Is Microsoft's lawsuit against TomTom an attack on Linux?

You must have heard about Microsoft's lawsuit against TomTom by now. While the wheels of the legal system might turn slowly, reactions across the Internet have been swift. Some see the lawsuit as an unsubtle attack against Linux and open source software in general.

Noting that at least one of the patents involved concerns a Linux kernel implementation, open source expert Bruce Parens asked, "Is this Microsoft's first direct salvo against Linux?" On the same track, Parens pointed to the age and "obviousness of some of the technologies covered in the eight patents--such as that of the venerable FAT file system.

On the other hand, Jim Zemlin, who is the executive director of the Linux Foundation, called for calm. He referred to earlier assurance by Microsoft that the lawsuit isn't about Linux. If that proved not to be true however, Zemlin noted that the Linux Foundation and the Open Invention Network are "well prepared" to defend any claims made against Linux.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at eWeek

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