States Demand Windows Source Code

Zeb writes: "Looks like the states who are continuing the anti-trust case don't believe MS' claim that they cannot provide a stripped down version of Windows. They want MS to release the source code so they can verify MS' claims . Maybe MS shot itself in the foot here?" The Register has a story as well.

Government bureaucrats complaining about bloat

[Anonymous Coward]

Heh heh heh...

Remove the beam from thine own eye, dudes.

Windows source code is easy to get....

[Rude Turnip]

Just go to any Italian restaurant and ask for a bowl of spaghetti.

Difficulty factor?

[InfinityWpi]

Having had to read -one- person's code and make sense of it, can I ask where in the world the judge is going to find people who can read the source code -and- make sense of it -and- determine if the arguements have merit? And, of course, have it happen inside of a year? Any sufficiently learned group of programmers will probably be either too expensive to hire for the job or bicker amongst themselves... you have to admit, most programmers are either biased for or against MS in the first place. All it takes is one arguement and poof...

"I'm sorry, your honor, but the witnesses are deadlocked..."

Re:How long would it take to review?

[mblase]

Better yet, I can imagine MS giving the states the source code to, say, Microsoft BOB or Windows 3.1, and waiting to see how long it takes them to figure out it's the wrong thing.

sure i'll give you the source

[oogoody]

...stripped of comments, white space stripped,
merged all into one file, variable names mapped
to numbers, etc...

Cthulhusoft.

[Lemmy Caution]

My concern is that it contains dark secrets and things Man Was Not Meant To Know. Gazing into its torturous non-Euclidian mazes, its unspeakable blasphemies, and its irrational depths, will drive the hapless reviewer to madness.

Aiiiiie!

well...

[angramainyu]

...I think it's safe to predict the winner of this year's obfuscated C contest.

Somewhere in Mordo^H^H^H^H Redmond...

[zulux]

Clippy:"It looks like your Searchig and Replacing!"

Drone421:(Absently talking to Clippy)"Yep, I good go through each one of these .h and .c files and get the BSD copytight out of them - the states wann'a see the source"

Clippy:"Please type your question"

Drone421:"hmmmmmm..." How to I do a global search and replace?

Clippy:"Please choose your Encarta (TM) topic: Harlem Globetrotters, Search and Rescue, or UNIX"

Drone421:"Hmmmm... I think on second thought, I'll ask the Hotmail people how they got rid of all the BSD copyright stuff in their code"

Microsoft is Protecting a Secret

[eric_aka_scooter]

They don't want anyone to see the source code because no one must ever know that Windows XP is written in Visual Basic...

Let the Windows Source Jokes Begin!

[Bonker]

States: We'd really like to know what this following section of code does.

Balmer: Code? What Code?

States: The line of code that says

while 1 {
gosub microsoft.world.domination();
}

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Andrewkov]

Probably the most startling revelation would be that the entire OS is written in Visual Basic!

Re:Cthulhusoft.

[smileyy]

You forgot to use the word "cyclopean".

Re:What is on their mind?

[Hooya]

How are a bunch of people going to look at the brazillion lines of code, and testify either way?

By recruting a few people out of Brazil I would assume?

Interrogating, huh?

[wildwood]

"Microsoft cannot base its defense on the design of its source code and simultaneously deny the litigating states the opportunity to test those arguments by interrogating the code," the states said in their filing.

"All right, COMMAND.COM, talk! Where are you hiding those hooks?"

The following file is missing or corrupt: COMMAND.COM. Type the name of the Command Interpreter.

"Don't play dumb with me, mister! We've got EXPLORER.EXE in the next room, and he's telling us plenty!

The following system files have been replaced with older versions by a program you recently ran. These files are currently in use and cannot be...

[smack] "No more of that funny stuff, wise guy! You don't think we're on to you? You think we don't know exactly what you're trying? Why not make it easy on yourself?"

Cannot find a device file that may be needed to run Windows or a Windows application.

"Well, I suggest you find that file quick, before one of your SYSTEM32 buddies rolls over on you."

An internal consistency check failed.

[pause] "Does that mean you're ready to talk?"

The system cannot find the path specified.

"All right, get him out of here."

This is when we find out...

