Originally published at: https://tuxdigital.com/2020/06/thisweekinlinux-105/
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Thanks, @MichaelTunnell! A lot of good gnews this time, and a lot of asterisks too! I have to say the final item about Microsoft and the GUI frameworks left a bad taste in my mouth (not surprisingly). As I’ve said, I cringe when having to touch anything from Microsoft because I find their ethics just in complete opposition to everything open source, as far as I can see. Frankly I think we’d be a lot better off keeping them clear of the community in every way possible. I’d hate to be surveying the damage they’ve done a few years down the line then looking for projects that had the sense to remain uninfected by them. Sorry to sound so negative about this, but really… I hope people wake up after news like this. I do wonder when people are up for trying Edge under Linux etc. 
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I lived through the Ballmer years, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the turns the company has taken since their change in leadership. One Microsoftie even admitted they were wrong about open-source software publicly. There’s a reason they bought GitHub and they’re building Linux into their OS now - and no I don’t believe the conspiracy theorists that it’s “embrace, extend, extinguish.”
I’d encourage you to try and take a look at modern Microsoft without the stain of the Ballmer years coloring it. They’re hardly squeaky clean these days, but there’s a lot of good they’ve done for OSS and Linux.
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A community that’s too welcoming is utterly complacent and incapable of progress, a community that’s too rarefied is utterly out of touch and equally incapable.
I’m all for 2nd chances and lets say Microsoft was born a month ago. It’s a small ask that Microsoft doesn’t double-down on stealing a Linux project’s name like MAUI and not opt to man-handle Linux with bottom-up rewrites instead of incorporating existing code they’d otherwise be contributing to.
A community that allows for needless supplanting of leadership and namespace is too welcoming imho.
That isn’t to say Linux shouldn’t welcome Microsoft’s contributions, but only when they act like an ally instead of a replacer.
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