Misc. Ramblings

Being a kool kid, you probably already know that a team from Firefox journyed to Mordor Redmond to talk with various Vista teams. The purpose of the trip, at the invition of Microsoft (MS), was to get answers on how to integrate Firefox into MS's upcoming release of Windows.

Stop for a minute to digest that. Microsoft invited a competitor (well, in at least browsers) to come to learn how to work in the Vista environment. Then take that one step further. MS offered to provide OpenSource code to help them do it. Excuse me while I lay down for a minute to stop hyperventilating.

Okay. I'm back. A Firefox team member by the name of Vladmir Vukićević blogged about the experience of entering the belly of the beast and survived to tell about it. His first post is here and the others are here, here, here, and here.

As I've said before, MS seems to be of two minds. On one hand, you have the friendly, OpenSource loving side that is trying to be transparent and helpful. On the other hand, you have the side that is trying to be closed and controlling. Will the real MS please stand up?

In the mean time, I agree with others that Firefox was right to accept the invition and should continue to collaborate with MS when it is in Firefox's best interest to do so. But when they do, the team members need to realize that MS, in the long run, is trying to put them out of business. So, when you make a deal with a scorpian, be aware of its sting.

Have a Great Weekend, Everyone - Aloha!