[mrroot]

...that Windows XP was really developed in Fortran

Re:Cthulhusoft.

[Anonymous Coward]

What is this Hastur() function? It just keeps recursively calling itself over and over...

Re:Somewhere in Mordo^H^H^H^H Redmond...

[markmoss]

I gather that the TCP/IP stack is BSD-derived. And guess what? That part of Windows works. ;-)

I don't even see the code any more..

[Yahiko]

All I see is blue screen, stop error, page fault..

--Yahiko

Re:well...

[curunir]

maybe not...aren't entries in the obfuscated C contest were supposed to do something useful when run?

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Moonshadow]

If MS could do that, I would have to give them props for just pulling that off...although it would explain a few things.

But then, we know they already have a pact with Satan. Maybe it's NOT so farfetched...

Microsoft Objects

[guttentag]

MS Attorney: Your Honor, my client agrees to turn over the Windows source code when it is finished.
Judge: And when will that be?
NY Attorney General (whispering): When no one has any money left with which to buy Windows.
MS Attorney: Well, it's hard to say...
Judge: You will deliver the source code in its present state to this court no later than two months from today.
MS Attorney: Your Honor, my client respectfully requests that Windows be treated as an intelligent life form and therefore allowed to plead the fifth.

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Moonshadow]

*raises hand* Programmer for hire! I'll do it, for the low, low price of $0.0001 for the first line, $0.0002 for the second, $0.0004 for the third...

Oh well...it COULD have worked...

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Anonymous Coward]

can't wait until Windows is open sores

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[oyenstikker]

I hope the IE code is seperate from the PCMCIA driver code.

nooo! billy told us that IE was tied tightly into the o/s, and he never lies!

how would the be able to tell?

[negativethirsty]

Gov't coder: "We'll we removed the IE source from the o/s and it crashes"
Gov't manager flunky: "O, so what about the original compiled source?"
Gov't coder: "Um, well it crashes too"

Re:Cthulhusoft.

[JabberWokky]

Most people don't know that the proper English translation of R'lyeh is actully Redmond. And a company run by a man with the patronymic of "Gates"??? What more do you need?

--
Evan "Ai Ai Ai, *sneeze*" E.

Re:sure i'll give you the source

[archen]

...stripped of comments, white space stripped,
merged all into one file, variable names mapped
to numbers, etc...

So they want to play dirty eh? Bring in the Perl programmers!

ending the Linux threat

[Anonymous Coward]

If MS wanted to end the threat from linux, they should open source Windows.

We'd all die laughing when we saw it. :-)

Re:Who modded this down?

[nomadic]

Is that the kind of world we want?

Yes.

Re:Cthulhusoft.

[Amarok.Org]

(The following was blatently stolen and adapted from a campaign sign I saw in Calgary's downtown area about a year ago):

Cthulhusoft - Why buy the lesser of two evils?

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Anonymous DWord]

while <>{
s/\r\n//g;
}

You're hired.

Re:How lnog would it take to review?

[Skirwan]

For example, I hope the IE code is seperate from the PCMCIA driver code.

I'll admit I haven't been paying very close attention, but isn't this what started this whole mess?

Seriously, Microsoft's claim is that IE is so tightly integrated into the OS that it could never be removed - even if they do have it separated out nicely into modules internally, I'd be surprised if the copy of the source they release to the court doesn't have everything arranged to best support their argument.

I'd love to see a copy of the randomly rescrambled files, though... "Kernel32AndClippyToo.h", anyone?

--
Damn the Emperor!

Other News

[4of12]

February 15, Redmond, Washington (AP) -- "Microsoft officials, who were initially outraged over the rebel states' request for source code access adopted an abruptly accommodating stance late yesterday."

"It seems that Bill Gates had started an internal initiative to find the best way to obfuscate the Windows source code in the event the states' request were to receive a successful ruling."

"Almost immediately, some of the top programmers from Microsoft, some of whom had spent years working on the Windows product, declared that native source itself already represented a sufficiently obtuse format and that not further obfuscation could better fulfill Bill's objectives."

"Let them have it!" declared one programmer gleefully and without hesitation."

Microsoft Response

[gnovos]

So you get a free turkey, a 200 gift certificate AND all the added protien of all those yummy yummy 'features'? You are living large my friend!