Top Linux Engineer Converted to Microsoft

Microsoft is betting big on Linux, partly because of its agreement with Novell at the beginning of November 2007. The company recently beefed up its ranks with a new Director of Linux Interoperability. Tom Hanrahan, formerly the Linux Foundation's director of engineering, will begin his work at Microsoft as the lead of the Microsoft/Novell Interoperability Lab, created by the Redmond Company at the beginning of 2007. In this context, Microsoft demonstrates further commitment to support Windows and Linux interoperability.

"I'm proud to announce a leader at Microsoft who has the sole purpose of bringing Windows and Linux technologies together: Tom Hanrahan. Tom will join as the Director of Linux Interoperability, and will head our Linux/Windows interoperability work, including leadership of the Microsoft/Novell Interoperability Lab. This development lab will undertake much of the engineering work involved in the multi-year technical partnership," revealed Sam Ramji, Microsoft's director of platform technology strategy.

Microsoft has stressed over and over again that the Director of Linux Interoperability will have the role of building on the interoperability of the two platforms. Hanrahan has also been the leader of IBM's Linux Technology Center in Portland and he also worked at Sequent Computer Systems. Ramji revealed that the addition of Hanrahan is already delivering the first results. In his new role at Microsoft, Hanrahan will be directly subordinated to Ramji.

"Among other things, Tom has much to teach us on "developing in the open" - how to work in a transparent way with a broad engineering community. Tom brings 30 years of engineering, management and community development experience to this effort - and the larger Microsoft community. Prior to joining Microsoft, Tom was the Director of Engineering at the Linux Foundation where he was responsible for managing a variety of technical initiatives."