Microsoft’s GitHub Deal Triggers Coders’ Trust Issues

The software-development world was rocked on Monday when Microsoft Corp. said it’s acquiring GitHub Inc., a popular online platform for sharing and collaborating on code. While some programmers think the news is terrific, others say it’s terrifying.

Their fear comes from a very real historical clash between open-source coders, who freely post and share their work, and Microsoft, which became one of the world’s largest companies by selling proprietary software and fiercely protecting its technology. In 2001, a Windows executive called open source “an intellectual-property destroyer,” and hinted that it went against “the American Way” of doing business. Former Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer called it a “cancer.”

The Microsoft of today, which is focused on cloud computing and has forged new partnerships under CEO Satya Nadella, is far different from the open-source-hostile one of years past. But not all software developers have noticed the shift, and not everyone trusts the company that was once a central antagonist to the types of developers who congregate on GitHub.