Sally Jo: Well, we're all here and the tape is rolling, so let's get started. It's September seventh at Ritual Roasters in the Mission District, and this is the first meeting of the Linux Ladies Red Hat Society Silicon Valley Chapter.
Grace: Interesting venue choice, Sally Jo. Not so much a coffeehouse as a floating office for Web 2.0 entrepreneurs. They should charge these squatters rent.
Roxie: Yeah, not your typical brunch place for a chapter of an organization for over-50 women who wear unflattering headgear and parade around like a gaggle of Blanche Duboises on Muscatel.
Sally Jo: But excellent Wi-Fi connectivity. Now, our agenda...
Roxie: I move we secede from this old ladies club and form a chapter of the Blue Thong Society.
Sally Jo: I don't even want to know what that is. I think we agreed that we were going to brainstorm about ways to use our connections to promote Linux.
Roxie: And Open Office, because if I have to deal with one more Microsoft Word document, I'm going to puke.
Grace: Right, but remember the motto of the Society, and the reason I joined: Life is short; eat dessert first...
Sally Jo: Linux Ladies, meeting two, October sixth, JingJing, Palo Alto.
Grace: Our second meeting, and at a very upscale venue. I guess we're really doing this thing.
Sally Jo: Looks that way. So let's get started. Good lord, Roxie, pull your skirt down. Do you think you're at a Rotary Club luncheon?
Roxie: It's my cell phone.
Grace: It's true, Sally Jo. Look, she's got a cell phone garter.
Roxie: It's from A Little Lingere Company, and it can hold an iPod, too. Hello?
Grace: At least it's purple. The Red Hat Society rules say red hat, purple clothes.
Sally Jo: Yes, I think everyone in JingJing is aware that her garter is purple, dear. Anyway, I thought we could discuss Oracle's decision to create and support its own version of Linux, in order to fork Linux and drive Red Hat out of business.
Grace: Do you really think Larry means to fork the code base? That could destroy Linux.
Sally Jo: Even Jonathan said so, flat out, in his CEO blog at the Sun site.
Grace: Oh, Larry is just throwing a hissy fit over Red Hat buying JBoss. We all know he's done it before.
Roxie: And I haven't forgiven him for Acapulco, either.
Grace: Honey, I wasn't talking about your love life. Oh, flag down that waiter...
Sally Jo: Linux Ladies, meeting three, November fifth, Coupa Cafi, Palo Alto.
Grace: Thanks for indulging me, girls. I thought it was important that we meet in this Venezuelan coffeeshop. Tomorrow's election day and I just want to tweak George Bush any way I can.
Roxie: You're so political, Gracie. Oops. Got a call.
Grace: I also bought Citgo gas this morning.
Sally Jo: Venezuelan-owned, right. We get it. Now, on this morning's agenda...
Grace: Could I add a topic? Voting machines. American democracy is in peril, girls.
Sally Jo: That's nice, dear, but I thought we could start with Microsoft's patent deal with Novell and its "invitation" to other Linux vendors. When Roxie gets off the garterphone.
Roxie: It was just some nice man offering to drive me to the polling place.
Sally Jo: And you didn't have the heart to tell him that you voted absentee, I suppose. Could we discuss the Microsoft thing?
Roxie: Well, it's the end of Linux. Stick a fork in it, it's done.
Grace: Isn't that a little extreme?
Roxie: Microsoft has decided to kill Red Hat and snooker Novell and get control of SUSE and smother Linux. It's obvious.
Sally Jo: Well, I don't know if it's obvious, but I agree they must be up to something. The question is, what are we going to do about it?
Grace: I need a sugar fix...
Sally Jo: Linux Ladies, meeting four, December fourth, Bucks, in Woodside.
Grace: Let me guess: Roxie picked this spot because of all the over-50 VCs who hang out here reminiscing about their past glory.
Roxie: Don't be catty, Grace; I picked Bucks because I can jog here from my place.
Grace: Or could, if you jogged.
Roxie: Well, yes. Oops. Gotta get this.
Grace: It just occurred to me, I've never heard that thing ring.
Sally Jo: I know, don't go there. Anyway, kudos to us on resolving the threats from Oracle and Microsoft.
Grace: Yep. And no one will ever know that it was three ladies of a certain age, meeting for brunch and using their connections, who saved Linux.
Roxie: It's sort of thrilling, isn't it?
Grace: Almost as thrilling as another bear claw...
Michael Swaine
Editor-at-Large
