Can we trust Microsoft with Open Source?
Microsoft is experiencing internal conflict over its commitment to open source, particularly with the .NET platform, following the restriction of the "Hot Reload" feature to proprietary products, prompting community backlash.
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The blog post discusses a significant internal conflict at Microsoft regarding its commitment to open source software (OSS), particularly in relation to the .NET platform. The author highlights the controversial decision to restrict the "Hot Reload" feature, initially intended for the open-source .NET SDK, to proprietary Visual Studio products. This move is seen as part of a broader strategy to re-establish Visual Studio's dominance over third-party tools like Visual Studio Code, which has gained popularity among developers. The author expresses concern that this shift undermines the trust built with the OSS community, as it appears Microsoft is prioritizing commercial interests over open-source contributions. The post calls for the .NET community to voice their dissatisfaction and advocate for the preservation of open-source principles within Microsoft's development practices. Following the community's response, Microsoft acknowledged the backlash and indicated a willingness to address the concerns raised, marking a potential turning point in their relationship with the OSS community.
- Microsoft is facing internal conflicts regarding its commitment to open source, particularly with the .NET platform.
- The "Hot Reload" feature was removed from the open-source SDK and restricted to Visual Studio, raising concerns about Microsoft's OSS intentions.
- The blog urges the .NET community to express their concerns to maintain open-source principles.
- A community response led to Microsoft acknowledging the backlash and indicating a willingness to address the issues raised.
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- Many commenters express distrust in Microsoft, citing a history of prioritizing profit over genuine support for open source.
- There is a consensus that open source projects can be forked, reducing reliance on Microsoft.
- Some users highlight the contradiction of Microsoft embracing open source while still maintaining proprietary features.
- Concerns are raised about the credibility of large corporations in the open source community, with Microsoft often viewed as a "poison pill."
- Despite skepticism, a few comments acknowledge that some Microsoft employees are genuinely supportive of open source initiatives.
47 commentsHaving all of my GPL code ripped out of MonoDevelop so it could become Visual Studio for Mac was the straw that made me write GNOME Builder, GNOME's flagship IDE.
If the question is actually "Can we trust Microsoft with an Open Source Community?" then it get's more interesting.
People need it. People fear it, or fear losing it. People suffer it. Or they have no choice due to pressure or policy. Or they don't know any better. Or they are tricked into believing something about it. But in the end, the often forced choice to use Microsoft is a strategically created imposition by a company with billions to spend on manipulation and political manoeuvring.
Some discussion then: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28968231
Microsoft are profit driven and if any opportunity comes where they can trap you, they will. Same with Amazon. Same with Google. Etc.
I do not hate them... I accept the world we live in where they will dominate and control whatever they can. I just do my best to limit using their tools.
I work for companies using google or microsoft. At home, I keep to free software as much as I can.
They don't see the value of OSS. Stop developing in M$ related technologies if you value your time and your DX.
I agree that C# is Java done well, but there are plenty of languages with feet on more solid foundations than a company with a track record of writing crap code and playing games with their developer community.
Linux contributions, Github, node/npm, Visual Studio, OpenJDK contributions to JIT and ARM, finally performance matters to CPython, Haskell,..
Turns out open source devs do have bills to pay, and Microsoft gives good checks.
Anyway, it doesn't really go to the point, but it's funny to me that I've had this hot-reload feature the whole time, and just have never found much use for it. Or maybe I just don't trust it.
There are some FOSS alternatives to GitHub, but they have had more problems staying online.
Apple is winning, somehow.
When you deal with deceitful people, credibility matters.
The only time credibility does not matter is when you can independently verify what is being said, such as through a framework like Descartes Rules of Method, Logic, or some other epistemological method that is appropriate. Only then does credibility not matter because you can judge for yourself because it has appropriate rational backing.
When you are solely down to an entity that does not use such a framework; credibility matters.. and by extension reputation and past actions take on more importance than hollow words.
Microsoft, especially when it was run by Bill Gates, was never a credible entity. Today, it is run by accountants seeking to ride the knifes edge of what the market will bear, and in the process provide as little value as possible for creations that were made decades ago, ride the gravy train until it goes into the ocean.
While the people at Microsoft certainly have come up with some neat features and projects, when looking at these features/products and the history behind them (i.e. looking at Powershell), these were largely complete accidents, and/or significant internal politicking that could have gone either way because there was little to no profit in it. Their engineers used to be some of the best, but it matters little when the Accountants are in charge and see everything in a risk averse lens.
Once you lose credibility, it is almost impossible to get it back because you have to do so much more than it would have cost originally just to tip the scales back to even. Perception is sticky like that.
To get back to the core question, can we trust Microsoft with Open Source... No you can't, not ever, because they are solely concerned with making profit and stealing whatever they can under the color of law. Open Source doesn't make profit.
The rise of open source is the natural outcome when barriers to entry in a market impose costs so high that you can't do business without those features, (excluding participants from that market, monopolistic ally), and open source is exploitive free labor that's been used to create an alternative to those products when no business can compete due to the simple mathematics of costs.
Even the big players can't compete with free for long without diversifying which is why FOSS is still around today. Volunteers, and some non-standard funding routes which aren't really all that viable at scale. This is also why Microsoft as an entity has been trying to poison pill Linux for awhile, they want to be the only game in town and read everything you write in Office; build a dossier, and sell it to the highest bidder. What could be more valuable then the thoughts of every single person using their product.
Of course they'll claim they aren't doing this (deceitfully), just like Google claims they don't wiretap and listen to surrounding endpoint devices they don't own to show you ads related to what you were talking about in your own home.
Microsoft's Python language server extension for VS Code (Pylance) has been crashing on launch on one of my machines for twelve months or so.
One day, I got fed up with it and opened the extension in a JS debugger to investigate. Immediately after opening it, the extension fully deliberately DoSed [0] the CPU core with a full-on ReDoS [1] attack, leaving it spinning at 100% forever.
Also I am confused, with many corporations getting into poisoning products for financial gains (enshitification) why are people still talking about engaging with companies that have a proven historical track record that they do not have good moatives?
It’s not your Dad’s Microsoft
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