Why doesn't Microsoft want to stop Mono and Moonlight?

Question

Microsoft is interested in preventing cross-platform software. Incompatibility between Windows and Linux is the main reason that people do not switch to Linux in large numbers. Mono and Moonlight projects are trying to eliminate this particular obstacle.

Because of this, I wonder if it’s not very risky to start development on Mono or Moonlight platforms, as Microsoft is likely to interfere with this cross-platform effort.

Answer 1

The game has game theoretical aspects. If I fear blocking, and Microsoft appears as if it is trying to provide a block from all .NET adopters, I will not accept .NET; Microsoft wants me to adopt .NET (with their excellent technical team on this and their accumulated know-how, it is reasonable to assume that they will always have the best implementation aspects on their platform, so .NET users are more likely than not users, who need Microsoft solutions, such as Windows Server, Azure, etc.), so it’s important that Microsoft shows that they do not interfere with Mono, but help in this (more importantly for SilverLight and MoonLight, who are fighting for space, non-HTML-RIA versus Adobe open-source market offers house and otherwise). And the easiest and most reliable way for MSFT to achieve this look is to make impossible not an obstacle, not just pretense.

Thus, the risks of implementing .NET (through an open source implementation): (a) Microsoft will erroneously calculate its strategy and scare future adoptive parents; or (b) the platform becomes so dominant that the optimal MSFT strategy comes down to blocking people (they are no longer afraid to scare people because they again completely own the dominant computing platform). Both options are, of course, opportunities (and if you think that [a] will happen, you should get a small supply of MSFT - if you think [b], you have to go the same way for a long time ;-), but none of they don't seem incredibly probable to me. For example, the players participating in the battle of the platform in the new computing segment of smartphones are apparently mainly Apple and Android, and RIM and Nokia are other important players, and MSFT is currently struggling to maintain relevance and momentum in the segment - while which may, of course, change, at present the prospects of MSFT "ownership of computing platforms" seem distant (given the growing importance of smartphones as a segment of computing platforms).

But as they say: you pay your money, you take your choice! -)

Answer 2

Your suspicions may be based on Microsoft’s past actions (for example, Ballmer’s Linux is a cancer line), but it seems the company is moving towards a more tolerant, even embracing, open source position.

One of the signs of this is the creation of the Codeplex framework for promoting open source projects related to Microsoft technology. One of the board of directors is Miguel de Icas , creator of the Mono project.

Answer 3

My completely unscientific point of view is that much attention is paid to Microsoft's open source projects, such as Ruby on Rails, which are very popular and distract from Microsoft. ASP.NET MVC is a direct response to Ruby on Rails, and it is completely open.

In other words, if you cannot defeat them ...

Microsoft is becoming much of what is perceived as a collaboration with the open source community. Creating the C # and CLR open standard ultimately ensures that their code will work anywhere and help them achieve their vision of world domination. :)

Answer 4

Microsoft should slow down the failure of developers from other platforms. To do this, they need to encourage Mono so that developers do not feel stuck in Windows.

Answer 5

I don’t think that MS can allow itself more openly to participate in antitrust activities, for example, trying to suppress competing technologies. They have been accused of this too often in the recent past, and they were very close to being disbanded by even the most corporate-friendly US government. They also paid billions in fines to several other governments. Any further antitrust activity would be not only criminal, but also stupid. IMO Moonlight will not be challenged by MS.

Answer 6

I think this is a bad question in the sense that it is too simplistic. The question begins with, "Microsoft is interested in preventing cross-platform software." This greatly simplifies this issue, and companies that see it all will eventually die out.

Look at it this way: with Mono for the iPhone, which is a reality, now people are writing C # code to run on the Freekin iPhone. Which alternative? Doesn't matter for the iPhone platform? What would you choose?

No, if you like, MS saw the light. Now they understand that they need to play well with others if they want to stay relevant. I see that they are trying to be cross-platform, but a little unsure of how to proceed. Igor de Ikasa may very well become the most important person in MS's cross-platform efforts.

Answer 7

The main reason Microsoft users do not want to switch to Linux is because of an unfamiliar territory. I doubt that cross-platform software capabilities will do anything significant beyond the benefits of current Linux users.

Oh, and remember that most Microsoft users are just random computer people, and they have no idea what Linux is.

Answer 8

I understand that this is an old question, but two years later (2011), the answer is pretty obvious: it is Mono and Moonlight that provide MS access to the OS on embedded platforms such as Android. If the W7 phone continues to have such a limited market share, the only way MS can be present in embedded devices is through software. To do this, their software must run on systems other than MS.

All this suggests that MS had some idea of ​​how the wind blows, or at least hedges its bets, so it supports Mono and Moonlight. Combined with the recent expression that the Windows 8 user interface will be built on HTML5 / CSS3, MS decided that trying to copy all your products to specific OSs in the post-PC era (or PC plus) could be more than powerful.

The Mono team clearly sees the current situation as an opportunity, as they recently separated from Novell and started their own company, Xamarin. Thus, it seems that Mono / Moonlight are here to stay and thus can be development oriented with relative confidence of the developers.