Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 23:52:45 +0000 (GMT) From: Terry Lambert <tlambert@primenet.com> To: dyson@iquest.net Cc: tlambert@primenet.com, jgrosch@mooseriver.com, brett@lariat.org, jasone@canonware.com, hasty@rah.star-gate.com, grog@lemis.com, kline@tera.com, freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: FreeBSD at Windows Refund Day Message-ID: <199902152352.QAA19305@usr02.primenet.com> In-Reply-To: <199902152018.PAA01687@y.dyson.net> from "John S. Dyson" at Feb 15, 99 03:18:24 pm
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Windows Refund Day Well, a number of FreeBSD people actually showed up to "show the flag" on "Windows Refund Day". Not knowing the target time and being a Foster City resident, rather than going to Oakland and carpooling back to Foster City, I showed up a little before 11am. The signs all said "Microsoft Event", and pointed around back to the parking garage, where Microsoft had deflected the event to the top floor of the parking garage. The Foster City Police Department was out in record numbers. I counted five officers, which means that they had the normal contingent, plus two officers on overtime. There were a number of private security officers there, as well, apparently employees of the property management company that owns the building where the Microsoft sales office is enshrined. Being fully an hour early, there were few advocates, a few officers, a grundle of reporters (I'd estimate around 50 of them) and the members of the band "Severe Tire Damage", attempting to gain entry to the garage to set up their equipment. Severe Tire Damage was denied on the basis of noise ordinances; the parking garage was perhaps as mush as 10 minutes walk from the Leo J. Ryan Park in Foster City, where there are weekly free concerts Friday evening throughout the summer. In addition to the reporters, there was a professionally done silk screened banner proclaiming "Microsoft Welcomes The Linux Community", under which various beverages were placed on a table (generally referred to throughout the event as "The Kool Aide"). Also on the table were letters from Microsoft, claiming that you had your choice of any OS on your PC (apparently, laptops aren't PCs), and that you should contact the manufacturer for a refund, not Microsoft. Also president was a Microsoft Spokesman (toeing the company line). Prior to the zero hour of 12 noon, Microsoft people "rebadged" the "Microsoft Event" signs as "Linux Event" signs -- excellent spin control, actually, given that what started out as "Windows Refund Day" was first downgraded to "Microsoft Event", and then "Linux Event". The only thing that felt missing from the spin control process was an "InstallShield" dialog box, with progress indicator, and two reboots. Who says Microsoft doesn't support hot swapping? I was rather disappointed in the V.A. Research T-shirts. As expected, they were more specific to Linux than they were to the Windows Refund Day event. At around 12 noon, the parade made its entry, apparently from the CostCo parking lot, down Vintage Park Drive, and left on Tower Lane. Visible were many V.A. Research shirts, numerours penguins, several FreeBSD shirts, and Eric Raymond, in a Yoda robe. Pausing briefly for a photo opportunity, and then crossing the street in groups so as to not block traffic, the group enetered the parking structure, and, apparently for best visual effect, headed up the ramp to the fourth floor. As things wound up tighter, the people who had a legitimate refund claim were herded into a corner for a rehersal of the plan of action: the people would go in in groups, no more than 10 at a time, take the elevator to the 9th floor office, and politely and firmly request a refund. This worked for the first several groups; or "worked", inasmuch that no refund was forthcoming, and the supplicants were not permitted to enter the Microsoft offices, proper. Contrary to Microsoft's claims of making personnel available to answer questions, after the first several groups, Microsoft locked off the elevator access to their floor. Attempts were made to go to a floor higher or lower, and walk the stairs, but the stairs were only for fire escape, and so those attempting that route had to exit at street level, refundless. Much was made of the failure to obtain refunds; you will undoubtedly see and hear those in at least the first and second groups in interviews published over the next few days. Apparently, it has already been on CNN (Hi, Mom!). Maybe they won't cut out the FreeBSD T-shirts out of the picture, or report it as a Linux event, like Microsoft tried to spin it. But I won't hold my breath. 8-(. Other than Eric Raymond declaiming to a reporter "Where do we go next? We're taking over the servers and the corporate IS.", and the poor BSD turnout relative to the Linux numbers (why didn't someone bring the FreeBSD flag from the trade show materials at Walnut Cree CDROM? Several CDROM people were there), all in all a good way to spend a Monday. Terry Lambert terry@lambert.org --- Any opinions in this posting are my own and not those of my present or previous employers. To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
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