Still feeling the pressure from Linux (news - web sites) and other open-source software competitors, Microsoft Corp. is reaching out further to the open-source community with offers of joint development and testing. But it's not yet clear if anyone is ready to listen.

In addition to forming new initiatives to deal with Linux growth, including an upfront and official dialogue with members of the open-source community, Microsoft may also be considering releasing new sections of code as open source.

Officials at the Redmond, Wash., company acknowledged last week an internal initiative called Mission Critical Microsoft that is based on Microsoft's Datacenter program and that aims to extend the reach of that program to a wider range of solutions, with an ultimate goal of encouraging customers to choose Windows over Linux.
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Source : ZiffDavis Media