Web Directory

A relatively objective high-level view of Windows vs. Unix security, providing things to think about rather than saying which is better

"This article discusses a small-scale benchmark test run on nine modern computer languages or variants: Java 1.3.1, Java 1.4.2, C compiled with gcc 3.3.1, Python 2.3.2, Python compiled with Psyco 1.1.1, and the four languages supported by Microsoft's Visual Studio .NET 2003 development environment: Visual Basic, Visual C#, Visual C++, and Visual J#. The benchmark tests arithmetic and trigonometric functions using a variety of data types, and also tests simple file I/O. All tests took place on a Pentium 4-based computer running Windows XP."

In this infamous letter, dated February 3, 1976, Bill Gates deems hobbyists who share software to be thieves. He doesn't believe that a hobbyist who programs for free can make quality software. Of course this was before much software was commercially sold independant of hardware, so almost all software was traded freely. Today there are millions of hobbyists who write quality software for no fee, but more than 25 years later this is still not appreciated by Bill Gates.

Brendan Scott is a lawyer in Sydney, Australia, practicing in the areas of information technology, telecommunications and electronic commerce. He holds degrees in law and mathematics. He has written some eloquent papers about software as property and open source.

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The GNU General Public License (GPL)

News (mostly from other sources) of bad practices by Microsoft® and problems with their software

Huge directory of linux-related links

The U.S. National Security Agency's Security Configuration Guides for proprietary and open source software

Collection of the Microsoft® memos with annotations by Eric S. Raymond

Maintainers of the open source definition and approved licenses

Compares and contrasts a wide variety of operating systems from a technical perspective without bias

"The Public Patent Foundation protects civil liberties and free markets from wrongly issued patents and unsound patent policy by providing those persons and businesses otherwise economically, politically, and socially deprived of access to the system governing patents with representation, advocacy and education."

Business strategies for software vendors, hardware vendors, service providers, and any other business directly or peripherally involved in software

Bruce Perens - Seeking to provide a fair market in which Proprietary and Open Source software can compete solely on their merits