Microsoft tries, and fails, to recruit open-source guru

Robert McMillan   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Software Stories  

Why SaaS is Vital to Email and Web Security Reduce Cost and Increase Efficiency with Grid Computing Oracle Database 11g Internet Seminar Web Security SaaS: The Next Generation of Web Security Delivering on the Promise of ELearning Rapid E-Learning: Maturing Technology Brings Balance and Possibilities Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

September 09, 2005 (IDG News Service) -- Microsoft Corp. may be softening its rhetoric against Linux and open-source software, but that doesn't mean the company is ever going to be able to hire Eric Raymond. Earlier this week, a recruiter from the software vendor tried to lure Raymond, one of the open-source movement's most visible boosters, he said in an interview Friday.

On Thursday, Raymond received an e-mail pitch from a Microsoft recruiter asking him if he'd be interested in discussing a position.

The open-source advocate said he never gave the offer any serious consideration. "I thought it was an utterly ludicrous offer that deserved nothing but a ludicrous response," he said.

Raymond, one of the founders of the Open Source Initiative group that defined the term open-source, has been a constant and very vocal critic of the software vendor. He has also published a number of confidential Microsoft memos, dubbed the Halloween Documents, which have shed light into Microsoft's campaign against Linux and open-source software.

In an e-mail to the recruiter, later posted on Raymond's Web site, the open-source guru rejected the offer with glee.

"What were you going to do with the rest of your afternoon, offer jobs to Richard Stallman and Linus Torvalds? Or were you going to stick to something easier, like talking Pope Benedict into presiding at a Satanist orgy?" he wrote. "I've in fact been something pretty close to your company's worst nightmare since about 1997."

Torvalds, the creator of Linux, said he has not been approached by Microsoft recruiters, but he was critical of Raymond's response, which he said would discourage dialogue between Microsoft and the open-source community.

"It probably was just a mistake on the part of some headhunter who just didn't know who [Raymond] was," he said via e-mail. "It just makes it even harder for people to even approach the other side, when they then end up having to worry about ... public humiliation."

In fact, Microsoft has had some success hiring from within the Linux community. Earlier this year, it hired Daniel Robbins, the founder of the Gentoo Linux distribution, and in 2003 it hired Bill Hilf, a former IBM executive with an interest in Linux, who now runs Microsoft's Linux lab.

Though Raymond actually spoke at Microsoft's Redmond, Wash., campus about open-source software in 1998, he said he has had very limited interaction with the company since then, and had never before been approached by recruiters.

Apparently, Microsoft is not the only company interested in talking with Raymond, who said he was also recently approached by Microsoft rival Google Inc. "I was much nicer to them," he said. "I wouldn't mind working for them."

The open-source advocate is still waiting for Google to follow up on their earlier conversation, he said.

Microsoft declined to comment.

Reprinted with permission from

For more news from IDG visit IDG.net
Story copyright 2006 International Data Group. All rights reserved.

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"Mozilla's successful attempt to set a world record for downloads of a single program, Firefox 3 was dumb...." Read more... "Apple yesterday dropped the price of the 64Gb MacBook Air by a whopping $500 ($400 less for the SSD and..." Read more... Read more Software posts or See all Blogs

Microsoft promises four patches next week Google gives away home-cooked Web application security scanner Storm botnet stages Fourth of July attacks More top stories...

Microsoft trumpets security additions in upcoming IE8 Apple cuts price of high-end SSD MacBook Air by $500 Ultrathin showdown: Apple MacBook Air vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X300 vs. Toshiba Portege R500

