Former Microsoft CEO Ballmer does about-face on Linux technology

Fifteen years after calling the open-source operating system Linux a "cancer," former Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has softened his position. Speaking on Wednesday night at a dinner hosted by Fortune magazine, Ballmer said the position was right for the time, but the threat from Linux was now "in the rearview mirror." "The company made a ton of money by fighting that battle very well," he said. "It's been incredibly important to the company's revenue stream" to maintain its posit