Microsoft uses Linux shocker

SOME STORIES ARE JUST A PLEASURE TO WRITE. Here's one: Microsoft uses Linux. Well, ok. Microsoft doesn't use Linux directly, but it seems their web presence would be severely impaired without the benefits of the open source OS, which, to put words into Bill Gates' mouth, threatens the future of capitalism as we know and love it.

Quite simply, the Vole uses Akamai Technologies' Internet-wide cacheing system to deliver content to surfers. And Akamai runs Linux. This sad fact is revealed here.

The page, compiled by Netcraft, an Internet services company based in Bath, England, shows that Microsoft London Internet Data Center distributes Microsoft content in London using Linux servers. Spokesman Mike Prettejohn at Netcraft said the cacheing system was used by the biggest and most well-known Web companies. "They would have a hard job avoiding Linux," he said.

He added that for such "close to the edge" cacheing, "there's either Linux, Linux, or Linux." As far as he was aware Microsoft markets no such technology.

Microsoft blankly refused to comment. µ

Addendum While you're on the Netcraft site you might find the difference between the uptimes on servers running Linux and those running Windows 2000 of interest...