Geek

Sadly, this actually makes me want a Wii.

Microsoft claims that open source software in Linux violates 235 Microsoft-held patents. Really, honest, they counted and everything.

[Microsoft's lawyer] says that the Linux kernel – the deepest layer of the free operating system, which interacts most directly with the computer hardware – violates 42 Microsoft patents. The Linux graphical user interfaces – essentially, the way design elements like menus and toolbars are set up – run afoul of another 65, he claims. The Open Office suite of programs, which is analogous to Microsoft Office, infringes 45 more. E-mail programs infringe 15, while other assorted [free and open source] programs allegedly transgress 68.

The risibility of Microsoft accusing “teh Interweb” of, say, violating its intellectual property on user interfaces? Indeed, quite risible.

In 1988, Apple sued Microsoft for copyright infringement of the LISA and Apple Macintosh GUI. The court case lasted 4 years before almost all of Apple’s claims were denied on a contractual technicality. Subsequent appeals by Apple were also denied, and Microsoft and Apple apparently entered a final, private settlement of the matter in 1997 as a side note in a broader announcement of investment and cooperation.

Steve Ballmer claims that Microsoft is being bullied by, um, teh Interweb. No, really.

“We live in a world where we honor, and support the honoring of, intellectual property,” says Ballmer in an interview.

As seen by Microsoft’s history of honoring and supporting intellectual property by purchasing it, putting it in a small box, and then taking it out and playing with it on annual developer days.

Note that it’s a sad day when Fortune’s title for this story is actually funnier than mine:

Microsoft takes on the free world.

New Hearts of Iron 2 booster pack that I alluded to earlier is out now.

New features (most of which weren’t advertised):

• “Stop Sending Me Expeditionary Forces Dammit” button (fixes one of HOI2 Doomsday’s most irksome “features”)

• Two fantasy scenarios (eh, I suspect Kaiserreich is probably still better)
• Ability to play until 1964 (however, with no new techs or events that’s kind of pointless – guess it’s so modders don’t have to include a No Time Limit patch for their ColdWar scenarios that never come out)
• Autobuild units with attachments (something I thought was missing from HOI2 when I first played it)
• Add attachments to naval units which can upgrade (similar to air wings on carriers, keeps your ancient navy somewhat relevant)
• Completely reworked naval combat which requires surface units to detect targets for naval bombers (no more Royal Navy being wiped out by unsupported Stuka wings)
• Reworked air combat system
• Button you can push to show all your movement arrows at once (the “I AM THE VERY MODEL OF A MODERN MAJOR GENERAL” screenshot button)

It costs $5. In a perfect world it would be a patch… but one suspects this is how Paradox is trying to finance a “live team” for a game well past its shelf date. Still a disappointment from a team that supported EU2 for free for years.

Sadly, I will get it merely for the first feature. A sad panda, I am. And yes, I know I am rewarding bad behavior… this *really* should have been a patch, not a money generator.

So as you can probably see from the puppy dog to your left I finally joined the inevitable and picked up an XBox 360. Thanks to renting DVDs from a local video store, here’s my impressions of the games I’ve tried so far:

Ninety-Nine Nights: To be fair, I had already seen this at a friends’ house. But Phantagram. Why you got to be that way, baby. We used to be so good together! Daddy doesn’t want to hurt you. Just walk away.

Gears of War: Ooh, pretty. Ouch, hurty. OK, I don’t like shooters on consoles.

GRAW: OK, maybe I do like shooters on consoles, as long as they let me snipe people and call in airstrikes from gunships.

Viva Pinata: Hm, this could grow on me, assuming I figure out some actual gameplay.

Star Trek Legacy: I had tried this on the PC and gave up because it was so obviously a console port. I then tried this on the console and gave up because it was so obviously a really bad game.

Dead Rising: OK, this is why I bought this machine. Thanks. (swings bat, kills 5 zombies) Although the paucity of save points reminds me of console frustrations past.

XBox Arcade: Aaah, Time Pilot, comfort food of my youth, you sing to me so sweetly with your siren calls of random bombings and death. And Lumines isn’t a half bad port either. Does anyone play Hold’em Poker online?