Re:ya.. (Score 1)

Microsoft being public relations geniuses

So ... the answer is for F/OSS advocates to do a better job of presenting their case. To badly mangle Gandhi's famous statement to the British, there is no way that a handful of public relations people, no matter how skilled (Microsoft), can defeat millions (of F/OSS advocates) ... if those millions do not so choose to be defeated.

It doesn't help when a politician or PHB asks why a certain feature isn't present in a free alternative, only to be told in surly tone, "you've got the source code, write it yourself! 'Free' doesn't mean 'free software design!'"

Perfect example, discussed here before: handicapped groups are some of the biggest advocates for sticking with current file formats, because the F/OSS community has yet to adequately address their needs.

(I say, "discussed here before," but as I recall, it wasn't much of a discussion. There was a stunned silence and a lot of "wells ..." and "hmmms ...," then everyone quickly and gladly moved on to other topics.)