Turbolinux, a Japanese seller of the open-source operating system, has bridged a philosophical divide by licensing Microsoft technology for playing digital music and video.
Pragmatism led the company to combine products from the ideologically opposed open-source and proprietary software camps, Turbolinux spokesman Michael Jennings said. The Windows Media format support comes as part of an add-on package with several proprietary software components that Turbolinux announced Tuesday.
"The rationale was that the majority of Japanese Web sites are using Windows Media format. We've had (manufacturing) partners and large customers who have requested us to move that into our product," Jennings said. The technology is available in a plug-in module to the open-source Xine software.
Historically, open-source advocates have tried to sidestep Microsoft technology or provide compatibility through reverse-engineering, or deducing, the inner workings of Microsoft's software. Providing compatibility with Microsoft technology is a double-edged sword for its rivals--it makes it easier to dovetail with the dominant force in desktop computer software, but it also reinforces its power.
"It obviously helps us for interoperability, (but) I still wish the standards were open," said Miguel de Icaza, a longtime desktop Linux developer and now a Novell technology executive. "That's the biggest the problem we have now for Linux adoption. Microsoft keeps coming up with new protocols and file formats and APIs (application programming interfaces)...and maybe they license the technology, maybe they don't."
View: Read more at ZDNet
News source: ZDNet
Pragmatism led the company to combine products from the ideologically opposed open-source and proprietary software camps, Turbolinux spokesman Michael Jennings said. The Windows Media format support comes as part of an add-on package with several proprietary software components that Turbolinux announced Tuesday.
"The rationale was that the majority of Japanese Web sites are using Windows Media format. We've had (manufacturing) partners and large customers who have requested us to move that into our product," Jennings said. The technology is available in a plug-in module to the open-source Xine software.
Historically, open-source advocates have tried to sidestep Microsoft technology or provide compatibility through reverse-engineering, or deducing, the inner workings of Microsoft's software. Providing compatibility with Microsoft technology is a double-edged sword for its rivals--it makes it easier to dovetail with the dominant force in desktop computer software, but it also reinforces its power.
"It obviously helps us for interoperability, (but) I still wish the standards were open," said Miguel de Icaza, a longtime desktop Linux developer and now a Novell technology executive. "That's the biggest the problem we have now for Linux adoption. Microsoft keeps coming up with new protocols and file formats and APIs (application programming interfaces)...and maybe they license the technology, maybe they don't."
View: Read more at ZDNet News source: ZDNet
pulled, rude comments, shit story. Not worth the hassle.
But personally, I'll refuse to download anything in Windows Media. The player sucks, and I don't want to see the format more widely adopted. The format itself (not the player for Windows or Mac) is actually pretty good. But the fact that Microsoft can control it and make it another closed "standard" is a gigantic downside I don't want to see happen.
So, I use the formats that run on every computer. MPEG and MPEG-4 (Quicktime and Divx are MPEG-4 codecs) these have patent issues, but they're open, and I like them (Especially MPEG-4). When OGG-Theorta comes out, I'll use that often. (Open, and patent free. Made by the people who brought you the awesome OGG-Vorbis.)
Another rant.
Sounds like it's already pretty widely adopted in Asian countries. But good for you taking a personal stand on tyranical oppression.
Another rant.
Wrong! Tapo lauded (look it up) Turbolinux for doing the right thing in a legal way. After that, he (she?) merely expressed a preference based around a personal experience. Furthermore, they also stand behind the complete and total interoperability for all platforms (hence the statement, "So, I use the formats that run on every computer." )
Seems to me you simply wanted to be "cool" by calling them out for, well, nothing more than having something valid to say, stating a preference, and overall participating in an intelligible way.
One last thing, with 302 posts (mostly bitter and belittling, I'm sure) since January 2004 , I would hardly call you a Neowin Veteran who's seen this kind of thing oh-so-many times before. Save it for the trolls and spammers, huh? Oh wait... let me review... did you actually have anything to contribute to the topic at hand? It doesn't look that way, other than belittling someone else for actually having something to say and mocking them for saying it. You're not gaining any points with anyone by trolling.
Lastly, thanks for posting, tapo. There are two sides to every story, and a thousands opinions about each, but you shouldn't have to tolerate someone slamming you for expressing one.
People like you must live pleasant lives where you gladly accept that others will make the decisions for you...
About a media codec? Who cares??? Yeah, my life is pretty pleasant, because it's not filled with mindless, pointless agression against a company that makes an intangible product.
Oh, and I have zero .wma files in my music archive, out of 20 gigs of music. Seems like I've made a decision. Thanks for playing.
You don't seem to have a good understanding of what an "open standard" is.
I don't know about WMV though, I prefer xvid or DivX over that.
WMA is "better" than mp3, more compressed and more exact. So What? Ears are analog. If you can stand to listen to the radio, mp3's are good enough. The audio difference doesn't matter, it's too small. Storage size difference doesn't matter, storage is too cheap.
For in-house use, 'best' quality mp3s ripped from digital sources at high bit rates are VERY good. Some CAN tell the difference, in a perfect acoustic setting .. but thats not the real world. To avoid DRM, and maintain a convenient and common format, matters most to me.. and to nearly all the collectors i've met. (many)
WMA is about making money. Turbolinux didn't pay a license fee to be charitable, either to billy or their users. They are just staying legal and selling a product. Would ya care to bet on how many mp3s those wma enabled comps will have on em after a year?
Bet it's more than the wma format audio.
Storage is not cheap for many people (a 40 GB player costs at least $230), so WMA really is useful for a lot of people. Do you think I give two sh*ts about how much money Microsoft makes? I couldn't care less.
I personally still rip to 192k MP3's because of campatibility reasons. I have an MP3 CD player, i have a stereo in my room that plays MP3 CDs. And it is the easiest format for me to convert directly to 80k WMA's on my Pocket PC.
As for Turbolinux, good for them. There is obviously a need, and they are filling it.
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