E-Commerce Times: Bridge to Linux Island

“Sometimes when I see what developers writing for Linux have to
say about Microsoft, it strikes me what an unusual computing
experience they have. I am referring to those who swear off all
Microsoft developer tools.

“What makes their experience unusual is that virtually nobody
who isn’t consciously trying to avoid Microsoft tools actually does
so. They may be developing Windows apps, or Web sites running on
Internet Information Server, or even taking the first steps toward
looking into .NET, but in some way they deal with Microsoft.”

“But avid Linux-loving, Microsoft-hating developers will avoid
all of these on principle. As a result, they don’t realize what it
is like to be a developer working on a Microsoft platform. It’s as
if they are off on an island of their own, away from the Microsoft
mainland.”

“Now, when I write “they don’t realize what it is like to be a
developer working on a Microsoft platform,” some readers already
are rolling their eyes and thinking, “no great loss.” But that view
ignores the massive amount of work Microsoft puts into attracting
developers to its platforms and keeping them happy once they get
there.”

“This process is known as evangelism, and if Linux is going to
attract more developers to Linux Island, the Linux community needs
to understand the benefits of evangelism.”

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