Forwarded from: Jeff Berner <JBerner@private> Cc: security curmudgeon <jericho@private>, isn@private Thanks for the response. I didn't actually think you would give me the time of day. I see articles like this Yankee Group report all the time that contain bad information, questionable research/reporting and such. Unfortunately I am not in the same position as you to have the luxury to be able to comment about them. Normally I am very happy to see what your opinions are. This particular article cross referenced with other articles that I have seen from you in the past seemed to lean (indirectly) toward the pro Linux view while at the same time (directly) trying to discredit the Yankee Group's report. I agree with you on you views that, yes, the report does appear shady and suspicious but at the same time your references to GrokLaw (are they truly unbiased?) and simple Microsoft searches didn't inspire me to fully believe in your rebuttal while leaving me to feel that your rebuttal research was done over roughly a 1 hour time period. All I am asking is that you spend a little more time finding more concrete references other than Microsoft mentioning the Yankee Group in a few other articles. If you dig deep enough you will find me all over Microsoft's site, but that certainly doesn't mean that I am a huge Microsoft supporter. Most of my references are in KB articles where I was fixing Microsoft problems for them or winning some MS company competitions that do nothing but make fluffy articles about how my company helped another companies by installing a SBS server or something to that ilk. Like you I truly believe that Linux is a far superior product on many fronts and internally I run my single most important company applications on Linux boxes while maintaining my day to day office and communication functions across various MS server. As a person on the outside of the MS/Linux debate I was reading between the lines of your article and pointing out that if your were not a Linux fan you probably would not have written that response and like most people in the MS world would have done nothing more than seen it for the fluff that is probably is and just ignored it. The last paragraph that you comment on was simply referencing that you are feverishly supportive and active defender of your opinions. The point that it was making is that I believe that if you had been around during the hot rod days you would have some stinging commentary if someone told you your big block was outperformed by a small bore engine or the other way around(think 1950's). The FUD comment comes from my opinion concerning what I felt was quoting weak sources and obscure articles to make a connection about a weak article with no apparent sources. That is FUD fighting FUD. That is bad reporting. -=- Forwarded from: security curmudgeon <jericho@private> Cc: Jeff Berner <JBerner@private>, isn@private : Thanks for the response. I didn't actually think you would give me the : time of day. I see articles like this Yankee Group report all the time : that contain bad information, questionable research/reporting and such. : Unfortunately I am not in the same position as you to have the luxury to : be able to comment about them. Out of curiosity.. why not? You certainly had a very well written response to me. You could have spent the same amount of time questioning their report as my reply to the article. : Normally I am very happy to see what your opinions are. This particular : article cross referenced with other articles that I have seen from you : in the past seemed to lean (indirectly) toward the pro Linux view while : at the same time (directly) trying to discredit the Yankee Group's : report. In general I am pro-linux, if for no other reason than rooting for the underdog. Or if it makes you or others more comfortable, the enemy of my enemy.. =) But before that is taken out of context, I see flaws in both sides of the 'OS war'. I just feel that Microsoft is a lot more shady, and a lot less ethical so I spend more time pointing that out. : I agree with you on you views that, yes, the report does appear shady : and suspicious but at the same time your references to GrokLaw (are they : truly unbiased?) and simple Microsoft searches didn't inspire me to : fully believe in your rebuttal while leaving me to feel that your : rebuttal research was done over roughly a 1 hour time period. My rebuttal was done over a one hour time period. The real question should be.. if I can dig up that much in one hour, imagine what else there is to find, or what else they are managing to keep out of the public eye. If Yankee Group can find a bunch of Windows users, and partner with a company that has a vested interest in keeping Microsoft happy, and the YG *has* been funded by MS to carry out other surveys.. so what if I quote GrokLaw? I don't make any claims as to their bias, only that others beside myself have seen flaws in the original 'research'. : All I am asking is that you spend a little more time finding more : concrete references other than Microsoft mentioning the Yankee Group in : a few other articles. Why? Microsoft and Yankee Group (specifically DiDio) have a history together as far as I can tell. Read the Microsoft summary of the Brown University Case Study for example [1]: This case study, by the Yankee Group, reports how Brown University, an Ivy League college in Rhode Island, thoroughly investigated the technological and business aspects of Linux and Windows to determine which server operating system would offer the university's Department of Psychiatry optimal total cost of ownership and return on investment with minimal risk of intellectual property lawsuits. Microsoft Windows Server 2003 scored highest. Yet read the report itself [2] and there is no "thorough investigation". It is a single case filled with opinion and perspective, not research and fact. And since when does a network admin for a university have the time and ability to "thoroughly research" something like Operating System Indemnification as it relates to deploying technology on their network? The last university network admin I heard about was deathly scared of my girlfriend for using SSH to connect to a "hacker" system to check her mail. Do you think indemnification came to mind in the terminal client she used? The crypto that program used? : As a person on the outside of the MS/Linux debate I was reading between : the lines of your article and pointing out that if your were not a Linux : fan you probably would not have written that response and like most : people in the MS world would have done nothing more than seen it for the : fluff that is probably is and just ignored it. If I saw a fluff piece that touted Linux as much as that report did, with as little evidence and justification as that one had, I would write a respond challenging it just as much. I care more about fair reporting and honest research than Linux, Windows or who is winning the holy war. : The last paragraph that you comment on was simply referencing that you : are feverishly supportive and active defender of your opinions. The : point that it was making is that I believe that if you had been around : during the hot rod days you would have some stinging commentary if : someone told you your big block was outperformed by a small bore engine : or the other way around(think 1950's). Right.. to carry this analogy through.. what operating system do I run? If you are going to judge me and say that I would be just as rabid over an engine block as I would be over my operating system.. isn't it fair for you to *at least know what operating system i use*? What if my big block was a 50/50 hybrid of the two big brands of the era? What does that say about what I would or would not argue? : The FUD comment comes from my opinion concerning what I felt was quoting : weak sources and obscure articles to make a connection about a weak : article with no apparent sources. That is FUD fighting FUD. That is : bad reporting. Except, I cited my sources. Did Yankee Group? Brian _________________________________________ Network Security - http://www.auditmypc.com Free vulnerability test - How secure is your computer?
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