We've certainly seen a
variety of
crashings go down on stage, but a determined protester and undeterred advocate for open source software rudely (albeit humorously) interrupted
Bill Gates' speech at Peking University in Beijing, China. Gates, who was speaking on the topic of Innovation in China's future and receiving (
yet another) honorary manager title, had his after-party all shook up by an off-kilter
open source proponent who reportedly darted across the stage, "loudly shouted against Microsoft's
monopoly," proudly displayed a sign of "Free software, open source," and was promptly "tackled by security and removed for questioning." It was suggested that the culprit may have been a member of the
Linux Professional Institute, and while we're not exactly sure if Michael Dell would've shown
any forgiveness, feel free click on through for a closeup of the sign and the unfortunate aftermath.
[Via
SeattlePI, thanks Ralf]
Update: Reader Shawn W sent in a video of the proceedings! Check it out after the break.
posted Apr 20th 2007 5:07PM
AWESOME!
the chinese dont care abt open source code.. they just dont wanna pay..
Down With "The Man!"
It's a shame. Although I am a proponent of free software as well, I don't think this is the right way. And this happens in my alma mater? Oh, well...
Except that he's now probably on his way to a Chinese prison, never to be heard from again.
^^, lucky that he is "OK"... still! but not sure after B.G. leave China.....
Actually, China Goverment is supporting Linux (Red Flag) ^^
My freaking hero! But I'm afraid that guy is gonna get "disappeared" by the unholy alliance of Chinese secret police and MS goons.
I rank this the second best prank evah...with this being number one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-Y3B_sCtSg
that's not a prank, that's assault.
It's not quite Tiananmen Square, but AWSOME protest, nontheless!
I'm all for open-source,but I think this is immature.
absolutely. in spite of my differences with bill gates, i think the protestor disrespected the guest. he did no good to open source community and it's promotion. And he is no martyr in my eyes - there is a way to protest and should not be done at the cost of disrespecting somebody else.
he's totally pouting in the last pic
lol, Bill Gates seems amused.
Wow, that's effective.
I do not understand why people think this crap affects anything at all.
It does amuse me to watch open source nerds to make idiots of themselves though, just like the Bad Vista guys made me laugh.
What a demented idiot.
Enjoy Chinese prison, fool.
No since it is China and a Communist Country he will be given the Chinese water tourture, while Bill Gates Personally removes Ubuntu from his HP laptop and puts Vista Ultimate in its place; all while the water torture make's him pee his pants.
Poor dude. They're gonna harvest his organs.
Good for him. Too bad his efforts won't change the monopolistic/predatory practices Microsoft. God, it'd be nice to see them go down in flames..
HA!
Are those 5.25 inch floppy disks on the plaques they are holding?
That's innovation!
"It was suggested that the culprit may have been a member of the Linux Professional Institute". More like Linux Unprofessional Institute.
Jeff, hes probably executed by now.
Oh crap, I shouldnt have said that. If you dont hear from me plz come rescue me from beijing thankyou
bill doesn't look all to impressed
bill doesn't look all to impressed
Seriously, what is preventing open source software from suceeding? is it difficult to get because microsoft has blocked the internet access to it? Are there things blocking large organizations to switch to it? Do you think there are no other choices other than MSFT? Do you think Novell runs a lot of MSFT? what about AAPL, SUN or ORACLE? how much MSFT do they run. MSFT isn't doing anything to prevent people from running Open Source, People keep choosing MSFT on their own because they like it, it works and it is easier! Do you think Oracle, SUN, Novell and Apple have large microsoft networks? Boo freeckity hoo MSFT does not want to give everyone access to "THEIR SOURCE CODE" get over it and design or build something better that people choose and MSFT will have to worry about making their stuff compatable, until then DEAL.
