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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">Caveat: I have no relationship with
Microsoft or GitHub, period.<br>
<br>
On 6/4/2018 9:13 PM, Dave Morris wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:a904d4ea942eef450d2ee58314c5c392@metagrid.co.uk"
id="mid_a904d4ea942eef450d2ee58314c5c392_metagrid_co_uk" class="
cite">
<pre wrap="">Turns out that GitHub was in a vulnerable position, and selling to
Microsoft may give them the resources they need.</pre>
</blockquote>
<p>It may be worth taking an unvarnished look at <i>why </i>GitHub
was vulnerable. It also may be worth taking an unvarnished look at
<i>where </i>Microsoft has been going with their business since
the departure of Steve Ballmer. <br>
</p>
<p>A "free" service, supporting a community of people who believe
software should be open and free, yet having big costs? Eventually
you run out of other peoples' money. I would say that to me at
least (and at that time) Git's business model was unsustainable at
the outset, and thus people with significant work product value
depending on GitHub was a bad idea five years ago. Would you have
gone to work for Git then get a mortgage, buy a house and have
kids? I stayed away because I have skin in the game and would not
want a loss.<br>
</p>
<p>Now it looks like a solid business (as opposed to a government
entity) is going to turn GitHub into a service that can be trusted
and will continue onward. Microsoft has been unbelievably good at
staying the course with compatibility and continuity while
delivering first class development tools and giving them away.
Please don't drudge up 10+ year old stories. Ballmer is gone. And
no one knows where we'll be 10 years from now<br>
</p>
I know the conventional WinDOZE religion is pervasive. In my
opinion, though, worrying about Microsoft and GitHub is a tempest in
a teapot driven more by religious preconceived notions than fact and
clarity. You may find that you'll be seeing adverts in the free
tools, though, and will need to pay some nominal fee for the use of
their services without same. To me that is totally fair. How they
integrate it into their development environment will be interesting.<br>
<p> -- Bob</p>
<p>PS: I know this will probably (farther) reduce my standing in the
IVOA/VO community but it comes from the heart.<br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
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