On Fri, Jun 06, 2025 at 01:14:17PM +0200, Matthias Urlichs wrote: > > - Microsoft might not appreciate this undertaking and not sponsor > > DebConf the next year around. > That's always their prerogative … > > - Participants might deem it ironic that Microsoft (very indirectly) > > sponsors the replacement of their very own OS. > Heh. > > However, I consider those concerns somewhat far-fetched. > > … at least the first one. The second isn't far-fetched at all, but then I > wouldn't call it a concern either. ;-) > > Anyways, M$ presumably knows what they're doing. > > Also presumably our focus is (mostly …) on machines that Microsoft itself > has declared unfit for Windows 11, for more-or-less-sensible reasons, so > what *else* should we be doing with these things? Toss them into the nearest > landfill ^W recycling bin even though they're still working perfectly well?
So, for some background, I have been a Debian developer since 2000 or thereabouts. I also work for Microsoft, where I focus on contributing to Linux distributions including Debian. Microsoft is sponsoring Debconf because it's in the company's best interest to ensure that Debian is healthy and well resourced. It's been the case for some years that Linux usage in the Microsoft Azure cloud service exceeds Windows usage, and much of that usage is either directly or indirectly Debian based (indirectly as in Ubuntu, Kali, etc). By sponsoring Debconf and other Debian activities, Microsoft helps to ensure that Debian users, including those who choose to run Debian on Azure, have a positive experience. This is good for those users and ultimately good for Microsoft. I would not worry about a response (positive or negative) from the sponsor to a Linux installfest. It's simply not why Microsoft is there. noah
