25 years of DOS

Microsoft is planning to celebrate the 25th anniversary of DOS. This article examines the reasons for the success of DOS and posits that Linux is at the same inflection point DOS was at 25 years ago. According to the author, one of the reasons this inflection point has come about is that people are fed up with Microsoft's greed:

A friend of mine told me he thinks that if Microsoft released just 10% of the roughly $2 BILLION in CASH (does not include other assets) to help curb diseases and help starvation, many people could be helped. Instead the goal and mode of operation is to continue to amass wealth. People see this. People know this. It bugs them.

I respectfully disagree. Why should Microsoft spend its cash reserves on charity? The company's charter is to make money for its stockholders, not eliminate hunger, poverty and disease. By the same token, why doesn't Sun, IBM or Oracle use their money this way? Why target only Microsoft?

IMO, the real reason people don't like Microsoft is that they have cottoned on to its predatory and monopolistic policies, claims of non-existent innovation, poor track record vis-a-vis security and the endless upgrade-without-real-benefits road it forces its users to take.