Windows Source Code Question

[zoomy942]

So, i had a question that may or may not seem silly..

why is such a big deal that MS has to release source code? i know that all happened years ago, but i never understood why it mattered.

[nekrosoft13]

people don't like when one company is succesful. how come apple can bundle their OS with all these extra programs, and advertise. oh look at us, if you use apple, you get all these programs.

MS adds IE and WMP, and they used in Europe.

[zoomy942]

but what is it about the source code?

[Q]

but what is it about the source code?

Secret sauce?

Key to Jedi Powers?

Dick Cheney's real age?

I'm not sure. It's ridiculous, really. I'm sure anyone who really needed to know (gov't, etc) the code has already reverse engineered it. I guess its for the call towards better interoperability and being able to see where the vulnerabilities are.

I don't get it.

[nekrosoft13]

but what is it about the source code?

I know that few AV companies wanted to see it to better intergrate their software.

[LycosV]

Source code is like the blueprint to a building, or the list of ingredients in Coke Cola, with the source code you modify the software to do anything you want it to do. The real reason everybody wants the source code to Windows is that they want to eliminate Microsoft.

The Europeon Union (one of the biggest pushers for Window's source code), IMO, wants to do for OS's what Airbus did for aerospace. They want to take government money to fund a European company to do what an American company already does well.

They need access to the source code because without it you end up with something link Linux where it's incompatible with Windows software. With access to the Windows source code you could create an OS that ran all the software that runs in Windows and shares all the drivers that Windows uses, but isn't called Windows and isn't made by Microsoft.