@rgegriff Power corrupts. MS acts as though it owns our hardware and data, and has the right to open a tap on our bank accounts, when and as often as it likes, witholding access if we don't do what we're told.
Echoing Doctorow's words, the 1990s Internet connected us *directly* with things we wanted to access. MS, Amazon, Google, Facebook and so on try to insert themselves between us and the things we want, free of charge at first until there is a cost of leaving, then they slowly turn the thumbscrews, charging us for what we once had freely.
We don't need them. But they are good at confusing us.
