Microsoft Hatred FAQ

[David Schwartz]

"Peter T. Breuer" <ptb at oboe.it.uc3m.es> wrote in message 
news:okh133-n3l.ln1 at news.it.uc3m.es...

> 3) there are plenty of other OSs that are developed or could be
> developed but which cannot get a foothold or even manage to be put on
> the shelves because the majority product producer insists on charging
> hardware manufacturers for every box produced, whether or not it carries
> their o/s, and does other nasty things like sabotaging their own
> products so they won't work with a clone o/s.

    How could he resell an OS that "could be developed"? If nobody wants 
these operating systems, then it doesn't hurt him not to be able to sell 
them. If people want them, then he could have shown Microsoft the door.

    You are responding to an argument that was specifically about the effect 
of this particular arrangement on this particular business. This third case 
was not one that he could find himself in. In fact, it's case 1 for him.

> Sorry - that's not legal, fair, just, or good for the market. It means
> that anybody with a 51% share of the market automatically gets 100%.

    That's just absolutely absurd. If some OS had 51% of the market, plenty 
of other distributors and manufacturers would gladly take other 49%.

> Stop this apologism now.

    "Apologism"?

    Merriam-Webster says: "The word you've entered isn't in the dictionary. 
Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the search box to 
the right."

    Dictionary.com says: "No entry found for apologism."

    Fortunately I finally found what you mean, from 
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/encyclopedia/a/ap/apologism.htm which says:

Apologism is the metaphysical philosophy that argues that it is wrong for 
humans to attempt to alter the conditions of life in the mortal sphere of 
influence. It is opposed to the idea that absolute "progress" is a desirable 
goal for the pursuit of human endeavors.

    I'm not sure how I've said it's wrong for people to try to alter the 
conditions of life. I strongly believe that progress is a desirable goal. In 
fact, thanks to you, I now know that I am a meliorist. Never knew there was 
a word for it and never knew there were people who weren't.

    But then I found what I think you meant, "Apologetics is the field of 
study concerned with the systematic defense of a position. Someone who 
engages in apologetics is called an apologist." So perhaps you are asking me 
to stop systematically defending my position. Don't worry, my defense is not 
and has not been systematic.

    DS