Computing pioneer and Intel co-founder Gordon Moore has died. His name is commonly used in reference to Moore’s Law, which stated that processors would be exponentially more complex, but he was much more than this. Moore was a visionary, who guided Intel through the DRAM market in the early years and then lead the transition of the company to lay the foundation for modern microcomputers. He quiet and polite, unlike Robert Noyce and Andy Grove, but everyone trusted Moore’s thoughtful and considered decisions. Moore learned from his mistakes, notably a foray into the digital watch market, and was able to lead while allowing others to have their own autonomy. In a way, Moore created Silicon Valley but was entirely unlike what it has become. We could surely use more leaders in the mold of Gordon Moore!
0:34 – Toshiba Takeover Talks
Toshiba has been in talks for months to find a buyer to help alleviate their current woes. Last week they accepted a buyout bid from a domestic firm, Japan Industrial Partners (JIP). The bid was for $15 billion, which is down about 22% from last year’s highest valuation of the company. Toshiba has been dealing with accounting scandals and other management issues. Previoulsy a board plan to split the company into three parts was rejected. Stephen, Toshiba has had some rough times. Does this deal reflect the value that’s still there?
Read More: Toshiba accepts $15bn buyout offer from Japanese consortium
3:10 – Biden Outlaws Feds Commercial Spyware
President Biden signed an executive order this week that forbids the US Governement from using commerical spyware. The move is seen as a way to prevent US agencies from using tools such as NSO’s Pegasus for intellgence gathering. Government personnel have been targeted by these attacks in the past few years and the US is trying to prevent them from spreading. The White House had already forbidden the export and transfer of Pegasus and a few other tools in 2021 but this move goes further in preventing the use of the tools completely by government agencies. Tom, will this be enough?
Read More: Biden’s executive order limits government’s use of commercial spyware
6:03 – MinIO and Weka Divided on Licensing Changes
Open source is getting yet another test this week as MinIO and Weka go to the court of public opinion to fight out a licensing issue. MinIO announced late last week that Weka was misusing their license to use MinIO’s open source software. MinIO had originally licensed their software under the Apache 2.0 license but switched to using the Affero GPL 3.0 (GNU AGPL v3) license in 2021. The AGPL restricts companies from incorporating free software in a commercial product. Weka responded to MinIO’s claims stating that they were not in violation of the original license agreement prior to 2021 and that they had forked the software before the license switch. MinIO has previously accused Nutanix of violations of their license back in 2022. Stephen, this seems pretty messy!
Read More: Weka Violates MinIO’s Open Source Licenses
Read More: WEKA Responds to Unfounded Allegations Made by MinIO Regarding Open Source Licensing
14:09 – OVHcloud Owes for Data Damages
Two years ago we reported on a fire at OVHcloud and how it affected their cloud hosting. This week a French court has ruled that the backup data that was destroyed in the fire is the responsiblity of OVHcloud and they’re going to have to pay the customers that lost it. In one case, OVHcloud tried to argue that the fire was force majure and they weren’t liable for the loss. The defendants were able to show that OVHcloud had restarted the failed server but had somehow caused it to purge the data. In the other case, Bati Courtage found out the data they had been told wasn’t stored in the same building as the production server was, in fact, stored there when the server and backups were destroyed in the fire. OVHcloud is appealing the rulings. Tom, could a provider successfully argue that these things are beyond their control?
Read More: OVHcloud must pay damages for lost backup data
18:42 – Arm Wants an Arm and a Leg for Chip Licenses
If you’ve been wondering what the fallout would be from Arm’s failed attempt to sell itself then your day has finally come. A report says that Softbank is looking to make the rumored IPO of Arm much more attractive through a change in the licensing for their chips. They want to raise prices as well as charge device manufacturers to have Arm-based chips in their phones and tablets. The licensing fees are reportedly based on the overall price of the product to be sold. Softbank is hoping this change will make Arm attractive enough to make money with that future IPO to recoup the massive losses they’ve had after the one-two punch of Arm and WeWork. Stephen, will manufacturers play ball with this new pricing model?
Read More: RISC-Y Business: Arm wants to charge dramatically more for chip licenses
24:52 – Gordon Moore Dies at 94
Computing pioneer and Intel co-founder Gordon Moore has died. His name is commonly used in reference to Moore’s Law, which stated that processors would be exponentially more complex, but he was much more than this. Moore was a visionary, who guided Intel through the DRAM market in the early years and then lead the transition of the company to lay the foundation for modern microcomputers. He quiet and polite, unlike Robert Noyce and Andy Grove, but everyone trusted Moore’s thoughtful and considered decisions. Moore learned from his mistakes, notably a foray into the digital watch market, and was able to lead while allowing others to have thier own autonomy. In a way, Moore created Silicon Valley but was entirely unlike what it has become. We could surely use more leaders in the mold of Gordon Moore!
Read More: Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, prophet of the rise of the PC, dies at 94
Read More: Gordon Moore’s $15 Million Watch – The Story of Intel and Microma
Read More: Gordon Moore: He Stood Alone Among Tech Titans
37:35 – The Weeks Ahead
Networking Field Day 31 – April 12-14, 2023
Networking Field Day Experience at Aruba Atmosphere 2023 – April 25-26
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