Re:What I find most interesting about this... (Score 1)

I agree that the much vaunted aggression of BG is well illustrated here but that does does not detract from the value of his arguments. If companies like Microsoft had not pushed hard to obtain protection in law for the work of software developers, the software/PC business would not be as rich and diverse as it is. I for one would not be involved in the business on a hobby level.

I don't mean to dismiss or belittle the work of freeware developers: the whole Linux thing is an illustration of the fine work that is done by talented, dedicated developers. However I'm guessing (please don't flame me if I'm not completely accurate) that many of these developers owe their livelihood to more commercial pursuits or operate within academia.

I don't want to add fuel to 'Microsoft as Evil Empire' and 'Windows v MacOS v UNIX/Linux' debate. But I don't believe that the strides in computing could have been made without the driving force of Gates, Jobs, Noorda et al. They wouldn't have looked twice at computers without a drive towards hard cash.