Salon: Free Software Project: How Big Blue fell for Linux

[ Thanks to John Kacur
for this link. ]

“When open-source developers and IBM took gambles on each
other, free software showed it can flourish in the heartland of
corporate computing.“

“Corporations involved in the software industry are exploring
open-source software, some with the enthusiasm of bodysurfers
losing themselves in the roaring surf, others with the timidity of
diffident waders in a lagoon full of sharks. They are by no means
unified in their approach as an industry sector, or even internally
within a single company. But there are executives and engineers at
all of these companies who believe that an extraordinarily clear
business case can be made for open-source software: Figure out how
to make it your friend, before it starts dancing on your
grave.”

“To see this process in action, you don’t need to look further
than the computer industry’s venerable giant, IBM — which has
become perhaps the best corporate friend open-source software has
ever had.”

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