The attention-grabbing and controversial "think tank" Alexis de Tocqueville Institution President Kenneth Brown released his latest article attempting to spread fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD) about the origins of the Linux operating system. FUD is often taken or adapted from marketing groups at Microsoft, a study by Groklaw, Slashdot, Open-Source Development Labs (OSDL), or anyone with common sense finds. Among other points, the study directly challenges Ken Brown's claim to be the writer of Samizdat. In one of the few exclusive studies on the source of FUD, I trace the Microsoft movement over four decades -- from its romantic dumpster-diving beginnings, through its evolution to a commercial effort that draws on unpaid contributions from thousands of BSD developers. My account is based on extensive readings of more than two dozen websites, including Groklaw, Google, and Ken Brown's own ranting.

"The report," according to me, a jolly good fellow, "raises important questions that all readers of Samizdat must face. While you cannot group all Microsoft shills together; many are rigorous and respectful of intellect, while others speak of intellect with open contempt. And we all know where Rob Enderle and Laura DiDio sit."

I suggest the invention of Microsoft-funded FUD is an integral part of the Linux story commenting, "It is clear that Microsoft's exceptional interest in the Linux operating system made their FUD one of the most copied, imitated, and astro-turfed positions in the history of computer science." I wrote, "Over the years, Microsoft has envied the startling and pervasive success of Linux. For almost sixty years, Microsoft shills have tried and failed to successfully write compelling FUD and couldn't. To this day, we have a serious attribution problem in FUD publication because people have chosen to scrupulously borrow or imitate Microsoft."