Microsoft to reveal Windows code

[rahulkothari]

picked from Times of India Newspaper (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=18185220)


REUTERS [ TUESDAY, AUGUST 06, 2002 2:20:11 AM ]

WASHINGTON: Microsoft Corp. will reveal hundreds of pieces of proprietary computer code from its monopoly Windows operating system in the next several weeks to comply with an antitrust settlement it signed with the US Justice Department last year, the company said on Monday.

The software giant said the disclosures are part of its first steps to comply with the settlement that must still be approved by a federal judge and remains opposed by nine state attorneys general seeking stiffer sanctions.

Microsoft said it plans to disclose nearly 400 pieces of computer code and internal operating rules, previously kept secret, which outside software developers can use to write programs to run on Windows.


.... finally, microsoft 'opened' the window :D

[jabarnutcase]

At last!!!....All the programing secrets of windows 95 we've been waiting to see. :D
Gee- I wonder what they mean by "400 pieces" of computer code? HeHE

[rahulkothari]

i think by 400 pieces, they mean, 400 parts of windows' code which deal directly with hardware or are tightly integrated into the OS, which when used by other applications (not developed by M$), makes that app to work better.

Also, M$ has to legally release these code snippets, but it didn't, coz it did not want other appz to perform better on Windows than its own appz.

[HeadachesAbound]

M$ doesn't want to face the rath of an unhappy consumer market. They are trying to give the impression of cooperation in order to avoid stiffer penalties which would most likely destroy the monopoly the they have on the PC OS Environment. They are revealing 400 pieces of code that can be used by 3rd party applications to provide tighter integration with the OS. It is one of the original penalties from the DOJ settlement. The DOJ settlement is not final and therefore M$ doesn't have to do this. They simply want to keep the public happy and attempt to get out of the huge crater they created for themselves.