The Redmond menace
Microsoft recently threw around its weight -- and its
fat wallet -- to squash an independent testing lab
from publishing benchmark results that the lab ran for
InfoWorld's sister publication NetworkWorld. The test
demonstrated that SQL Server 7 runs nearly twice as
fast on Windows NT 4.0 than it does on Windows 2000.
The lab's director of research claims that when he
discovered the performance crevasse, thinking it his
own fault, he contacted Microsoft and worked with them
for a week to figure out what went wrong. When neither
company could fix the problem, Microsoft shifted its
sails, thereby changing the direction of the wind as
well, and cited a SQL Server "no publication without
authorization" license clause, indirectly threatening
legal action.
"We used to be Microsoft fans," the lab director said.
"Now, I just feel like I got run over by a train. When
they realized they couldn't fix the problem, they, as
my son would say from Toy Story, put on their angry
eyes and came after us. We have been intimidated into
not going forward with our results because we don't
have the pockets to battle Microsoft in court." The
results were on the lab's Web site Thursday evening
but had disappeared by Friday morning.
Along the way, Microsoft pulled one of the tricks for
which it has gained notoriety: blaming the hardware.
The lab's director said that Microsoft declared a NIC
(network interface card) to be at fault, which he
added was a common Intel NIC -- one on the hardware
compatibility list Team Redmond points to so frequently.
NetworkWorld eventually overcame the Microsoft threat,
however. The test results were posted on its site
early last week.
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