I totally agree. Me personally, I don't want to have to deal with all the damn flavors of Linux or whatever. I just like an OS that is widely available whether that means Vista or XP in my University's Library, my friends computer, work, or the public library. I couldn't imagine how it'd be if Ubuntu was on computer A, Red Hat on computer B, Mandrake on computer C...do you see where I'm going? Windows does have its share of flaws but it works whether I want to network, word process, surf the net, play a game, watch a movie, etc. And I don't see why this guy is protesting. It isn't like you can't go online and download an installion disk. What an idiot. If there were such an uproar over Windows I'm sure a lot more people would be up in arms with torches, pitch forks, and clubs; but guess what the only people upset over Windows domination are a minority of Linux Fanboys. Get over it. Most people don't give a damn about Open Source, and a lot more don't even know or care to know what it is. Just stupid!!!
Well, personally I got sick of the spyware that kept popping up, even on trusted sites. I don't run an antivirus under Linux, as it implements proper security. I also have a Mac at home - same deal. There are over HALF A MILLION viruses for Windows. I can count, with my two hands and two feet, the number of viruses for Linux. And Mac has a few more, but not by much. Windows security is laughable. Absolutely hilarious. And I need something secure. I also like being able to remove features I don't need, like the GUI, or setup an outgoing firewall (Windows didn't do this under Vista), or add a new feature to the kernel.
I totally disagree. Very high quality free/open source software is available and emerging. What the movement needs is exposure, pretty much no matter what. That's what this person realized and is trying to do.
Freaken sweet. Would have made the whole protest more effective if say it were a naked model, or he was running around in a chicken suit or something.
I could have sworn that software was already free in China.
Wouldn't it be better to try and influence Microsoft with your wallet, not an immature stunt like this? If you don't want their software, don't buy it. You may not be the majority, but it can have an impact (maybe, eventually). Fortunately, this type of zealot does not represent all supporters of OSS, but it does set a stereotype of what some OSS people are like and is a big turn off for most people.
I personally think Microsoft has been doing a lot of good work lately, Vista, Home Server and XBox 360, these are all really good products for me. If you choose not to use them, don't.
Haha, Gates' smirk is awesome in that first photo.
Why is everyone so supportive of open source? Is it not right that programmers who put so much hard work into their software receive remuneration?
"Seriously, what is preventing open source software from succeeding?" One thing, lack of support, a consistent product and coherent direction.
Seriously Ubuntu is less than 3 years old and before it a different flavor of Linux was all the rage and before than another. What is touted as the strength of open source is also it's greatest impediment to adoption. There is no central source to keep it alive so next year Ubuntu may be gone entirely and another flavor will be the MS/Apple killer.
And the greatest argument open source format promoters have against companies like MS are also the greatest weakness of open source formats. They will argue that MS can end support for a format any time they like. But if there isn't a penny going toward keeping an open source format alive will it be supported next year or even next week?
Someone is going to trot out the argument that because the standard is open you can write your own software if none exists. Sorry but open source isn't the panacea its promoters would like it to be.
Oh and BTW, I use Unix about 50% of the time.
but..if its open anyone can support the product. You don't need XyZZy company to give you support for product ABC, all someone has to do is get enough skilled people to start supporting XyZZy. They can patch it themselves, find bugs quicker, etc etc.
Open Source software isn't having a hard time. What do the vast majority of webservers run on? How about DNS? What about FTP? I'm sure you really like Exchange, but I'd be willing to be the bulk of all email is handled by open sourced products. Hey, how many of you out there run Firefox?
Microsoft has a market domination for a few reasons, they were the first to come out with a product for the x86 architecture, Linux wasn't even thought of for another decade. To think that somehow Microsoft was the reason for the acceptance of the x86 architecture is naive. IBM opened that up to anyone who wanted it (hrmmmm does this sound vaguely like something else?) and there wasn't really anyone else who was doing as much R&D as IBM or who had the corporate clout to push a product out.
Also, lets face it, marketing works. In general we buy what we're told about.
Just so sad to see open source resort to these kind of tactics. A fitting punishment would to have him tattoo'd with "Open Source Sucks".
"lol, Bill Gates seems amused."
Really? It looks like he's having a flashback to the Conan O'Brien demo.
'Down with DRM' and 'Adopt open standards' would have been more beneficial slogans, but kudos where it's due for having the balls to do it in the first place, random asian dude.
What a lad.
