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Here's what some folks are talking about. Palamida does not necessarily endorse the opinions in the articles linked to below.

• IT Plays Linchpin Role In High-Stake M&As
  

  "A handful of companies understand what far too many don't--that IT's ability to integrate, and in some cases adopt, an acquired company's IT systems and operations can determine whether a merger flourishes or flounders."

• GPL Gains Clout in German Legal Case
  

  "A German court has required a company to comply with the terms of the General Public License, giving some legal weight to the increasingly important document that governs Linux and innumerable other open-source programs."

• Open Source's Untapped Potential
  

  "The growing popularity of the Linux operating system has drawn attention to a style of software development in which volunteers, collaborating over the Internet, can create programs that are cheaper, even arguably better, than those that emerge from paid staffers working at high- tech firms."

• Making the World Safe for Free Software
  

  "A litigious blitzkrieg by the anti-Linux crusader the SCO Group has been enraging open-source developers for months. But SCO's attack has ignited its own counterreaction."

• An Open Source Plan
  

  "Open-source software's biggest benefit is that it is freely available, which means that smart developers will be constantly experimenting with components that help them build applications faster. But companies putting business-critical applications into production must also know that their open-source components are well-supported and free from intellectual-property concerns."

• Six Barriers to Open Source Adoption
  

  "We all know about the benefits of open source software in lowering total cost of ownership, offering more choice and the increasing quality and functionality of the code. The rise of Linux as an edge server and now migrating toward the data center is clear validation that the open source model has taken root."

• Stealing Free Software?
  

  "THE FRONT PAGE of the website of MPlayer, the popular multimedia player software for Linux, is running a story accusing Kiss Technology of using Open Source software in their set-top boxes without conforming to the terms of the relevant licences."

• Linksys GPL Raises Embedded Issues
  

  "Forbes Magazine has published an article called "Linux's Hit Men" which suggests that the Free Software Foundation's legal efforts to enforce the terms of the GPL could intimidate companies and dissuade them from embedding software licensed under the GPL in their products. To gain greater insight into the situation, LinuxDevices.com spoke with open source software licensing expert Bruce Perens, who talked about the Linksys case, GPL concerns in general and specific concerns related to embedded development, and the attitude of the open source developer community relative to GPL violations."

• Linux's Hit Men
  

  "In the world of "free" open source software, there is no greater villain than SCO, owner of the Unix operating system. The Lindon, Utah, company has outraged Linux lovers by suing IBM (nyse: IBM - news - people ), claiming IBM stole Unix code and put it into Linux. Some fear the lawsuit by SCO (nasdaq: SCOX - news - people ) will impede the adoption of Linux."

• When is One Program a "Derivative Work" of Another?
  

  "Many users of open-source software are frightened by the term "derivative works". They worry they might accidentally create derivative works and put their own proprietary software under an open-source license. This is a complex topic that courts and lawyers disagree on, but I think we find definitions to ease people's concerns."