Apple was the subject of a boycott by the FSF and inspired the formation of
the League for Programming Freedom with their "look-and-feel" suits back in the
eighties. Microsoft has never been boycotted by the FSF. (Note: boycott in this
case refers to deliberately refusing to support their hardware or accept patches
designed to promote interoperability with their systems.)
Microsoft was
one of the companies Apple was suing back then, so the FSF was actually
supporting Microsoft over Apple. While the suits were mostly mooted by previous
agreements between the companies involved, Apple did basically force everyone
else to stop using a picture of a garbage can on the desktop (which is why
Windows was using a recycling bin the last time I tried it). Stupid? Yes, very,
and very reminiscent of some of the stuff Apple's trying to pull
now.
Frankly, Apple's attitudes then and now make me very glad it was MS
who ended up with a desktop monopoly and not Apple. Apple's capacity for what I
can only describe as evil seems much higher. If they'd had a monopoly to
leverage, I think the computing landscape would be a much bleaker
one.
Of course, like most companies, Apple can also be remarkably
inconsistent. Their personal computer division has been quite
well-behaved since the look-and-feel nonsense ended, to the point where I have
to consider them good members of the community. Not just neutral. Their new
portable devices division, on the other hand, I can only classify as evil. I do
still hold out hope for the company though. Their roots are in open systems; the
Apple II was one of the most open personal computers in the pre-IBM days. They
published remarkably detailed specs, as well as complete BIOS
source.
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Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for it makes them
soggy and hard to light. [ Reply to This | Parent | # ]
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