But I must say I am not having a good time with Ubuntu 7.04. I am suffering from the common ATI bug where the resolution only goes up to 1024x768. I've followed several posted solutions like editing the xorg.conf but still no change. Well, in fact, I can't even boot into Ubuntu after following the official solution for the bug.
Back to Windows MCE 2005 for now.
Follow this howto, either method 1 or 2:
http://wiki.cchtml.com/index.php/Ubuntu_Feisty_Installation_Guide
Jeez, dont be surprised if after stuffs like that oss supporters are considered a bunch of hippies..... That was just stupid...
LOL hes not in prison....for a communist country china is fairly liberal...If anything this guy got stuck with a fine or where they make minor criminals sit on the sidewalk with writing in front of them saying what they did...
I can pretty much guarantee it takes alot more than that to get disapeared.
Ahh one more idiot fantasizing that he's fighting a holy war. The hilarious dichotomy is that open source zealots are constantly making themselves look anti-business and Microsoft's biggest customer base is business. So in the end they simply solidify Microsoft's customer base against open source.
Meanwhile the average consumer is more likely to scratch their heads and wonder what the sign means. I can hear people asking "Is he demanding free software from Microsoft?"
http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/6196/spil33tnr0.jpg
Maybe Jack Bauer can bust him out when he is there rescuing Audrey.
Funny thing is the survey at the bottom of the chinese Sohu.com website, where it says:
89.14% support the guy in going against Microsoft's monopoly (10.86% against)
63.95% support the method the guy used to express his opinion (36.05% against).
yeah man, I totally hear you. Having to make choices is hard. I like it when people just pick stuff for me so I don't have to think about it.
Eeeahkah. get real, start thinking. I hope you don't drive like that...
"I couldn't imagine how it'd be if Ubuntu was on computer A, Red Hat on computer B, Mandrake on computer C...do you see where I'm going?"
You probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference. It would either be a Gnome Desktop or a KDE Desktop, both of which would seem very familiar to anyone who has ever used a Mac or Windows PC.
Seriously, Linux distros aren't that different from one another, at least from a user's point of view.
Well nobody gives a shit to tell you the truth. Fuck Linux!
furry_goat. I'm not entirely certain why you'd think it was odd. You would probably get the same numbers on almost any site because of how its asked. I think he's deluded and misguided but I support him protesting if he wants. Heck I'm sure even MS does because this wacko is now the face of open source.
I'm actually more surprised by the 63.95% number. I think he's a moron but I still support the method. Do open source zealots want him to shoot someone or plant a bomb instead?
This "wacko" is not the face of open source. F/OSS doesn't have a "face." No one speaks for it, and everyone speaks for it.
Your bias against open-source is obvious (note the use of the term "open-source zealot"...), but really, isn't it a *good thing* for MS to have some real competition, for a change?
Lovely ... you have an authoritarian government, local officials are corrupt, the Internet is censored, health care is lacking, and air quality in major cities sucks ... so clearly, the solution is to protest Microsoft.
Real nerds don't protest. Sounds like some kind of crazy hippie.
"what about AAPL, SUN or ORACLE?"
AAPL has very little or no MS. From the few glimpses of there data center, it's Macs and where not possible, AIX. Probably the only thing they run is Office and a few Win boxes for development (QT, iTunes).
That was my point, you can be as MSFT free as you want there are plenty of choices.
Who says he's going to prison? The Chinese government was probably behind this banal stunt.
archiesteel I would be the first to say competition is not only good but great. In fact I've said it for 30 years of sitting in front of a computer. Ok, now the problem for open source is that it has to actually compete. If a version of Linux for instance wants to unseat MS they will have to change from being the "no one speaks for it" operating system because when there's a problem people want to speak to someone.
I have no bias against open source I'm also a realist. If you're saying there are no open source zealots then you must be living under a rock. I'll admit the promoters are slowly trying to put a professional face on open source but they have an uphill battle. Not because of MS as they would love to believe but because of their own history.
Lastly, don't kid yourself about this guy being the face of open source. The average person is more likely to know what the capital of Guam than what open source is. But when they hear open source they'll remember having seen this guy on the news.
