On vendor lock-in

(and sometimes open-source vendor lock-in)

Thanks to @nzaharioudakis (whom I had asked whether Debian stable is an adequate platform to run Zimbra on) I remembered the following quote from “Conquest in Cyberspace“:

“The seducer, for instance, could have an information system attractive enough to entice other individuals or institutions to interact with it by, for instance, exchanging information or being granted access. This exchange would be considered valuable; the value would be worth keeping. Over time, one side, typically the dominant system owner, would enjoy more discretion and influence over the relationship, with the other side becoming increasingly dependent. Sometimes the victim has cause to regret entering the relationship; sometimes all victim regrets is not receiving its fair share of the joint benefits. But if the “friendly” conquest is successful, the conqueror is clearly even better off.”

Even though the above is written in cyberwarfare (political) language, the point is very clear and the IBM executive’s phrase becomes well understood:

“Because you don’t want to get locked into an open system”

(One has to keep in mind that the phrase is taken somewhat out of context. Some 20 years ago when he spoke of “open systems” he meant OSI).

I do not want to get locked in any system.

→ “You ALWAYS pay“