What’s in a name?
p2pnet.net News:- The date? April 14. The time? 1:00 p.m. PST.
That’s when Lindows ceo and founder Michael Robertson will announce Lindows’ new monicker. Because after months of acrimonious in-fighting, Robertson has been told to drop the original name tag.
He wonders why Microsoft’s Bill Gates didn’t single out Red Hat for Special Treatment in the same way he did Lindows. After all, he argues in Michael’s Minutes here, it’s “a leading Linux server company”.
Might it be, simply, that one couldn’t confuse ‘Red Hat’ with ‘Windows’?
Be that as it may, Lindows is no more.
“Judge Coughenour denied our request to block Microsoft’s international legal barrage against Lindows.com,” Robertson says.
“Microsoft has their targets set on Lindows because we are a desktop company. Microsoft has used that desktop dominance to move into other areas and to fund campaigns to wipe out potential competitors (Netscape, Be, Lotus, etc.). Microsoft will attack anything that it believes challenges its desktop monopoly, since it is their life blood.”
There’s a trial coming up in the US and when it happens, “Microsoft employee testimony and internal communications will reveal their true motivations,” he says, going on:
“However it’s going to take some time to get resolution due to Microsoft’s delay tactics. In the interim, Lindows is unable to fully respond to demand for desktop Linux from countries around the world due to name uncertainty.
“To assure that we can do business globally, we are in the process of selecting a different name for our web presence and product name.”
Robertson says a few weeks ago he asked for suggestions and was “flooded with some creative ideas”.
Favorite was “lindos” and the new slogan should be “because it’s the W that is causing all the problems.”
Or just change the name to “Swodnil,” suggests IdeaGuy on LinuxWorld.com here.
“Same name only backwards. Kind of represents going against the MS grain.”
Robertson says he’s now reviewing candidates and “we will identify our new international name on April 14th”.
April 7th, 2004 at 5:50 pm
Gee, Sounds like a case of sour-grapes to me. Typical linux bullshit. Always complaining when there “product” is singled out by microsoft. You know what, when you try and name something very close to what another product is called, you are going to get sued. Deal with it you losers.
April 7th, 2004 at 6:09 pm
How about “Porthole”?
April 7th, 2004 at 6:12 pm
so much for trying to piggy-back on ms windows name…