Open Source/Linux *does* compete, but you're wrong in assuming that it has to "unseat" Windows in order to be successful. Any OS dominating the market is a less-than-ideal situation in my book.
As for "no one speaks for it"...most Windows users don't have access to MS support anyway (or the means to buy it), so the point is rather moot. As for businesses, there are Linux distros that offer support (RedHat, SuSE...even Ubuntu can have support provided by Canonical).
There are a few open soure zealots, just like there are MS shills and astroturfers. The fact is that Linux is ready for a *lot* of desktops. As for putting a "professional" face, you should know that Linux is already used quite a lot in server space. Google is a shining example of the kind of business you can build using Linux! Linux is also highly successful in High-End computing, as well as the embedded world. On the desktop, it is enjoying a market share similar to OS X, and its use is growing at a very rapid space in some regions of the world, such as China.
I think it's time to update your knowledge of Linux, because it's advanced quite a lot since the last time you looked at it, it seems.
As far as this guy goes, he'll be forgotten in a couple of days. He won't be the face of open-source for anyone, no matter how much you wish him to be (your insistence to see this as a reasonable outcome despite the fact that this is nothing more than an anecdote also confirms your anti-Linux bias).
We should organize a petition to get this poor dude out of prison, because we've all benefitted from open source one way or another.
I don't see any penguins in his tie!!
March of the Penguins!!??
to the GALLOWS!
a follow-up story on this guy would be nice. Or an interview.
In other news, there'll be some organs available on the transplant market in a couple of weeks.
Doesn't this guy already know?
WINDOWS AND OFFICE ARE FREE, in China.
LOL...Gates, you just got served, douche!
This proves it. Windows isn't indestructable and bill isn't a god.
HOAX .....
The guy with the crude message is an MS employee in Beijing. I live in China and know how this system works. Such a poor actor. Look at the body language.
Billy scores 10 Brownie points for Vista Visit, and his loyal protesting friend gets a few good servings of dofu and moutai after the circus show. Later he gets a vixen like xiau gunya (cewek) with dah nu nu, (susu besar) and laughs because everyone has been conned effectively. Billy is a smart man. Much smarter than your average jungle bunny, meadow muffin, or the readers of these messages.
This guy is an idiot.
We should all be protesting the patenting of software because patenting logical processes is just evil and unfair, but there is nothing wrong with copyrights and companies wanting to keep their source code private. It's THEIR source code that they paid developers to write. What is about private property that open source cheerleaders don't understand? Coke doesn't release the formula for their soda but I should have to share my source with the world? No way, thats up to me.
Down with M$!
"you're wrong in assuming that it has to "unseat" Windows in order to be successful. " At least stick to what I actually said. That's presumption on your part not assumption on mine. I didn't say it had to do anything.
"most Windows users don't have access to MS support." Huge amount of official support online and a company with a long history behind the product. Also support doesn't simply mean hand-holding. It also means having a product history.
"I think it's time to update your knowledge of Linux, because it's advanced quite a lot since the last time you looked at it, it seems." Oh you mean since the last time I toured a Google server farm with palates of Velcroed together Linux boxes? I would say nice try with that juvenile attempt at a personal dig but it wasn't.
Had you actually read my posts you'd know that I use Unix around 50% of the time. I prefer it over Linux but run Linux on some work machines where we use Python. I'm about as tech agnostic as a person gets. So perhaps you should look inward for irrational bias.
And like it or not for the general public this guy is the face of open source. Not him personally since you didn't and may still not get what that means from a marketing aspect. The general public hears about Linux almost exclusively through headlines about some random act of vandalism. If open source continues to have no face and no message to the general public then people like this guy become the face and the message.
I guess you have to applaud the effort. Fitting that this took place in China. Free enterprise and open source software are far from best friends.
SF
http://www.wasatchsoftware.com
想自己出名吧，
不看好开源软件，毕竟有金钱做动力，开发者才会去尽心尽力写程序……
Damn no pies this time... wasnt it a chinese guy who pied him awhile back.
Omg.... How old is this thing? Clearly 5.25 floppies were all the rage about 14 years ago. This guy was probably an original zealot. I mean damn....