Sanity check: How Microsoft beat Linux in China and what it means for freedom, justice, and the price of software

Who remembers Red Flag Linux? Born during the dot-com boom and officially financed and adopted by the Chinese government, Red Flag Linux was supposed to be China’s answer for avoiding the double-team of Windows and Microsoft Office that dominates the rest of the world’s PCs. In some circles, the potential spread of Red Flag Linux in the world’s most populated nation was even hailed as a critical sign that Microsoft was not going to be able to spread its domination of the software market to the rest of the world.