[svlug] Tea Party covered by Guardian Online (London)

[Rick Moen]

http://go2.guardian.co.uk/computing/911396725-microlite.html
Full text follows:


Microlites 

Was it an act of healthy competition or a declaration of war? The 
decision by Microsoft to set up a software developers centre in 
Silicon Valley, home of rivals Netscape, Oracle and Sun Microsystems, 
could be seen as either. The big companies remained aloof as Bill 
Gates's boys from Redmond, Washington, moved on to their home turf 
last week.  

But the challenge proved irresistible to the guerrillas of the computer 
world, the users of Linux, the freely-distributed operating system 
touted as a rival to Windows.  

When the Silicon Valley Linux User Group (SVLUG) realised the 225th 
anniversary of the Boston Tea Party was imminent, they proposed to 
commemorate it with a tea party of their own outside Mr Gates's centre 
in Palo Alto. 

'Boston Tea Party' might conjure up images of hackers decked with 
feathers and waving tomahawks bursting into the Microsoft centre, and 
hurling crates of Windows 98 CDs on to the freeway in lieu of the harbour. 

But today's American programmer is far removed from his reckless frontier 
ancestry and, through messages on Linux Web sites, the SVLUG members were 
given these instructions: 'We will be meeting at the University Coffee 
Cafe in Palo Alto. It's suggested you wear a Linux T-shirt, but wear a 
long-sleeved shirt or jacket to cover it up, so you can easily gain 
admittance. You might also want to bring a small bag to put Linux CDs 
in. And if you have scotch tape, and tea bags, bring those. We will be 
taping the tea to the CDs as a symbolic gesture. 

'We are friendly computer professionals. We want the other guests to 
like us. Only the MS officials should be annoyed, seeing penguins on 
T-Shirts and Linux CDs all over.' (The penguin is the Linux logo, 
chosen because Linus Torvalds, writer of Linux, likes penguins). 

And so 30 to 40 Linux users turned up at the appointed hour. But the 
Microsoft men had monitored their Web sites. Would Bill Gates turn out 
the redcoats and massacre the Linux users in the streets of Palo Alto? 
Well, today's US empire builder is far removed from his ancestors. 

According to Ian Kluft's Web report the Linux rebels were cordially 
greeted by Mike and Dan from Microsoft. 

'They appreciated our instructions for our people to be cool. They were 
cool about it too. Though there wasn't room to let everyone in, they 
had pre-printed five badges so we could take turns. The rest handed out 
CDs outside. We made sure not to block the sidewalk or the entrance. 

'The Microsoft people thanked us afterward and bought a round of beers 
and sodas for everyone.' 

 How sad the first Boston Tea Party was not so well mannered. The Union 
Jack might still be flying over Washington today. 

Read a full account of the party at http://www.svlug.org/events/
tea-party-199811-kluft.shtml 

18 November 1998

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