This old laptop: Revitalizing an aging notebook on the cheap All it takes is a couple hours and about $125 to breathe new life into an old laptop. Here's how. Bill Gates moves on Is Microsoft's Golden Age over? What are Gates' most memorable quotes? Find out in Computerworld's complete coverage of the end of the Bill Gates era at Microsoft. Five things you should never tell your boss There are some things your CIO definitely doesn't want to hear. Also don't miss the flipside, Five things you should always tell your boss. Hands-On: Firefox 3 fixes what's broke and keeps what's right With its latest version, Mozilla's browser continues to raise the bar for what Web browsers should be. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland SecurityAsk a Premier 100 IT LeaderBlackBerry Legal BattleData Security BreachesElectronic VotingFirefoxH-1B VisasHP's Boardroom ScandalHandheld DevicesHurricane Katrina AftermathMicrosoft Legal IssuesMicrosoft's VistaOpen SourceRFID TechnologySCO's Linux FightSarbanes-Oxley ActSpamVoice Over IPWi-FiWindows Meta File VulnerabilityWindows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders2006 Salary Survey2007 Best Places to Work in IT2007 IT Forecast2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders40 Years of ComputerworldASPs, Take TwoBest Places to Work in IT 2003Best Places to Work in IT 2004Best Places to Work in IT 2005Best Places to Work in IT 2006Business Intelligence Home RunsBusiness Intelligence: Smarter BIBusiness Intelligence: The Future of BICRM Goes VerticalCRM: Sober CRMCareer Planning Guide 2005Careers: IT Profession 2010Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005Data Management: Mining for GemsData Management: Taming Data ChaosDevelopment: Hard-Workin' Web SitesDevelopment: New Tools New ChoicesDevelopment: The New World of Application DevelopmentDevelopment: The Web Services TsunamiDevelopment: Web Services HurdlesDisaster Recovery: Preparing for the WorstE-commerce Grows UpE-mail/Groupware: Big DecisionsFaces of Mobile ITForecast 2006Global MobileHardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple ChallengesHardware: On-Demand Un-HypedHardware: The Shape of Things to ComeHorizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge TechnologiesIT Management: Guide to Managing VendorsIT Management: Navigating Global ITIT Management: Recovery AheadIT Management: The Future of ITIT Management: The Resourceful Project ManagerInnovative Technology Awards 2004Management: Reinventing ITMicrosoft in TransitionMobile/Wireless Leaders and LaggardsMobile/Wireless: The Untethered WorkerMobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge CostsNetwork Management: Taking ControlNetworking: Turbulence Ahead!Networking: VoIP Goes MainstreamOperating Systems: In the Slow LaneOperating Systems: Linux Goes GlobalOperating Systems: Should You Nix Unix?Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's GuideOutsourcing: Outsourcing DangersPremier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in ClassPremier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in ClassROI: Do the Math!Salary Survey 2003Salary Survey 2004Salary Survey 2005Security Action PlanSecurity: Compliance HeadachesSecurity: Proactive SecuritySecurity: Risk and RewardSecurity: Tips From Security ProsSouped-up SecurityStorage: Battling ComplexityStorage: Cheap & Secure Data StoresStorage: Stretching Your Storage DollarsStorage: The Lean Storage MachineStorage: The New Rules of StorageStorage: The Ultimate Backup GuideSupply Chain: Missing LinksSupply Chain: RFID Reality CheckThe Business of SecurityWeb 2.0 SecurityWireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone Data Center Management Zone Enterprise-Class Security Zone The File Data Management Zone Grid Computing on Windows Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Storage Virtualization Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone See your link here

Computerworld Technology Briefing: An open-source path to optimal virtualization Download this Technology Briefing now! (Source: Novell/IBM/Intel) Virtualization is about a lot more than just lowering total cost of ownership. In fact users that have taken an open source path to virtualization have realized the additional, mission-critical benefit of markedly reduced IT complexity, as well as a more flexible infrastructure that is easier to change to meet shifting, often unpredictable business requirements. Download this executive briefing  Advance your BlackBerry(R) solution management know-how this July Advance your BlackBerry(R) solution management know-how this July BlackBerry Technical Seminar, register today! Go to the webcast  Rapid application development, rapid results Download this special report now! (Source: Intersystems) All too many businesses suffer from IT infrastructures that are a hodge-podge of disconnected databases and applications. What's needed is the ability rapidly develop connected applications under a unified service-oriented architecture. InterSystems Ensemble integration environment and Cache database are effective tools in answering this need, delivering a rapid ROI. Download this white paper  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Deploying Virtualized NetWare on Linux Whitepaper Toward More Flexible, Next-Generation Collaboration Solutions Driving Business Success Through Workgroup Choice and Flexibility View more whitepapers

• Microsoft promises four patches next week
• Google gives away home-cooked Web application security scanner
• Storm botnet stages Fourth of July attacks
• More top stories 

Computerworld Technology Briefing: Meetings @ the Speed of Business For large organizations, Web conferencing gives a major boost to collaboration among far-flung offices. For smaller companies, experts say Web conferencing is no longer a luxury but a necessity for everything from webinars to customer presentations. But the real value lies in saving soft costs and in increases in productivity. Download this briefing

Creating Tiered Storage Architecture This paper shows how Brocade StorageX enables tiers of storage across Windows and NetApp storage to align storage practices with organizational objectives. Download this white paper now!

Best Places to Work in IT Where can you earn top dollar, get the best benefits, the latest IT and more? Find out in our 14th annual survey.