Re: linux-distros membership application - Microsoft

["David A. Wheeler" <dwheeler () dwheeler com>]

On Sun, 7 Jul 2019 15:42:58 +0200, Solar Designer <solar () openwall com> wrote:
> I don't view it as a present, but as us being reasonable.  The rules
> don't require the 1 year track record to be for Linux specifically...
> So I suggest we subscribe "Microsoft Linux Systems Group" on August 8.

I think that's entirely reasonable.  Indeed, I think it'd be reasonable to add
them now.  That said, ensuring that the "right sub-group" is added is appropriate,
since we want to ensure that people contact the correct group.


Georgi Guninski:
> ... The Halloween Documents are from 1998, which makes 21 years.

That is a long time ago.  People and companies change, and
in this case there's good evidence that change has occurred.
Forgiveness is a good idea, for both people and companies.
Yes, companies have a profit motive, but that's not at all disqualifying.

Besides, the beneficiaries of linux-distros work aren't just
the distros; they also include the *users* of those distros.  As noted in
http://oss-security.openwall.org/wiki/mailing-lists/distros ,
the list is only "to report and discuss security issues that are not yet public
(but that are to be made public very soon...)...
It is intended that these lists be used primarily to provide actionable information
to multiple distribution vendors at once."
This enables everyone to coordinate so that users get *fixes*
when the issue becomes public, not just a problem the users can't deal with.

In short, I support allowing the Microsoft Linux Systems Group to join linux-distros.

--- David A. Wheeler