and this is it...

Ha!

"If we had some ham, we could have ham 'n' eggs... (Score:5, Funny)

by dpbsmith ( 263124 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @07:51PM (#9480045) Homepage

...if we had some eggs."

It's just like that old joke. If Linux came from Minix, and if Minix came from Unix, then SCO might have some eggs. But since Linux didn't come from Minix and Minix didn't come from Unix, SCO has shit.

MINIX to LINIX to LSD (Score:2, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:11PM (#9480120)

that timeline reminds me of some photos I saw at MOMA here in NYC of spiderwebs made by spiders that had been given doses of LSD.

wish I had a link.

The real question is (Score:3, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:14PM (#9480125)

What would happen if John Carmack decided to program an operating system from scratch? Is his specialty 3D engines, or does he have the talent required to build an OS?

Reply below

I doubt it. (Score:2, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:27PM (#9480158)

The crucial flaw in this reasoning is that it assumes SCO's graphs and charts and piles of bullshit have been actually read by Ken Brown, or read by SCO's own lawyers for that matter.

Everything about SCO's suit, and Microsoft's supplimentary PR, is a smokescreen. Trying to find logic or reason in this smokescreen is no different in any way than pointing at clouds and going "hey, that one looks like a bird".

Re:You missed a few! (Score:4, Funny)

by Alsee ( 515537 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:30PM (#9480169) Homepage

[Brown immitation]

All of those people are hybrid source hackers.

It took thousands of programmers years to create Unix. It seems obvious to me that there is no possible way an inexperienced lone programmer could create millions of lines of the Linux system in 6 months in his parents basement. All of the people you listed are obviously biased and lying.

[/Brown immitation]

-

Re:simple... (Score:5, Funny)

by 0x0d0a ( 568518 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:33PM (#9480190) Journal

Or maybe it's a backup plan -- if you can't successfully sue everyone that has used Linux, sue everyone that has used Minix! :-)

Re:It doen't matter. (Score:5, Funny)

by autopr0n ( 534291 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:35PM (#9480208) Homepage Journal

To my knowledge, a software license is a contractual agreement.

The GPL is not a contractual agreement. It says so itself, right in the first paragraph or so.

Can I join into two conflicting contractual agreements, and then later pick which one to ge oblicated to?

No, but you can decide who you'd rather be sued by.

Re:at least now there may be a plausible reason... (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:40PM (#9480266)

Objection! Assumes presence of organ not suggested by evidence.

Re:Was This Not Obvious? (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @08:48PM (#9480330)

The funny thing is that these "theories" do not take into account the classic and widely known Linux anecdote which was Linus' very motivation for writing Linux: He did not even have working MINIX binaries when he wrote Linux because he had accidently overwritten his harddrive. So, he had two choices: buy MINIX again or write his own OS. That is a far cry from having possession of the MINIX source code.

I have never heard this anecdote, and heard that Minix was used as the development environment for Linux. I also am somewhat perplexed as to how Linus wrote an operating system kernel without having a working operating system on his own machine. Perhaps since he could not run a text editor, he manipulated the inodes by hand with a hand magnet?

Could you please provide a source for this anecdote?

Ow. That timeline... (Score:3, Funny)

by Farrside ( 78711 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @09:34PM (#9480593)

HURTS. My eyes won't stop crossing.

Re:Was This Not Obvious? (Score:3, Funny)

by jusdisgi ( 617863 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @11:42PM (#9481355)

It is not like the Linux kernel was doing 3D graphics back then.

...or now, so much...

SCO transfer to Linux: insufficient fund (Score:1, Funny)

by layer3switch ( 783864 ) writes: on Sunday June 20, 2004 @11:54PM (#9481400)

I can see that green line keeps on going, but that funny yellow line stops at dead end.

With no transfer and out of fund, looks like McBride gonna have to walk home. Hope he doesn't run into Linux UG gangs in dark alley. I heard they carry sharp metal pocket protectors.

Re:Remember it's pump and dump (Score:3, Funny)

by Our Man In Redmond ( 63094 ) writes: on Monday June 21, 2004 @12:32AM (#9481595)

The whole point is not to make legal sense but to keep enough bafflement in there to confuse the "investors" and keep them hoping that there is still some reason why SCO stock should not be printed on toilet paper.

Well, for starters you'd pay like $5 a roll . . .

It's a good idea, but it's not that good.

All Your Code Base Are Belong To Us (Score:0, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Monday June 21, 2004 @01:14AM (#9481790)

This is SCO's legal strategy:

In A.D. 2002
War was beginning.
Linus: What happen ?
Coder: Somebody set up us the bomb.
User: We get signal.
Linus: What !
User: Main screen turn on.
Linus: It's You !!
SCO: How are you gentlemen !!
SCO: All your code base are belong to us.
SCO: You are on the way to destruction.
Captain: What you say !!
SCO: You have no chance to survive make your time.
SCO: HA HA HA HA ....
Linus: Take off every 'zig' !!
Linus: You know what you doing.
Linus: Move 'zig'.
Linus: For great justice.

Re:Long live geeks (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Monday June 21, 2004 @05:50AM (#9482624)

Period inside the double quotes.

Only if you're using American English which apparently makes you unable to punctuate.

Better yet, no period at all.

Then you have to spoil it all with a redundent comma.

Re:Long live geeks (Score:2, Funny)

by Udo Schmitz ( 738216 ) writes: on Monday June 21, 2004 @06:31AM (#9482709) Journal

>> UNICS was released nearly 40 years ago
[hits Anonymous Coward over the head] 35 Years are not "nearly 40 years"! I'm 35 and do not feel like "nearly 40 years". [hits Anonymous Coward over the head once more for good measure.]

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Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link? 227

Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link? More Login

Why Does SCO Focus On A Minix-to-Linux Link?

Re:Long live geeks (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Not plausible (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Linux a derivitive of Minix? (Score:4, Funny)

Now, since Ken Brown... (Score:3, Funny)

"If we had some ham, we could have ham 'n' eggs... (Score:5, Funny)

MINIX to LINIX to LSD (Score:2, Funny)

The real question is (Score:3, Funny)

I doubt it. (Score:2, Funny)

Re:You missed a few! (Score:4, Funny)

Re:simple... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:It doen't matter. (Score:5, Funny)

Re:at least now there may be a plausible reason... (Score:1, Funny)

Re:Was This Not Obvious? (Score:1, Funny)

Ow. That timeline... (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Was This Not Obvious? (Score:3, Funny)

SCO transfer to Linux: insufficient fund (Score:1, Funny)

Re:Remember it's pump and dump (Score:3, Funny)

All Your Code Base Are Belong To Us (Score:0, Funny)

Re:Long live geeks (Score:1, Funny)

Re:Long live geeks (Score:2, Funny)

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