Judge dismisses SCO suit against DaimlerChrysler, Jul 22, 2004

A Michigan judge on Wednesday dealt The SCO Group a blow, dismissing the Utah software company's controversial claims that DaimlerChrysler had violated its Unix contract through its use of the Linux operating system.

Michigan Circuit Judge Ray Lee Chabot granted the automaker's motion for dismissal on all but one minor matter. The decision effectively scuttled SCO's suit claiming DaimlerChrysler had refused to certify it was not, by using Linux, violating its Unix contract. SCO, in a $50 billion lawsuit against IBM and other litigation, claims its Unix code has been illegally incorporated into the freely distributed Linux.

IBM is one of the strongest advocates of the Linux, and has invested billions of dollars to ensure its systems support the open-source operating system.

In the mainframe world, IBM has shown the potential of Linux as a system fit enough for the toughest corporate task, while Linux has provided 'big iron' with some much-needed street-cred.

As worldwide vice president of Linux sales, Carol Stafford is charged with the task of spreading the word of Linux to IBM's biggest customers.

Webmaster's note: Something of a follow-up to a previous O'Reilly piece by Preston Gralla about his experience with Linux

Something that I always find fascinating is watching people who have never used a particular product, technology or service experience it when they have no idea how it works. I will always remember when I was younger trying to explain to my Nanna how to use the (then amazing) Grolier Encyclopedia on CDROM. I wanted to show her that I could learn things for school without necessarily having my nose stuck in a book. I sat there and explained to her how you type in what you want to know and then it searches for it on the CD and presents you with some content to view. Being 13 and not a usability expert, I never even considered that she didn't know how to use a mouse; it seemed so obvious to me.

I sense that Microsoft has been rather concerned about Linux lately. Why else would their top dog, CEO Steve Ballmer, get so riled up when asked this week (at Microsoft's annual partner conference in Toronto) about Linux?

IBM is to collaborate with educators to teach students open standards skills.

The IBM Academic Initiative will work with schools that support open standards and seek to use open source and IBM technologies for teaching purposes, both directly and through the web. Standards such as Java, Linux, and Eclipse are part of the effort, as well as training on IBM software and servers.

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