amdphr3@kXP Posted July 3, 2003 Share Posted July 3, 2003 On 30 June, 2003, Microsoft withdrew support for Windows New Technology (NT). Windows NT users no longer have the right to download updates to Internet Explorer and will not get a patch when new security vulnerabilities are discovered in this version of Microsoft's operating system. Very few companies are still using NT on critical systems, so the withdrawal of support is unlikely generate any real anger or resentment. However, now that NT has been retired, what is Microsoft going to do with the ageing operating system's source code? There will not be any new applications created for it, and it's difficult to display software in a museum or gallery. So after spending so many billions on development, what will happen? I can't imagine the code will be simply deleted.However much the software giant would like us to forget that NT ever existed -- and push everyone into a Windows Server 2003 upgrade -- there are thousands of developers out there who would love to have the opportunity to turn the ageing OS into a masterpiece. So why not let them have a go by releasing NT 4.0's source code into the open-source community? There are obvious commercial reasons for keeping its current source code -- for Windows XP, Server 2003 and others -- a closely guarded secret. After all, if you owned something that was making billions of pounds a year, you'd want to protect it too. But who knows where the market is going to be in another two years?Linux has been nibbling away at the Windows userbase for a number of years, but it has made an enormous impact this year. So far in 2003, Microsoft has lost a number of high-profile government contracts to the open-source operating system. This trend looks set to continue, and we may one day look back and recognise this time as the beginning of the end of Microsoft's monopoly over the desktop.As Linux continues to penetrate the desktop space, Microsoft could open new revenue streams by providing support for subscribers to its open-source NT. Although companies are slowly moving their desktops to Linux, an open-source version of Windows, with Microsoft providing support, might be something they would wait for. In many ways, it could derail the Linux express train before it reaches full speed.read full articlesource: zdnet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Posted July 3, 2003 Share Posted July 3, 2003 thanks, posted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpak Posted July 3, 2003 Share Posted July 3, 2003 BTW, Microsoft already did show many parts of the code of WinNT to the third-part core software developers, didn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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